Films showing in the 2006 - 2007 season.

The Constant Gardner
Filmed mainly in Kenya, this political drama benefits from Fernando (City of God) Meirelles’ Third World perspective in demonstrating ruthless exploitation by multinational drug companies. The personal level adds poignancy -- difficult to imagine a better version of Le Carré’s novel.
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Innocence
To say this extraordinary film (by Lucile Hadzihalilovic) creates its own world prompts the thought that its girl-school setting is other-worldly, indeed Gothic. Innocence, a bold and brilliant debut, also provides numerous cinematic and literary echoes.
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The Beat That My Heart Skipped (De battre mon coeur s'est arrêté)
The Fingers of the American film (1978) on which Jacque Audiard’s remake is based belong to Tom, a talented pianist whose day job -- muscle for a sleazy real estate operation -- is sucking him into the brutal world of his father. A fascinating exploration of masculinity with an outstanding and schizophrenic soundtrack.
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The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada
Tommy Lee Jones sets his powerful directorial debut on a topical location: the U.S./Mexico border; the result is a movie in which race and the immigration question loom large. ‘Burial’ here evokes John Ford, but this intelligent western is given an intriguing structure by the Mexican writer Guillermo Arriaga (AMORES PERROS and 21 GRAMS).
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Capote
A stunning tour de force by Philip Seymour Hoffman as the successful American writer. Capote’s project to produce a non-fiction work about murder that would rank as great literature becomes an obsession. Catherine Keener as novelist Harper Lee provides excellent support.
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Born into Brothels
New York-based photographer Zana Briski spent years among the poor children of urban prostitutes in India. The provision -- by Briski -- of cameras for the kids formed the basis for this charming, inspiring (and Oscar-winning) documentary. Unsentimental and a feast for the eyes.
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Seperate Lies
Another directorial debut, this time by local writer Julian Fellowes (Gosford Park). The proposition -- a tragedy among the well-to-do unearths lies and deceptions -- is familiar, but Fellowes has a feeling for class nuances and the acting by British regulars is excellent.
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Brokeback Mountain
Sensitively adapted from Annie Proulx’s story, Ang Lee’s splendid western (his second) is a compassionate study of a male love affair in modern Wyoming. His classic style is even-paced but fulfils his hope that the film “presents more questions than answers”.
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13 (Tzameti)
The new director Géla Babluani has claimed that the starting point for this drama was the clash between the violent Georgian culture of the 1990s and the calm sophistication of Paris where he lives. Moral : Think twice before using someone else’s train ticket.
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Tsotsi
First impressions suggest City of God for the South African townships, but this is more lyrical, choosing allegory over gritty realism. Brutality (Tsotsi means thug or gangster) is confronted and the film, propelled by dance hall music (Kwaito), ends on a note of hope..
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Familia Rodante
This road movie can seem as rickety as the camper van in which four generations of a family cross Argentina to attend a wedding. By turns humorous and touching it’s a welcome addition to the cinema of humanism.
Life? Just deal with it !
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Hidden (Caché)
A tense, provocative thriller of exposure and denial with a starry French cast ; it’s also an enquiry into (and teasing representation of) visual surveillance. Boasting a precise attention to mise-en-scène, Hidden has been hailed as a major product of 21st century culture.
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Pierrepoint
Drab postwar Britain is the setting (evoking the recent Vera Drake ) for this biography of the nation’s best-known executioner. At the heart of the film is Timothy Spall’s remarkable performance, subtly registering Pierrepoint’s changing attitude towards capital punishment. 4th out of 14 at the National Viewings.
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Transamerica
Don’t be alarmed by the phrase “pre-op male-to-female transsexual” which describes the lead role in Transamerica. Felicity Huffman plays it superbly, bringing out the character’s hesitancy, vulnerability and underlying determination. The American Dream with a difference.
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Film Day

The General
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The Ladykillers
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The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
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