"D. W. Griffith’s 1909 short film A Corner in Wheat, a Biblical tale of avarice, divine retribution, and the prolonged suffering of the masses, is the prelude to this political film essay. Straub-Huillet offer a dialectical montage of cause (capitalist greed) and effect (the poverty of the farmer and the urban underclass), and draw from excerpts of their earlier work: Moses und Aaron, Fortini/Cani, and From the Cloud to the Resistance." - MoMA
1985-12-28
5
0.0BLESSED BLESSED OBLIVION weaves together a portrait of masculine performativity in East Jerusalem, as manifested in gyms, body shops and hair dressing parlors.
0.0The constant movement of the wheels, threads, sprockets, feet and hands suggests restlessness, and this is paralleled by the soundtrack. The unknown woman could be Gretchen from Faust, hopelessly in love or Ariadne who gave Theseus the thread to find his way out of labyrinth or perhaps she is one of the fates, weaving destiny… Enlarged from Super-8 to 35mm, the film is very grainy, in itself an homage to the medium of film which is also emphasized by the depiction of all kinds of turning machines, both in image and sound.
0.0In her second film, MY LIFE AS I LIVE IT (1993), Essie Coffey returns to her home in Dodge City where she and the A-Team are running in the shire elections. Inter-cutting between 1993 and 1978, the film presents the fascinating contrasts of a society in transition. Some of the kids we met in the earlier film now have families of their own and are involved in education, art and sports. Others are drifting, trying to cope with alcohol and depression. Most significantly, community programs offer the possibility of dignity and self-determination. In this film, Essie shows us the Community Development Employment Program (CDEP) making a real difference. Although the CDEP has now come under attack from the Federal government, MY LIFE AS I LIVE IT portrays the CDEP as providing meaningful work and services to an impoverished remote community.
5.5Women from Turkey and Mecklenburg are working together side-by-side at a fish-processing factory in Lübeck. As they work, they share stories about their lives, including their sorrows, griefs, hopes, and dreams, while expressing their longing for home and feelings of being lost in a foreign place.
A portrait of five St. Petersburgians and their connection to The Hermitage.
7.3A rare behind the scenes look at the tragedies and bitter disappointments that plagued one of MGM's most popular leading ladies
0.0In this short documentary, five black women talk about their lives in rural and urban Canada between the 1920s and 1950s. What emerges is a unique history of Canada’s black people and the legacy of their community elders. Produced by the NFB’s iconic Studio D.
5.8Kevin tries to be involved with his son and ex-wife's family for Christmas. During dinner, he thought his Christmas *day* couldn't be more screwed; his son suddenly wishes it was Christmas every day. After that, it was a regular Groundhog's Day. Kevin learns new dance moves and can actually sing. Don't let the caroling fool you.
5.4A chronological look at films by, for, or about gays and lesbians in the United States, from 1947 to 2005, Kenneth Anger's "Fireworks" to "Brokeback Mountain". Talking heads, anchored by critic and scholar B. Ruby Rich, are interspersed with an advancing timeline and with clips from two dozen films. The narrative groups the pictures around various firsts, movements, and triumphs: experimental films, indie films, sex on screen, outlaw culture and bad guys, lesbian lovers, films about AIDS and dying, emergence of romantic comedy, transgender films, films about diversity and various cultures, documentaries and then mainstream Hollywood drama. What might come next?
0.0Anti-war feature documentary uncovering America's support of Hitler and the role of big business in the development of the atomic bomb, the Cold War, and nuclear power.
6.9An investigation into accusations of teenagers being sexually abused within the film industry.
5.4In a futuristic totalitarian utopian society, babies are created through genetic engineering, everyone has a predestined place in society and their minds are conditioned to follow the rules. A tragic outsider jeopardizes the status quo.
4.8GENTLY DOWN THE STREAM is constructed from fourteen dreams taken from eight years' worth of my journals. The text is scratched directly on to the film so that you hear your own voice as you read. The accompanying images of women, water, animals and saints were chosen for their indirect but potent correspondence to the text.
7.1Activist-pranksters Andy Bichlbaum and Mike Bonnano pull the rug out from under mega-corporations, government officials and a complacent media in a series of outrageous stunts designed to draw awareness to the issue of climate change.
0.0This short film is an ode to the women who settled the Prairies, from the days of early immigration to 1916 - when Manitobans became the first women in Canada to receive the provincial vote - and beyond. Recollections of women are complemented by a series of quotations drawn from letters, diaries, and newspapers of the day, which are spoken over re-enacted scenes and archival photographs.
1.0The Great Road (1927) is a Soviet silent documentary directed by Esfir Shub. Serving as the second part of her trilogy on Russian history—between The Fall of the Romanov Dynasty (1927) and Lev Tolstoy and the Russia of Nicolai II (1928)—the film chronicles the revolutionary path of the Soviet Union, assembling archival footage to depict the struggle, transformation, and aspirations of the early Soviet state.
8.0A 3-part documentary granting a unique and privileged access into the magical world of whales and dolphins, uncovering the secrets of their intimate lives as never before. Episode 1: Giant Lives / Episode 2: Deep Thinkers / Episode 3: Voices of the Sea
5.7Wendy is finally settling in to single life after the death of her husband. She runs a successful wedding planning company with the help of her friend Roseanne. Wendy's business and values are challenged when Marco, a charming but irritating divorce attorney, opens shop right next door!
5.1Taryn finds herself gaining much-desired popularity when the charismatic new girl at school claims her as a “breath sister," teaching Taryn about the Choking Game. Hiding it from her ever-present mother, best friend, and teachers, Taryn sees choking as a way to build self-control and grab an easy high. But, as the stakes are raised through each subsequent ‘flight’, Taryn has no idea that she is actually putting her life in extreme danger.
7.4A documentary film depicting five intimate portraits of migrants who fled their country of origin to seek refuge in France and find a space of freedom where they can fully experience their sexuality and their sexual identity: Giovanna, woman transgender of Colombian origin, Roman, Russian transgender man, Cate, Ugandan lesbian mother, Yi Chen, young Chinese gay man…
7.7After successfully won the Tokyo qualifying tournament, Chihaya and her friends are set to go on to the nationals. As they prepare, Chihaya is faced with new personal issues as her childhood friend and inspiration, Arata, has announced that he has quit competitive karuta. Not only that, but a new rival emerges in the reigning female champion karuta player, Shinobu Wakamiya, a karuta prodigy who became the nation's and the world's greatest female karuta player as a 9th grader. All of this forces Chihaya to reexamine her love of the game in the midst of preparing for one of the biggest tournaments of the year.
7.2On the 20th anniversary of their edgy little 90's cable show Underground Entertainment, the authors, along with many SF, horror and B celebrities in cameos, remember how they pushed the envelope, shocked, entertained, but also introduced the audience to many movies, comics and conventions.
5.9At the end of September 1941, Soviet artillery troops in besieged Leningrad realize that pretty soon they will fire their last shot, and after that the defense of the city will be doomed. The film is based on a true event: a small group of fearless soldiers transported a large supply of gunpowder through enemy lines to Leningrad.
4.5Max films his friends having lecherous fun at his own birthday party; unaware of how it will change his life. Just out of high school, by haphazard, he becomes a big porno producer. His father, a principled police major, chases porno makers, not suspecting that one of them lives in his own apartment. Hoodlums and girls from good families, corrupted policemen, petty dealers find themselves in a luring and scary world of porno.
7.7Current instability of climate system impacts ice cores and rises global sea level, as well as changes human life. At the same time only data code of intelligent machines remains constant in the modern geography.
4.4A businessman charters a flight to Tibet to pick up a monk. On the way back, the plane is hijacked, and the monk ends up in a war zone where he has to convince the bandits to change their evil ways.
5.3With the victory against "The Beastly Beasts", "The Wild Soccer Bunch" showed it to everyone and then won every single game. Only one victory now separates them from the "Pott", the Freestyle Soccer Cup. For this they have to compete against the "Wolves of Ragnarök". But the wolves are not normal opponents! They have a dark secret - and behind them lurks a power stronger than all of them: the girl Horizon and the "Silver Lights" from the fog...
4.3A group of college kids on break find themselves in a terrifying situation when they become stranded at the infamous Camp Blood.
Street vendors in Korea are almost like a national institution, they are so widespread and relied upon. In Little Pond in Main Street a group of vendors band together to create a community radio station but come into conflict with other groups, as well as the government trying to shut them down.
5.0A 1915 Victoria Forde comedy. As Lizzie (Forde) has a beautiful voice, everybody in her tiny hometown encourage her to try a career in show business in the big city. As she arrives there, she discovers she’s too clumsy to even be part of the chorus. Her small town boyfriend, Jeb (Lyons) follows her.
7.5Comedian Rik Mayall died suddenly on 9 June 2014. Mayall's blend of rocket-fuelled physical comedy, surrealism, subversive satire and pompous punk wit left a body of work that spanned four decades. Mayall's characters include the Black Country's investigative nerd Kevin Turvey, Felicity Kendal-adoring student and 'People's Poet' Rik in The Young Ones, ruthless MP Alan B'Stard in The New Statesman, seedy loser Richie in Bottom and larger-than-life characters Robin Hood and flying ace Lord Flashheart from Blackadder. Narrated by Simon Callow, this programme salutes Rik Mayall and celebrates his part in the UK's comedy history using rare and unseen archive footage. It also features contributions from people who knew or admired him, including Michael Palin, Simon Pegg, Lenny Henry, Ben Elton, Alexei Sayle, Christopher Ryan, Tim McInnerny, Jools Holland, Ruby Wax and Greg Davies.
6.7A group of friends meet after some years apart and decide to go on a treasure hunt.
5.0In a small town a wealthy aged male named Dharmesh Saxena, known for his worship of Devi Maa Kaali, and magic, is called "Saamri". Dharmesh knows that his end is near, he summons his lawyer and wills his entire estate to his niece, Anju Trivedi. But when Mama Taklifchand, Dharmesh's step-brother, finds this out, he, together with a gorgeous young woman, Maria, a hotel owner, Khanna, professor Chatterjee, and others, kill Dharmesh, throw his body in the river, and when the body is found, inform the police and the public that Dharmesh killed himself. With the case closed, Taklifchand & the others must find ways and means to kill Anju and keep the wealth and estate for themselves. Before they could carry out their plan - one by one they start dying horrible deaths. Looks like Saamri has arisen from the grave to hunt down his killers, and there is no one who can even dare to even think of stopping him.
6.6From the song he refuses to perform to his admiration for Drake, a songwriting legend reflects on his lyrics and longevity with candour and humour. At 80 years young (and currently recording another album), Gordon Lightfoot continues to entertain and enlighten. Personal archive materials and studio sessions paint an intimate picture of an artist in his element, candidly revisiting his idealistic years in Yorkville's coffeehouses, up through stadium tours and the hedonistic '70s.
0.0The reserved Julia has traveled to Vienna, especially to surprise her sister Johanna at her art performance. Johanna has rented a room for her feminist performance, hired two musicians and invited everyone she knows. However, the vernissage apparently turns into a miserably unsuccessful evening, which might bring the two siblings closer together again.
5.0A young man's attempts at seduction and social climbing lead to mayhem.