Ray Pride

Probably the most stirring and unlikely of emerging national cinemas today is from Romania, with the Cannes-prized "Death of Mr. Lazarescu" and "12:08 East of Bucharest" both drawing U.S. release (and Chicago runs). As the home of the second largest Romanian-American population, Chicago's getting a Romanian Film festival, featuring "Occident," the first feature by Christian Mungiu, whose "Four Months, Two Weeks and One Day" is that country's 2007 Foreign Language Film Oscar entry, and one of the most remarkable movies of the year as well. "12:08" director Cristi Puiu's "Stuff and Dough" and Nae Caranfil's black comedy "Philanthropy" are among the other attractions, including short work.

Full listings and schedules at roundtablesociety.org.

(2007-12-04)

Also by Ray Pride

Everything is Wide-Eyed
There is only one way to see Crispin Glover's "It Is Fine! EVERYTHING IS FINE."—with the filmmaker present. Two reasons: the film, the second in a trilogy that began with the hermetic "What Is It?" (2005), is a strange and troubling immersion into the mind of an extremely twisted character, and does not fully make sense on its own: Glover's amiable conversation afterwards is necessary for fullest comprehension of the perverse panoply on display. (While Glover says it's years away, the final installment has a lovely title: "It Is MINE.") And, Glover won't let you pry the print from his hands
(2007-11-27)

Tip of the Week
Before having the chance to see all of the films from Portugal's little known (until this year) Pedro Costa, the articles written from various stretches of the critical globe suggested an arid, almost unapproachable, punishing kind of storytelling, but it's hardly the case
(2007-11-27)

Blurred
38-year-old Noah Baumbach's fifth feature, coming after "The Squid and the Whale," follows in terse, cutting strokes a short-story writer Margot Zeller (Nicole Kidman) with teenage son, Claude (Zane Pais) in tow to the wedding of her estranged sister, Pauline (Jennifer Jason Leigh, Baumbach's wife) at the East Coast island home given to Pauline by their mother
(2007-11-19)

Tip of the Week
In the almost three hours of Pedro Costa's "Vanda's Room," shot in DV over the course of two years, and edited in a reported year from 130 hours of footage, is an epic of pain and beauty, claustrophobia and elegant tragedy
(2007-11-19)

All Yesterday's Costume Parties
(2007-11-13)

Tip of the Week
(2007-11-13)

Damn Fine Pie
(2007-11-06)

Atomix Energy
(2007-11-06)

Coen Road
(2007-11-06)

Tip of the Week
(2007-11-06)

Present Tension
(2007-10-30)

Tip of the Week
(2007-10-30)

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