QFA News

Great cinema... Twice monthly!

News ... Holiday 2008 Edition

FINE FRENCH WINES AND FULL-BODIED FILMS
We all know that fine French food and French wines are sophisticated, full-bodied and deeply satisfying.
But French films, too, whether they are imports from France or from our own bastion of francophone culture in Canada, are also rich and thoughtful, spirited and sophisticated and deeply satisfying.
Continuing its tradition of showcasing fine work from the world's best directors, artists and actors, the Quinte Film Alternative is presenting two French offerings in the second half of its 2008-2009 season to satisfy the most discriminating of movie connoisseurs.
In February, the QFA will showcase film artistry at its best with France's I've Loved You So Long on Feb. 4 and C'est pas moi, je le jure! (It's Not Me, I Swear) from Quebec on Feb. 18.
I've Loved You So Long (France)-- Léa (Elsa Zylberstein) and Juliette (Kristin Scott Thomas) are sisters. The film begins with Léa, the younger sister by fifteen years, picking Juliette up at the airport. Juliette, a doctor, has just been released from prison after serving a long sentence. Léa has suggested that Juliette come to live with her. Now, Juliette has to relearn certain basics. The world has moved on and she often seems confused. Helped by some, Juliette is also rejected by others. Léa's attitude is ambiguous, and she avoids talking about Juliette's time in prison at all costs. Gradually, the real Juliette emerges. She opens up to the world once more, thanks to her two nieces. But a huge question hangs over Juliette's renaissance -- what terrible thing did she do fifteen years ago and why? It's a burden to bear, which holds her back from engaging in her life and believing that she too has the right to be happy.
Philippe Claudel (Writer/Director) makes his directorial debut with I've Loved You So Long. Born in northeastern France, and best known as a novelist, he was educated at University of Nancy, where he is currently a Professor of Literature.
C'est pas moi, je le jure! (Canada) -- In the summer of '68, Leon Doré (Antoine L'Écuyer) comes close to hanging himself accidentally. His mother saves him at the last minute, just like last summer in the pool and like two years ago in the freezer.
At ten, Léon has lots of problems and an overly fertile imagination. There is Mom (Suzanne Clément) and Dad (Daniel Brière) who are always fighting and those annoying neighbours who get to spend the summer at the beach. And then, there's Lea (Catherine Faucher), the exasperating girl who's always right about everything.
When Mom decides to leave everything behind to start a new life in Greece, Léon is prepared to do anything to kill the pain - destroy the neighbours' house, become a professional liar and even, why not, fall in love with Lea. Together, they will overcome the pain of growing up when you feel abandoned.
Based on books by author Bruno Hébert, C'est pas moi, je le jure! was written and directed by Philippe Falardeau. Falardeau previously directed La Moitié gauche du frigo (The Left-Hand Side of the Fridge), which enjoyed success in Canada and at numerous international film festivals and Congorama, which also received rave reviews around the world and won best screenplay at the 2007 Genie Awards.

WHAT'S PLAYING AROUND TOWN?

Cinefest movies are screened at the Regent Theatre on Main Street in Picton every second Monday evening at 7:30 pm + NEW Matinee screening at 2 pm.

Fri. Nov. 21
2 pm Closely Watched Trains (93 minutes; Czech with English subtitles)
Cinefest and the Regent will co-present a special (matinee only) screening of Closely Watched Trains, which, along with the next film (I Served the King of England) is based on a novel by the late Czech author Bohumil Hrabal. The 1966 film is a classic in the modern film canon. It depicts the life and sexual awakening of a feckless young crossing guard at a sleepy Czech railway station who accidentally becomes a hero. It was selected by Time magazine as one of its 100 all-time best films, describing Menzel’s mood-shifting movie as "on the track all the way." Among other themes it explores the strategies of survival for Czechs during the Nazi occupation of World War II.
This film was not allowed to be shown in Czechoslovakia for many years after the Soviet invasion of 1968 and Menzel was banned from making another movie for seven years. At seventy, Jiri Menzel lives in the Czech Republic, and is a working writer, director, and actor. His impressive resume includes work in those capacities on over 60 projects, and this pairing allows a look at good examples of both his early and recent work.
Admission by donation.

Mon. Nov. 24
2 pm & 7:30 pm I Served the King of England (14A; Czech with English subtitles)
Written and directed by Jiri Menzel, best known for his screen adaptations (this is the sixth) of the work of Bohumil Hrabal, the Czech satirist who died in 1997. It was Hrabal also who wrote the screenplay for Menzel’s 1996 classic, Closely Watched Trains, as well as the novel on which it was based.

Mon. Dec. 1
7:30 pm Michael Schmidt: Organic Hero or Bioterrorist (45 minutes; suitable for a general audience)
Cinefest and The Regent will co-present a special documentary screening of Michael Schmidt: Organic Hero or Bioterrorist. Mr. Schmidt is a dairy farmer in Grey County, and has recently been convicted of Contempt of Court in connection with providing unpasteurized milk to the public. (He still faces other related charges.) He claims that his products are healthy and beneficial, and that the public should have the freedom to purchase them. Michael Schmidt: Organic Hero or Bioterrorist chronicles a year in the life of an activist farmer as he prepares his response to the charges against him. It was made by Norm Lofts, a County resident who will be present to introduce the film and take questions after the screening. Canada is the only G8 country to impose a nationwide ban on the sale of unpasteurized milk products, and the film considers this prohibition in the context of the larger question of what is a sound and viable public policy of food production.
Admission by donation.

Mon. Dec. 8
2 pm & 7:30 pm Tuya's Marriage (PG-13; Mongolian with English subtitles)
We’ll wrap up 2008 with this wonderful movie, the kind of improbable sounding thing which requires one to trust Cinefest and hope for the best. Tuya is a lovely woman who manages a flock of sheep in Mongolia, but the family is in trouble: her husband has been badly hurt and can’t provide for them any more. They agree that they must divorce, and she will re-marry, but with the stipulation that her ex continue to live with the family. All the problems you’d expect ensue, and others as well. Absolutely lovely shots of a harsh country, and the people and animals living there. Good movie to see on the big screen if possible.

Mon. Jan. 5
2 pm & 7:30 pm Happy-Go-Lucky (14A)
Mike Leigh is a director whose work has always been popular with Cinefest audiences. (Vera Drake; Topsy-Turvey; etc). His latest work, Happy-Go-Lucky, is quite upbeat and cheerful for a change, and has received very good reviews.

Mon. Jan. 19
2 pm & 7:30 pm Blindness
One of the most imaginative (and partly Canadian) releases of 2008, this film has generated lots of critical controversy. Blindness was made by Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles (City of God), and is based on the famous novel by Portugese author Jose Saramago. It tells the story of a city afflicted with an epidmic of blindness, and is said to be a chilling combination of 'scary' and 'fine art' filmmaking.

PAST NEWSLETTERS ON-LINE
October 2008 -- Deepa Mehta's Visions of Isolation, Immigration and Imagination
    An exclusive QFA interview with the acclaimed director
September 2008 -- International Fare to Please Every Palate
May 2008 -- Movies and Writing
April 2008 -- Films to Get You Animated
March 2008 -- Visions of Life and Death
February 2008 -- Definitely the Opera
November 2007 -- Power of Film
    A fundrasiser with the Quinte Interfaith Refugee Sponsorship Committee
September 2007 -- World Class Offerings
Summer 2007 -- QFA Teams Up with Quinte Ribfest
May 2007 -- Springtime Cinema at the QFA
March 2007 -- Upcoming Films Explore Relationships
January 2007 -- Alternative Points of View
November 2006 -- Snow, Sand and Sunshine
September 2006 -- Kinky Boots? Wordplay? 2006-2007 Quinte Film Alternative Series Lives Up to its Name
May 2006 -- QFA's a Winner!
January 2006 -- QFA 10th Anniversary Presentation of Water
September 2005 -- QFA Eye on the Festivals
March 2005 -- Belleville Students Invited to Venice
January 2005 -- Happy New Year!
November 2004 -- Reports from Toronto & Sudbury International Film Festivals
September 2004 -- New Season at the QFA
June 2004 -- QFA Quinte Film Festival
    Plus: Review of Greendale by David Handey
May 2004 -- Digital Comes to the Empire (Reel Kids Film Festival)
April 2004 -- Goodbye Lenin, Hello Film Festival
December 2003 -- From the North Country
September 2003 -- QFA Goes Downtown
March 2003 -- Empire Update
January 2003 -- QFA Returns to Two Theatres
September 2002 -- Important Change in Fall/Winter Schedule
April 2002 -- Grappling with Success: New Directions for 2002/03
March 2002 -- National Stuttering Association Supports Liam
    A Review by Ira Zimmerman
January 2002 -- Adopt-a-Minefield at Kandahar
November 2001 -- Best of the Festivals
    Plus: Review of Kandahar
September 2001 -- Film Circuit Grows Nationwide
July 2001 -- Pictures of our Year-end Party!
May 2001 -- Using the Net to Catch Movies
March 2001 -- Something in Common
January 2001 -- Film Circuit Wins Drucker Award for Innovation
    Plus: Review of the 25th Toronto International Film Festival Preludes
November 2000 -- QFA Goes to the Festivals
August 2000 -- QFA Supports Canadian Filmmakers
April 2000 -- Small is Beautiful
March 2000 -- Film Festival Get-Away: Cinéfest Sudbury Tour
February 2000 -- Cinéfest Bus Trip
January 2000 -- The Malkovich Effect
November 1999 -- Coming to Earth: Director Deepa Mehta Survives an Indian Fire-Storm
September 1999 -- Welcome to our Fifth Season
May 1999 -- It's Your Turn, Laura / C'est à ton tour, Laura Cadieux
March 1999 -- The Cinematic Tourist: Lessons of Foreign Films

Fri. Nov. 21 2 pm	Closely Watched Trains (93 minutes; Czech with English subtitles) Cinefest and the Regent will co-present a special (matinee only) screening of Closely Watched Trains, which, along with the next film (I Served the King of England) is based on a novel by the late Czech author Bohumil Hrabal. The 1966 film is a classic in the modern film canon. It depicts the life and sexual awakening of a feckless young crossing guard at a sleepy Czech railway station who accidentally becomes a hero. It was selected by Time magazine as one of its 100 all-time best films, describing Menzel’s mood-shifting movie as "on the track all the way." Among other themes it explores the strategies of survival for Czechs during the Nazi occupation of World War II. This film was not allowed to be shown in Czechoslovakia for many years after the Soviet invasion of 1968 and Menzel was banned from making another movie for seven years. At seventy, Jiri Menzel lives in the Czech Republic, and is a working writer, director, and actor. His impressive resume includes work in those capacities on over 60 projects, and this pairing allows a look at good examples of both his early and recent work. Admission by donation.
Mon. Nov. 24 2 pm & 7:30 pm	I Served the King of England (14A; Czech with English subtitles) Written and directed by Jiri Menzel, best known for his screen adaptations (this is the sixth) of the work of Bohumil Hrabal, the Czech satirist who died in 1997. It was Hrabal also who wrote the screenplay for Menzel’s 1996 classic, Closely Watched Trains, as well as the novel on which it was based.
Mon. Dec. 1 7:30 pm	Michael Schmidt: Organic Hero or Bioterrorist (45 minutes; suitable for a general audience) Cinefest and The Regent will co-present a special documentary screening of Michael Schmidt: Organic Hero or Bioterrorist. Mr. Schmidt is a dairy farmer in Grey County, and has recently been convicted of Contempt of Court in connection with providing unpasteurized milk to the public. (He still faces other related charges.) He claims that his products are healthy and beneficial, and that the public should have the freedom to purchase them. Michael Schmidt: Organic Hero or Bioterrorist chronicles a year in the life of an activist farmer as he prepares his response to the charges against him. It was made by Norm Lofts, a County resident who will be present to introduce the film and take questions after the screening. Canada is the only G8 country to impose a nationwide ban on the sale of unpasteurized milk products, and the film considers this prohibition in the context of the larger question of what is a sound and viable public policy of food production. Admission by donation.
Mon. Dec. 8 2 pm & 7:30 pm	Tuya's Marriage (PG-13; Mongolian with English subtitles) We’ll wrap up 2008 with this wonderful movie, the kind of improbable sounding thing which requires one to trust Cinefest and hope for the best. Tuya is a lovely woman who manages a flock of sheep in Mongolia, but the family is in trouble: her husband has been badly hurt and can’t provide for them any more. They agree that they must divorce, and she will re-marry, but with the stipulation that her ex continue to live with the family. All the problems you’d expect ensue, and others as well. Absolutely lovely shots of a harsh country, and the people and animals living there. Good movie to see on the big screen if possible.
Mon. Jan. 5 2 pm & 7:30 pm	Happy-Go-Lucky (14A) Mike Leigh is a director whose work has always been popular with Cinefest audiences. (Vera Drake; Topsy-Turvey; etc). His latest work, Happy-Go-Lucky, is quite upbeat and cheerful for a change, and has received very good reviews.
Mon. Jan. 19 2 pm & 7:30 pm	Blindness One of the most imaginative (and partly Canadian) releases of 2008, this film has generated lots of critical controversy. Blindness was made by Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles (City of God), and is based on the famous novel by Portugese author Jose Saramago. It tells the story of a city afflicted with an epidmic of blindness, and is said to be a chilling combination of 'scary' and 'fine art' filmmaking.