New from Japan. This series of eight outstanding new comedies and dramas from Japan includes two United States premieres and a personal appearance by woman director Sachi Hamano.
Carnegie Museum of Art Department of Film and Video Fall Films
Screenings
Friday, September 20, 7:30 p.m.
Oriume
Sunday, September 22, 7:30 p.m.
Oriume
Thursday, September 26, 7:30 p.m.
The New Gulliver
Friday, September 27, 7:30 p.m.
Waterboys
Saturday, September 28, 7:30 p.m.
The New Gulliver
Sunday, September 29, 7:30 p.m.
Waterboys
Thursday, October 3, 7:30 p.m.
The Stone Flower
Friday, October 4, 7:30 p.m.
Owl's Castle
Saturday, October 5
Of Mice and Men, 1:30 p.m.
The Stone Flower, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 6, 7:30 p.m.
Owl's Castle
Thursday, October 10, 7:30 p.m.
Sadko
Friday, October 11, 7:30 p.m.
Vengeance for Sale
Saturday, October 12
The Grapes of Wrath, 1:30 p.m.
Sadko, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 13, 7:30 p.m.
Vengeance for Sale
Thursday, October 17, 7:30 p.m.
Viy
Friday, October 18, 7:30 p.m.
Lily Festival
Saturday, October 19
Lifeboat, 1:30 p.m.
Viy, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 20, 7:30 p.m.
Lily Festival
Friday, October 25, 7:30 p.m.
Warm Water under a Red Bridge
Saturday, October 26, 1:30 p.m.
East of Eden
Sunday, October 27, 7:30 p.m.
Warm Water under a Red Bridge
Friday, November 1, 7:30 p.m.
All about Lily Chou Chou
Sunday, November 3, 7:30 p.m.
All about Lily Chou Chou
Friday, November 8, 7:30 p.m.
Cure
Sunday, November 10, 7:30 p.m.
CureFilm Series
____________
New from Japan
September 20-November 10, 2002
. The series, organized with the assistance of Professor Keiko
McDonald, is supported in part by the University of Pittsburgh's Asian
Studies Program, with funding from the U.S. Department of Education through
its National Resource Center Grant, and by the University of Pittsburgh's
Japan Council, with funding from Toshiba International Foundation and the
Japan Iron and Steel Federation Endowment.
University of Pittsburgh students, faculty, and staff with valid ID are
admitted free to this series. All films are in Japanese with English
subtitles.
Oriume (U.S. premiere)
Friday, September 20, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, September 22, 7:30 p.m.
An oriume is a plum branch with the ability to flower even after being cut
from the tree. Director Matsui asserts that the plum branch's unique
strength is paralleled by the resiliency of senior citizens who continue to
blossom as they age. Her latest film, Oriume, is about a family shouldering
an unexpected responsibility when Alzheimer's disease strikes their
grandmother. The superb cast portrays this serious and realistic situation
with heart-warming compassion, stressing the importance of empathizing with
the victims of this difficult disease.
(Japan, 2001) 106 min.
Directed by Hisako Matsui
Waterboys (Pittsburgh premiere)
Friday, September 27, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, September 29, 7:30 p.m.
Quirky characters and broad humor abound in Waterboys, a slapstick comedy
about five high school misfits who are persuaded by their eccentric coach to
form a synchronized swimming team, for them an unlikely enterprise. Besides
enduring the cruel taunts of their classmates, the boys face a succession of
hilarious obstacles as they discover their unique path toward greater
self-confidence. The splashy big finale is worthy of Esther Williams.
(Japan, 2002) 91 min.
Directed by Shinobu Yaguchi
Owl's Castle (Pittsburgh premiere)
Friday, October 4, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 6, 7:30 p.m.
This swashbuckling historical epic, set in 14th-century Japan, begins with
Nobunaga, a feudal warlord, embarking on a campaign to consolidate his
power. As Nobunaga ruthlessly climbs toward absolute rule, his army
massacres a clan of Ninja warriors and their families. Among the few
surviving witnesses to Nobunaga's carnage is Juzo, a skilled young Ninja.
After 10 years in secluded preparation, Juzo's master sends him on a
passionate revenge mission to infiltrate the most heavily guarded castle in
the land and assassinate Nobunaga's famed successor, Hideyoshi, the first
unifier of Japan.
(Japan, 1999) 138 min.
Directed by Masahiro Shinoda
Vengeance for Sale (Pittsburgh premiere)
Friday, October 11, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 13, 7:30 p.m.
Highly respected action director Okamoto evokes the heyday of 1960s samurai
films with his latest movie, Vengeance for Sale. This wry action-comedy
follows the travels of Sukeroku, a misguided provincial fellow who makes
clumsy attempts to assist people seeking retribution for their grievances.
When Sukeroku returns to his home village, his skills are given the ultimate
test when a coldhearted government official viciously murders his father.
(Japan, 2001) 88 min.
Directed by Kihachi Okamoto
Lily Festival (U.S. premiere)
Friday, October 18, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 20, 7:30 p.m.
Director Hamano, a renowned maker of over 300 "pinku eiga" or soft-core
films, challenges the conventions of this male-dominated genre by openly
celebrating sexuality from a woman's perspective. Lily Festival, her newest
film, is a subversive, erotic fantasy in which a 75-year-old Casanova
transforms an ordinary senior citizen's apartment building into a harem-like
free love commune. Hamano's bawdy, taboo-shattering story combats sexism
and ageism with charm and dignity. Director Sachi Hamano will be present at
the Friday screening.
(Japan, 2001) 100 min.
Directed by Sachi Hamano
Warm Water under a Red Bridge (Pittsburgh premiere)
Friday, October 25, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, October 27, 7:30 p.m.
This whimsical adult fable, from veteran director Imamura, explores the
physical essence of life, the human need for sex, and the concept of
destiny. The story follows Yosuke, an unemployed businessman who travels to
a remote seaside village in search of a legendary hidden treasure. Soon
after his arrival, he finds himself magnetically drawn toward Saeko, a
mysterious young woman with astonishing supernatural abilities.
(Japan, 2002) 119 min.
Directed by Shohei Imamura
All about Lily Chou Chou (Pittsburgh premiere)
Friday, November 1, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, November 3, 7:30 p.m.
Iwai's visionary masterpiece digs deeply into the mesmerizing world of
Japanese cyber-pop. The story is about Yuichi, a 14-year-old boy who
anesthetizes himself from the harshness of civilization with the shimmering
music of an ethereal pop-diva named Lily Chou Chou. After creating a
fanatical web site dedicated to worshiping Lily, Yuichi's idolization
disintegrates into an unhealthy obsession, climaxing at a live Lily concert,
where his Internet world collides with brutal reality.
(Japan, 2001) 146 min.
Directed by Shunji Iwai
Cure
Friday, November 8, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, November 10, 7:30 p.m.
Kiyoshi Kurosawa (no relation to Akira) is one of Japan's most electrifying
and original emerging directors. His first masterpiece is Cure, an
atmospheric crime thriller that probes the gruesome psyche of a deranged
killer. The suspenseful, terrifying story follows a desperate police
detective tracking an epidemic of bizarre identical murders marked by a
baffling "X" carved into each victim's body.
(Japan, 1997) 115 min.
Directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa
__________
Film Series
Alexander Ptushko: Fantastic Animation
September 26-October 19, 2002
The brilliant and influential Russian animator Alexander Ptushko was, from
the 1930s to the 1970s, an inventive teller of classic fairy tales. This
series of four films includes Ptushko's own wonderful versions of Sinbad and
Gulliver. This rare opportunity to see glorious, new 35mm Ptushko prints
make this series essential viewing for all generations of lovers of film and
Russian culture. All films are in Russian with English subtitles.
The New Gulliver
Thursday, September 26, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, September 28, 7:30 p.m.
One of the first full-length animated films made anywhere in the world, The
New Gulliver tells the story of Petya, a young Soviet pioneer who falls
asleep reading Swift's Gulliver's Travels and awakens in a surreal Lilliput.
Ptushko's Lilliput has been updated to include jazz bands, mechanized
tractors, and (in the best revolutionary spirit) the proletariat, who rise
up with the help of the giant Petya! Ptushko's first feature as director is
an astounding hybrid of stop-motion animation (more than 3,000 separate
figures were used) and live-action footage.
(USSR, 1935) 68 min.
Directed by Alexander Ptushko
The Stone Flower
Thursday, October 3, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 5, 7:30 p.m.
Set in the Ural Mountains, Ptushko's dreamlike, visually ravishing fable
follows a melancholy young stone carver whose talents attract the attention
of the mystical queen of Copper Hill. She seduces him into visiting her
dazzling underground world, where the carver begins sculpting an enormous
flower out of stone. Ptushko's first great artistic and popular success
combines a hypnotic, almost religious intensity with images of stunning
supernatural splendor.
(USSR, 1946) 83 min.
Directed by Alexander Ptushko
Sadko
Thursday, October 10, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 12, 7:30 p.m.
An oddly Russian Sinbad, Sadko seeks to bring happiness to his people by
seeking out the "Bluebird of Happiness." His voyage takes him to faraway
lands and eventually to India and Egypt. Two set pieces made a mark in film
history: the underwater domain of the tsar of the ocean, and the golden
temple of the Indian maharajah. A fantastical sequence of the Phoenix, a
shimmering half-bird, half-woman, trapped inside the maharajah's gem-like
palace, is one of Ptushko's greatest creations.
(USSR, 1953) 79 min.
Directed by Alexander Ptushko
Viy
Thursday, October 17, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 19, 7:30 p.m.
Based on a short story by Nikolai Gogol, Viy tells the story of a bumbling,
novice priest who angers a demonic old hag. To take her revenge, the witch
disguises herself as the beautiful corpse of a young woman, whose last wish
is to have the priest pray over her for three nights. Once trapped inside
the village church, the priest encounters an astoundingly grotesque parade
of gargoyles and demons, literally erupting from the walls-and the gorgeous
corpse, whirling around the church in a flying coffin!
(USSR, 1967) 78 min.
Directed by Konstantin Yershov & Giorgi Kropachyov, under the supervision of
Alexander Ptushko
__________
Film Series
Steinbeck on Film
October 5-26, 2002
This Saturday afternoon series is presented in conjunction with Carnegie
Library of Pittsburgh in celebration of the hundredth anniversary of the
birth of writer John Steinbeck. These four classic films by four
outstanding directors are based on famous Steinbeck texts. There will be an
introduction to each program by Henry Veggian, teaching fellow and doctoral
candidate at the University of Pittsburgh, with a discussion following each
screening.
Filmgoers who present their museum admission receipts will receive a special
$3 ticket price to films in this series.
Of Mice and Men
Saturday, October 5, 1:30 p.m.
Of Mice and Men follows a pair of drifters, George and his mentally
challenged cousin, Lennie, as they endeavor to make an honest wage while
dreaming of a better life, in Depression-era California. Director
Milestone, at one time an itinerant worker himself, conveys a profound sense
of the isolation of the American Western landscape with his moving
adaptation of
Steinbeck's 1937 novella (later made into a play). Of Mice and Men is one
of Milestone's finest films and includes an extraordinary original score by
American composer Aaron Copland.
(USA, 1939) 106 min.
Directed by Lewis Milestone
The Grapes of Wrath
Saturday, October 12, 1:30 p.m.
Director Ford based this landmark film on Steinbeck's 1939 Pulitzer-winning
novel, which reflected America's fury about the Great Depression in poetic,
biblical terms. Henry Fonda stars as Tom Joad, a rebounding ex-convict who
decides to pack his extended family into a ramshackle old truck and leave
their Oklahoma "dust bowl" home for the greener pastures of southern
California. This tragic, stirring film stands as a microcosm of the
Depression experience for millions of impoverished Americans.
(USA, 1940) 128 min.
Directed by John Ford
Lifeboat
Saturday, October 19, 1:30 p.m.
Steinbeck collaborated with director Hitchcock to create this psychological
character study, set during World War II. Several distinctly different
survivors find themselves adrift together in a small lifeboat after a Nazi
U-boat sinks their ship. Another survivor, the German commander of the
U-boat, also sunk in the exchange, is allowed aboard as a gesture of
compassion and for the sake of his nautical skills. This decision proves
fateful as the story develops into an intense, suspenseful thriller.
(USA, 1944) 96 min.
Directed by Alfred Hitchcock
East of Eden
Saturday, October 26, 1:30 p.m.
James Dean delivers an electrifying performance as Cal Trask, a tortured
young man who longs for the approval of his emotionally distant father,
Adam. Adam favors Cal's twin brother, Aron, who he believes can do no wrong,
and Cal's attempts to win his father's love are met with steady disapproval.
Cal's discovery of a forbidden secret about the fate of their mother
threatens to tear the family apart. Set in the California farming valleys
of 1917, the film, directed by Kazan, was based on Steinbeck's 1952 allegory
about the nature of good and evil.
(USA, 1955) 115 min.
Directed by Elia Kazan
Image: Oriume
Admission
Admission to CMA Cinema is $6; $5 for students, senior citizens, and
Carnegie members; and $2 for CinéClub members.
University of Pittsburgh students, faculty, and staff with valid ID are
admitted free to films in the New from Japan series.
Filmgoers who present their museum admission receipts will receive a special
$3 ticket price to films in the Steinbeck on Film series.
Support
General support for the exhibitions and programs at Carnegie Museum of Art
is provided by grants from The Heinz Endowments and the Pennsylvania Council
on the Arts.
Department of Film and Video programs are supported in part by the
Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, the Juliet Lea Hillman Simonds Foundation,
and Dr. Lila Penchansky.
Carnegie Museum of Art
Located at 4400 Forbes Avenue in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh and
founded by industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie in 1895,
Carnegie Museum of Art is nationally and internationally recognized for its
distinguished collection of American and European works from the sixteenth
century to the present. The Heinz Architectural Center, part of Carnegie
Museum of Art, is dedicated to the collection, study, and exhibition of
architectural drawings and models. For more information about Carnegie
Museum of Art, call 412.622.3131 or visit our web site.
Carnegie Museum
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Pittsburgh