[ film ]
CINEMA LISTING *Unless specific times are listed, please check the theater for times. Theater locations are subject to change.
Bengali E-Flat (Komal Gandhar) Directed by Ritwik Ghatak (India, 1961, 134 min.)
This tale of two rival theater groups struggling to collaborate is at once a backstage drama and an allegory about the partitioning of Bengal. Freer Gallery of Art Sun., May 5, 4 p.m.
The Golden Thread (Subarnarekha) Directed by Ritwik Ghatak (India, 1965, 143 min.)
In a refugee neighborhood on the outskirts of 1950s Calcutta, young Ishwar and his little sister Seeta take in an abandoned boy, Abhiram. Years later, Seeta and Abhiram fall in love, but the sudden reappearance of Abhiram’s mother confirms his lower-caste status, much to Ishwar’s dismay. Freer Gallery of Art Sun., May 12, 2 p.m.
A River Called Titus Directed by Ritwik Ghatak (India/Bangladesh, 1973, 159 min.)
In this spare and beautiful portrait of a 1930s fishing community on the banks of the Titas River in East Bengal, a couple is separated by a kidnapping. But while the wife escapes her captors and finds shelter with the townspeople, her husband goes mad with grief. Freer Gallery of Art Sun., May 19, 2 p.m.
believes that he can get Adam to see the light in this blackly comic biblical allegory. AFI Silver Theatre Sat., May 4, 12 p.m., Mon., May 6, 7:30 p.m.
Adam’s Apples (Adams æbler) Directed by Anders Thomas Jensen (Denmark/Germany, 2005, 94 min.)
Fresh from prison, neo-Nazi Adam is sentenced to 12 weeks of community service at a country church, where a priest
Directed by Mark Kitchell (U.S., 2012, 101 min.)
Ben X Directed by Nic Balthazar (Belgium, 2006, 90 min.)
Diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, teenager Ben is more at home playing his favorite online computer game than in the real world, where he’s harassed by school bullies. Increasingly isolated, Ben is visited by a beautiful fellow gamer who advises him to extract revenge on his tormentors. AFI Silver Theatre Thu., May 2, 9:30 p.m.
Unfolding in five acts, the documentary chronicles grassroots and global environmental movement building over five decades, connecting the causes and exploring how we got here and where we’re going. Landmark’s E Street Cinema Opens Fri., May 3
Hava Nagila Directed by Roberta Grossman (U.S./Ukraine/Israel, 2012, 73 min.)
The Angel’s Share
This documentary examines the history, mystery and meaning of the infectious Jewish party song in an around-the-world journey from Ukraine to YouTube.
Directed by Ken Loach (U.K./France/Belgium/Italy, 2012, 101 min.)
The Avalon Theatre West End Cinema
English
Narrowly avoiding jail, a gruff but benevolent man vows to turn over a new leaf for his newborn son — and a visit to a whisky distillery inspires him and his mates to seek a way out of their hopeless lives. Landmark’s E Street Cinema
Antares Directed Götz Spielmann (Austria, 2004, 119 min.)
Three couples, residents of a drab high rise on the outskirts of a large city, are further connected by marriage, divorce and affairs (English, German and Croatian; explicit sexuality). AFI Silver Theatre Mon., May 27, 9:10 p.m., Thu., May 30, 9:45 p.m.
Hellboy Directed by Guillermo del Toro (U.S., 2004, 122 min.)
Summoned from the fiery depths by Nazi occultists in the final days of World War II, rescued by an Allied platoon and raised by kindly Professor Bruttenholm to fight for good, Hellboy is now the premier agent in the top-secret Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense. AFI Silver Theatre May 18 to 20
Hellboy II: The Golden Army Directed by Guillermo del Toro (U.S./Germany, 2008, 120 min.)
With the exiled elf prince Nuada seeking to start a war with the human race, Hellboy and his pals must use not only their mighty powers but also their wits to stave off disaster.
Directed by Olivier Assayas (France/Germany, 2010, 334 min.)
Olivier Assayas’s celebrated biopic of the notorious international terrorist known as Carlos the Jackal, a political radical from Venezuela who masterminded a wave of terror attacks in Europe and the Middle East in the 1970s and ’80s, was hailed for its probing look at the life of this shadowy
Repertory Notes
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figure (in English and multiple languages). AFI Silver Theatre Fri., May 24, 1 p.m., Sun., May 26, 1 p.m.
A Fierce Green Fire
Dutch
Carlos
Danish
THE WASHINGTON DIPLOMAT
AFI Silver Theatre May 24 to 26
History of the World: Part I Directed by Mel Brooks (U.S., 1981, 92 min.)
Having fun with Hollywood’s version of his-
May 2013
tory, from prehistoric cave dwellers to the Roman Empire to the Spanish Inquisition to the French Revolution, Mel Brooks achieves epic spoofery by riffing, zinging and punning his way through this omnibus of period pieces. AFI Silver Theatre May 24 to 26
I Was a Male War Bride Directed by Howard Hawks (U.S., 1949, 105 min.)
In post-WWII Germany, French Captain Henri Rochard (Cary Grant) and American WAC Lieutenant Catherine Gates (Ann Sheridan) go from antagonistic co-workers to passionate lovebirds while on assignment out in the field, and get married. AFI Silver Theatre May 25 to 28
Love Is All You Need (Den skaldede frisør) Directed by Susanne Bier (Denmark/Sweden/Italy/France/Germany, 2012, 112 min.)
A hairdresser who has lost her hair to cancer finds out her husband is having an affair, travels to Italy for her daughter’s wedding, and meets a widower who still blames the world for the loss of his wife. Angelika Mosaic Opens Fri., May 10 Landmark’s E Street Cinema Opens Fri., May 3
My Brother the Devil Directed by Sally El Hosaini (U.K., 2012, 111 min.)
Two teenage brothers must face their own prejudices head on if they are to survive the perils of being British Arabs growing up on the streets of gangland London. Landmark’s E Street Cinema Opens Fri., May 10
No Place on Earth Directed by Janet Tobias (U.K./Germany/U.S., 2012, 81 min.)
This documentary brings to light the untold story of 38 Ukrainian Jews who survived World War II by living in caves for 18 months, the longest-recorded sustained underground survival (English, German and Yiddish).
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
The Reluctant Fundamentalist Directed by Mira Nair (U.S./U.K./Qatar, 2012, 128 min.)
A young Pakistani man chasing corporate success on Wall Street finds himself embroiled in a conflict between his American Dream, a hostage crisis, and the enduring call of his family’s homeland. Landmark’s E Street Cinema Opens Fri., May 3
Welcome Directed by Philippe Lioret (France, 2009, 110 min.)
Seventeen-year-old Kurdish refugee Bilal is caught trying to stow away on a barge from France to England and sent to an illegal immigrant compound. Intent on reuniting with his girlfriend in London, the headstrong Bilal starts training at the municipal pool run by coach Simon so he can swim the English Channel (English, French and Kurdish). AFI Silver Theatre Thu., May 16, 7:20 p.m.
Finnish Mother of Mine (Äideistä parhain) Directed by Klaus Härö (Finland/Sweden, 2005, 111 min.)
In World War II, 9-year-old Eero is sent by his beloved mother to live on a remote farm in Sweden, where his surrogate father is welcoming and warm, but his surrogate mother is cold, and even cruel. As Eero tries to adjust to the culture, he feels increasingly alienated from everyone, until a touching confession from his surrogate mother changes everything (Finnish and Swedish). AFI Silver Theatre Fri., May 31, 2 p.m.
French Cesar and Rosalie (César et Rosalie) Directed by Claude Sautet (France/Italy/W. Germany, 1972, 110 min.)
Rosalie is amicably divorced from César,
by Washington Diplomat film reviewer Ky N. Nguyen
Please see International Film Clips above for detailed listings available at press time.
spective of the political Bengali master director with “E-Flat” (Sun., May 5, 4 p.m.), “The Golden Thread” (Sun., May 12, 2 p.m.) and “A River Called Titas” (Sun., May 19, 2 p.m.)
Freer Gallery of Art
((202) 357-2700, www.asia.si.edu/events/films.asp
The Freer and the National Museum of African Art screen a rare look at African expatriates in China. “China and Africa Onscreen: ‘My Father’s House’” (Wed., May 1, 7 p.m.) is discussed by Dr. Yoon Jung Park, convener-coordinator of the Chinese in Africa/Africans in China Research Network and a visiting professor of African Studies from Howard University.
American Film Institute (AFI) Silver Theatre
Chinese director Luo Li discusses in person his independent film “Emperor Visits the Hell” (Sun., May 5, 1 p.m. ), copresented by the Confucius Institute at the University of Maryland.
The series “AFI Life Achievement Award Retrospective: Mel Brooks” (through July 2) looks back at the American filmmaker and comedian’s belly-aching career.
“American Originals Now: Zoe Beloff” (May 4-5) offers a retrospective of artist Zoe Beloff, media and art professor at Queens College. “ Working primarily with film, installation, and drawings on paper she explores spiritualism, psychoanalysis, and — more recently — progressive social movements with a keen interest in manifesting and communicating what seems ephemeral,” according to the gallery.
“The Revolutionary Cinema of Ritwik Ghatak” continues the retro-
“AFI Silver Silent Cinema Showcase” continues through May 4.
(202) 842-6799, www.nga.gov/programs/film
The retrospective “Visionario: The Films of Guillermo del Toro” (through July 2) honors the stylish Mexican director. May selections include: “Blade II,” “The Devil’s Backbone,” “Hellboy” and “Hellboy II: The Golden Army.”
(301) 495-6700, www.afi.com/silver
National Gallery of Art The program “Méliès: A Trip to the Moon and More” (Wed., May 1, 2 p.m.; Thu., May 2, 12:30 p.m.; Fri., May 3, 12:30 p.m.) reviews the pioneering early silent films of French cinematic illusionist Georges Méliès (1861-1938).
The Washington Diplomat
May 2013