Tuesdays, 7:30pm in the Little Theatre (Ayres 106),
 $3 suggested donation
Director: Thomasin Saxe, 898-4642, tsaxe@csuchico.edu

September | October | November | December

C.R.A.Z.Y. (2005, Canada) 127 min.

Directed by Jean-Marc Vallée.

Introduced by Bill Campbell, History, and sponsored by the History Club (PhAThH)*

There are five boys in the Beaulieu family—Christian, Raymond, Antoine, Zachary and Yvan. But Zac (played by Emile Vallee and Marc-Andre Grondin) is the only one who's gay. That's why growing up in Montreal alongside his heterosexual brothers and his strict, emotionally distant father (Michel Cote) proves especially challenging for the blossoming outsider, who finds solace in the music of Pink Floyd, the Rolling Stones,and David Bowie.

Spirit of the Wind (1979, U.S.A.) 98 min.

Directed by Ralph Liddle.

Introduced by Elizabeth Newman Kuiper, Art and Art History

True life story of famous Alaskan dog sled driver George Attla. The film shows Attla as a young Athabaskan trapper living in the bush in Alaska and then in a TB sanitarium in town. He comes home with a fused knee to much cross cultural conflict and goes on to find his way as a dog sled driver.

Once Upon a Time in China (Wong Fei Hung) (1991, Hong Kong) 134 min.

Directed by Hark Tsui and starring Jet Li.

Sponsored by the History Club (PhAThH).

Introduced by Wai-hung Wong, Philosophy and Humanities Center*

Set in late 19th century Canton, this martial arts film depicts the stance taken by the legendary martial arts hero Wong Fei-Hung (1847-1924) against foreign forces' (English, French and American) plundering of China. When Aunt Yee arrives back from America totally westernized, Wong Fei-Hung assumes the role of her protector. This proves to be difficult when his martial arts school and local militia become involved in fierce battles with foreign and local government.

Machuca (2004, Chile) 121 min.

Directed by Andrés Wood.

Sponsored by Socidead Estudiantil de Literatura, Arte y Cultura (SELAC).

Introduced by Pilar Alvarez-Rubio, Foreign Languages and Literatures*

In 1973, in Santiago of Chile of the first socialist president democratically elected in a Latin-American country, President Salvador Allende, the principal of the Saint Patrick School, Father McEnroe makes a trial of integration between students of the upper and lower classes. The bourgeois boy Gonzalo Infante and the boy from the slum Pedro Machuca become great friends, while the conflicts on the streets leads Chile to the bloody and repressive military coup of General Augusto Pinochet on 11 September 1973, changing definitely their lives, their relationship and their country.

The Mirror (Zerkalo) (1975, Russia) 106 min.

Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky.

Sponsored by the Humanities Center and introduced by Troy Jollimore, Philosophy and Humanities Center*

Andrei Tarkovsky, the acclaimed master of Soviet cinema, takes a moving and personal turn with this striking meditation on life in Russia during the bleak days of WW II. The Mirror is not just the display of a film director at the peak of his unique powers. As an homage to the innocence of childhood, it tells an enigmatic tale that is both gripping and horrifying. Tarkovsky uses his own coming-of-age experiences, himself "mirror"-ed, to convey the mood and action that dominated a country ravaged by war. Through a fascinating two-tiered time frame, the director blends his own harsh childhood with an adult life that is troubled and broken. Powerful images—a mother faced with political terror, a divorcing couple's quarrel—are underscored by Tarkovsky's masterful manipulation of film stocks and recorded sound. The Mirror becomes a stream-of-consciousness, nostalgic visions of childhood mixed with slow-motion dream sequences and stark WW II newsreels. Tarkovsky's The Mirror is ultimately as much a window through the filmmaker's gaze as it is a reflection of his personal passions and ideals.

Darius Goes West (2007, U.S.A.) 92 min.

Directed by Logan Smalley.

As part of Disability Awareness Month sponsored by the Departments of Education and Professional Studies in Education

This documentary is about Darius Weems, a teenager with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, who, because of his disease, had never left his hometown Athens, GA. In summer 2005, with the help of eleven young friends, 15-year-old Darius set off on a road trip across the U.S. with the ultimate goal of reaching Los Angeles in the hopes of appearing on MTV's show “Pimp My Ride.” They traveled in an RV and tested wheelchair-accessibility during the course of their trip. The film won 24 awards in 2007.

Call Me Troy (2007, U.S.A.) 100 min.

Directed by Scott Bloom.

Sponsored and hosted by Tray Robinson, Office on Diversity

A documentary about Reverend Troy Perry, founder of the Metropolitan Community Church—the first church to recognize the spiritual needs of the gay community. He was the first openly gay person to serve on the Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relations. In 1969, Perry performed the first public same-sex wedding in the U.S., and in 1970 he filed the first-ever lawsuit seeking legal recognition for same-gender marriages.

Blue Vinyl (2004, U.S.A.) 97 min.

Directed by Judith Helfand and Daniel B. Gold.

Sponsored and hosted by Mark Stemen, Environmental Studies, Geography

A detective story, an eco-activism documentary, and a rollicking comedy. Peabody Award-winning filmmaker Judith Helfand and co-director and award-winning cinematographer Daniel B. Gold set out in search of the truth about polyvinyl chloride (PVC), America's most popular plastic. From Long Island to Louisiana to Italy, they unearth the facts about PVC and its effects on human health and the environment.

2nd Annual Narrative Shorts International Film Festival about 90 min.

Hosted by Jason Tannen, University Art Gallery (UAG) director, and in conjunction with continuous screenings at the UAG Dec. 1-16.

An international program of ten films, narrative in structure, by eight filmmakers from the U.S.A., Australia, and England.

The Sacrifice (Offret-Sacrificatio) (1986, Sweden) 145 min.

Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky.

Sponsored by the Humanities Center and introduced by Troy Jollimore, Philosophy and Humanities Center*

This film is a haunting vision of a world threatened with nuclear annihilation. As a wealthy Swedish family celebrates the birthday of their patriarch, Alexander (Erland Josephson), their mood of celebration turns horrific when news of the outbreak of World War III reaches their remote Baltic island. With his arresting palette of luminous grays washing over the bleak landscape—captured on film by Ingmar Bergman's longtime collaborator Sven Nykvist—Tarkovsky conveys the family's psychological devastation as they enter into a waking nightmare. Faced with certain extinction, Alexander performs the ultimate sacrifice, entering into a Faustian bargain with God to save his loved ones from the "sickening, animal fear" which grips them. The director's final film, made as he was dying of cancer, this is a profoundly moving personal masterpiece, a redemptive tragedy steeped in unforgettable imagery and heart-wrenching emotion.

Scipione L'Africano (1937, Italy) 83 min.

Directed by Carmine Gallone.

Introduced by Jessica Clark, History, and sponsored by the History Club (PhAThH)*

Mussolini's government, in addition to making the railroads run on time, could also produce a movie on a lavish scale, including over 6000 extras in the battle scenes. A story of the Second Punic Wars, beginning with Scipio's futile pleas to the Roman Senate to build an army to battle Hannibal, that climaxes with the battle of Zama.

Black Orpheus (Orfeu Negro) (1959, France/Brazil/Italy) 100 min.

Directed by Marcel Camus. Introduced by Anthony Graybosch, Philosophy*

Based on the play Orfeu da Conceição by Vinicius de Moraes, an adaptation of the Greek legend of Orpheus and Eurydice and set in the modern context of a favela in Rio de Janeiro during Carnaval. The film is particularly renowned for its soundtrack by bossa nova legend Antonio Carlos Jobim, featuring songs such as "Manhã de Carnaval" (written by Luiz Bonfá) and "A felicidade" that were to become bossa nova classics. Black Orpheus won the Palme d'Or at the 1959 Cannes Film Festival as well as the 1960 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film and the 1960 Golden Globe for Best Foreign Film.

Facing Windows (La finestra di fronte) (2003, Italy) 102 min.

Directed by Ferzan Ozpetek.

Sponsored by the Italian Club and introduced by Fulvio Orsitto, Foreign Languages and Literatures*

Giovanna (Giovanna Mezzogiorno) and her husband Filippo (Filippo Nigro) have settled into life with jobs that make them unhappy. They argue about money, sex, time and work. There is a sense that this is a marriage whose love is dwindling fast. But one morning, the two of them cross paths with an elderly man suffering from transient global amnesia, remembering nothing about himself and his current situation, although recalling random episodes from his remote past…