The Sweet Briar College Fall Film Series 2004 will offer a range of cinematic options this fall from Hollywood mainstream - "The Stepford Wives" - to thought-provoking foreign fare such as "Osama" and "City of God." All films are free, open to the general public, and begin at 7:30 p.m. in Tyson Auditorium, Benedict Hall.
The series begins on Friday and Saturday, Aug. 27 and 28, with "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind." The movie features Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet as a couple who "undergo a procedure to erase each other from their memories when their relationship turns sour. But it is only through the process of loss that they discover what they had together."
Series coordinator Lisa Johnston, SBC associate director of libraries, works with four faculty members and a student to come up with 10-14 films that are available, financially viable, and appropriate for the Sweet Briar campus. The committee then pools its tastes and insights to narrow the list down to six or seven films for the semester.
"We choose based on quality," Johnston said, "and parameters such as films that have not played in the area, or if they did play, it was for such a short time that no one's gotten to see it."
Johnston believes this year's lineup contains a healthy mixture of enlightening and entertaining selections. "We're very pleased with this lineup because of the variety," she said. "We have three non-English language films along with three U.S. films."
Of the former, "Osama" is perhaps the timeliest of the lineup. It involves a 12-year-old Afghan girl who, along with her mother, loses her job when the Taliban closes the hospital where they work. The mother disguises her daughter as a boy named Osama as they try to avoid detection from the group.
"Osama" is an example of the committee being receptive to faculty requests. "We got lots of requests for 'Osama,'" Johnston said, noting that it was made without professional actors. "We try to show international films and independent films to contribute to the education of students."
She anticipates that "City of God," an acclaimed Brazilian film that "traces the lives of street gang members in the slums of Rio de Janeiro," will be of interest to Sweet Briar's Latin American studies classes. And Johnston expects the lighter, atmospheric "Girl with a Pearl Earring," based on a novel by Tracy Chevalier, to be coordinated with the art history and arts management programs.
The fall series wraps up on Dec. 10-11 with the recent remake of "The Stepford Wives," but big-screen entertainment will return with the SBC Spring Film Series when students return around mid-January. That lineup has yet to be discussed.
"We can't even start thinking about until November," she said. "Then we know what's available."
SBC FALL FILM SERIES 2004 - Schedule and Descriptions
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Aug. 27-28
A couple (Jim Carrey and Kate Winslet) undergo a procedure to erase each other from their memories when their relationship turns sour, but it is only through the process of loss that they discover what they had together. R
Osama
Sept. 17-18
A 12-year-old Afghan girl and her mother lose their jobs when the Taliban closes the hospital where they work. With no one left to support the family, she disguises her daughter as a boy. Now called 'Osama,' the girl embarks on a terrifying journey as she tries to keep the Taliban from finding out her identity. In Dari and Pashtu with subtitles. PG-13
Girl with a Pearl Earring
Oct. 8-9
Griet (Scarlett Johansson) is a peasant girl who is forced to work as a maid in the home of the painter Johannes Vermeer (Colin Firth). She eventually becomes the model for what becomes one of his most famous works. Based on Tracy Chevalier's novel. PG-13
Shaolin Soccer
Oct. 22-23
In this Hong Kong action-comedy, Sing is trying to find a way to encourage his countrymen to re-embrace their Shaolin Kung Fu heritage. When he meets down-at-heel ex-soccer coach Fung, the pair hatches a plan to form a soccer team with Sing's Shaolin brothers. Cantonese with subtitles. PG
City of God
Nov. 12-13
This acclaimed Brazilian film traces the lives of street gang members in the slums of Rio de Janeiro. Two boys growing up in a violent neighborhood take different paths: one becomes a photographer, the other a drug dealer. Based on a true story. R.
In Portuguese with subtitles. Rated R.
The Stepford Wives
Dec. 10-11
Nicole Kidman leads a star-studded cast in the 2004 remake of the 1975 cult classic that explains what it takes to become a Stepford wife, a woman perfect beyond belief. Ask the Stepford husbands, who've created this high-tech terrifying little town, in a very modern comedy-thriller.
Rated R.
