MEDIA CONTACT: Judy Moore at (847) 491-4819 or jkm229@northwestern.edu

January 6, 2004

January 2004 Film Calendar

Block Cinema, a collaboration of the School of Communication and the Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, 40 Arts Circle Drive, Evanston campus, screens classic and contemporary films in the museum’s James B. Pick and Rosalyn M. Laudati Auditorium.

Block Cinema features a series on different themes, directors or countries during each quarter of the academic year. The three key themes for the Winter 2004 films focus on works by Japanese director Akira Kurosawa, classic Hollywood comedies and film noirs, and New Taiwanese Cinema.

Block Cinema, in partnership with like-minded groups, brings numerous special and rare screenings to Chicago in addition to its regular schedule. All foreign films are subtitled in English, unless otherwise noted. Detailed descriptions of the films are available in the tri-quarterly Block Cinema calendar and on the Block Cinema Web site at www.blockmuseum.northwestern.edu/blockcinema.

Block Cinema is curated by Block Cinema staff and a student group called the Film and Projection Society (FPS).

General admission is $6, or $4 for Northwestern faculty and staff, Block Museum members, students and senior citizens. Special Block Cinema events are $10, unless otherwise noted. A season pass is $20, but does not include admission to special events. Tickets and season passes are available at the door 30 minutes before showtime.

For more information about the winter screenings, call the Block Cinema Hotline at (847) 491-4000 or go to the Block Cinema Web site at www.blockmuseum.northwestern.edu/blockcinema.

JANUARY 2004

New Taiwanese Cinema, “The Terrorizer,” 8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 7 (Edward Yang, 1986, Taiwan, 109 minutes, 16 mm). An intriguing thriller, this film spins three separate storylines of urban alienation and betrayal from across the social spectrum and then slowly converges them. Taiwan underwent a massive economic revitalization beginning in the 1950s. “The Terrorizer” is about how such enormous, impersonal changes in a country echo in the lives of its citizens.

Class in Classic Hollywood, “It Happened One Night,” 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 8 (Frank Capra, 1934, United States, 105 minutes, 35 mm). Frank Capra’s romantic comedy stars Claudette Colbert as a runaway heiress and Clark Gable as a newspaper reporter who fall in love on a rural bus trip. Capra’s portrait of the rich enjoying pleasures helped make this film an enormous success among Depression-era audiences, winning five major Oscars.

Akira Kurosawa, “Rashomon,” 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 9 (Akira Kurosawa, 1950, Japan, 87 minutes, 35 mm). Two facts are undeniable in this film: a woman has been raped and her husband killed. The circumstances are murky, and each eyewitness account conflicts with the rest.

New Taiwanese Cinema, “Kuei-mei, A Woman,” 8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 14 (Chang Yi, 1985, Taiwan, 119 minutes, 16 mm). This film tells the story of a mother of five and her 30-year struggle for survival. By centering the film on Kuei-mei, the director shrinks the immense economic and societal changes in Taiwan during three decades down to a human scale. The film won five Golden Horses, the Taiwanese equivalent of the Oscar.

Class in Classic Hollywood, “Holiday,” 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 15 (George Cukor, 1938, United States, 93 minutes, 35 mm). Johnny Case (Cary Grant), a charming man from a modest background, is engaged to society girl Julia Seton (Doris Nolan). Uninterested in wealth and power, Case hopes to retire early to a life of self-reflection, contrary to the expectations of his fiancée and future father-in-law. Katharine Hepburn portrays Julia’s eccentric, headstrong sister who is drawn to Case’s unconventionality in this comedy.

Akira Kurosawa, “Ikiru,” 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 16 (Akira Kurosawa, 1952, Japan, 143 minutes, 35 mm). Kanji Watanabe (Takashi Shimura) is a low-level government official dying of cancer in this domestic drama. Shimura’s restrained, subtle portrayal and Kurosawa’s touch make this a moving story about a dying man’s search for relevancy.

New Taiwanese Cinema, “Dust in the Wind,” 8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 21 (Hou Hsiao-hsian, 1986, Taiwan, 110 minutes, 16 mm). In this simple and contemplative film, a young couple moves to the big city of Taipei from a small mining town. Leaving their families behind, they struggle to make ends meet. The bleak city life that Hou captures is reminiscent of Italian neo-realism.

Class in Classic Hollywood, “The Philadelphia Story,” 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 22 (George Cukor, 1940, United States, 112 minutes, 35 mm). This comedy stars Katharine Hepburn as Tracy Lord, a socialite who desires a down-to-earth romance. Cary Grant who plays her ex-husband, and Jimmy Stewart, who portrays an enamored reporter, both vie for her love.

Akira Kurosawa, “The Seven Samurai,” 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 23 (Akira Kurosawa, 1954, Japan, 200 minutes, 35 mm). Many of our notions about samurai can be traced to this landmark film, which borrows from George Stevens’ 1953 Western “Shane” and other American Westerns and was remade in 1960 by John Sturges as “The Magnificent Seven.” Hired to protect a poor village from a gang of bandits, Kurosawa’s samurais battle for their honor. It is an epic tale of tradition and sacrifice.

Independent Film, Studio 22 (three free films), 8 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 27. Guy Maddin combines silent film techniques, lightning-speed editing and his own personal obsessions to prove himself one of the most original filmmakers today. “Dracula: Pages from a Virgin’s Diary” (Guy Maddin, 2002, Canada, 73 minutes, 35 mm) is a Gothic, erotically-charged adaptation of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s stage production which humorously comments on the xenophobia of Bram Stoker’s original novel. “The Heart of the World” (Guy Maddin, 2000, Canada, 5 minutes, 35 mm) is a fast-paced, five-minute, black-and-white fantasy. The Maddin films will be preceded by the Northwestern- produced “Trailers” (Joe Grazulis, 2000, United States, 20 minutes, Beta SP), a wild journey through cinema’s “coming attractions.” This screening is co-sponsored by Studio 22.

New Taiwanese Cinema, “City of Sadness,” 8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 28 (Hou Hsiao-hsian, 1989, Taiwan, 158 minutes, 35 mm). Set at the end of Japan’s 51-year rule of Taiwan, “City of Sadness” is a story about the fraying of a family that is framed by the surrounding national upheaval. The family struggles to stay Taiwanese in the wake of Taiwan’s return to mainland China.

Class in Classic Hollywood, “The Grapes of Wrath,” 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 29 (John Ford, 1940, United States, 128 minutes, 35 mm). During the heart of the Depression, the Joad family is forced to leave dust bowl Oklahoma for the promise of a better life in California. They are bitterly disappointed when they face the same social prejudices and class lines they left behind.

Akira Kurosawa, “Throne of Blood,” 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 30 (Akira Kurosawa, 1957, Japan, 110 minutes, 35 mm). A visually stunning black-and-white adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth,” this film is set in the feudal system of medieval Japan.

REELTIME FILM SERIES

Reeltime is an independent film and video forum jointly sponsored by the Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art at Northwestern University and the Evanston Public Library in partnership with project directors Andrea Leland, Kathy Berger and Ines Sommer.

The free admission, monthly series of award-winning independent features, documentaries and short-subject videos is held either at the main branch of the Evanston Public Library, 1703 Orrington Ave., in downtown Evanston, or the Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, 40 Arts Circle Drive, Evanston campus. Each screening is followed by a discussion between filmmakers and the audience.

For more information, call the Block Museum at (847) 491-4000 or the Evanston Public Library at (847) 866-0300 or visit the museum’s Web site at www.blockmuseum.northwestern.edu or the Reeltime Web site at www.reeltimeevanston.org.

Reeltime, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 14, Animation Canadian Style, Evanston Public Library. A selection of Canadian shorts that push the limits of animation and entertain the whole family will be screened. Guest curator Myra Margolin and Northwestern University film scholar Scott Curtis will be present for discussion.