Films & Schedules - P

Physicists from all over the world in search of the theoretical Higgs particle collaborated on the planning and construction of the 18-mile-long Cern Large Hadron Collider. Situated in an underground complex near the Franco-Swiss border, it’s allegedly the biggest, most expensive scientific experiment ever made. The idea was to recreate conditions immediately after the Big Bang, allowing a closer understanding of the origin of matter. Physicist-turned-filmmaker Mark Levinson was there with his cameras when the collider went online, and he found a way of approaching the experiment as an epic adventure story, involving multiple setbacks, mysteries, and—according to hysterical press...

Physicists from all over the world in search of the theoretical Higgs particle collaborated on the planning and construction of the 18-mile-long Cern Large Hadron Collider. Situated in an underground complex near the Franco-Swiss border, it’s allegedly the biggest, most expensive scientific experiment ever made. The idea was to recreate conditions immediately after the Big Bang, allowing a closer understanding of the origin of matter. Physicist-turned-filmmaker Mark Levinson was there with his cameras when the collider went online, and he found a way of approaching the experiment as an epic adventure story, involving multiple setbacks, mysteries, and—according to hysterical press accounts—the possible end of the world as we know it. Fortunately, one doesn’t need a Ph.D. in particle physics to keep up with a documentary as thrilling as any fiction. (97 mins.)

Director Mark Levinson in attendance 2/8 and 2/10. Mark is still attending the Saturday, 2/8 screening despite the snow!

Filmography: Prisoner of Time (93).

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Documentary.

“To uncover the strange in the ordinary, the unsettling in the everyday: this is the mark of imaginative wizardry that can be found in abundance in People in Places. Working with the tiniest of micro-budgets, Cavestany stages a series of bizarre, Buñuelian scenarios that offer a cracked view of contemporary Spain in the wake of the economic crisis. Making use of some of Spain’s greatest actors alongside faces, he places them in bizarre situations that will have you laughing out loud. Moving from one nondescript location to the next, a theme, or perhaps more of an undercurrent, emerges—until the fiercely...

“To uncover the strange in the ordinary, the unsettling in the everyday: this is the mark of imaginative wizardry that can be found in abundance in People in Places. Working with the tiniest of micro-budgets, Cavestany stages a series of bizarre, Buñuelian scenarios that offer a cracked view of contemporary Spain in the wake of the economic crisis. Making use of some of Spain’s greatest actors alongside faces, he places them in bizarre situations that will have you laughing out loud. Moving from one nondescript location to the next, a theme, or perhaps more of an undercurrent, emerges—until the fiercely political nature of the film becomes apparent. Voyeuristic and confounding, Cavestany uses the preposterous to highlight the all-too-real, capturing people in places doing very, very peculiar things.”—Toronto International Film Festival. (83 mins.)

Filmography: Gente de mala calidad (08), Dispongo de barcos (10).

Sponsored by PRAGDA, with support from Spain Arts & Culture and the Spain/USA Foundation.

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Narrative Feature, Spanish Language.

A young Catholic priest takes subversive action to enforce the Church’s position on birth control among his flock and soon has a baby boom on his hands in Vinko Brešan’s acerbic satire, adapted from the scandalously popular stage play. New priest Father Fabijan takes charge of the parish on the bucolic Adriatic island of Dnevnik, a location that has seen its population steadily dwindle. After hearing confession from a devout kiosk vendor racked with guilt over selling condoms, Father Fabijan hits upon a solution to both their problems: pierce the prophylactics. Once they enlist a kooky nationalistic pharmacist in their...

A young Catholic priest takes subversive action to enforce the Church’s position on birth control among his flock and soon has a baby boom on his hands in Vinko Brešan’s acerbic satire, adapted from the scandalously popular stage play. New priest Father Fabijan takes charge of the parish on the bucolic Adriatic island of Dnevnik, a location that has seen its population steadily dwindle. After hearing confession from a devout kiosk vendor racked with guilt over selling condoms, Father Fabijan hits upon a solution to both their problems: pierce the prophylactics. Once they enlist a kooky nationalistic pharmacist in their efforts, who fills the local women’s prescriptions for birth control pills with placebos, pregnancies skyrocket, and the island gains a reputation as a fertility spa. But all this playing God brings unintended consequences. (93 mins.)

Filmography: How the War Started on My Island (96), Marsal (99), Witnesses (03), Will Not End Here (08).

REVIEW

Interests: Narrative Feature.

“As a pregnant Esther (Alexia Rasmussen) walks home, she is viciously attacked by a hooded assailant. In the wake of this traumatic event, she finds some consolation and normalcy in the kindly Melanie (Alexa Havins), whom she meets at a support group. But a chance encounter makes it clear that nothing—and no one—in Esther’s life is as it appears. Setting off a chain reaction of increasingly shocking revelations, Proxy twists and turns its way through loss, grief, and death. The surprise standout is auteur Joe Swanberg in a supporting role as Melanie’s husband. Be warned: Proxy begins with some deeply...

“As a pregnant Esther (Alexia Rasmussen) walks home, she is viciously attacked by a hooded assailant. In the wake of this traumatic event, she finds some consolation and normalcy in the kindly Melanie (Alexa Havins), whom she meets at a support group. But a chance encounter makes it clear that nothing—and no one—in Esther’s life is as it appears. Setting off a chain reaction of increasingly shocking revelations, Proxy twists and turns its way through loss, grief, and death. The surprise standout is auteur Joe Swanberg in a supporting role as Melanie’s husband. Be warned: Proxy begins with some deeply disturbing content, but this immensely challenging thriller will reward audiences who stick with it as it delves into very dark territory and confronts our every assumption and belief about what we have seen.”—Toronto International Film Festival. (120 mins.)

Director Zack Parker in attendance.

Filmography: Inexchange (06), Quench (07), Scalene (11).

Screening begins at midnight

FILM REVIEW

Interests: Narrative Feature.