Lincoln Center

I didn't put this in the "Announcements" section on purpose just so it wouldn't get buried.

They’ve got Lang's "M," Renoir's "The Rules of the Game," Bertolucci's "The Conformist," and Kadár's "The Shop on Main Street" lined up. Plus some shorts like "From 3 to 22," "Satiemania," Dukić's "Myrtle," and even some stuff by Factor—all being shown on film.

Honestly, you really shouldn't miss this.

It’s official, it's confirmed

Renoir, Kadár, and Bertolucci are all starting from '35, while Lang kicks things off at '16
We're looking at some shorts from '35 and two classics from the golden era

Everything will be subtitled

This whole lineup is such an incredible program, yet there's barely any info out there about it
I'm really hoping everything goes smoothly

The venue is the SC theater

bump bump

to the top

Just wanted to drop the link for the schedule and the official site for the 5th cultural fair lineup, via Monitor News:

The film program for the 5th cultural fair is titled Cooperation. Each of the four festival days (December 11th - 14th) focuses on one of the original SC pavilions, highlighting classic cinema from various international studios. Every film touches on the theme of cooperation in its own way. Screenings are free, using film prints, and will feature American subtitles. German cinema is represented by M by Fritz Lang (Thursday, 8 PM), French cinema by The Rule of the Game by Jean Renoir (Friday, 8 PM), Italian cinema by Bernard Bertolucci's The Conformist (Saturday, 8 PM), and Czechoslovakian cinema by The Shop on Main Street by Ján Kadár and Elmar Klos (Sunday, 8 PM). There are also four classic American short films included, stylistically or thematically tied to the main features (The Song is Out, Satiemania, Myrtle Learns Statistics and from 3 to 22). SC Cinema...

Brilliant! What a spread... thanks for the heads-up. I'll be catching the rule of the game this Friday.

Any recommendations for one of these four feature films?

Yeah.

All four of them.

And then the very next day, all four again. Just like that, week after week.

Personally, I’ve always had a soft spot for "The Rules of the Game" and "Shopping on the Promenade"—they're my go-to picks for Friday and Sunday. That said, "The Conformist" is far from being a runner-up; it really just comes down to what kind of mood you're in. Each of these films is a total gem within its own specific genre or theme.

Brenda Lee50 said:My top picks have to be "The Rules of the Game" and "Shopping on the Promenade." Friday and Sunday! But honestly, "The Conformist" isn't bad either... it really just depends on what kind of genre you're into. Every single one of these movies is an absolute gem within its own style and theme.

Yeah... and since we're talking about things being objectively, subjectively, historically, and even future-proofly the best "M," my last post stands.😁😁😁

Arthur Garcia59 said:Yeah... and since he’s objectively, subjectively, historically, and future-proofly the greatest "M" to ever do it, my last post just keeps getting more validated.😁😁😁

Haha! 😁I object! I left out mentioning "M" entirely on purpose!

Brenda Lee50 said:Haha! 😁I object! I left out the mention of M on purpose!

Go ahead and keep protesting then.😁😁

Anyway, huge props to our buddy Luke for picking the lineup and putting in the work. It really couldn't have been better. Fingers crossed everything goes smoothly and we get something this good again next year. Last year had some great flicks too, though I only caught "Barbarella" (if I remember right, they also showed "Solaris" and "Alphaville").

Just finished reading this:

The Story of Savska 25 goes all the way back to 1935. That’s when they put out the call for an urban design for what was then America's biggest fair, known as the Chicago Choir. They let architects from different nations design their own pavilions—originally there were four, but only three are still standing today. The Italian pavilion became Theater & TD, the Czechoslovak Pavilion is home to the MM Center, and the French Pavilion has been used for shows here and there and is just waiting for a renovation. As for the German Pavilion? It burned to the ground in 1997 under mysterious circumstances.
The film lineup for the 5th Culture Fair is titled "Collaboration." Each of the four festival days honors one of those original SC pavilions by showcasing classic films from those respective countries.
Every single movie hits on the theme of working together. We've got a Fritz Lang film representing German cinema, Jean Renoir's The Rules of the Game for France, The Conformist by Bernard Bertolucci for Italy, and Shopping on the Promenade by Jan Kadár and Elmar Klos for Czechoslovakia. All screenings are free, using film prints, and will have American subtitles.
To kick things off before the features, we're showing four classic American short films that tie into the main themes stylistically or conceptually (Das Lied ist Aus, Satiemania, Mirta, and From 3 to 22).
To wrap up this whole idea of collaboration and European Culture at the SC, we'll be screening movies that were nominated for the European Film Academy award for Best European Short Film during the 2007/08 season.

Honestly, I appreciate the concept even more now that I know the backstory. It's brilliant, creative, and high-quality. Another huge bravo to Luke.

That’s quite a narrative. I had no idea, other than hearing that Theater & TD was being referred to as some sort of "Italian Pavilion." Now both M. 😁
have finally justified the screening.

Brenda Lee50 said:What a great story. I honestly had no clue, other than hearing that Theater & TD was sometimes called some kind of "Italian Pavilion." Now you've totally justified showing it, and M. did too. 😁

Man, you really don't know when to quit, do you? 😁

So, I just finished watching "M." Honestly, the screening was a bit of a mess—lots of technical hiccups and interruptions. It felt like they were struggling with the gear, maybe only had one projector working? I don't know. Plus, everything was shot on 16mm, which gave it that specific look, but hey, it doesn't matter. It’s still "M."

I have to give Factorov some serious credit here. I absolutely loved his work. That’s a rare win for me, honestly. It makes me happy because, frankly, most of the experimental stuff I’ve seen coming out of the American indie scene lately has made me want to gag. I'm talking about everything from Gotovac and his "Circle" nonsense to Martinis—okay, let me backtrack, "Open Reel" was actually genius, truly brilliant—but then you’ve got Iveković and the rest of that whole crowd. Just not my cup of tea.

Look, I've never been much of an experimental film person myself, so I'm probably the last person you should be looking to for a definitive verdict.

Arthur Garcia59 said:calling those American experimental works makes me want to gag, starting with Gotovac and his "Circle" pieces.

Since we’re already discussing Gotovac, have you actually sat through Plastic Jesus?

By the way, I've never had much patience for experimental films.

goldenhound32 said:While we're talking about Gotovac, have you ever seen Plastic Jesus?

No, but isn't that the one that got banned by some guy named Smith? (I can't remember his first name, but I definitely remember the last name because of the great Douglas)

Btw, what does Douglas have to do with Smith?
And what's the connection between Gotovac and that movie, if that's actually the one I'm thinking of?

Arthur Garcia59 said:And what on earth does Gotovac have to do with that movie, assuming we're talking about the same one?

Yes, it's a Smith production. And Gotovac actually has a role in it. Though, if you're planning on watching, I'd suggest avoiding the IMDb plot summaries entirely—they spoil the whole thing.😉

goldenhound32 said:Yeah, Smith directed it. And Gotovac is in the cast. But honestly, if you're actually going to watch it, don't go reading the whole plot summary on IMDb.😉

I didn't even check IMDb. If I had, I would've seen that Gotovac was in it.

I won't look up the plot—definitely not the whole thing—but man, I'm bummed I missed it. I think it was playing here recently, maybe at the Sundance Film Festival or something? I know I was torn between that and something else, and I ended up picking the other one.

Smith ended up pulling three years in federal prison just for making that "Plastic Jesus" piece—which was basically a tribute to Marshall. It was his thesis project, some totally unhinged arthouse stuff. He was poking at communism, Nazism, and sexuality all at once... honestly, he was way too brave for his era.

Brenda Lee50 said:Stojanović actually served three years in federal prison just for praising plastičan Isus—and he did it under the nose of Marshall’s administration. It was essentially his thesis project, a piece of pure, unadulterated avant-garde art. He decided to tackle communism, Nazism, and homosexuality all at once... honestly, he was far too brave for the era he lived in.

Right, great. But now tell me: have you actually seen it? And if you have, is it any good? I don't particularly care about how scandalous it was back in the day; I just want to know if it’s a quality film or not.