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| Sunday, 30 October 2005 |
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Arts November movies at the American Centre The American Centre, Colombo, has the following award winning movies lined up for November as part of its regular Tuesday evening film series; Farmingville, Raising Victor Vargas, Maria Full of Grace, Smoke Signals, and Memento. On November 1, 2005 - Farmingville (2004, 78 minutes), winner of the Special Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, will be screened at 6.30 p.m. The movie, provocative, complex, and emotionally charged look into the ongoing controversy surrounding an American suburban community, its ever-expanding population of illegal immigrants, and the shockingly hate-based attempted murders of two Mexican day labourers. Sharply and intimately directed by Catherine Tambini and Carlos Sandoval, who moved to Farmingville after the tumultuous clash catapulted the town into national headlines, this is an astounding glimpse into an issue that continues to anger, frighten and confuse Americans. Raising Victor Vargas (2002, 88 minutes) will be screened on Nov. 8, 2005. Riding high on a wave of unanimous critical acclaim, this is the movie which emerged as one of the best independent films of 2003. It fits neatly into that most familiar of categories-the coming-of-age comedy-but is something altogether fresh and endearing. Victor Vargas is a Dominican kid raised amidst the poverty of New York's Lower East Side, and his hormones-like those of any 16-year-old-are ablaze with unbridled lust. Under the vigilant eye of his grandmother (who's convinced the good-boy Victor is doomed to a life of sin), Victor manages to woo the defiant girl of his dreams, and director Peter Sollett guides them to a delicate place of genuine affection and mutual understanding. On Wednesday, November 16, 2005 - Maria Full of Grace (2004), a movie which blends passionate social concerns with good old-fashioned suspense will be screened. Maria, a Colombian teenager, for a large paycheck, agrees to be a mule for drug-runners. She swallows dozens of thumb-sized capsules of heroin and smuggles them into New York. Of course not everything goes as planned when Maria and her fellow mules land in America. The trump card is the lead performance of Catalina Sandrino Moreno, who won awards at the Seattle and Newport Film Festivals. Her empathetic face carries us along on Maria's journey, and humanizes a problem that is too easily relegated to a headline. On November 22, 2005, Smoke Signals (1998, 89 minutes) based on a couple of short stories by Sherman Alexie, will be screened. The first feature made by a Native American crew and creative team, the film concerns two young Idaho men with radically different memories of one Arnold Joseph, a former resident of the reservation who split years before and has just died in Phoenix. Circumstances bring the two together in a bus ride to retrieve Arnold's ashes. There, in Phoenix, a confrontation with the reality of the dead man's fullest legacy has a profound effect on both characters. The series for November ends on November 29, 2005, with Memento (2001, 113 minutes) Memento combines a bold, mind-bending script with compelling action and virtuoso performances. Leonard Shelby is hunting down the man who raped and murdered his wife. The problem is that "the incident" that robbed Leonard of his wife also stole his ability to make new memories. Unable to retain a location, a face, or a new clue on his own, Leonard continues his search with the help of notes, Polaroids, and even homemade tattoos for vital information. The story begins at the end, and the movie jumps backward in 10-minute segments. The suspense of the movie lies not in discovering what happens, but in finding out why it happened. The films will be shown every Tuesday evening at the American Centre at 6:30 p.m. Seating is limited and is on a first-come, first-served basis. Visitors must bring Photo ID for entry. For further details contact the American Centre at 242-1271. |
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