English summary
18 FEBRUARY TO 2 MARCH
Following the successful retrospective of the Italian director Valerio Zurlini in 2006, Filmhuis Den Haag again presents a ‘forgotten’ cinematographer: Joseph Strick. Joseph Strick, the American film director, scenario writer, producer and entrepreneur, born in 1923, died on the first of June last year. Not reported by the Dutch film press, his death was mentioned only in film critic Hans Beerekamp’s blog ‘Het schimmenrijk’. Thus, a clear case of a forgotten director; which always arouses curiosity. And as it turns out, Joseph Strick defies any simple description: as a nonconformist, he was anyway someone that didn’t care to belong to any group or category. Not to the American New Wave, under which his film The savage eye was classified, and not to a group of other idiosyncratic directors that brought modernist literature to the silver screen from the early 1960s on. Characteristic for Strick is, secondly, his wide-ranging or, more kindly put, his versatile film oeuvre. This is all the more striking given the modest number of films he managed to realise in the end. His style and choice of themes range from the experimental (as in Muscle beach 1948 and The savage eye 1959), to the non-existent genre of ‘unfilmable’ literature (The balcony by Jean Genet in 1963, two novels by James Joyce, Ulysses and A portrait of the artist as a young man, in 1967 and 1977 respectively, and Henry Miller’s Tropic of cancer in 1970), to documentary (for instance the groundbreaking Interviews with My Lai veterans in 1971). He also explored the uglier side of American society, principally with the feature film Road movie (1974), to ultimately conclude his film career after a long break with Criminals, once again a documentary, which offers a comparatively unfiltered view of how criminals see themselves, their victims and their crimes.
In other words, Strick was a filmmaker who simply can’t be categorized. He won an Oscar for the documentary Interviews with My Lai veterans, which has lost none of its relevance given the current situation in Iraq and Afghanistan. Strick did not leave behind a consistent oeuvre of only masterpieces, but all his films are unconventional and inventive, thoughtprovoking and invite discussion. Reason enough to look forward to getting acquainted with this forgotten filmmaker. But if you need that extra nudge: Joseph Strick may have been forgotten, but the literary masterpieces on which he based four of his films certainly have not. We trust you’ll find these films a stimulating experience!
the balcony
petits ruisseaux
ZAAL5 / Orbital Re-Enactments 10 FEBRUARY TO 9 MARCH
Joanna Lombard was born in 1972 in Algeria, to Swedish-French parents. She spent part of her youth in a commune in rural Sweden. In 2010 she graduated from the Stockholm art academy with the video installation Orbital Re-Enactments, which can now be viewed in ZAAL5 starting 10 February. In her work, Lombard re-enacts situations that are based on reality, but also formed by her own and other people’s personal memories. In this way she explores such themes as origins and identity, and the relation between the individual and the collective.
Silent movie & Live music MONDAY 14/2, 14/3, 18/4 AND 16/5
Last year we celebrated our jubilee of 25 years of Silent Movie with a retrospective of F.W. Murnau. As his films often portray a male lead character, it’s high time to swing the spotlight on female actresses! And we might also take a brief break from German cinema. Hence our motto for the upcoming season is: Women of the world... The first edition of our programme is scheduled for 14 February, with La sirène des tropiques, the film debut of Joséphine Baker (though she was born and raised in Missouri, USA). After that the stage belongs to Vera Baranovskaya, the grand old lady of Russian cinema and the star of Pudovkin’s revolution drama The mother / Mat. In April it’s all eyes on the Dutch film star Annie Bos. She shines in Een Carmen van het Noorden (A Carmen of the North), one of many film adaptations of Merimée’s
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The forgotten films by Joseph Strick
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For more extensive English language information about our programmes, please visit our bilingual website www.filmhuisdenhaag.nl. There you can toggle between the Dutch and English site using a button located at the top right of your screen!
novella, or Bizet’s opera. Spring comes to a close with a remarkably romantic role by Lily Marischka as Turkish harem mistress. Enis Aldjelis, die Blume des Ostens, or Enis, dogunun çiçegi was also one of the first feature films ever made in Turkey. Lily was the wife of the Austrian director Ernst Marischka, who bestowed eternal fame on Romy Schneider with three films toward the end of his career.
French premieres As it happens, there are no Englishlanguage premieres this month. We therefore kindly draw all expats’ attention to two French-spoken films. INCENDIES
From 10 February The Canadian director Denis Villeneuve brings us a masterly portrayal of a family drama. The twins Jeanne and Simon Marwan are astounded to receive from their notary two letters from their deceased mother Nawal. One letter is addressed to their father, who they thought was dead, and one is for a brother they never knew existed. Jeanne decides to travel to the Middle East to learn more about their family history. LES PETITS RUISSEAUX
From 17 February Pascal Rabaté, director and award-winning comic book writer, cheerfully shows that there is life beyond the proverbial geraniums. Although rather opposite characters, Emile and Edmond frequently go fishing together by the Loire. Following the abrupt death of his active and lighthearted fishing companion, the reclusive Emile decides it’s time to turn his life around. He meets some colourful characters including an attractive lady, awakening an irrepressible urge to live it up.
Feb 2011 / 11