DCist’s highly subjective and hardly comprehensive guide to the most interesting movies playing around town in the coming week.
Ameena Matthews, violence interrupter. Courtesy of Kartemquin FilmsWhat it is: A powerful documentary about the attempt to curb inner-city violence.
Why you want to see it: Director Steve James’ Hoop Dreams recently won the top spot in Morgan Spurlock’s list of 50 Documentaries to See Before You Die (though your DCist film writers find Time Out New York’s list more representative, and how about a shout-out for the semi-documentary classic WR:Mysteries of the Organism?). James teamed up with with author Alex Kotlowitz (There are No Children Here) in what some are calling the best documentary of the year. The film follows three “violence interrupters” from the organization CeaseFire program that treats urban violence as a public health problem. Intervention techniques are used to stop the destructive cycle – a cycle that these interrupters were once a part of. Can innovatiion work in such a heated environment? Is this take of redemption from the depths as inspiring as Hoop Dreams? Come find out.
View the trailer.
Opens tomorrow at E Street.
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Courtesy the AFI.What it is: The story behind a recently discovered stash of photographs documenting the Spanish Civil War.
Why you want to see it: Local theaters have been kind to the art of photography this year, with good-to-excellent documentaries about Francesca Woodman, Bill Cunningham, and Jack Cardiff. The fabled Mexican Suitcase and the 4500 negatives it contained has been the subject of a fascinating exhibit at New York’s International Center of Photography, and a massive catalog. The discovery of new work by legendary photojournalist Robert Capa is news enough, but the suitcase also included work by Capa’s friends and cohorts Chim (David Seymour), and Gerda Taro, all of them exiles from their European homelands. This film not only traces the history of three photographers and their friendship, but uncovers the story of the suitcases’ unlikely journey from Paris to a Mexico City closet. The Mexican Suitcase is the opening night showcase for the AFI’s Latin American Film Festival, featuring three weeks of cinema from Latin America, Spain and Portugal. Other highlights include a week-long run of the late Raul Ruiz’s five-hour epic The Mysteries of Lisbon (Sept. 23-29) and Elite Squad 2: The Enemy Within, a tale of police corruption (Sept 30 and Oct 1) that is the biggest box-office hit in the history of Brazilian cinema.
View the trailer for The Mexican Suitcase.
September 22 and 24 at the AFI.
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Bobby Fischer Against the World
What it is: A look at the the reclusive chess champion.
Why you want to see it: Bobby Fischer stunned the world of chess when he became the youngest Grand Master in 1958. But his opponents were not prepared for the unltimate counter-move: his complete withdrawal from competition, and subsequent years of madness. Bobby Fischer Against the World charts his moves from prodigy and champion to recluse and curmudgeon, and, for a time, prisoner.
View the trailer.
Opens tomorrow at the West End Cinema.
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What is: Director John Huston’s adaptation of the short story by James Joyce.
Why you want to see it: James Joyce’s Dubliners is frequently named the greatest short story collection in the English language, and there may be none better than the book’s final story. Pauline Kael wrote that Huston “directed the movie, at eighty, from a wheelchair, jumping up to look through the camera, with oxygen tubes trailing from his nose to a portable generator,” yet “never before blended his actors so intuitively, so musically.” It was a fitting end to director John Huston’s long career, which went back to early triumphs like The Maltese Falcon and mid-career highlights like The Misfits (and Huston the actor was memorable in roles such as Noah Cross in Chinatown). Huston’s daughter Anjelica stars. Preceded by John Huston’s Dublin, a tour of one of the director’s favorite cities, originally produced for Canadian television.
View the trailer.
Saturday, Sept. 17 at 4:00pm at the National Gallery.
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What it is: A behind the scenes look at the legendary band.
Why you want to see it: From Say Anything to Almost Famous and even Jerry Maguire (gotta admire a seduction scene scored to Charles Mingus), music has always been a crucial part of director Cameron Crowe’s films. He’s directed music videos for Tom Petty and Alice in Chains but here trains his eyes on Pearl Jam for a feature-length documentary about the groups rise and plateau, with special guest Neil Young. The film will get a commercial release this Fall but fans can get a first look at the AFI next week.
View the trailer.
Tuesday, September 20 at 7:15 and 9:45 at the AFI.
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This weekend the AFI will also offer return engagements of two popular summer programs: Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window, (Sep 17, 18 & 21), and Tommy Wiseau in The Room Live! (September 16 and 17). See our review of the first ever performance of The Room Live! here.
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Also opening tomorrow, Drive, a thinking man’s thriller starring Ryan Gosling as a nameless stunt driver and Carey Mulligan as the girl next door. We’ll have a full review tomorrow.
