Ghost in the Shell

Saturday, August 27
NOTE: screened at 11:59 p.m. in The Commons Center MPR
Presented by: Vanderbilt Global Perspectives
Japan (1995) Dir: Mamoru Oshii. In this cyberpunk anime film, highly evolved artificial intelligence seeks criminal ways to escape cyberspace and enter the real world. Existential angst and identity color this not-so-typical science-fiction thriller. Japanese and Spanish with English subtitles. Not Rated. 83 mins. DVD. Funding provided in part by The Martha Rivers Ingram Commons and Vanderbilt Global Perspectives.

 

Música Campesina (Country Music)

Wednesday, September 7
Presented by: Todd Hughes, Director of Instructional Technology, Center for Second Language Studies; Ashley Zeigler, B.A., Vanderbilt 2011; Sarah Childress, Ph.D., Vanderbilt 2009
USA, Chile (2010) Dir: Alberto Fuguet. A brokenhearted Chilean thirtysomething works to regain his equilibrium on the streets of Nashville. He loves America. Will America love him back? Filmed in Nashville by a Vanderbilt student crew, starring Vanderbilt students and community members. Shown at Lincoln Center’s Latinbeat and the Nashville Film Festival. Immediately following the screening there will be a Q&A session with Producer, Sarah Childress and Director of Photography, Ashley Zeigler. English and Spanish with English subtitles. Not Rated. 100 mins. DVD. Funding provided in part by the Center for Latin American Studies.

 

Beyond Belief

Thursday, September 8
Presented by: Hala Zein-Sabatto, Vanderbilt Interfaith Council
USA (2008) Dir: Beth Murphy. Two American women who lost their husbands in the 9/11 tragedy, cope with loss and struggle by dedicating themselves to empowering Afghan widows whose lives have been ravaged by decades of war, poverty and oppression. From their comfortable Boston neighborhoods to the most desperate Afghan villages, they bond with widows and discover profound ways to move beyond tragedy. Not Rated. 96 mins. DVD. Held in conjunction with campus-wide programs commemorating the 10th anniversary of 9/11.

 

Not in Our Town: Light in the Darkness

Tuesday, September 13
Presented by:  Kathy Edson, Community Engagement Manager, NPT and the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Program
USA (2011) Dir: Patrice O’Neill. This PBS special, a project from The Working Group, documents the story of a town that takes action after a hate crime killing devastates their community. It follows the mayor, the victim’s brother, and residents as they address the underlying causes of the anti-immigrant violence and initiate action to ensure everyone’s safety and respect. Not Rated. 60 minutes. DVD.

 

Yossi and Jagger

Wednesday, September 14
Presented by: Vanderbilt Global Perspectives
Facilitated by: Allison Schachter, Assistant Professor of Jewish Studies and English
Israel (2002) Dir: Eytan Fox. Love flowers between two young Israeli commanders at a cramped army base on the Israeli-Lebanese border. In a society of “Don’t ask, Don’t tell,” they must keep the emotional lid on their affair and hold together contentious morale. Hebrew with English subtitles. Rated R. 67 mins. Funding provided in part by Vanderbilt Global Perspectives.

 

Ip Man 2

Thursday, September 15
Presented by: Vanderbilt Undergraduate Chinese Student Association
Hong Kong (2010) Dir: Wilson Yip. The biopic of martial-arts hero and Wing Chun popularizer continues. Set in 1950s Hong Kong, Ip Man must face down street punks, organized mobs, corrupt cops, and British oppressors to defend Asian culture. Evokes the heyday of Kung Fu in Hong Kong through this historical and nationalist figure. Cantonese and Mandarin with English subtitles. Rated R. 108 mins.

 

How I Ended This Summer

Wednesday, September 21
Presented by: Kostya Kustanovich, Associate Professor, Department of Germanic and Slavic Languages
Russia (2010) Dir: Aleksei Popogrebsky. Two scientists stationed on a desolate outpost in the Arctic are conditioned to their isolation and harsh surroundings. But madness sets in as fear, lies, and suspicions start poisoning their delicate atmosphere in this stunning existential drama of survival. Russian with English subtitles. Not Rated. 124 mins. Funding provided by Department of Germanic & Slavic Languages and American Studies Department. Held in conjunction with the American Studies year-long program on sustainabilty.

 

Me Facing Life

Saturday, September 24
NOTE: screened at 11 a.m. in Sarratt Cinema
Presented by: Daniel Birman, Film Director; Dr. William Bernet, Vanderbilt Professor of Psychiatry; LaToyur Tisdale, CEO and Founder, YUR and YUR Teen Magazine; Co-Convener, The Community Take Back Initiative

USA (2011) Dir: Daniel Birman. There was no question that a 43-year-old man was dead and that Cyntoia Brown killed him. What led a girl who grew up in a reasonable home environment to this tragic end? Not Rated. 69 mins. DVD. Funding provided by The Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center, the Department of English, and Voices from Our America.

 

Hors La Loi (Outside the Law)

Wednesday, September 28
Presented by: Rachel Nisselson, Senior Lecturer, Department of French and Italian
France, Algeria, Belgium (2010) Dir: Rachid Bouchareb. Three brothers uprooted from their homeland spark a militant campaign for Algerian independence on French soil. Hailed as one of the most controversial films on French occupation and Algerian independence since The Battle of Algiers and Algeria’s Oscar nominee for Best Foreign Film in 2010. French and Arabic with English subtitles. Not Rated. 138 mins. Funding provided by the Department of French and Italian.

 

The End of the Neubacher Project

Thursday, September 29
Presented by: Ari Joskowicz, Assistant Professor, Department of Jewish Studies
Austria (2007) Dir: Marcus J. Carney. Filmmaker Carney confronts his family’s Nazi past. But during his truth-seeking journey, his mother is diagnosed with cancer forcing him to juggle horrifying facts with his innocent wish to love his family. English and German with English subtitles. Not Rated. 74 mins. DVD. The film director will be present for Q&A immediately following the screening. Funding provided by European Studies.

 

Hadewijch

Presented as part of The Tournées Festival

Tuesday, October 4
Presented by: Rob Watson, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of French and Italian
France (2009) Dir: Bruno Dumont. A novice nun shocks the mother superior of her convent with her ecstatic blind faith and is kicked out of the order. Now a young Parisian girl again and daughter of a diplomat, she is led down dangerous paths in the real world. French and Arabic with English subtitles. Not Rated. 120 mins.

 

The Illusionist (L’ illusionniste)

Presented as part of The Tournées Festival

Tuesday, October 11
Presented by: Lynn Ramey, Associate Professor of French and Department Chair, Department of French and Italian
France, UK (2010) Dir: Sylvain Chomet. Based on a script by the French comic genius Jacques Tati, this animated film tells the story of a down-on-his-luck illusionist who travels to Scotland for work where he meets a young woman. Their ensuing adventure changes both their lives forever. French and Gaelic with English subtitles. Rated PG. 80 mins.

 

 

El Norte (The North)

Wednesday, October 12
Presented by: Vanderbilt Advocates for the Immigrant Community
USA, Mexico (1983) Dir: Gregory Nava. A brother and sister risk a life-and-death escape from Guatemala and cross into California in this musically and visually stunning film. Hailed as the first to approach the subject of undocumented workers in America where heroics or politics don’t get in the way, this fascinating story takes you inside the lives of two immigrants. Spanish and Mayan with English subtitles. Rated R. 141 mins. DVD.

 

White Material

Presented as part of The Tournées Festival

Thursday, October 13
Presented by: Annette Quarcoopome, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of French and Italian
France (2009) Dir: Claire Denis. A woman attempts to run her family’s coffee plantation in an African country torn apart by civil conflict. Maria risks everything in this exploration of the complexities of racial conflict and the limits of human will. French with English subtitles. Not Rated. 100 mins.

 

Cow

Wednesday, October 19
Presented by: Ling Hon Lam, Assistant Professor of Asian Studies
China (2009) Dir: Hi Guan. At the onset of WWII, a dim-witted peasant is given a loyal Dutch cow who produces milk with alleged healing powers. This absurdly comedic duo becomes the unlikely hero and the last line of defense when the Japanese enter their town. A surrealist and dark humor, alongside the gritty atmosphere of war, unravel as man and beast survive the elements of a hard-scrabbled existence. Mandarin with English subtitles. Not Rated. 105 mins. Digibeta.

 

Inspector Bellamy

Presented as part of The Tournées Festival

Thursday, October 20
Presented by: Lisa Weiss, Lecturer, Department of French and Italian
France (2009) Dir: Claude Chabrol. Eminent director Chabrol makes his 50th and final feature film a wry thriller about a police commissioner trying to balance professional instinct with family duty. Bellamy and his wife are spending their vacation in a quiet town when a shadowy figure intrudes and launches him into a mysterious psychodrama of twisting plots and crime solving. French with English subtitles. Not Rated. 110 mins.

 

La Belle Endormie (The Sleeping Beauty)

Presented as part of The Tournées Festival

Tuesday, October 25
Presented by: Patricia Armstrong, Senior Lecturer, Department of French and Italian
France (2011) Dir: Catherine Breillat. In a castle in a far away land in a far away time, Anastasia is born. Soon after, she is cursed to sleep for 100 years and for a century Anastasia will live in the world of dreams. This edgy, deconstructed take on Charles Perrault’s classic, voyages into the crawlspace between childhood and adolescence, the unattainable and the all-too-real. French with English subtitles. Not Rated. 82 mins. DVD.

Veer Zaara (Veer-Zaara)

Wednesday, October 26
NOTE: screened at 6:30 p.m. in Sarratt Cinema. Indian food will be served during an intermission from 8–8:30 p.m.
Presented by: Todd Hughes, Director of Instructional Technology, Center for Second Language Studies; Denise Callejas, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Spanish and Portuguese
India (2004) Dir: Yasha Chopra. A pilot with the Indian Air Force rescues a Pakistani girl stranded in India after a bus accident. Twenty-two years later, the mystery of the pilot’s disappearance and sentencing to a Pakistani jail for that time comes to light. A saga of love, separation, courage, and sacrifice is unveiled. Hindi with English subtitles. Not rated. 192 mins. DVD. Funding provided in part by the Center for Second Language Studies.

 

The Last Survivor

Thursday, October 27
Presented by: Vanderbilt Holocaust Lecture Series
Facilitated by: Shaiya Baer and Gretchen Person
USA (2010) Dirs: Michael Pertnoy & Michael Kleiman. This documentary follows the lives of survivors of The Holocaust, Rawanda, Darfur, and Congo. The film presents the stories of survivors and their struggle to make sense of the tragedy by working to promulgate a civic response to mass atrocitIes. Immediately following the screening a panel discussion will be held featuring two of the survivors featured in the film, Jacqueline Murekatete and Justin Semahoro. Not Rated. 56 mins. DVD. Funding provided by the Vanderbit Holocaust Lecture Series.

 

Summer Wars

Wednesday, November 2
Presented by: Vanderbilt Japanese Cultural Foundation
Japan (2009) Dir: Mamoru Hosoda. A math nerd is called to save OZ, the massive, all-encompassing virtual world, after a rogue program acquires an orbiting nuclear weapon. This trippy animated feature travels through real-world dramas and a pop-art universe colored in vintage psychedelia and Japanese iconography. Japanese with English subtitles. Rated PG. 114 mins. DVD.

 

O’er the Land

Thursday, November 3
Presented by: Jonathan Rattner, Senior Lecturer, American Studies and Film Studies
USA (2009) Dir: Deborah Stratman. Through sounds and imagery, this avant-garde documentary imposes a philosophical touch on the symbols of American identity. Guns, planes, flamethrowers, football games, border patrol officers, and landscapes are among the iconic reminders of freedom, progress, and strength. Not Rated. 51 mins. DVD. The director will be present for Q&A session immediately following the screening. Funding provided by the American Studies and Film Studies Departments. Held in conjunction with the American Studies year-long program on sustainabilty.

 

Our Beloved Month of August

Wednesday, November 9
Presented by: Heather McRae, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Spanish and Portuguese
Portugal, France (2008) Dir: Miguel Gomes. This subtle comedy freewheels across the rural Portuguese landscape stopping at music festivals and villages. This hybrid of documentary and fiction captures a charming series of vignettes – eccentric and ­cerebral – an arthouse event, yes, but also witty and emotionally engaged. French and Portuguese with English subtitles. Rated R. 147 mins. Funding provided by Nashville Premiers.

 

Sons of Lwala

Tuesday, November 15
Presented by: Lwala Community Alliance
USA (2008) Dir: Barry Simons. While attending Vanderbilt’s Medical School, brothers Milton and Fred Ochieng’ lost both of their parents to AIDS. Consequently, they were left with a heartbreaking task: to return home to their village in Kenya and finish the health clinic their father started before getting sick. This documentary follows them on their incredible journey as they find a way, despite all odds, to open their village’s first hospital. Not Rated. 71 mins. DVD.

 

Retorno A Hansala (Return to Hansala)

Wednesday, November 16
Presented by: Michelle Shepherd, Andrew W. Mellon Assistant Professor, Department of Spanish and Portuguese
Spain (2008) Dir: Chus Gutierrez. Inspired by countless recent stories of African migrants’ bodies washing up on Spanish shores, this drama traces the journey of a funeral home owner and a young Moroccan girl to deliver the body of her deceased brother back to their home village. The message becomes clear as the villagers bear the plight of the African migrant. Spanish, Arabic, and Berber with English subtitles. Not Rated. 95 mins.

 

Untold Scandal

Wednesday, November 30
Presented by: Vanderbilt Korean Student and Scholars Association
Korea (2003) Dir: Je-yong Lee. Based on the novel Les Liaisons Dangereuses, this film is set in aristocratic 18th-century Seoul where cruelty knows no borders. In this world of pomp and propriety, costumes and misty landscapes, there are affairs and vengeances unseen that can save your soul or condemn you to death. Korean with English subtitles. Not Rated. 124 mins.

 

The Pervert’s Guide to Cinema

Wednesday, December 7
Presented by: Jennifer Fay, Associate Professor and Director of Film Studies Program
UK, Australia, Netherlands (2009) Dir: Sophie Fiennes. Acclaimed philosopher and psychoanalyst Slavoj Zizek delves into the hidden language of cinema. Whether he is untangling the baffling films of David Lynch, or overturning everything you thought you knew about Hitchcock, Zizek illuminates the screen with his passion, intellect, and unfailing sense of humor. Not Rated. 150 mins. DVD. Funding provided by Nashville Premiers.