This months Cine Club films on at the Nerja Cultural Centre all in English with Spanish subtitles.

Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee

Wednesday 5 December – 7 pm

(USA 2007) 131 min. Aidan Quinn, Anna Paquin, Adam Beach. Dir. Yves Simoneau. Inspired by Dee Brown’s acclaimed bestseller, this film does not flinch from the harsh realities that were so passionately chronicled in Brown’s enduring 1970 classic of Native American history, nor does it soften the brutality of violence between the U.S. federal forces and the doomed Native American tribes who fought to preserve their native territories, from the legendary battle of Little Big Horn in 1876 (depicted in the opening scenes) to the shameful slaughter of Sioux warriors at Wounded Knee, South Dakota, on December 29, 1890. The action centres on the struggles of three characters: Charles Eastman (Beach), a young, Dartmouth-educated Sioux doctor; Sitting Bull (Schellenberg), the proud Lakota chief who refuses to submit to U.S. government policies designed to strip his people of their identity, dignity and sacred land; and Senator Henry Dawes (Quinn), one of the men responsible for the government policy on Indian affairs. While Eastman and schoolteacher Elaine Goodale (Paquin), work to improve life for the Sioux on the reservation, Senator Dawes lobbies President Grant for kinder Indian treatment. Epic in scope, Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee is a new Western classic described as “…insightful…deeply affecting…visually striking” by The Washington Post.
Original Version (English) with Spanish subtitles.

Lust for Life

Sunday 9 December – 5 pm

Kirk Douglas’s Birthday
(USA 1956) 122 min. Kirk Douglas, Anthony Quinn. Dir: Vicente Minnelli. Based on Irving Stone’s popular novel, Kirk Douglas stars as the Impressionist painter Vincent Van Gogh in Vincente Minnelli’s biopic. After giving away not only his own belongings but those of the church to impoverished Belgian miners, Van Gogh is reprimanded by his religious superiors. He turns to a life of squalor, but is saved by his brother, Theo. Van Gogh then develops a passion for painting, using a prostitute as his model. After alienating his patron and relative, Anton Mauve, Van Gogh moves to Paris, developing a close friendship with Gauguin. Minnelli used an outmoded colour film process along with innovative camera techniques to vividly recreate Van Gogh’s paintings. Filmed on the actual Dutch and French locations where Van Gogh’s mastery flourished. Anthony Quinn won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his portrayal of Gauguin.
Original Version (English) with Spanish subtitles.

Guys and Dolls

Wednesday 12 December – 7 pm

Frank Sinatra’s Birthday
(USA 1955) 150 min. Frank Sinatra, Jean Simmons, Marlon Brando. Dir. Joseph Mankiewicz. Brightly stylized film of Frank Loesser’s classic musical, based on the stories of Damon Runyon, casts the criminal underworld as a harmless fantasy in this whimsical vision of the Big Apple. Nonsingers Marlon Brando and Jean Simmons acquit themselves fine in the lead roles as high-rolling gambler Sky Masterson and Salvation Army missionary Sarah Brown. It’s odd casting, to say the least. Frank Sinatra, who plays the good old reliable Nathan Detroit – who runs “the oldest established permanent floating crap game in New York”- is left with novelty tunes while husky Brando delivers the love songs and hits, including “Luck Be a Lady.” But in the context of the colourful dialogue and comically affected speech patterns – giddy gangster-speak straight out of Runyon’s breezy stories- the song performances aren’t the least out of place. Stubby Kaye, reprising his role as Nicely Nicely from the Broadway run, practically steals the show in his few scenes and his show-stopping solo “Sit Down, You’re Rocking the Boat.” Terrific cast of eccentrics and Michael Kidd’s high-energy choreography gives the film a memorable and enchanting character.
Original Version (English) with Spanish subtitles.

Brave

Sunday 16 December – 5 pm

(USA 2012) 101 min. Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson, Kelly Macdonald. Dir: Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman. Merida is a skilled archer and impetuous daughter of King Fergus (Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson). Determined to carve her own path in life, Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the uproarious lords of the land: massive Lord MacGuffin (Kevin McKidd), surly Lord Macintosh (Craig Ferguson) and cantankerous Lord Dingwall (Robbie Coltrane). Merida’s actions inadvertently unleash chaos and fury in the kingdom, and when she turns to an eccentric old Witch (Julie Walters) for help, she is granted an ill-fated wish. The ensuing peril forces Merida to discover the meaning of true bravery in order to undo a beastly curse before it’s too late. Brave is alively, psychologically astute tale filled with humanity, wit and charming performances.
Original Version (English) with Spanish subtitles.

Hysteria

Wednesday 19 December – 7 pm

(USA 2012) 100 min. Maggie Gyllenhaal, Hugh Dancy, Felicity Jones, Rupert Everett. Dir: Tanya Wexler. What do women want? Well, science may debate that for years, but Hysteria provides a very entertaining answer in the form of a historical romp through early psychology. Based on the story of a young British doctor who essentially invented the first vibrator, Hysteria handles its offbeat subject matter lightly and amusingly. And its cast is splendid. Maggie Gyllenhaal and Felicity Jones play Victorian-era sisters, Charlotte and Emily, daughters of the prominent physician Dr. Dalrymple (Jonathan Pryce). Into their lives comes an ambitious, thoughtful young doctor, Mortimer Granville (Hugh Dancy). Dr. Granville’s life work has become focused on women’s issues, including the all-encompassing diagnosis “hysteria,” for which he is experimenting with therapeutic “pelvic massage” treatments. When he comes to Dr. Dalrymple for mentoring and approval of his rather unorthodox treatments, the doctor’s two daughters vie for his romantic affections. In lesser hands, this film could have been a Victorian-era 40-Year-Old Virgin, but director Tanya Wexler keeps the action crisp, light, and focused. Hysteria is a splendid escape for history, and hysteria, lovers.
Original Version (English) with Spanish subtitles.

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