Neshoba: The Price of Freedom

Opens today (8/13) @ Cinema Village:

Neshoba: The Price of Freedom tells the story of a Mississippi town still divided about the meaning of justice, 40 years after the murders of civil rights workers James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner, an event dramatized in the Oscar-winning film, Mississippi Burning. Although Klansmen bragged about what they did in 1964, no one was held accountable until 2005, when the State indicted preacher Edgar Ray Killen, an 80-year-old notorious racist and mastermind of the murders. Through exclusive interviews with Killen, intimate interviews with the victims’ families, and candid interviews with black and white Neshoba County citizens still struggling with their town’s violent past, the film explores whether the prosecution of one unrepentant Klansman constitutes justice and whether healing and reconciliation are possible without telling the unvarnished truth. (source)

Get Low back in NY!

Set in the 1930s in a rural Southern town, the film follows scruffy hermit Felix Bush (played impeccably by Robert Duvall), who has lived alone on the outskirts of town for 40 years shrouded in a dark mystery. One day he emerges from isolation to plan his own living "funeral party," expecting the townsfolk who have rejected him for years to attend. Denied a proper funeral for his checkered past, Felix perseveres to set the record straight. With the help of Frank Quinn (Bill Murray), the town's broke funeral director, his quirky assistant Buddy Robinson (Lucas Black), and an old friend and widow Maddie Darrow (Sissy Spacek), he tries to retrace history and expunge his record. (source)

Get Low opens today (7/30)

SCREEN: Smokes & Ears tonight @ Water Taxi Beach LIC

Smokes & Ears

SMOKES & EARS from Joe York on Vimeo.

by Joe York. See the story of the Big Apple Inn in Jackson, Mississippi. Known as "Big John's" by its faithful customers, the Big Apple Inn's defining duo of pig ear sandwiches and hot smoked sausage sandwiches (known as "smokes") has kept folks coming back again and again for over 70 years, and counting. The film is made in recognition of 2009 Ruth Fertel Keeper of the Flame Award Winner Geno Lee. (from Southern Foodways Alliance)

Showing tonight at the Food Film Festival @ Water Taxi Beach in LIC (which is, of course, sold out).

The Whites...in your home??

"Coming into this world is nothing, going out is nothing... but at least the world knows who the fuck we are." Mamie White

I came home to NYC from my 3 month residency in lower Alabama to find that the Wild And Wonderful Whites of West Virginia is still available on-demand! For some reason, it's the only Tribeca selection NOT available on-demand in Alabama. Hmmm....

Re-cap from my post a year ago: Synopsis: Shoot-outs, robberies, gas-huffing , drug dealing, pill popping, murders, and tap dancing --- what do these all have in common? These are just a few of the parts of being a member of the Wild and Wonderful White Family.

SCREEN: Winter's Bone

Although set in Missouri, Winter's Bone is herald as "southern gothic" at its best. Playing now at the Angelika on Houston.



Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence) sets out to track down her father, who put their house up for his bail bond and then disappeared. If she fails, Ree and her family will be turned out into the Ozark woods. Challenging her outlaw kin's code of silence and risking her life, Ree hacks through the lies, evasions and threats offered up by her relatives and begins to piece together the truth. (source)

SCREEN: Southern-ish offerings from Rooftop Films

Rooftop Films has posted its schedule for the season. Lela Scott MacNeil was kind enough to point out some southern-themed highlights for us:

The “Rural Life and Spirit” shorts program has a number of shorts about the south. http://www.rooftopfilms.com/2010/schedule/18-the-rural-life-and-spirit

In addition Rooftop is featuring several filmmakers from the South and Texas this year, including the following:

Spencer Parsons, “Chainsaw Found Jesus”

“Let Your Feet Do the Talking” Stewart Copeland

“Mr. Okra” T.G. Herrington

“My Olympic Summer” Daniel Robin

“Voice on the Line” Kelly Sears

FILM: @ The Tribeca Film Festival This Week

Set in the 1930s in a rural Southern town, the film follows scruffy hermit Felix Bush (played impeccably by Robert Duvall), who has lived alone on the outskirts of town for 40 years shrouded in a dark mystery. One day he emerges from isolation to plan his own living "funeral party," expecting the townsfolk who have rejected him for years to attend. Denied a proper funeral for his checkered past, Felix perseveres to set the record straight. With the help of Frank Quinn (Bill Murray), the town's broke funeral director, his quirky assistant Buddy Robinson (Lucas Black), and an old friend and widow Maddie Darrow (Sissy Spacek), he tries to retrace history and expunge his record. (source)

Casey Affleck is Lou Ford, a small-town deputy sheriff ordered to evict local prostitute Joyce Lakeland (Jessica Alba) for taking up with the son of a prominent businessman. It only takes one encounter with the seductive Joyce for Ford to get swept up in an intense sexual affair with her, and soon he's hatching a scheme to blackmail her lover so they can run away together. But behind Ford's accommodating Texan smile hides a cold-blooded killer, and when his upstanding fiancée (Kate Hudson) catches wind of the infidelity and the whole town begins asking questions, Ford's attempts to cover his tracks snowball in escalating acts of deception and violence. (source)

SCREEN: The Loss Of A Teardrop Diamond (playing now)

Tells the story of Fisher Willow, the disliked 1920s Memphis débutante daughter of a plantation owner with a distaste for narrow-minded people and a penchant for shocking and insulting those around her. After returning from studies overseas, Fisher falls in love with Jimmy, the down-and-out son of an alcoholic father and an insane mother who works at a store on her family's plantation. She tries to pass him off as an upper-class suitor to appease the spinster aunt who controls her family's fortune, but when she loses a diamond, it places their tenuous relationship in further jeopardy.

A young and rebellious socialite Fisher Willow, tainted by a family scandal, boldly hires farm hand Jimmy Dobyne to be her escort for the elaborate party season. As her passion for Jimmy grows, Fisher defies social convention and the burden of history to risk everything for a chance at real love... until the loss of a priceless diamond sets off a series of accusations and betrayals that threaten to shatter their hopes for the future. With his indelible characters and breathtaking Southern backdrops, Williams paints a heartbreaking tale of seduction and loss.

Source: IMDB

SCREEN: Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans @ BAM

Tues, Nov 24—Wed, Nov 25 at 4:30, 7, 9:30pm
Thu, Nov 26 at 2, 4:30, 7, 9:30pm

"Fueled by Nicolas Cage’s performance—which requires adjectives as yet uncoined, typed with both the caps-lock key and the italics button engaged—Mr. Herzog’s film is a pulpy, glorious mess. Its maniacal unpredictability is such a blast that it reminds you just how tidy and dull most crime thrillers are these days."—The New York Times

In Werner Herzog’s new film Bad Lieutenant: Port Of Call New Orleans, Nicolas Cage plays a rogue detective who is as devoted to his job as he is at scoring drugs—while playing fast and loose with the law. He wields his badge as often as he wields his gun in order to get his way. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina he becomes a high-functioning addict who is a deeply intuitive, fearless detective reigning over the beautiful ruins of New Orleans with authority and abandon. Complicating his tumultuous life is the prostitute he loves (played by Eva Mendes). Together they descend into their own world marked by desire, compulsion, and conscience. The result is a singular masterpiece of filmmaking: equally sad and manically humorous.

Synopsis courtesy of Apparition.

Source - BAM website

SCREEN: That Evening Sun

An aging farmer fights to keep the home that is rightfully his after fleeing from a nursing home and discovering that his son has leased the family farm to his old nemesis. Placed in a nursing home by his son and promptly forgotten, Abner Meecham (Hal Holbrook) realized that waiting to die was no way to live. Determined to enjoy his last days, Abner packed his bags and set his sights on the family farm. At least there he could die on his own land, in familiar surroundings. But Abner is in for a rude awakening, because upon returning home he discovers that his son has leased the farm to Lonzo Choat. Abner never cared much for Lonzo, and when Lonzo refuses to leave, Abner takes up residence in an old tenant shack on the property. Before long, their dispute becomes volatile, each man believing himself to be in the right, and refusing to back down from his position. Betrayed by his son and haunted by dreams of his beloved deceased wife, Abner draws a line in the sand in an attempt to reclaim his life. As threats are made and tension begins to brew, it's only a matter of time before the situation turns savage. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Playing now at City Cinemas 1, 2, 3

SCREEN: A Streetcar Named Desire

Playing 11/6 - 11/12 @ Film Forum.

SCREEN: Mississippi Damned

I just missed Mississippi Damned (again) in NYC but it's making the rounds so hopefully it'll be back. Up next for the film, screenings at North Carolina's Cucalorus Festival:

Wanting to escape was the easy part. Taking place in 1986 and 1998 and based on a true story, three poor, Black kids in rural Mississippi reap the consequences of their family's cycle of abuse, addiction, and violence. They independently struggle to escape their circumstances and must decide whether to confront what's plagued their family for generations or succumb to the same crippling fate, forever damned in Mississippi. Bitterly honest and profoundly subtle, writer/director Tina Mabry successfully captures growing up in a world where possibilities and opportunities seem to die in the face of the suffocating reality of physical and sexual abuse, obsession, and a myriad of destructive compulsions.

Mississippi Damned won the Jury Award for Best Narrative Feature at the 2009 Urbanworld Film Festival, the Grand Jurty Award for Narrative Features at the 2009 American Black Film Festival, the Jury Award for Best American Independent Film at the 2009 Philadelphia Film Festival and the Special Jury Award for Narrative Breakthrough at the 2009 Atlanta Film Festival.

Director Tina Mabry and Producer Morgan Stiff will be in attendance.

Show Times:
Saturday, November 14, 4:00 PM - 6:00 PM @ Lumina Theater
Sunday, November 15, 1:00 PM - 3:00 PM @ Lumina Theater

Click Here for more information about Cucalorus Festival venues. (source)

SCREEN: D.W. Griffith @ MOMA (10/14 - 16)

MOMA will be screenings a few shorts from film pioneer (and Kentuckyian) D.W. Griffith 10/14 - 10/16:

Between the summers of 1908 and 1913, mediocre actor and failed writer David Wark Griffith (1874–1948) transformed the medium of film more drastically than any other filmmaker in the history of cinema. During his time at Biograph, Griffith transcended the primitive visual grammar of his predecessors, distilling a mature expressiveness capable of wielding great emotional power over his audiences. Aided by the cinematographic wizardry of G. W. “Billy” Bitzer, Griffith developed the technical facility to translate the vivid workings of his imagination into motion pictures. This small selection of shorts (mostly in newly restored prints preserved by the Museum), drawn from the approximately four hundred that he made at Biograph, offers a mere glimpse of his prodigious accomplishments during this period. All films silent. (source)

The Country Doctor

1909. USA. Directed by D. W. Griffith. With Frank Powell, Florence Lawrence, Kate Bruce, Mary Pickford. 15 min.

A Corner in Wheat

1909. USA. Directed by D. W. Griffith. With Frank Powell, Linda Arvidson, Henry B. Walthall, Mack Sennett. 15 min.

The Honor of His Family

1910. USA. Directed by D. W. Griffith. With Henry B. Walthall, Verner Charges, Kate Bruce, Linda Arvidson. 16 min.

The Lonedale Operator

1911. USA. Directed by D. W. Griffith. With Blanche Sweet, George O. Nicholls, Francis J. Grandon, Wilfred Lucas. 16 min.

The Painted Lady

1912. USA. Directed by D. W. Griffith. With Blanche Sweet, Madge Kirby, Charles Hill Mailes, Harry Carey, Lionel Barrymore, Lillian Gish, Dorothy Gish. 15 min.

The Battle at Elderbush Gulch

1913. USA. Directed by D. W. Griffith. With Mae Marsh, Lillian Gish, Robert Harron, Henry B. Walthall. 32 min.

SCREEN: Gospel Hill - may be closing tonight @ Quad

From the Quad website: In the small town of Julia, the residents of the black neighborhood of Gospel are being forced out of their homes to make way for a multi-million dollar golf course development. Dr. Ron Palmer (Giancarlo Esposito), an influential black community leader is supporting the project. As the confrontations get hot, the residents remember when, 30 years ago, Peter Malcolm (Samuel Jackson) , a black civil rights activist, was assassinated. The black community is now looking to Malcolm's son John (Danny Glover) to lead the fight. He's haunted by his father's assassination and is hesitant despite the pushing from his outspoken wife Sarah (Angela Bassett). Getting in the middle of this fracas is the new teacher Rosie (Julia Stiles) who sides with the blacks. Meanwhile, John Malcolm begins to realize that the fight for equality didn't die with his father. His wife Sarah continues to stir things up and expose the corruption until John is thrust into the position he shared with his father thirty years ago. (Running time 1:39 )

SCREEN: Ride With The Devil + Ang Lee live @ Lincoln Center 8/10

Tonight (8/10) @ Lincoln Center: Following the 7:30 p.m. screening of Ang Lee's Civil War epic Ride With The Devil, will be director Ang Lee, longtime collaborator James Schamus, actor Jeffrey Wright, producer Ted Hope and novelist Daniel Woodrell. Tickets: $15 public, $13 senior (62+), $12 member/student/child. Limited ticket availability.

Lee’s Western sensibilities flourish in this vibrant and underappreciated look at a small corner of Civil War history: the brutal guerilla fighting between pro-Union Jayhawkers and pro-slavery Bushwhackers along the Kansas/Missouri border. Despite family objections, friends Jack Bull Chiles (Skeet Ulrich) and Jake Roedel (The Ice Storm-veteran Tobey Maguire) join a group of Southern renegades, only to be overcome by the chaos of battle, a surprising romance, and the deadly range of personalities within their ranks. Geoff Andrews of Time Out London described the film as "truly epic in scale yet full of beautifully observed details. [It] benefits hugely from sturdy yet exquisite performances."

Tobey Maguire headlines a cast of future stars that includes Skeet Ulrich, James Caviezel, Jonathan Rhys Myers, Simon Baker, Jeffrey Wright, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Wilkinson, and Jewel, in her film debut. (source)

SCREEN: Beeswax + director @ Film Forum this weekend

Director Andrew Bujalski (Funny Ha Ha, Mutual Appreciation) comes to NYC this weekend with his new film, Beeswax.

Beeswax revolves around the personal and professional entanglements of twin sisters Jeannie and Lauren – played by newcomers Tilly and Maggie Hatcher – living in Austin, Texas. Jeannie co-owns a vintage clothing store with Amanda, a semi-estranged friend who she fears is trying to end their partnership. Lauren leads a looser, less tethered existence and is considering getting out of the country altogether. When Jeannie receives an email from Amanda threatening a lawsuit, she calls her law student ex-boyfriend Merrill for help. Eager for distraction from his own problems, he begins helping the sisters with theirs. "Beeswax" is a story about families, friends, lovers and those awkward moments that bring all of them together. (source)

See ANDREW BUJALSKI IN PERSON at Film Forum on Fri (8/7) & Sat (8/8) at the 7:50 & 10pm shows, and Sunday (8/9) at the 3:15 show.

SCREEN: The Wild And Wonderful Whites of West Virginia

If you happened to miss the premiere of The Wild And Wonderful Whites of West Virginia at the Tribeca Film Festival in April, you can catch it this weekend down on Long Beach Island, NJ at the Lighthouse International Film Festival.

Synopsis: Shoot-outs, robberies, gas-huffing , drug dealing, pill popping, murders, and tap dancing --- what do these all have in common? These are just a few of the parts of being a member of the Wild and Wonderful White Family.

Nestled deep in the Appalachian Mountains, the White family lives an existence more like something from the Wild West than modern day suburbified America. The legendary family is as known for their wild, excessive criminal ways as they are for their famous mountain dancing members, including Jesco White, the star of the cult classic documentary Dancing Outlaw.

Exploring both the comic and tragic sides of life on the other side of the law, this stylish, fast-paced family portrait exposes the powerful forces of corruption, poverty, and West Virginia’s environmentally and culturally devastating coal mining culture that helped shape the White family, a dying breed of outlaws preserving a dying form of dance.

Over the course of one tumultuous year, the Whites deal with a stabbing, criminal sentencing, attempted murder, death and birth. On top of all this, Jesco, the family’s dancing muse, comments on the family through his performances accompanied by legendary country singer Hank Williams III.

Watch as an older generation of the White family comes to terms with the lives they have lived while the younger generation struggles to decide whether they will join their outlaw forefathers or break from the family’s criminal traditions.

SCREEN: Tennessee opens 6/5 in NYC

A moving and gripping drama of sacrifice and self-discovery, Tennessee is the story of three people who strive to realize their dreams. Brothers Carter (Adam Rothenberg) and Ellis (Ethan Peck) set out on a road trip to their childhood home in a desperate search for their estranged father, who may hold the key to their future. Along the way, they are joined by Krystal (Mariah Carey), who is trying to escape a troubled life. These unlikely traveling companions are guided in their mutual journey by the conviction that the only way to a new life is by overcoming their past. Official Web Site

Tennesee opens tomorrow (6/5) at Landmark Theatres Sunshine Cinema.

SCREEN: Nashville @ Le Poisson Rouge tonight @ 9PM?

Nashville is Robert Altman's 1975 masterpiece, exploring the lives of over 20 main characters over a couple of very eventful days. On the surface it is a film about the music and politics of Nashville, however it is really a film about the inhabitants who live there. With flawless performances, unbeatable music and wonderful photography, Nashville is not only an amazing film, but one of the greatest ever made. The acting is excellent, Ned Beatty, Lily Tomlin, Karen Black, Geraldine Chaplin, Scott Glenn, Barbara Harris, Gwen Welles and Keith Carradine. (source)

I don't see it on Le Poisson Rouge's site but per Flavorpill, there's a free screening of Nashville there tonight @ 9PM.

SCREEN: American Violet opens in NYC 4/17

Based on true events in the midst of the 2000 election, AMERICAN VIOLET tells the astonishing story of Dee Roberts (critically hailed newcomer Nicole Beharie), a 24 year-old African American single mother of four young girls living in a small Texas town who is barely making ends meet on a waitress’ salary and government subsidies.

On an early November morning while Dee works a shift at the local diner, the powerful local district attorney (Academy Award® nominee Michael O’Keefe) leads an extensive drug bust, sweeping her Arlington Springs housing project with military precision. Police drag Dee from work in handcuffs, dumping her in the squalor of the women’s county prison. Indicted based on the uncorroborated word of a single and dubious police informant facing his own drug charges, Dee soon discovers she has been charged as a drug dealer.

Even though Dee has no prior drug record and no drugs were found on her in the raid or any subsequent searches, she is offered a hellish choice: plead guilty and go home as a convicted felon or remain in prison and fight the charges thus, jeopardizing her custody and risking a long prison sentence.

Despite the urgings of her mother (Academy Award® nominee Alfre Woodard), and with her freedom and the custody of her children at stake, she chooses to fight the district attorney and the unyielding criminal justice system he represents. Joined in an unlikely alliance with an ACLU attorney (Tim Blake Nelson) and former local narcotics officer (Will Patton), Dee risks everything in a battle that forever changes her life and the Texas justice system. AMERICAN VIOLET also stars Emmy Award® winner Charles S. Dutton and Xzibit. (source)