Cinematheque

The VCUarts Cinematheque regularly programs and presents 35mm films at the VCUarts Grace Street Theatre.

Spring 2012 Screenings

The Grace Street Theatre
934 W. Grace St.
Richmond, VA 23284-3048
Phone: (804) 828-2020

This is the second season of the new VCUarts Cinematheque.
All screenings will be 35mm prints.
All screenings will be free of charge to the university and community.

• Director, Rob Tregenza PhD
• Assistant Programmer for Experimental Cinema, Mary Beth Reed
• Assistant Programmer for World Cinema, Kirk Kjeldsen

For more information, please call VCUarts Cinema. (804.828.7919)

Police, Adjective (2009)
by Corneliu Porumboiu – January 31, 2012 – 7pm
Area:  World Cinema/Romania

Cristi (Dragos Bucur) is a young undercover cop who undergoes a crisis of conscience when he is pressured to arrest a teenager who offers hash to classmates. Not wanting to ruin the life of a young man he considers merely irresponsible, Cristi must either allow the arrest to be a burden on his conscience, or face censure by his self-serious superior (Vlad Ivanov of 4 MONTHS, 3 WEEKS AND 2 DAYS), for whom the word “conscience” has an
entirely different meaning.

Porumboiu approaches his story with the exacting patience of a master ironist, culminating in one of the most unexpected comedic payoffs in years, – an extraordinary dissection of language that affirms his reputation as one of the most exciting new talents in European cinema.

The Princess of Montpensier (2010)
by Bertrand Travernier – February 21, 2012 – 7pm
Area: The Masters

In THE PRINCESS OF MONTPENSIER, acclaimed filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier (‘ROUND MIDNIGHT) directs a spectacular cast in a riveting, lush romantic drama set in the high courts of 16th Century France.

Against the backdrop of the savage Catholic-Protestant wars, Marie de Mezieres, a beautiful young aristocrat, finds herself married to a young prince she does not love, haunted by a rakish suitor from her childhood, and advised by an aging nobleman Lambert Wilson, harboring his own forbidden desire for her. The Princess of Montpensier must struggle passionately to stay alive in the intrigue of this corrupt political and romantic web of duty, passion, religion, and war.

Still Walking (2008)
by Kore-eda Hirokazu – February 28, 2012 – 7pm
Area: World Cinema/ Japan

Beloved director Kore-Eda Hirokazu (AFTER LIFE, NOBODY KNOWS) returns to the forefront of world cinema with STILL WALKING – an exquisitely detailed family drama that shines with warmth and understanding. The film was one of the most critically acclaimed works at the Toronto, Tribeca, and San Francisco International Film Festivals. Lushly photographed, and with an expert script that incorporates elements of director Kore-Eda’s personal experience, STILL WALKING is a quiet pleasure unlike anything else you will see this year.

Fifteen years ago, Junpei, the youngest son of the Yokoyama family died while rescuing a boy from drowning. On the anniversary of his death, the remaining siblings visit the quaint home of their parents with their families in tow. Over the course of a beautiful day, new relatives become acquainted telling stories and squabbling over sizzling tempura and an elegant graveside ritual is performed for Junpei.

Alamar
by Pedro Gonzalez-Rubio – March 6, 2012 – 7pm
Area: World Cinema / Mexico

Jorge and Roberta have been separated for several years.  They simply come from opposite worlds: he likes an uncomplicated life in the jungle, while she prefers a more urban existence.  He is Mexican and she is Italian, and she has decided to return to Rome with their five-year-old son, Natan. Before they leave, Jorge wishes to take young Natan on a trip, hoping to teach him about his Mayan origins in Mexico.  At first, the boy is physically and emotionally uncomfortable with the whole affair and gets seasick on the boat taking them to their destination.  But as father and son spend more time together, Natan begins a learning experience that will remain with with him forever.

Pedro Gonzalez-Rubio is a Mexican filmmaker born in Brussels.  His initiation to visual arts came at the age of sixteen while living in New Delhi.  He studied media in Mexico before attending the London Film School.  His directorial debut, Toro Negro (2005, co-director), received several awards including the Horizontes Award for best Latin American film from the San Sebastian Film Festival.  Alamar is his feature film debut, which nonetheless remains true to real life.

M. Hulot’s Holiday (1953)
by Jacques Tati – March 20, 2012 – 7pm
Area:   The Masters

While on holiday at a seaside resort, Monsieur Hulot – Jacques Tati’s endearing, pipe-smoking clown – finds his presence provoking one catastrophe after another. A wildly funny satire of vacationers determined to enjoy themselves, the first entry in the Hulot series includes a series of brilliantly choreographed sight gags about boats, dogs, tennis, and other hazards of leisure.

Around A Small Mountain (2011)

by Jaques Rivette – March 27, 2012 – 7pm
Area:  The Masters

From legendary director Jacques Rivette (“Va Savoir,” “The Duchess of Langeais”) comes a tale of lust love, chance encounters and the transformative power of art.

On a winding mountain road, Vittorio stops to help Kate, whose car has broken down. Later in town, Vittorio learns that Kate has returned to join her family’s traveling circus after leaving under mysterious conditions many years ago. Intrigued by her story, Vittorio stays for the show, and the next one, and little by little, is ingratiated into the circus and the lives of its performers-all the while trying to discover the secret that led to Kate’s sudden departure.

Ne Change Rien
by Pedro Costa – April 3, 2012 – 7pm
Area:  World Cinema / Portugal

Through the dozen or so high-contrast black-and-white shots that it consists of, Pedro Costa’s excellent new documentary chronicles actress-turned-chanteuse Jeanne Balibar’s preparations for a set of concerts and recording tracks for her two albums amongst other hypnotic musical diversions.  Accompanied often by Rudolphe Burger, whose reverberating chords and picking echo around her lush melodies, Balibar is at once her own performer and Costa’s muse and Ne Change Rien is a much startling study of musical composition as it is a stoic, sublime ode to cinema love.

You All Are Captains
by Oliver Laxe – April 17, 2012 – 7pm
Area:  World Cinema / Morrocco

A European director sets out to make a film with children from a social center in Tangiers. Because of his methods, his relationships with the children during shooting degenerate and transform the evolution of project.

Helas Pour Moi (1994)
by Jean-Luc Godard – May 8, 2012 – 7pm
Area: The Masters

Journalist Abraham Klimt investigates a case of divine possession. In 1989 God enters the body of filmmaker Simon Donnadieu. When Simon returns home, his wife Rachel realizes something is amiss but sticks by her newly divine husband.

The Mill And The Cross (2011)
by Lech Majewski – May 15, 2012 – 7pm
Area: Art House / World Cinema

Pieter Bruegel’s epic masterpiece The Way To Calvary depicts the story of Christ’s Passion set in Flanders under brutal Spanish occupation in the year 1564, the very year Bruegel created his painting. From among the more than five hundred figures that fill Bruegel’s remarkable canvas, THE MILL & THE CROSS focuses on a dozen characters whose life stories unfold and intertwine in a panoramic landscapre populated by villagers and red-caped horsemen. Among them are Bruegel himself, his friend and art collector Nicholas Jonghelinck, and the Virgin Mary.

We have a brand new state of the art 35mm projector with a full set of new lenses that can project all the major aspect ratios from 1:33, 1:66, 1:85 and Scope.  We also have an HD 1080p projector,  a new theatrical screen and a Dolby Surround Digital Audio System.

The VCUarts Cinematheque has also worked with the VCU French Film Festival, the James River Film Festival, and the Virginia Production Alliance in programing and presenting world and experimental cinema.

The VCUarts Cinematheque also presents Cine-Club screenings every Wednesday evening at 8pm in the Cinema Studio in the Pollak Building.