from the 2008 Wisconsin Film Festival
Mongol
dir: Sergei Bodrov
Khazakhstan/Russia/Mongolia/Germany | 2007 | 99 min | in Mongolian, Kazakh, Tartar, Chinese with English subtitles

opens 27.Jun : 2008 : Madison
Sundance 608 Cinema : check listings

Award-winning Russian filmmaker Sergei Bodrov (Prisoner of the Mountains) illuminates the life and legend of Genghis Khan in this stunning historical epic. As it follows the young Khan, known at that age as Temudgin, from his perilous childhood to the battle that sealed his destiny, the film paints a multidimensional portrait of the future conqueror, revealing him not as an evil brute but as an inspiring, fearless, and visionary leader. Mongol shows us the making of an extraordinary man, and the foundation on which so much of his greatness rested: his relationship with his wife, Borte, his lifelong love and most trusted advisor. In a performance of powerful stillness and subtlety, celebrated young Japanese actor Asano Tadanobu (Last Life in the Universe, WFF04) captures the inner fire that enabled a hunted boy to become a legendary conqueror. Edited by UW graduate and Academy Award-winner Zach Staenberg. Nominee, Best Foreign Language Film, 2008 Academy Awards.
film web site | watch trailer

OPENING NIGHT FILM of the 2008 Wisconsin Film Festival
OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies
OSS 117: Le Caire, Nid d’Espions
dir: Michel Hazanavicius
France 2006 | 99 min | in French with English subtitles

opens 6.Jun : 2008 : Madison
Sundance 608 Cinema : check listings

French comedian Jean Dujardin nails the role of the suave but clueless spy Hubert Bonisseur de la Bath, known as OSS 117, who resembles the young Sean Connery’s James Bond, complete with martini glass and tailored tuxedo. Set in 1955, with spot-on period sets and camerawork, it’s played for laughs, and the brilliantly crisp script sparkles with puns, double-entendres, and visual gags both droll and hammy. OSS 117 must travel to Cairo to solve the disappearance of his former partner Jack. He partners up with Jack’s secretary, the lovely and smart Larmina, who provides a foil to OSS’s colonial blunderings about Muslims. His “condescension toward the locals, his assumption that he’s irresistible to women and his abject lack of intuition make him a well-groomed accident waiting to happen. However, to its credit, the narrative is not merely an excuse for set pieces and gags. From its re-visiting of ”60s-style hand-to-hand combat to the double cross-festooned finale, the screenplay pays off in the manner of all self-respecting thrillers in which the bad guys appear to triumph.“ Winner, Tokyo Grand Prix, 2006 Tokyo International Film Festival; Best Film, Golden Space Needle Award, 2006 Seattle International Film Festival.
film web site | watch trailer

from the 2008 Wisconsin Film Festival
Stuck
dir: Stuart Gordon (UW alum)
USA 2007 | 95 min

opens 4.Jul : 2008 : Madison
Sundance 608 Cinema : check listings

Late one Friday night, after a humiliating day of getting evicted and pounding the pavement for a job, Tom figures he’ll bunk down for the night on a park bench. Along comes Brandi, with a taste for parties and drugs, who slams him with her car, pitching him head-first into her windshield. It’d be a hit-and-run, except the gushing, shattered Tom gets firmly wedged into the windshield frame as Brandi spins off home, freaked as hell. Played brilliantly by top-class actors Mena Suvari (American Beauty) and Stephen Rea (V for Vendetta, The Crying Game), the two square off in a battle of guts as Brandi hides the car in her garage, hoping he’ll eventually expire, and Tom becomes fueled by a survival instinct and some seriously bottled-up rage. Re-Animator director and UW alumnus Stuart Gordon pulls no punches in this visceral thriller, and the script by John Strysik mixes suspense with an undercurrent of social satire and a healthy dollop of the red stuff. “Inspired by a real-life incident so bizarre it’s already been referenced in a ‘Law & Order’ episode, Stuck is ingeniously nasty and often shockingly funny as it incrementally worsens a very bad situation…propelled by the giddy exhilaration always ignited when filmmakers more or less announce that all bets are off.” — Variety.
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Ready (Denikaina)
dir: Seenu Vytla
India 2008 | color | in Telugu with English subtitles

Fri.4.Jul : 2008 : Madison
Westgate Art Cinemas : 10:30 am : $10.50

Chandu, an engineering student, falls in love with Pooja, who comes to visit her uncles in Rayalaseema. A mistaken identity makes Chandu kidnap Pooja who is about to get married. The rest of the story is all about how Chandu sends Pooja back to her place and how he marries her by convincing elders.
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Lakeside Cinema: The Muppet Movie
dir: James Frawley
USA 1979 | 94 min | DVD

Mon.7.Jul : 2008 : Madison
OUTSIDE on the Memorial Union Terrace : 9 pm : FREE : check listings

Jim Henson’s internationally famous Muppets make their feature film debut in the charming, musical fable that follows Kermit the Frog and Fozzie Bear who set out for Hollywood to seek stardom. Along the way, they are joined by Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Ruff the dog, and the rest of the Muppets who all chip in to help Kermit evade the evil Doc Hopper, who wants Kermit to be his “spokesman” for his Frog Leg restaurant chain and help them on their journey to find fame and fortune in Hollywood.

Johnny Guitar
dir: Nicholas Ray
USA 1954 | 110 min | color | 35mm

Fri.11.Jul : 2008 : Madison
UW Cinematheque, 4070 Vilas Hall, 821 University Ave. : 7:30 pm : FREE : check listings

With Joan Crawford, Sterling Hayden, Mercedes McCambridge. The UW Cinematheque kicks off their summer series with Nicholas Ray’s unconventional Western, which François Truffaut once called “dreamlike, magical, unreal to a degree, delirious.” Selected by new Cinematheque projectionist Mike King, Johnny Guitar pits a saloon keeper (Crawford) against a ruthless cattle baroness (McCambridge) in a fight over land and men. Seething with sexual tension and decadently shot in TruColor and CinemaScope, the film was largely dismissed by critics upon its release but has been revived thanks in a large part to the praise of Truffaut and Jean-Luc Godard. Print courtesy of Paramount Pictures. [Nicholas Ray was born in Wisconsin in 1911!]

High Sierra
dir: Raoul Walsh
USA 1941 | 96 min | DVD

Fri.11.Jul : 2008 : Madison
Alicia Ashman Library, 733 N. High Point Rd. : 7 pm : FREE

Adapted from W. R. Burnett’s novel by Burnett and John Huston, High Sierra opens with gangster Roy Earle (Bogart) being paroled after a lengthy prison term. Though he enjoys the fresh air and sunshine of the outside world, Earle has no intention of giving up his criminal ways. In fact, his parole has been arranged by Big Mac, so that Earle can mastermind a big-time heist at a fancy California resort hotel. After a few unkind words with a crooked cop, Kranmer, in Big Mac’s employ, Earle heads toward a fishing resort, where he is to commiserate with his inexperienced, hot-headed cohorts Babe and Red. En route, he befriends a farm family, heading to Los Angeles in search of work. He falls in love with the family’s club-footed daughter Velma (Joan Leslie) — though she never really gives him any encouragement — and makes a silent promise to finance an operation on her foot once he’s gotten his share of the loot.
   Emerging Legends Film Series: The American Film Institute defines “an American screen legend” as an actor or a team of actors with a significant screen presence in American feature-length films whose screen debut occurred in or before 1950.
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Lakeside Cinema: The Rocky Horror Picture Show
dir: Jim Sharman
USA 1975 | 99 min | DVD

Mon.14.Jul : 2008 : Madison
OUTSIDE on the Memorial Union Terrace : 9 pm : FREE : check listings

Probably the oddest, most off-the-wall cult film ever made, this kinky rock’n’roll science fiction horror satire is everybody’s favorite midnight show. A young couple stumbles into a castle inhabited by weirdos from the planet Transylvania including Dr. Frank N. Furter (Tim Curry) a transvestite Frankenstein in rhinestone heels. A marvelous musical spoof which urges, “Give yourself over to total pleasure.” NOTE: Props will be allowed and costumes are encouraged, but please leave the rice at home. It’s a slipping hazard and could make the waterfowl ill.

Lakeside Cinema: The Blues Brothers
dir: John Landis
USA 1980 | 133 min | DVD

Mon.21.Jul : 2008 : Madison
OUTSIDE on the Memorial Union Terrace : 9 pm : FREE : check listings

Jake Blues (John Belushi) leaves Joliet prison and with his brother Elwood (Dan Aykroyd) visits the Chicago orphanage where they were both raised. After discovering the orphanage is closing because of unpaid taxes, they decide to use their music and other less-than-desirable skills to raise the money and save the day.

National Velvet
dir: Clarence Brown
USA 1944 | 124 min | DVD

Fri.25.Jul : 2008 : Madison
Alicia Ashman Library, 733 N. High Point Rd. : 7 pm : FREE

Although National Velvet was the first starring role for 11-year-old Elizabeth Taylor, the early part of the film belongs to Mickey Rooney in the showier role of Mike Taylor, a headstrong English ex-jockey. Soured on life by a serious accident, Mike plans to steal from the country family that has taken him in, but his resolve is weakened by the kindness of young Velvet (Taylor). The two find a common bond in their love of horses. Velvet wins an “unbreakable” horse in a raffle, and enters the animal in the Grand National Sweepstakes. Though Mike is unable to ride the horse, he aids Velvet in her plan to disguise herself as a jockey; she wins the race…but the story isn’t over quite yet. Co-starring as Velvet’s mother is Anne Revere, who won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance. National Velvet is based on the novel by Enid Bagnold.
   Emerging Legends Film Series: The American Film Institute defines “an American screen legend” as an actor or a team of actors with a significant screen presence in American feature-length films whose screen debut occurred in or before 1950.
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Lakeside Cinema: Moulin Rouge!
dir: Baz Luhrmann
Australia, USA 2001 | 127 min | DVD

Mon.28.Jul : 2008 : Madison
OUTSIDE on the Memorial Union Terrace : 9 pm : FREE : check listings

The year is 1899, and Christian (Ewan McGregor) has come to Paris to follow the Bohemian revolution taking hold of the city’s drug and prostitute infested underworld. And nowhere is the thrill of the underworld more alive than at the Moulin Rouge, a night club where the rich and poor men alike come to be entertained by the dancers, but things take a wicked turn for Christian as he starts a deadly love affair with the star courtesan of the club, Satine (Nicole Kidman). But her affections are also coveted by the club’s patron: the Duke. A dangerous love triangle ensues as Satine and Christian attempt to fight all odds to stay together but a force that not even love can conquer is taking its toll on Satine….

Lakeside Cinema: This Is Spinal Tap
dir: Rob Reiner
USA 1984 | 82 min | DVD

Mon.4.Aug : 2008 : Madison
OUTSIDE on the Memorial Union Terrace : 9 pm : FREE : check listings

This satire about a fictional heavy metal group named Spinal Tap spoofs nearly every facet of rock ’n’ roll — from vacuous modern songwriting to half-baked album promos to pyrotechnic concerts. Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, and Harry Shearer portray the washed-up, aging British rockers whose tresses and egos outstrip their talent. Chronicling the band’s evolution and its calamitous comeback tour is filmmaker Marty DiBergi (Rob Reiner).

Films in the Field (film to be announced)

Sat.9.Aug : 2008 : Madison
OUTSIDE at the West Campus sports fields near the Waisman Center : 6 pm : FREE
This free family movie is projected onto a 20-by 40-foot inflatable screen. Enjoy a movie under the stars as well as food and fun, presented by the UW Waisman Center.
check Waisman site for details

Captains Courageous
dir: Victor Fleming
USA 1937 | 116 min | DVD

Fri.8.Aug : 2008 : Madison
Alicia Ashman Library, 733 N. High Point Rd. : 7 pm : FREE

A boy learns life-changing lessons about the importance of friendship and the dignity of labor in this adventure saga based on a story by Rudyard Kipling. Young Harvey Cheyne (Freddie Bartholomew) is the working definition of a spoiled brat. After wolfing down six ice-cream sodas, Harvey gets sick to his stomach and while vomiting over the side of the ship, he falls into the drink. He is rescued by Manuel (Spencer Tracy), a Portuguese old salt who drags him on board a Gloucester fishing boat where he’s a deck hand and doryman. Harvey shows no gratitude to Manuel for saving his life and demands to be taken home immediately; Manuel and the crew, not the least bit sympathetic, inform him that once they’ve filled the ship’s hold with fresh catch, they’ll return to shore, and not a moment sooner. Over the next few weeks, Harvey grows from a self-centered pantywaist into a young man who appreciates the value of a hard day’s work, and in Manuel he finds the strength, guidance, and good sense that he never got from his father.
   Emerging Legends Film Series: The American Film Institute defines “an American screen legend” as an actor or a team of actors with a significant screen presence in American feature-length films whose screen debut occurred in or before 1950.
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Bringing Up Baby
dir: Howard Hawks
USA 1938 | 103 min | DVD

Fri.22.Aug : 2008 : Madison
Alicia Ashman Library, 733 N. High Point Rd. : 7 pm : FREE

Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant star in this inspired comedy about a madcap heiress with a pet leopard who meets an absent-minded paleontologist and unwittingly makes a fiasco of both their lives. David Huxley (Grant) is the stuffy paleontologist who needs to finish an exhibit on dinosaurs and thus land a $1 million grant for his museum. At a golf outing with his potential benefactors, Huxley is spotted by Susan Vance (Hepburn) who decides that she must have the reserved scientist at all costs. She uses her pet leopard, Baby, to trick him into driving to her Connecticut home, where a dog wanders into Huxley’s room and steals the vital last bone that he needs to complete his project. The real trouble begins when another leopard escapes from the local zoo and Baby is mistaken for it, leading Huxley and Susan into a series of harebrained and increasingly more insane schemes to save the cat from the authorities. Inevitably, the two end up in the local jail, where things get even more out of hand: Susan pretends to be the gun moll to David’s diabolical, supposedly wanted criminal. Naturally, the mismatched pair falls in love through all the lunacy. Director Howard Hawks delivers a funny, fast-paced, and offbeat story, enlivened by animated performances from the two leads, in what has become a definitive screwball comedy.
   Emerging Legends Film Series: The American Film Institute defines “an American screen legend” as an actor or a team of actors with a significant screen presence in American feature-length films whose screen debut occurred in or before 1950.
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Dark Victory
dir: Edmund Golding
USA 1939 | 106 min | DVD

Fri.5.Sep : 2008 : Madison
Alicia Ashman Library, 733 N. High Point Rd. : 7 pm : FREE

Bette Davis earned an Oscar nomination for her role in this classic four-hanky tearjerker. Judith Traherne (Bette Davis) is a very wealthy Long Island heiress whose life is a constant whirl of cocktails, parties, and wild living. Despite her hedonistic lifestyle, Judith derives little pleasure from life except for her horses, cared for by stable master Michael O’Leary (Humphrey Bogart). When Judith begins suffering from headaches and dizzy spells, Dr. Frederick Steele (George Brent) gives her the bad news: she has a brain tumor that could threaten her life if not treated immediately. Judith consents to surgery, and Frederick informs her that the operation was a success. A grateful Judith quickly falls in love with Frederick, and they plan to marry. However, the tumor returns….
   Emerging Legends Film Series: The American Film Institute defines “an American screen legend” as an actor or a team of actors with a significant screen presence in American feature-length films whose screen debut occurred in or before 1950.
more information