Films & Schedules - A

This year’s Indian submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar is a quiet, contemplative film in which one man’s sincerity and virtue shine through. Aging Abu and his wife share the lifelong dream of devout Muslims to go on a religious pilgrimage to Mecca before they die. They register their names with a travel agent but soon realize that their ambition will require severe sacrifices. They sell everything they have of any value, including the jackfruit tree in front of their house. Although the tree is found to be hollow and the timber merchant is willing to take the...

This year’s Indian submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar is a quiet, contemplative film in which one man’s sincerity and virtue shine through. Aging Abu and his wife share the lifelong dream of devout Muslims to go on a religious pilgrimage to Mecca before they die. They register their names with a travel agent but soon realize that their ambition will require severe sacrifices. They sell everything they have of any value, including the jackfruit tree in front of their house. Although the tree is found to be hollow and the timber merchant is willing to take the loss, Abu—being a true Muslim—will only accept money to go to Hajj according to the principles of Islam and turns down the offer. This rare tale of Muslim community life in the South Indian state of Kerala also won the Gold Lotus (Best Film Award) at the Indian National Film Awards. (112 mins.)

First Feature.

Ages 13+.

Sponsored by Vindalho.

FILM REVIEW

Interests: New Directors, Oscar Submissions, Family Fare.

Aglaée isn’t interested when Benoit asks her out, but upon discovering it was a cruel playground joke, the tables begin to turn. (19 mins.)

See SHORT CUTS I: INTERNATIONAL TIES to purchase tickets.

Aglaée isn’t interested when Benoit asks her out, but upon discovering it was a cruel playground joke, the tables begin to turn. (19 mins.)

See SHORT CUTS I: INTERNATIONAL TIES to purchase tickets.

Interests: Short Cuts.

Winner of the Audience Award at the Chicago Film Festival and German Film Prizes for Best Film and Best Screenplay, Almanya is a breezy culture clash comedy centering on multiple generations of a German-Turkish clan. After working for 45 years in Germany as a Turkish “gastarbeiter” or guest worker, Hüseyin Yilmaz, now in his 70s and a citizen, announces to his family that he has bought a house in Turkey and wants everyone to go back with him to renovate it. After some convincing, the family is Anatolia-bound. Cross-cutting between Hüseyin and his young family’s migration to Germany (Almanya) in...

Winner of the Audience Award at the Chicago Film Festival and German Film Prizes for Best Film and Best Screenplay, Almanya is a breezy culture clash comedy centering on multiple generations of a German-Turkish clan. After working for 45 years in Germany as a Turkish “gastarbeiter” or guest worker, Hüseyin Yilmaz, now in his 70s and a citizen, announces to his family that he has bought a house in Turkey and wants everyone to go back with him to renovate it. After some convincing, the family is Anatolia-bound. Cross-cutting between Hüseyin and his young family’s migration to Germany (Almanya) in the 1960s and the now much-expanded brood’s road trip in the current day, Almanya is a family story mixed with laugh-out-loud humor. Samdereli’s film delivers a touching reflection on cultural misunderstandings and the fundamental question of what constitutes national identity, if not necessarily assimilation. (101 mins.)

First Feature.

Sponsored by Zeitgeist Northwest.

FILM REVIEW

Interests: New Directors, Comedy.

Marcela is a young Bolivian immigrant woman living in Spain. Her sweetness and sensitivity are instantly perceptible, yet when she learns she is pregnant with the child of her flower-thief boyfriend, the terrified Marcela is forced to find a way to support herself and her extravagant husband. Taking a job caring for the ill and elderly Amador, Marcela’s kind nature enables her to make friends with the lonely old man. They quickly share an understanding for one another, revealing the unhappiness in their pasts. But when Amador suddenly dies, Marcela is forced to go to great lengths to pretend he...

Marcela is a young Bolivian immigrant woman living in Spain. Her sweetness and sensitivity are instantly perceptible, yet when she learns she is pregnant with the child of her flower-thief boyfriend, the terrified Marcela is forced to find a way to support herself and her extravagant husband. Taking a job caring for the ill and elderly Amador, Marcela’s kind nature enables her to make friends with the lonely old man. They quickly share an understanding for one another, revealing the unhappiness in their pasts. But when Amador suddenly dies, Marcela is forced to go to great lengths to pretend he is still alive and collect her needed salary. Full of spirituality—and some hilarious hijinks—Amador tells its poignant story through twisted dark comedy, subtle social critique, and memorable performances. (112 mins.)

Selected Filmography: Familia (96), Barrio (98), Mondays in the Sun (02), Princesas (05).

Sponsored by OregonLive.com.

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Narrative Feature, Spanish Language.

Attenberg is about Marina, a young woman living in a small coastal town who is infatuated with synth-pop band Suicide and the mammal documentaries of David Attenborough. Her other primary cultural influence is Monty Python, prompting her and her one friend Bella to adopt some Silly Walks. Despite help from her dying father, a visionary architect, and Bella, she struggles to understand the rituals of human interactions, attempting to make sense of her relationships with sex and death with the same detached manner demonstrated by her favorite naturalist. Given the oddities of human nature, will the virginal Marina ever overcome...

Attenberg is about Marina, a young woman living in a small coastal town who is infatuated with synth-pop band Suicide and the mammal documentaries of David Attenborough. Her other primary cultural influence is Monty Python, prompting her and her one friend Bella to adopt some Silly Walks. Despite help from her dying father, a visionary architect, and Bella, she struggles to understand the rituals of human interactions, attempting to make sense of her relationships with sex and death with the same detached manner demonstrated by her favorite naturalist. Given the oddities of human nature, will the virginal Marina ever overcome her repulsion at the idea of physical contact with the male of the species? Filled with playful set pieces, deadpan humor, and unexpected poignancy, Attenberg defies easy categorization other than as a likely candidate for a future cult classic. (97 mins.)

Filmography: The Slow Business of Going (00).

This year’s Greek submission for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Oscar Submissions, Narrative Feature.

Following his spellbinding Romanian hospital odyssey The Death of Mr. Lazarescu, Aurora is Puiu’s second film in his planned series “Six Stories from the Outskirts of Bucharest.” Here, the tightly wound coldness of middle-aged metallurgical engineer Viorel—played by Puiu himself with inscrutable intensity—slowly metastasizes into a discreet, inaccessible unraveling. Elliptically observing the day-to-day life of a seemingly normal guy who will eventually commit violent acts, Puiu invites the audience to puzzle over his motives. We watch him from a distance as simmering anger and disconnection take hold. “For all the viewer’s constant immersion in the specifics of Viorel’s activity, there’s...

Following his spellbinding Romanian hospital odyssey The Death of Mr. Lazarescu, Aurora is Puiu’s second film in his planned series “Six Stories from the Outskirts of Bucharest.” Here, the tightly wound coldness of middle-aged metallurgical engineer Viorel—played by Puiu himself with inscrutable intensity—slowly metastasizes into a discreet, inaccessible unraveling. Elliptically observing the day-to-day life of a seemingly normal guy who will eventually commit violent acts, Puiu invites the audience to puzzle over his motives. We watch him from a distance as simmering anger and disconnection take hold. “For all the viewer’s constant immersion in the specifics of Viorel’s activity, there’s the sense of constantly rubbing up against the unknowable, as both the character and the meaning of his activity and relationships remain inscrutable.”—Variety (181 mins.)

Filmography: Stuff and Dough (01), The Death of Mr. Lazarescu (05).

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Narrative Feature.