Program Notes January 2010 Calendar

Held over Through February 4th

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

Premiere (2009, 122 min.)
Starring Johnny Depp, Heath Ledger, Jude Law, Colin Farrell, Christopher Plummer Directed by Terry Gilliam
Adventure/Fantasy

Terry Gilliam's latest film turned out to be Heath Ledger's last. In fact, the late actor died before completing his role. In a moving act of solidarity, other actors stepped in to fill out the part and help Gilliam complete the film, which tells the tale of a mysterious band of traveling players. Among those actors were Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell. In addition, Tom Waits, Christopher Plummer, and supermodel Lily Cole also star. Todd McCarty writes that �many Ledger fans will turn out just to see his final performance. But it is genuinely interesting to see how under duress, Gilliam contrived to work the other actors into the role�his three successors play versions of the character in the CGI sequence set in fantastical other dimensions. It all comes off well�lively action and excellent visual effects. Barbara Goslawski of Boxoffice calls it " Terry Gilliam�s masterpiece�every favorite Gilliam device and trope is employed here to breathtaking effect. The film deserves to be seen on the big screen." Ray Bennett of the Hollywood Reporter notes that the tale "allows Gilliam to employ his remarkable gift for imagery." In Allan Hunter's view at Screen International, fans will "welcome it as a return to what Gilliam does best." James Christopher of the Times of London writes that THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS "is a film with a huge heart and a dazzling eye."

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Starting February 5

North Face

Premiere (2008, 126 min.)
Directed by Philipp Stölzl
Adventure/Drama Language: In German, French, and Italian with subtitles in English

Philipp Stölzl's account of the attempt by two German climbers to scale the north face of the Eiger in 1936 revives the tradition of the German Mountain Movie made famous by Arnold Fanck and Louis Trenker in the 1920s and '30s, and alluded to in Inglourious Basterds. In this true account, two Bavarians climbers Toni Kurz (Benno Fürmann) and Andi Hinterstoisser (Florian Lukas) attempt to be the first to reach the top and win a top prize, while a newspaper editor Henry Arau (Ulrich Tukur) and his reporter Luise Fellner (Johanna Wokalek) follow the story from the sidelines. Lumiere Reader's Caleb Starrenburg calls it "an edge-of-your-seat and nerve-shattering mountaineering film.” Anthony Quinn of UK’s The Independent asks "A mountaineering adventure more tense, more edge-of-the-seat suspenseful, than Touching the Void? Almost incredibly, this German drama, based on a true story, is that film."

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Starting Friday February 12

The Third Man

Revival (1949, 93 min.)
Starring Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles, Alida Valli, Trevor Howard Directed by Carol Reed
Classic Mystery/Thriller

A film on most critics' all-time 10-best lists, THE THIRD MAN, is indeed one of the greatest films ever made: intriguing story, a great cast (Orson Welles, Joseph Cotton, Alida Valli, Trevor Howard), memorable dialogue (" … the cuckoo clock"), and the catchy zither music that helped catapult Carol Reed and Graham Greene's post-war noir into international fame. Sean Axmaker of TCM, argues that THE THIRD MAN "remains one of the most beloved of movies of all time, a crisp, clever, witty, yet serious international thriller, with a dramatic ambiguity and a satirical edge." Roger Ebert in the Chicago Sun-Times praises the film's "a reckless, unforgettable visual style." Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times calls it "indisputably one of the greatest films of its era."

Six Days: February 19 - 24

BAM: Beer and Movie Fest

Various Premieres and Revivals

BAM (Beer And Movie Fest). Our first year, 2010, is full of great art and supertrash. BAM is a tango of old surprises and new classics, where 1930's "pre-code" iniquities starring Gable, Harlow, Laughton, Lombard (RED DUST and WHITE WOMAN) play doctor with extremities from the 1980's like Michael Mann's MANHUNTER and "the other EVIL DEAD:" a grindhouse deliciousness called THE DEADLY SPAWN (both on very hard-to-find 35mm prints). BAM launches the Portland premiering of Vice Magazine's mustang-kickin' WHITE LIGHTNIN', a film best described as "Jarmusch's DEADMAN consumed by Tarantino." We're also showing HOUSE, a Japanese find from 1977 just being released for the first time, that wowed the NY Times: "Delirious, deranged, gonzo or just gone, baby, gone — no single adjective or even a pileup does justice to “HOUSE.” Purist cineastes will rejoice over BAM's Sam Peckinpah/Warren Oates double-bill of THE WILD BUNCH and BRING ME THE HEAD OF ALFREDO GARCIA (sponsored by Mike Clark's Movie Madness). Indeed, the subtle anarchy of the BAM curation is truly revealed by the fact of screening on the same night--Sat. Feb. 20--Humphrey Bogart's L.A. gothic, reaming IN A LONELY PLACE with the very latest in unforgiveable, fanboy-stroking "torture porn," THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE. For new wave connoisseurs and political animals, BAM has two rockin' docs: the David Bowie "Thin White Duke" portrait CRACKED ACTOR, and Stefan Forbes' "cajun bull" BOOGIE MAN: THE LEE ATWATER STORY. BAM is curated by Jacques Boyreau and Aaron Mesh. With big thanks to starring sponsors Ninkasi Brewery and New Belgium and main partner Beer Northwest magazine.

At Cinema 21 Feb 25 - 28 (Festival runs Feb 11 - 28 at all venues)

33rd Portland International Film Festival

The Festival opens Thursday, February 11, at the Newmark Theater in the Portland Center for the Performing Arts (PCPA) with the Italian film I Am Love, directed by Luca Guadagnino and starring Oscar-winner Tilda Swinton. Following the screening is an opening night party in the lobby of the Newmark Theater. In addition to the Newmark Theater, this year PIFF films will be shown at the Regal Broadway Metroplex, Cinema 21 and at the Film Center's Whitsell Auditorium in the Portland Art Museum. A Festival Pass, or year-round Silver Screen Club membership, can be your passport to discovery. For information on passes, tickets, schedules, parties and more, visit www.nwfilm.org, pick up a schedule at the Film Center, or call the Festival ticket line: 503-276-4310.

Five Days: February 28 - March 4

In a Lonely Place

New Restored Print! (1950, 94 min.)
Starring Humphrey Bogart, Gloria Grahame Directed by Nicholas Ray
Film Noir

Nicholas Ray's film noir offers one of the most romantic lines in all of cinema and two of the best noir performances, by Humphrey Bogart as ill-tempered Hollywood screenwriter Dixon Steele, and Gloria Graham as "stand up guy" girlfriend Laurel Gray, to whom Dixon tries on a stray piece of dialogue: "I was born when she kissed me. I died when she left me. I lived a few weeks while she loved me." When Steele is suspected of killing a waitress, Ray is able to explore his dyspeptic view of the movie business. For Roger Ebert, IN A LONELY PLACE is "a superb example of the mature Hollywood studio system at the top of its form. Photographed with masterful economy it understands space and uses the apartments across the courtyard to visualize the emotional relationship between Dixon and Laurel." Kim Morgan of Sunset Gun says simply "this movie wants to break your heart."

One Night Only: Feb 28

To Pay My Way with Stories

Directed by Brian Lindstrom ("Finding Normal")

Documentarian Brian Lindstrom (Finding Normal) returns to another fascinating aspect of Portland's landscape with this film about the non-profit corporate Write Around Portland. Write Around Portland is a Portland-based non-profit that reaches out to under-served populations and provides them with the opportunity to enroll in a free, rigorous, identity-specific, 10-week creative writing workshop culminating in a public reading and a published anthology. Lindstrom's TO PAY MY WAY WITH STORIES closely follows participants and explores how they transcend their difficulties - including cancer, HIV/AIDS, methadone, Down’s syndrome and poverty—as they find their voices. With short film OLD TOWN DIARY with Art Alexakis. Brian Lindstrom will be present for a Q&A after the screening.

Starting March 5

Fish Tank

Premiere (2009, 123 min.)
Starring Katie Jarvis Directed by Andrea Arnold
Drama

Coming off the success of Red Road, her unusual kitchen sink look at the new Great Britain with its closed circuit television cameras which still fail to capture the heartbreak of modern life, director Andrea Arnold turns to a coming of age tale with a film that won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. Avi Offer of NYC Movie Guru calls FISH TANK an "emotionally devastating, well-shot and captivating coming-of-age drama boasting a brave and raw performance by the radiant Katie Jarvis." Spirituality and Practice calls it an "intense film about the messy coming-of-age misadventures of an angry and unhappy English working-class teenager." Peter Travers of Rolling Stone especially like Jarvis, who "hits you like a shot in the heart with her sensational breakout performance," while A.O. Scott of the New York Times opines that the "contradictions of adolescence have rarely been conveyed with such authenticity and force."

Official Site IMDB Entry

Held Thru March 25

The Art of the Steal

Premiere (2009, 101 min.)
Directed by Don Argott
Documentary

A fabulous collection of art and the last will and testament of the collector, Albert C. Barnes. One of the greatest Impressionist, Post-Impressionist and early modern art collections on the planet lives not in a museum, but on the grounds of the Barnes Foundation in suburban Merion, four miles from downtown Philadelphia. THE ART OF THE STEAL chronicles what happened to that collection after its steward died. In effect, it was stolen in the light of day with the help of the court system and the governor of Pennsylvania by some very well-connected folks! Maria Garcia of Film Journal International calls the film a "well-researched story about the most recent art-world fleecing, this documentary will appeal to those interested in what the cultural elite do to amuse themselves." Pam Grady of Boxoffice calls the film "a fascinating look at a legacy perverted."

Held through March 31

House (Hausu)

Premiere (1977, 87 min.)
Directed by Nobuhiko Obayashi
Horror/Comedy Language: In Japanese in subtitles in Engish

Manohla Dargis of the New York Times: "Delirious, deranged, gonzo or just gone, baby, gone — no single adjective or even a pileup does justice to 'House,' a 1977 Japanese haunted-house freakout. Directed by Nobuhiko Obayashi [it is an] energetic exemplar of pulp surrealism… it is receiving its first, must-see-now domestic theatrical run. A midnight movie in lysergic spirit and vibe, this was a film made for late-night screening and screaming." Chuck Bowen of Slant sees deep themes in the film: "It's a dark cartoon of unfettered play, an attempt to directly channel budding teens' stream of consciousness with its neediness, triumph, exhilaration, confusion." Ms. Dargis adds that the typical viewer response "will be of surprise and delight, not terror."

Final Weekend Sat-Sun April 10-11

Sing-a-Long Mary Poppins

Back by Popular Demand! (1964, 140 min.)

For those who loved dressing up and singing along with The Sound of Music at the Cinema 21 a last spring, here is another chance to bond with Julie Andrews. Come as your favorite ragamuffin or chimney sweep to Sing-a-Long Mary Poppins, and enjoy the magical, musical nanny who brings a breath of fresh air into the stuffy Banks household in turn-of-the-century England, as you sing along to "Chim Chim Cher-ee”, Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!", etc. This presentation begins with our host exercising the audience's vocal cords, explaining the proper procedure for using each person's fun-pack props to interact with the movie, and judging the Best Silly Laugh and Costume Contests. After that, the film rolls and the singing-a-longing is unrestrained! Don't miss this all-ages, classic movie big fun event! For advance tickets and group rate information check our website. And get this: you'll have several chances to revisit the film when it plays on multiple weekends.

One Night Only: March 24

The Human Canvas Project Movie

Media Blitz Productions � Presents: A unique visual feast that will titillate and excite the senses and open the mind. Color texture and patterns wrapped around the female form in motion. The Human Canvas Project Movie, produced by Vortex and Nevyn Nowhere, is an all HD video captured of the live performance of the sold out show at the FEZ ballroom. It will be presented from the HD Blu ray master and features 17 nude women as the backdrop for video and slides set to the original electronic music of Sad Music For Happy Humans. DVD and Blu ray videos will be given away as prizes as well as will be for sale at the show.

Starting March 26

The Neil Young Trunk Show

Premiere (2009, 82 min.)
Directed by Jonathan Demme
Documentary

The words Trunk Show conjure visions of unique and precious goods, displayed from old chunky leather-strapped luggage. The images recall a time of purposeful travel, when people moved across the country with deliberate speed. Neil Young's Trunk show uses the traveling exhibit concept to bring to life his collection of rare song gems ("Mexico," "Kansas" and the "The Sultan"), crowd favorites ("Cinammon Girl," "Cowgirl in the Sand" and "Like a Hurricane") and more recent material ("No Hidden Path" and "The Believer"). It is a collection for the ages. The spontaneous and raw film was shot during two shows at the Tower Theater in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania during the Chrome Dreams II tour. Director Jonathan Demme described it as "a reaction to 'Heart of Gold,'" his previous film featuring. Neil Young Trunk Show is caught on the fly: the viewer is taken into the live experience from all angles. The result is a lingering and emotional gaze at the interior character of Young, unpacked piece by piece from a lifetime of carefully-crafted music.

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Two shows - April 1 and April 4

Blood Into Wine

Premiere (2010, 100 min.)
Directed by Ryan Page and Christopher Pomerenke
Documentary

Starting April 2

The Most Dangerous Man in America

Premiere (2009, 92 min.)
Directed by Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith
Documentary

Daniel Ellsberg in person opening night! In 1971, during the Nixon years, a Rand Corporation think tank member named Daniel Ellsberg leaked a secret Pentagon assessment of the Vietnam war to the New York Times, contributing to the cessation of that conflict, and landing himself a place on Nixon's enemies list. Nixon's secret investigation of Ellsberg was the real start of the Watergate affair. Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith's documentary recounts this history, primarily from the source, Ellsberg himself, now 78. David Edelstein of New York hales the film as an important document in itself. "So many people risked their livelihoods to put the 7,000-page Pentagon Papers out there – although its most tangible result was the creation of Nixon's plumbers unit. We have not celebrated Daniel Ellsberg enough. Let's begin." Gary Goldstein of the Los Angeles Times notes that Ellsberg "lends the film gravitas as both its persuasive narrator and primary talking head." Mike Hale of the New York Times calls THE MOST DANGEROUS MAN a "detailed, clearly told and persuasive film."

Starts April 9

Ran

Restored Print/25th Anniversary (1985, 162 min.)
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
Language: In Japanese with subtitles in English

Akira Kurosawa had an intimate relationship with European literature, adapting Russian tales and Shakespeare plays. In RAN, Kurosawa's interest in the west reaches it pinnacle in an adaptation of Shakespeare's King Lear. Amy Taubin of the Village Voice advises that, for "aficionados of the war movie, the western, and the period action epic, RAN is necessary viewing." Internet reviewer Emanuel Levy notes that, for his "visually sumptuous epic, Kurosawa chose the civil wars of sixteenth-century Japan as a setting so that he could criticize technological progress and wars of the present." Richard Schickel of Time Magazine says that RAN is "a film that already belongs to the ages."

Ends May 20

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Premiere (2009, 152 Min.)
Starring Noomi Rapace Directed by Niels Arden Oplev
Crime/Thriller Language: In Swedish with subtitles in English

An international bestseller and the first of a series, Stieg Larsson's novel now comes to the screen directed by Niels Arden Oplev and starring as the world wearing detective and Noomi Rapace as the antisocial computer nerd title girl. Internet reviewer Peter Ericson reveals that the film is an "engaging, suspenseful, well-acted, atmospheric, and technically well-made Swedish thriller." Anton Bitel of Little White Lies writes "it slyly inverts all manner of gender conventions by having its narrative orientation gradually shift from a rather anodyne hero to an altogether more dynamic and self-reliant heroine. As it races along from one sensational clue to the next [it] builds thematic unity from the different cycles of abuse that it depicts…this might just become a runaway hit, whether in spite, or because of, its undeniable potboiler status."

ENDS June 3

The Square

Premiere (2008, 105 min.)
Directed by Nash Edgerton and Joel Edgerton (producer)
Thriller

A man's life begins to unravel when his mistress brings him a bag of cash in this thriller by Australian director Nash Edgerton and his brother Joel. Writes Andrew L. Urban of Urban Cinefile, "For all intents and purposes a film noir of classic proportions, THE SQUARE has such a good story it deserves to be seen without knowing too many details about the plot." Josh Bell of the Las Vegas Weekly adds that THE SQUARE is a "remarkable piece of thriller craftsmanship." According to William Goss of Cinematical the Edgerton Brothers "pull the strings with tremendously adept precision and a marvelous mean streak."

Late Show Sat May 22

The Human Centipede

Premiere (2010, 90 Min.)
Starring Dieter Laser, Akihiro Kitamura, Andreas Leupold, Ashley C. Williams, Ashlynn Yennie Directed by Tom Six
Horror Language: In Dutch with subtitles in English

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Starts May 28

Casino Jack and the United States of Money

Premiere (2010, 120 min.)
Starring Jack Abramoff, Tom DeLay, Bob Ney, and Ralph Reed Directed by Alex Gibney ("Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room")
Documentary

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Starts June 4

The Good, the Bad, and the Weird

Premiere (2010, 120 min.)
Directed by Kim Ji-woon
South Korean Western Language: In Korean, Mandarin, and Japanese with subtitles in English

Three Days: June 10 - 12

Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage

Premiere (2010, 106 min.)
Starring Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart Directed by Scot McFadyen, Sam Dunn
Documentary, Music

One Night: June 12

Frank Zappa's 200 Motels

Revival (1971, 98 min.)
Starring The Mothers of Invention, Ringo Starr, Theodore Bikel, and Keith Moon Directed by Frank Zappa and Tony Palmer
Musical

Now Playing through July 8th!

Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work

Premiere (2010, 84 min.)
Directed by Ricki Stern. Co-director: Anne Sundberg
Documentary

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Starts July 23

The Killer Inside Me

Premiere (2010, 109 min.)
Starring Casey Affleck, Kate Hudson, Jessica Alba Directed by Michael Winterbottom
Crime/Drama

Based on the novel by legendary pulp writer Jim Thompson, Michael Winterbottom's THE KILLER INSIDE ME tells the story of handsome, charming, unassuming small town sheriff's deputy Lou Ford. Lou has a bunch of problems. Woman problems. Law enforcement problems. An ever-growing pile of murder victims in his West Texas jurisdiction. And the fact he's a sadist, a psychopath, a killer. Suspicion begins to fall on Lou, and it's only a matter of time before he runs out of alibis. But in Thompson's savage, bleak, blacker than noir universe nothing is ever what it seems, and it turns out that the investigators pursuing him might have a secret of their own.

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Late Shows Fri & Sat Starting July 23

[Rec]2

Premiere (2010, 85 min.)
Directed by Jaume Balaguer� and Paco Plaza
Language: In Spanish with subtitles in English

Horror aficionados will remember [rec], Jaume Balaguer�'s intriguing film from 2007 about a television reporter and others trapped in an apartment building infused with a deadly virus (it was remade in 2008 as Quarantine). The sequel picks up right where [rec] left off. Simon Reynolds of Digital Spy writes that [REC]2 is a "solid mix of tension and good old-fashioned gore and action, helped immensely by a first-person-shooter stylistic approach and inventive script." Rich Cline of Shadows on the Wall notes that "this sequel proves that the filmmakers have plenty more tricks up their sleeves as they push the story in entertaining directions. And there's barely a moment that doesn't freak us out," while Internet reviewer Brian Orndorf adds that the film is "an extraordinary, spine-tingling second round." Robbie Collin of News of the World finds that [REC] 2 is "about as good as they get."

Starts July 30

Countdown to Zero

Premiere (2010, 91 min.)
Directed by Lucy Walker
Documentary

Conventional wisdom asserts that the prospect of nuclear war subsided with the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union, but filmmaker Lucy Walker illustrates how the nuclear threat has only grown in unexpected ways and moved in new directions, with narration by Gary Oldman and music by Pearl Jam. There are 23,000 nuclear weapons in the world today, a number of which are unaccounted for (when the USSR split into a handful of separate states, some of their bombs went missing), and as the technology becomes simpler, several major radical terrorist groups and politically unstable nations are trying to obtain nuclear weapons. What would happen if the wrong people got their hands on the bomb - or if some of the "good" people were to detonate one through error or mistaken judgment? In COUNTDOWN TO ZERO, a number of leading politicians and political analysts - including Jimmy Carter, Tony Blair, Valerie Plame Wilson, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Zbigniew Brzezinski - discuss the question of nuclear war in the 21st century and what can be done to eliminate the weapons once and for all. Internet reviewer Harvey Karten says that "this excellent documentary is about the destruction of the human race, or at least what could have happened several times in the past, and what might happen tomorrow." Kathy Fennessy asserts that COUNTDOWN TO ZERO "marks an essential addition to the ranks of atomic cinema." Variety reviewer John Anderson broods that the film makes "a convincing argument that the human race is on borrowed time."

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Starts August 6

Winnebago Man

Premiere (2009, 87 min.)
Starring Jack Rebney Directed by Ben Steinbauer
Documentary

Jack Rebney is the most famous man you've never heard of - after cursing his way through a Winnebago sales video, Rebney's outrageously funny outtakes became an underground sensation and made him an internet YouTube superstar, with an estimated one and a-half million hits! Filmmaker Ben Steinbauer journeys to the top of a mountain to find the recluse who unwittingly became the "Winnebago Man." On line reviewer Eric D. Snider asserts that WINNEBAGO MAN is a " hilarious and surprisingly touching profile of a fascinating character… Suffice it to say that whatever preconceived notions you have, forget 'em. Jack Rebney proves to be a complex, larger-than-life person whose whole existence cannot, as it turns out, be encapsulated in one video shot on a very bad day 20 years ago. .. In the Internet age, when anyone can become a "celebrity" simply by doing something foolish while a camera is rolling, it's refreshing to be reminded of our shared humanity. "

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Held Over!

Breathless

New 50th Anniversary Print (1960, 90 min.)
Directed by Jean-Luc Godard. Written by Fran�ois Truffaut.
Language: In French with subtitles in English

One of the most famous and influential films ever made, Jean-Luc Godard's black and white homage to Monogram Pictures and crime cinema in general broke open the French New Wave and inspired filmmakers from Arthur Penn to Quentin Tarantino, and made stars of Jean-Paul Belmondo as the idle car thief, and Jean Seberg, the American woman he is in love with. "It would be hard to find a more audacious debut feature," observes Ken Hanke of the Mountain Xpress, while Armond White of the New York Press reminds us that, "though rarely discussed as either a love story or a political film, BREATHLESS maintains fascination because it is equally both." Internet reviewer Victoria Alexander calls it a "stunning classic."

One Week: August 20 - 26

Valhalla Rising

Premiere (2010, 93 min.)
Starring Mads Mikkelsen Directed by Nicolas Winding Refn
Action/Adventure

Starts August 27

Mesrine: Killer Instinct

Premiere (2010, 113 min.)
Directed by Jean-François Richet
Crime/Drama/Thriller Language: In French (and other languages) with subtitles in English

Born in 1936, Jacques Mesrine became one of the most notorious criminals of the '60s and '70s. This two- part film charts his career as a burglar, jewel and bank robber, kidnapper, and arms smuggler. He also killed as many as 39 people. He was even good at disguises, earning the moniker "The Man of a Hundred Faces." Jean-Fran�ois Richet's epic work created a sensation when it was released in France, and won many French Oscars. The emphasis was on Vincent Cassel in a stunning turn as Mesrine. Louise Keller of Urban Cinefile agrees that a "spectacular performance by Vincent Cassel guarantees to keep us on the edge of our seat," while Charlotte O'Sullivan of This is London maintains that Vincent Cassel is superb in the lead, craggily handsome, steely and volatile." Summing up the first film, Matt Quinn of ViewLondon says [it's an] "incredibly entertaining, utterly gripping gangster thriller with a superb script, impressive direction and a powerhouse central performance!" And Allan Hunter of Daily Express concludes that while "KILLER INSTINCT is an exceptional film, PUBLIC ENEMY is even better!"

Starts September 3

Mesrine: Public Enemy #1

Premiere (2010, 133 min.)
Directed by Jean-François Richet
Crime/Drama/Thriller Language: In French (and other languages) with subtitles in English

Official Site IMDB Entry

Starts September 10

I'm Still Here

Premiere (2010)
Starring Joaquin Phoenix Directed by Casey Affleck Written by Tom Blomquist
Documentary

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Next Screening September 17!

The Room

Directed by Tommy Wiseau

The cult film of the century, THE ROOM is the auteur labor of Tommy Wiseau, who wrote, directed, and stars in this tale of a Johnny, a successful banker who is perhaps too trusting of his bride to be, Lisa (Juliette Danielle). Complications ensue when Johnny's best friend, Lisa mother, and some newcomers get involved with the couple. The Dim Post says that THE ROOM "lived up to the hype," while Film Fiend found it "deliriously entertaining." Picture Show Pundits asserts that "to watch THE ROOM is truly a life-altering experience." Possibly the best worst movie ever made. Come join the interactive fun!

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Starts September 17

Lebanon

Premiere (2010, 93 min.)
Directed by Samuel Maoz
Drama Language: Hebrew, Arabic, French with subtitles in English

Coming this fall

Alien Boy

Premiere (2010)
Directed by Brian Lindstrom
Documentary

Brian Lindstrom (Kicking, Finding Normal) returns to the streets of Portland to tell the story of James Chasse, a member of the punk music scene in the 1970s who was killed by police in September 2006. Though schizophrenic, Chasse was successful, a poet and a musician, a man who included among his friends and admirers Greg Sage of The Wipers. Apparently believing that Chasse was a drug dealer or homeless, the police stopped Chasse on a downtown Portland street corner and beat him, kicked him, broke his shoulder and 17 ribs, and used a Taser on him. He died on route to the hospital. The Chasse family has brought a civil suit against the police department and against officer Christopher Humphreys, who is named in yet another suit by a woman who claims mental health issues. ALIEN BOY is sponsored by the Mental Health Association of Portland.

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