Leviathan

LEVIATHAN
(Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Véréna Paravel, 2012, USA/France/UK, 87 min.)

A groundbreaking, immersive portrait of the contemporary commercial fishing industry. Filmed off the coast of New Bedford, Mass. – at one time the whaling capital of the world, as well as Melville’s inspiration for Moby Dick; it is today the country’s largest fishing port with over 500 ships sailing from its harbor every month.

Leviathan follows one such vessel, a hulking groundfish trawler, into the surrounding murky black waters on a weeks-long fishing expedition. But instead of romanticizing the labor or partaking in the longstanding tradition of turning fisherfolk into images, filmmakers Lucien Castiang-Taylor (Sweetgrass) and Verena Paravel (Foreign Parts) present a vivid, almost-kaleidoscopic representation of the work, the sea, the machinery and the players, both human and marine.

Trailer: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQxcfTZmob4[/youtube]

The Webster University Film Series receives funding from the Regional Arts Commission and the Missouri Arts Council – a state agency.

Nostalgia For the Light (Nostalgia de la Luz)

NOSTALGIA FOR THE LIGHT (NOSTALGIA DE LA LUZ)
(Patricio Guzmán, 2010, France, Germany, Chile, Spain, & USA, 90 min.)

An extraordinary and deeply felt documentary filmed in the other-worldliness of the Atacama Desert in Chile, acclaimed Chilean director Patricio Guzmán’s Nostalgia for the Light achieves pitch-perfect dialectical tension between the great cosmic and existential questions about life and death and lingering intimate and emotional questions about historical, and ultimately individual and personal, trauma of tragic loss. In Spanish with English subtitles.

Screening of Nostalgia For the Light is co-sponsored by The St. Louis Psychoanalytic Institute. Sheila Heckman, institute librarian, will lead a discussion following the film.

Trailer: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ok7f4MLL-Hk[/youtube]

The Webster University Film Series receives funding from the Regional Arts Commission and the Missouri Arts Council – a state agency.

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The Film Series presents Wagner and Me, May 12 – 15, at 7:30 p.m., in the Moore Auditorium.

“Wagner and Me”

WAGNER & ME  (Patrick McGrady, 2010, UK/Germany, 89 min.)
Actor and writer Stephen Fry explores his passion for the world’s most controversial composer — Richard Wagner. But Stephen is Jewish and lost family members in the Holocaust, so can he salvage the music he loves from its dark association with antisemitism and the Nazis?

Shot on location in Germany, Switzerland and Russia, the film includes unique behind-the-scenes access to the Bayreuth Festival, the annual extravaganza of Wagner’s music held in the composer’s own purpose built theatre. Animated by Stephen Fry’s trademark wit and intelligence, and featuring a soundtrack of Wagner’s extraordinary music, this is a fantastic introduction to the life and legacy of one of the most important composers ever, and a must-see film for those who already know and love his music.

Trailer:  [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKPlMjpxqIk&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]

For more information please visit: http://www.webster.edu/filmseries

Admission is $6 for the general public, $5 for senior adults (60 +), students from other schools and Webster alumni, $4 for WU faculty and staff, and free to WU students with valid ID unless otherwise noted.

The Sessions

THE SESSIONS
(Ben Lewin, 2012, USA, 95 min.)

Based on the poignantly optimistic autobiographical writings of California-based journalist and poet Mark O’Brien, The Sessions tells the story of a man (John Hawkes) paralyzed by polio and confined to an iron lung, who is determined—at age 38—to experience sexual initiation.

With the help of a professional sex surrogate (Helen Hunt) and the guidance of his therapists and priest (William H. Macy), he sets out to make his dream a reality.

Join the Discussion

Screening of The Sessions is co-sponsored by The St. Louis Psychoanalytic Institute. Women, gender, and sexuality studies lecturer Susan Stiritz will lead a discussion following the film.

While this story affirms the power of the erotic, does it reveal anything new about sexuality or about disability? How might the sex scenes have been scripted differently to show the able-bodied what the disabled can teach about sex and intimacy? Since we will all probably end up disabled in the end, these are important questions, which can give rise to heartening lessons. 

Trailer:[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6T7vqxwuWEM&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]

The Webster University Film Series receives funding from the Regional Arts Commission and the Missouri Arts Council – a state agency.

The Webster Film & Video Society is an organization dedicated to students in all aspects of film and video.

The Webster University Film Series and Webster Film & Video Society (WFVS) present the 8th Annual Webster University Student Film Festival, Friday, May 3, 7:30 p.m., in the Winifred Moore Auditorium. Admission is free.

Another fascinating installment of recent work from Webster University’s talented film and video students proves to be even better than the last. A broad representation of genre and theme, the program is a strong showcase of some the School of Communication’s brightest minds. The series is curated by the Webster Film & Video Society.

WFVS is a student-run organization that draws the student community together to view films and discuss technical and aesthetic aspects of film with peers. The society provides the means to find others willing to assist on film and video projects, and maintains a list of willing actors and crew.

For more information, visit webster.edu/filmseries.

The Webster University Film Series receives funding from the Regional Arts Commission and the Missouri Arts Council – a state agency.

THE HUDSUCKER PROXY
(Joel Coen, 1994, USA, 111 min.)

The Hudsucker Proxy is the Coen Brothers’ imaginative amalgam of Howard Hawks, Frank Capra, and Fritz Lang.  The surrealistic take on screwball comedy tells the tale of a naive business graduate (Tim Robbins) who is installed as president of a manufacturing company as part of a stock scam. His brilliant invention (you know, for kids) takes the world by storm.

Presented in the lively atmosphere of Schlafly Bottleworks, 7260 Southwest Ave., Maplewood, Mo. Ample parking is available.

Trailer: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBa8p0NFwM8[/youtube]

The Webster University Film Series is part of the School of Communications and receives funding from the Regional Arts Commission and the Missouri Arts Council – a state agency.

Starlet

STARLET
(Sean Baker, 2011, USA, 103 min.)

Starlet explores the unlikely friendship between 21-year old aspiring actress Jane (Dree Hemingway) and elderly widow Sadie (Besedka Johnson) after their worlds collide in California’s San Fernando Valley. Jane spends her time getting high with her dysfunctional roommates and taking care of her chihuahua Starlet, while Sadie passes her days alone, tending to her garden. After a confrontation at a yard sale, Jane finds something unexpected in a relic from Sadie’s past. Her curiosity piqued, she tries to befriend the caustic older woman. Secrets emerge as their relationship grows, revealing that nothing is ever as it seems. Featuring exceptional debut performances by Dree Hemingway (great-granddaughter of Ernest and daughter of Mariel) and 85 year-old Besedka Johnson, Starlet is at once provocative, haunting, unpredictable and surprisingly sweet. For mature audiences only.

Trailer: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02OinhG-YZQ[/youtube]

For more information please visit: www.webster.edu/filmseries.

The Webster University Film Series receives funding from the Regional Arts Commission and the Missouri Arts Council – a state agency.

Moonrise Kingdom

MOONRISE KINGDOM
(Wes Anderson, 2012, USA, 104 min.)

The film received critical acclaim and was included throughout the 2012-2013 film awards season, including nominations for Best Original Screenplay (Academy Awards) and Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy (Golden Globes).

Set on an island off the coast of New England in the summer of 1965, “Moonrise Kingdom” tells the story of two twelve-year olds who fall in love, make a secret pact, and run away together into the wilderness. As various authorities try to hunt them down, a violent storm is brewing offshore and the peaceful island community is turned upside down in more ways than anyone can handle. Bruce Willis plays the local sheriff. Edward Norton is a Khaki Scout troop leader. Bill Murray and Frances McDormand portray the young girl’s parents. The cast also includes Tilda Swinton, Jason Schwartzman, and Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward as the boy and girl.

Trailer: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jsu8W8Odxoo[/youtube]

For more information please visit: http://www.webster.edu/filmseries

The Webster University Film Series receives funding from the Regional Arts Commission and the Missouri Arts Council – a state agency.

“The Darjeeling Limited”

THE DARJEELING LIMITED (Wes Anderson, 2007, USA, 91 min.)
The film concerns three estranged American brothers reunited for a meticulously planned, soul-searching train voyage across India one year after the death of their father.

Armed with eleven suitcases, a laminated itinerary, a can of pepper spray, a supply of over-the-counter painkillers and a host of family conflicts ready to erupt, Francis, Peter and Jack eventually find themselves stranded alone in the middle of the desert — at which point an unexpected new chapter in their journey begins.

Featuring a sensational cast, including Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, Jason Schwartzman and Anjelica Huston, The Darjeeling Limited is a dazzling and hilarious film that takes Anderson’s work to deeper places than ever before.

Trailer:  [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aO1bYukdvLI[/youtube]

For more information please visit: http://www.webster.edu/filmseries

Admission is $6 for the general public, $5 for senior adults (60 +), students from other schools and Webster alumni, $4 for WU faculty and staff, and free to Webster University students with valid ID.

The Webster University Film Series receives funding from the Regional Arts Commission and the Missouri Arts Council – a state agency.

‘Pavilion’

This weekend the Webster University Film Series presents Pavilion, Tim Sutton’s 2012 debut feature film.

Likened to films by Gus Van Sant and Pedro Costa, Pavilion follows a laconic teenager (Max) who moves from an idyllic lakeside town to his father’s home in arid suburban Arizona. With mesmerizing imagery of hot summer bike rides and cool lake-bound dives, “Pavilion” captures the ephemerality and reverie of youth and the fragility of adolescent friendships.

A haunting score by the Sea and Cake’s Sam Prekop shadows the storyline, echoing its secrets and shouldering its mysteries.

Trailer and more: www.pavilionfilm.com

For more information please visit: www.webster.edu/filmseries

PAVILION (Tim Sutton, 2012, USA, 68 min.): April 12, 13 & 14 at 7:30 p.m.

Winfred Moore Auditorium, Webster University, 470 E. Lockwood, Webster Groves, MO 63119

Admission: $6 for the general public, $5 for seniors (60+), students from other schools and Webster alumni, $4 for Webster University faculty and staff, and FREE to Webster University students with valid ID.

The Webster University Film Series receives funding from the Regional Arts Commission and the Missouri Arts Council – a state agency.