Thinking Outside the Multiplex in Indiana (November 18, 2011)
by HELEN GEIB
Three arthouse new releases and three arthouse holdovers at the KAC this week- we must be coming into awards season. Elsewhere, lighter than usual repertory offerings due to the holiday. By the way, next week’s edition of TOTM in IN will be published on Wednesday to take account of the Wednesday-before-Thanksgiving openings, and because there’s not a chance in the world I’ll be alert enough to write anything after the Thanksgiving feast.
TOTM aspires to completeness! If you know of a limited release film, special screening, festival, or other movie-related event coming up, or something happening this week that isn’t listed here, please leave a comment or send me an email using the “contact us” form.
Note: Title links lead to the movie’s official website.
OPENING THIS WEEK IN LIMITED RELEASE
Like Crazy- This indie romantic drama was a prize winner at Sundance. Anton Yelchin and Felicity Jones star as a couple navigating a long-distance relationship. Like Crazy starts today at the Landmark Theatres Keystone Art Cinema in Indianapolis.
Love Crime- Kristin Scott Thomas is a powerful corporate executive and Ludivine Sagnier the target of her mind games in this French psychological thriller. Love Crime starts today at the Landmark Theatres Keystone Art Cinema in Indianapolis. The Landmark’s website says it will be a one-week engagement; those one-week-only movies sometimes get held over anyway (presumably because tickets sales are brisk), but given how many movies are in the pipeline to open around Thanksgiving at the KAC I’d take them at their word on this one.
Melancholia- From the Landmark’s website: “In this beautiful movie about the end of the world, Justine (Kirsten Dunst) and Michael are celebrating their marriage at a sumptuous party in the home of her sister Claire (Charlotte Gainsbourg), and brother-in-law John (Kiefer Sutherland). Despite Claire’s best efforts, the wedding is a fiasco, with family tensions mounting and relationships fraying. Meanwhile, a planet called Melancholia is heading directly towards Earth… Melancholia is a psychological disaster film from controversial director Lars von Trier (Breaking the Waves, Dancer in the Dark, Dogville, Antichrist).” Melancholia starts today at the Landmark Theatres Keystone Art Cinema in Indianapolis.
THEATRICAL HOLDOVERS (AND “RE-OPENINGS”)
Anonymous- Who’d have thought a Roland Emmerich movie would show up in TOTM? Stargate, Independence Day, Godzilla, The Day After Tomorrow, 10,000 BC, 2012… we’re talking big studio, big budget productions here. It’s not as if this particular effort is some career outlier, made-for-a-shoestring indie either; the costumes alone must have cost a bundle. The story is another of those conspiracy theories about Shakespeare not really writing the plays of Shakespeare. Anonymous holds over at the AMC Showplace Bloomington 11 and the Landmark Keystone Art Cinema in Indianapolis (where it’s down to one show a day), and opens at the Movie Buff Theatre in Indianapolis.
Higher Ground- “Acclaimed actress Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air) makes her directorial debut with this look at a tight-knit spiritual community thrown off-kilter when one of their own begins to question her faith.” Higher Ground holds over at the Cinema Center in Fort Wayne.
The Little Traitor- Alfred Molina stars as a British army sergeant who befriends a Jewish boy in the months before Israeli statehood in this film based on a novel by Amos Oz. The Little Traitor holds over at reduced showtimes at the Movie Buff Theatre in Indianapolis.
Martha Marcy May Marlene- From the Landmark’s website: “A powerful psychological thriller starring Elizabeth Olsen as Martha, a young woman rapidly unraveling amidst her attempt to reclaim a normal life after fleeing from a cult and its charismatic leader (John Hawkes). Seeking help from her estranged older sister Lucy (Sarah Paulson) and brother-in-law (Hugh Dancy), Martha is unable and unwilling to reveal the truth about her disappearance. When her memories trigger a chilling paranoia that her former cult could still be pursuing her, the line between Martha’s reality and delusion begins to blur.” Martha Marcy May Marlene holds over at the Landmark Keystone Art Cinema in Indianapolis.
Ra.One- This Bollywood sci-fi superhero story starring Shahrukh Khan, Kareena Kapoor, and Arjun Rampal will have two more (probably its last) shows on Sunday at the Republic Theaters Georgetown 14 in Indianapolis.
Rockstar- From what I gather (from the awkwardly written summary on the official site), this is a dramatic-comic-romantic-musical tale- sounds about right for Bollywood- of an unsuccessful musician who dreams of being a rockstar and concocts a ridiculous plan to make his dream come true. The music is by A.R. Rahman (Dil Se, Lagaan, Slumdog Millionaire) and the soundtrack is already a hit on the Indian charts. Rockstar, which is in Hindi with English subtitles, holds over at the Republic Theatres Georgetown 14 in Indianapolis.
Sarah’s Key- Kristin Scott Thomas stars in this Holocaust drama as a modern-day journalist investigating the tragic history of two Jewish children in occupied Paris. The film is based on the novel by Tatiana De Rosnay. Sarah’s Key starts today at the Starplex Cinemas Fort Wayne Coventry 13.
Take Shelter- Michael Shannon (Revolutionary Road, the Boardwalk Empire TV series) has gotten rave reviews for his performance as a Midwestern family man suffering the onset of mental illness in this drama. Take Shelter holds over at the Landmark Theatres Keystone Art Cinema in Indianapolis.
The Way- Martin Sheen stars as a father whose son dies while hiking the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route, and decides to complete the journey in his stead. The movie was filmed on location and was directed by Sheen’s real-life son Emilio Estevez. The Way holds over at the Yes Cinema in Columbus and opens at the Cinema Center in Fort Wayne.
FESTIVALS, REPERTORY SCREENINGS, AND MORE
For additional information on venues and showtimes, follow the links under “Outside the Multiplex” in the sidebar.
Indianapolis and Central Indiana
Saturday at 7 the Jewish Community Center hosts an evening of short films selected by the Heartland Film Festival; the filmmakers will “appear” via Skype. The JCC’s film calendar page (follow the sidebar link) has trailers.
Southern Indiana
There will be a free showing tomorrow at 11 AM of the documentary Waste Land at the Yes Cinema in Columbus.
The Buskirk-Chumley in Bloomington will show the indie drama Paradise Recovered on Sunday, November 20. Several of the performers featured on the film’s soundtrack will appear pre- and post-screening and several of the filmmakers will participate in a Q&A session after the movie.
A Grindhouse double feature at the IU Cinema tonight: Corpse Eaters, a 1974 horror movie at 9:30 and the 1969 comedy The Stewardesses at midnight. More Grindhouse fare tomorrow evening with thriller Ms. 45 and action movie Karate Warriors, and yet more on Sunday night with the thriller Vigilante. On Monday, in a tie-in with the Grindhouse series, horror film director William Lustig will speak in the Jorgenson Guest Filmmaker Lecture Series.
In non-Grindhouse fare at the IU Cinema, today at 6:30 is a program of shorts by French director Agnes Varda. I’ll be at the Cinema tomorrow afternoon at 3 for I Was Born, But…, a wonderful silent film by Yasujiro Ozu about a salaryman and his two young sons, which will be shown with live piano accompaniment. Sunday afternoon brings The Birds, screening as part of the Herrmann and Hitchcock series; the H&H series continues Monday with The Trouble With Harry, one of Hitchcock’s few comedies. The Cinema is closed after Monday this week for Thanksgiving break.
Raul Ruiz’s final film, The Mysteries of Lisbon, continues its run in the Ryder film series with showings in the IU Fine Arts building auditorium today through Sunday. There are also weekend showings of the documentary Bobby Fischer Against the World and Gainsbourg: A Heroic Life; check the Ryder’s website for the locations.
Northern Indiana
The Cinema Center @ Indiana Tech will show the well-received Canadian horror comedy Tucker & Dale vs. Evil today through Monday. Also showing tonight (at 8:30): “hair-metal rockumentary” Ain’t Easy Being Cheesy by Indiana filmmaker Dean Robinson.
Due to Thanksgiving break, only one movie at South Bend’s DeBartolo Performing Arts Center this weekend: Little Fugitive (1953), showing as part of the Classic 100 series. “Seven-year old Joey runs away to Coney Island after being tricked into thinking he’s done something unforgivable by his older brother Lennie. Joey’s adventures and Lennie’s search for his lost brother make for a charming adventure that chronicles 1950s New York in perfect detail.” Sunday at 3.
NEXT WEEK AND BEYOND
The Landmark’s coming soon page currently lists Pedro Almodovar’s new film The Skin I Live In and Alexander Payne’s latest The Descendants for Wednesday, November 23 at the Keystone Art Cinema. My Week with Marilyn- which to my surprise I saw a trailer for at the Castleton AMC in front of Immortals last week- is now listed for Friday, November 25 at the KAC.
Manoranjan’s website lists two Bollywood films as coming soon: action comedy Desi Boyz, starring Akshay Kumar (the poster says November, 2011 so it probably will open yet this month) and romantic comedy Ladies vs. Ricky Bahl, which I’m going to go out on a limb and guess has an inveterate ladies’ man as the main character.
The IMA will show the documentary We Were Here, about the early days of the AIDS epidemic in San Francisco, on December 1 to mark World AIDS Day; the film will play three times in the DeBoest, and admission is free.
Looking ahead to the new year, the IMA has announced the lineup for the 2012 Winter Nights film series. The theme is Technicolor and the lineup includes Douglas Fairbanks’ great silent adventure The Black Pirate (showing as the first half of a double feature with The Mystery of the Wax Museum), Technicolor masters Powell and Pressburger’s A Matter of Life and Death, and John Ford’s tribute to the Emerald Isle, The Quiet Man. Buy a series ticket and see one film for free.
After Sunday, Bloomington’s Ryder film series goes on Thanksgiving break until Friday, December 2, when it will return with Mozart’s Sister.
Films and events scheduled for next Friday:
Heidi starring Shirley Temple is next weekend’s movie at the Artcraft in Franklin
Elf at Shelbyville’s Strand at noon
