The Prince Charles Cinema

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The Seventh Seal
1957 97mins Sweden (PG) Fantasy
Directed by Ingmar Bergman Starring Max von Sydow, Bengt Ekerot, Gunnar Björnstrand, Bibi Andersson, Nils Poppe, Inga Gill, Maud Hansson, Inga Landgré

When disillusioned Swedish knight Antonius Block (Max von Sydow) returns home from the Crusades to find his country in the grips of the Black Death, he challenges Death (Bengt Ekerot) to a chess match for his life. Tormented by the belief that God does not exist, Block sets off on a journey, meeting up with traveling players Jof (Nils Poppe) and his wife, Mia (Bibi Andersson), and becoming determined to evade Death long enough to commit one redemptive act while he still lives.

Enter The Dragon
1973 99mins Hong Kong, USA (15) Film
Directed by Robert Clouse Starring Bruce Lee, John Saxon, Jim Kelly

Sent to an exotic island by his government, a spy (Lee) competes in a deadly tournament by day and infiltrates a ruthless crime lord's illegal drug operation by night. With plot twists, exquisite cinematography and bone-crushing fight scenes choreographed by Lee himself, ENTER THE DRAGON remains cinema's most influential martial arts action film.

Fallen Angels
1995 99mins Hong Kong (15) Thriller / Romance
Directed by Wong Kar Wai Starring Takeshi Kaneshiro, Leon Lai, Charlie Yeung, Michele Reis, Karen Mok

An assassin goes through obstacles as he attempts to escape his violent lifestyle despite the opposition of his partner, who is secretly attracted to him.

The Holy Mountain
1973 115mins Mexico (18) Mind F**k
Directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky Starring Alejandro Jodorowsky, Horacio Salinas, Zamira Saunders

In a corrupt, greed-fueled world, a powerful alchemist leads a messianic character and seven materialistic figures to the Holy Mountain, where they hope to achieve enlightenment.

Autumn Sonata
1978 92mins West Germany (15) Drama
Directed by Ingmar Bergman Starring Ingrid Bergman, Liv Ullmann, Lena Nyman

After a seven-year absence, Charlotte Andergast travels to Sweden to reunite with her daughter Eva. The pair have a troubled relationship: Charlotte sacrificed the responsibilities of motherhood for a career as a classical pianist. Over an emotional night, the pair reopen the wounds of the past. Charlotte gets another shock when she finds out that her mentally impaired daughter, Helena, is out of the asylum and living with Eva.

Before We Vanish
2017 129mins (15) Science Fiction
Directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa Starring Masami Nagasawa, Ryuhei Matsuda, Mahiro Takasugi

Narumi is on bad terms with her husband, Shinji, when, one day, Shinji goes missing. He comes back a couple of days later, but he seems like a totally different person, and he is now gentle and tender. He goes for a walk every day. Meanwhile, journalist Sakurai covers the story of a family that was brutally murdered, when an unexplained phenomenon takes place. Shinji Kase tells his wife that he came to Earth to invade.

Chungking Express
1994 101mins Hong Kong (12) Romance/Drama
Directed by Wong Kar Wai Starring Takeshi Kaneshiro, Brigitte Lin, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Faye Wong, Valerie Chow, Tony Leung

Every day, Cop 223 (Takeshi Kaneshiro) buys a can of pineapple with an expiration date of May 1, symbolizing the day he'll get over his lost love. He's also got his eye on a mysterious woman in a blond wig (Brigitte Lin), oblivious of the fact she's a drug dealer. Cop 663 (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) is distraught with heartbreak over a breakup. But when his ex drops a spare set of his keys at a local cafe, a waitress (Faye Wong) lets herself into his apartment and spruces up his life.

Pulse [Kairo]
2001 119mins Japan (15) Supernatural / Horror
Directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa Starring Haruhiko Katô, Koyuki , Kumiko Asô

After college student Taguchi (Kenji Mizuhashi) commits suicide, a number of young adults living in Tokyo witness terrifying visions transferred across the Internet. As more people disappear throughout the city, the Internet becomes a breeding ground for malevolent spirits. Three seemingly disconnected stories follow Michi (Kumiko Asô), Ryosuke (Haruhiko Katô) and Harue (Koyuki) as they attempt to solve the mystery behind the ghostly visions that are seeping beyond their computer monitors.

Happy Together
1997 96mins Hong Kong (15) Romance
Directed by Wong Kar Wai Starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Leslie Cheung, Tony Leung, Kwok-Wing

A couple take a trip to Argentina but both men find their lives drifting apart in opposite directions.

Cinema Paradiso [Nuovo Cinema Paradiso]
1988 124mins Italy (12A) Drama
Directed by Giuseppe Tornatore Starring Philippe Noiret, Enzo Cannavale, Antonella Attili

A winner of awards across the world including Best Foreign Language Film Oscar, 5 BAFTA Awards including Best Actor, Original Screenplay and Score, the Grand Prize of the Jury at the Cannes Film Festival and many more.

Giuseppe Tornatore's loving homage to the cinema tells the story of Salvatore, a successful film director, returning home for the funeral of Alfredo, his old friend who was the projectionist at the local cinema throughout his childhood. Soon memories of his first love affair with the beautiful Elena and all the highs and lows that shaped his life come flooding back, as Salvatore reconnects with the community he left 30 years earlier.

Days Of Being Wild
1990 95mins Hong Kong (12) Romance/Drama
Directed by Wong Kar Wai Starring Leslie Cheung, Andy Lau, Maggie Cheung, Tony Leung, Carina Lau, Jacky Cheung, Tik-Wa Poon

Yuddy, a Hong Kong playboy known for breaking girls' hearts, tries to find solace and the truth after discovering the woman who raised him isn't his mother.

Three Colours Blue
1993 97mins France, Poland, Switzerland (15) Drama
Directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski Starring Juliette Binoche, Zbigniew Zamachowski, Julie Delpy

Julie (Juliette Binoche) is haunted by her grief after living through a tragic auto wreck that claimed the life of her composer husband and young daughter. Her initial reaction is to withdraw from her relationships, lock herself in her apartment and suppress her pain. But avoiding human interactions on the bustling streets of Paris proves impossible, and she eventually meets up with Olivier (Benoît Régent), an old friend who harbors a secret love for her, and who could draw her back to reality.

Cure
1997 111mins Japan (15) Horror
Directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa Starring Kôji Yakusho, Masato Hagiwara, Tsuyoshi Ujiki

A detective starts spiraling out of control when a wave of gruesome murders with seemingly similar bizarre circumstances are sweeping Tokyo.

La Haine
1995 98mins France (15) Crime
Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz Starring Vincent Cassel, Hubert Koundé, Saïd Taghmaoui

Hatred breeds hatred...

24 hours in the lives of three young men in the French suburbs the day after a violent riot.

Seven Samurai [Shichinin no samurai]
1954 207mins Japan (PG) Western
Directed by Akira Kurosawa Starring Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Toshi, Keiko Tsushima

Farmers from a village exploited by bandits hire a veteran samurai for protection, who gathers six other samurai to join him.

Harakiri
1962 133mins Japan (15) Drama
Directed by Masaki Kobayashi Starring Tatsuya Nakadai, Akira Ishihama, Shima Iwashita

Down-on-his-luck veteran Tsugumo Hanshirō enters the courtyard of the prosperous House of Iyi. Unemployed, and with no family, he hopes to find a place to commit seppuku—and a worthy second to deliver the coup de grâce in his suicide ritual. The senior counselor for the Iyi clan questions the ronin's resolve and integrity, suspecting Hanshirō of seeking charity rather than an honorable end. What follows is a pair of interlocking stories which lay bare the difference between honor and respect, and promises to examine the legendary foundations of the Samurai code.

Sansho the Bailiff
1954 124mins Japan (PG) Drama
Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi Starring Kinuyo Tanaka, Yoshiaki Hanayagi, Kyôko Kagawa

When an idealistic governor disobeys the reigning feudal lord, he is cast into exile, his wife and children left to fend for themselves and eventually wrenched apart by vicious slave traders. Under Kenji Mizoguchi's dazzling direction, this classic Japanese story became one of cinema's greatest masterpieces, a monumental, empathetic expression of human resilience in the face of evil.

Love is Colder than Death [Liebe ist kälter als der Tod]
1969 88mins Germany (15) Crime/Comedy
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Starring Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Ulli Lommel, Hanna Schygulla, Katrin Schaake

For his feature debut, Rainer Werner Fassbinder fashioned an acerbic, unorthodox crime drama about a love triangle involving the small-time pimp Franz (Fassbinder), his prostitute girlfriend, Joanna (future Fassbinder mainstay Hanna Schygulla), and his gangster friend Bruno (Ulli Lommel). With its minimalist tableaux and catalog of New Wave and Hollywood references, this is a stylishly nihilistic cinematic statement of intent.

Milano Calibro 9
1972 102mins Italy (15) Action / Crime
Directed by Fernando Di Leo Starring Gastone Moschin, Barbara Bouchet, Mario Adorf

Just out of prison, ex-con Ugo Piazza meets his former employer, a psychopathic gangster Rocco who enjoys sick violence and torture. Both the gangsters and the police believe Ugo has hidden $300,000 that should have gone to an American drug syndicate boss.

Memories of Murder [Salinui chueok]
2003 132mins South Korea (15) Crime / Thriller
Directed by Bong Joon Ho Starring Kang-ho Song, Sang-kyung Kim, Roe-ha Kim

In 1986, Park (Song Kang-ho) and Cho (Kim Roi-ha) are two simple-minded detectives assigned to a double murder investigation in a South Korean province. But when the murderer strikes several more times with the same pattern, the detectives realize that they are chasing the country's first documented serial killer. Relying on only their basic skills and tools, Park and Jo attempt to piece together the clues and solve the case in this thriller based on true events.

Goodbye, Dragon Inn
2003 83mins Taiwan (PG) Comedy / Drama
Directed by Ming-liang Tsai Starring Lee Kang-sheng, Chen Shiang-chyi, Kiyonobu Mitamura

On a dark, wet night a historic and regal Chinese cinema sees its final film. Together with a small handful of souls they bid "Goodbye, Dragon Inn".

The Umbrellas of Cherbourg [Les parapluies de Cherbourg]
1964 91mins Germany, West Germany, France (PG) Musical / Romance
Directed by Jacques Demy Starring Catherine Deneuve, Nino Castelnuovo, Anne Vernon

An angelically beautiful Catherine Deneuve was launched to stardom by this dazzling musical heart-tugger from Jacques Demy. She plays an umbrella-shop owner’s delicate daughter, glowing with first love for a handsome garage mechanic, played by Nino Castelnuovo. When the boy is shipped off to fight in Algeria, the two lovers must grow up quickly. Exquisitely designed in a kaleidoscope of colors, and told entirely through the lilting songs of the great composer Michel Legrand, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg is one of the most revered and unorthodox movie musicals of all time.

The Handmaiden [Theatrical Cut]
145mins (18) Thriller / Romance
Directed by Park Chan-Wook Starring Kim Min-hee, Kim Tae-ri, Ha Jung-woo

In 1930s Korea, a swindler and a young woman pose as a Japanese count and a handmaiden to seduce a Japanese heiress and steal her fortune.

My Neighbor Totoro
1988 87mins Japan (U) Anime
Directed by Hayao Miyazaki Starring Hitoshi Takagi, Noriko Hidaka, Toshi, Chika Sakamoto

Satsuki and Mei's mother has taken ill. In order to be closer to her while she recovers in a rural convalescent hospital, their father moves the two sisters from their home in a city to the countryside. The house they move into is a ramshackle old place in the shadow of an ancient camphor tree, and Satsuki and Mei embark on adventures with the wondrous forest spirits who live nearby.

Presented in Both Subtitled and Dubbed Performances; see SUB or DUB tags next to film time for performance info.

English Dub Voice Cast: Dakota Fanning, Elle Fanning, Tim Daley, Pat Caroll, Lea Salonga, Frank Welker and Paul Butcher

Japanese Language Voice Cast: Noriko Hidaka, Chika Sakamoto, Shigesato Itoi, Sumi Shimamoto, Tanie Kitabayashi, Hitoshi Takagi

Hero [Ying xiong]
2002 99mins Hong Kong, China (12A) Action/Adventure
Directed by Yimou Zhang Starring Maggie Cheung, Jet Li, Tony Chiu-Wai Leung

China was once divided into seven kingdoms that warred with each other constantly. It took one man to conquer all the kingdoms and create China. A nameless man (Jet Li) is brought to meet the king of Qin (Daoming Chen) in his palace. Nameless is being honoured for killing three assassins from the kingdom of Zhao. 

Katzelmacher
1969 85mins Germany (15) Drama
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Starring Hans Hirschmüller, Hanna Schygulla, Reiner Werner Fassbinder, Lilith Ungerer, Elga Sorbas

In this unflinching German drama by Rainer Werner Fassbinder, a group of young slackers, including the couple Erich (Hans Hirschmuller) and Marie (Hanna Schygulla), spend most of their time hanging out in front of a Munich apartment building. When a Greek immigrant named Jorgos (played by Fassbinder), moves in, however, their aimless lives are shaken up. Soon new tensions arise both within the group and with Jorgos, particularly when Marie threatens to leave Erich for the outsider.

Highway Racer [Poliziotto sprint]
1977 96mins Italy (18) Action / Crime
Directed by Stelvio Massi Starring Maurizio Merli, Giancarlo Sbragia, Angelo Infanti

**ON SALE TO EVERYONE 7th APR!**

Maurizio Merli stars as a hot-shot police driver who has more guts than brains, often landing him in hot water with his middle-aged mentor, who was once a legendary police interceptor responsible for numerous large scale arrests.

Three Colours White
1994 92mins France, Poland, Switzerland (15) Drama
Directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski Starring Zbigniew Zamachowski, Julie Delpy, Janusz Gajos

Polish immigrant Karol Karol (Zbigniew Zamachowski) finds himself out of a marriage, a job and a country when his French wife, Dominique (Julie Delpy), divorces him after six months due to his impotence. Forced to leave the France after losing the business they jointly owned, Karol enlists fellow Polish expatriate Mikolah (Janusz Gajos) to smuggle him back to their homeland. After successfully returning, Karol begins to build his new life, while never forgetting his old one.

Persona
1966 85mins Sweden (15) Romance/Drama
Directed by Ingmar Bergman Starring Bibi Andersson, Liv Ullmann, Margaretha Krook

Famed stage actress Elisabeth Vogler (Liv Ullmann) suffers a moment of blankness during a performance and the next day lapses into total silence. Advised by her doctor to take time off to recover from what appears to be an emotional breakdown, Elisabeth goes to a beach house on the Baltic Sea with only Anna (Bibi Andersson), a nurse, as company. Over the next several weeks, as Anna struggles to reach her mute patient, the two women find themselves experiencing a strange emotional convergence.

Mon Oncle
1958 116mins Italy, France (U) Film
Directed by Jacques Tati Starring Jacques Tati, Jean-Pierre Zola, Adrienne Servantie

Monsieur Hulot visits the technology-driven world of his sister, brother-in-law, and nephew, but he can't quite fit into the surroundings. 1959 Oscar winner for Best Foreign Language Film.

Infernal Affairs
2002 101mins Hong Kong (15) Crime / Thriller
Directed by Alan Mak|Andrew Lau Starring Andy Lau, Tony Leung, Anthony Wong, Eric Tsang

Idealistic police cadet Chan Wing-Yan (Tony Leung) is recruited by Police Superintendant Wong (Anthony Wong) to go deep undercover as a member of the criminal Triad society. Into the same cadet class, crime boss Hon Sam (Eric Tsang) installs new Triad member Lau Kin Ming (Andy Lau) to become a long-term mole for the gang. A decade later, both have risen through the ranks in their respective aliases -- but when both of their covers are in danger of being blown, a game of life and death ensues.

Beware the Holy Whore [Warnung vor einer heiligen Nutte]
1971 103mins Germany (15) Comedy / Drama
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Starring Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Lou Castel, Hanna Schygulla, Eddie Constantine

Jeff (Lou Castel), a director, and his star actor (Eddie Constantine) are taking their time getting to the set of the movie they're currently working on. In the absence of these key figures, the film crew lacks a purposeful way to spend their time, so they drink heavily. However, as booze is downed and boredom and frustration set in, morale hits rock bottom. When Jeff and the male lead finally show, the director is enraged by his crew's slovenliness, and the production spirals into chaos.

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly (Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo)
1966 180mins Spain, Italy, Germany, West Germany, USA (15) Western
Directed by Sergio Leone Starring Clint Eastwood, Lee Van Cleef, Eli Wallach

While the Civil War rages on between the Union and the Confederacy, three men – a quiet loner, a ruthless hitman, and a Mexican bandit – comb the American Southwest in search of a strongbox containing $200,000 in stolen gold.

In The Mood For Love
2000 98mins Hong Kong (PG) Romance
Directed by Wong Kar Wai Starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Maggie Cheung, Rebecca Pan, Tony Leung, Lai Chen, Paulyn Sun

In Hong Kong of 1962, Mrs. Chan and Mr. Chow, a journalist, move into neighbouring apartments on the same day. Their encounters are formal and polite—until a discovery about their respective spouses creates an intimate bond between them.

Oldboy [Oldeuboi]
2003 120mins South Korea (18) Psychological Horror
Directed by Chan-wook Park Starring Min-sik Choi, Ji-tae Yu, Hye-jeong Kang

Dae-Su is an obnoxious drunk bailed from the police station yet again by a friend. However, he's abducted from the street and wakes up in a cell, where he remains for the next 15 years, drugged unconscious when human contact is unavoidable, otherwise with only the television as company. And then, suddenly released, he is invited to track down his jailor with a denouement that is simply stunning.

The Merchant of Four Seasons [Händler der vier Jahreszeiten]
1972 88mins Germany (15) Comedy / Drama
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Starring Hans Hirschmüller, Hanna Schygulla, Irm Hermann, Klaus Löwitsch

New German Cinema icon Rainer Werner Fassbinder kicked off a new phase of his young career when he made the startling The Merchant of Four Seasons. In this anguished yet mordantly funny film, Fassbinder charts the decline of a self-destructive former policeman and war veteran struggling to make ends meet for his family by working as a fruit vendor. Fassbinder had gained acclaim for a series of trenchant, quickly made early films, but for this one he took more time and forged a new style—featuring a more complexly woven script and narrative structure and more sophisticated use of the camera, and influenced by the work of his recently discovered idol, Douglas Sirk. The result is a meticulously made, unforgiving social satire.

Drunken Angel [Yoidore tenshi]
1948 98mins Japan (PG) Film Noir
Directed by Akira Kurosawa Starring Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Toshi, Reizaburô Yamamoto

The chaotic worlds of the Japanese Mafia (Yakuza) and an alcoholic doctor collide in this film noir classic from Akira Kurosawa. Gangster Toshiro Mifune visits doctor Takashi Shimura, after an unfortunate incident with a bullet. The doctor, who despises the Yakuza, discovers the young man is suffering from tuberculosis, a disease symbolic of what is happening to the doctor and the community he serves. Facing his own anger and fear, the doctor aligns himself with the gangster's world.

The Young Girls of Rochefort [Les demoiselles de Rochefort]
1967 126mins France (PG) Musical / Comedy
Directed by Jacques Demy Starring Catherine Deneuve, George Chakiris, Françoise Dorléac

Delphine (Catherine Deneuve) and Solange (Françoise Dorléac) are twin sisters who each want to find romance and leave their small seaside town of Rochefort, France. Soon they befriend a couple of visiting carnival workers who frequent their lonely mother's (George Chakiris) café and hire the girls to sing in the carnival. Wanting a career as a songwriter, Solange falls for an American musician, Andy (Jacques Perrin), while Delphine dumps her beau and searches Rochefort for her ideal man.

As Tears Go By
1988 98mins Hong Kong (18) Romance
Directed by Wong Kar Wai Starring Andy Lau, Maggie Cheung, Jacky Cheung

A low-level triad "big brother" has a hot-tempered "little brother" who can't keep out of trouble, and consequently is in constant need of being bailed out by his protector. The "big brother" is super cool, but lacks the ambition to rise in the ranks of the triad societies - and once he meets his cousin from Kowloon and falls in love with her, he even thinks about leaving "the life"

Spirited Away
2001 125mins English, Japan (PG) Film
Directed by Hayao Miyazaki Starring Rumi Hiiragi, Miyu Irino, Mari Natsuki

In this animated feature by noted Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki, 10-year-old Chihiro (Rumi Hiiragi) and her parents (Takashi Naitô, Yasuko Sawaguchi) stumble upon a seemingly abandoned amusement park. After her mother and father are turned into giant pigs, Chihiro meets the mysterious Haku (Miyu Irino), who explains that the park is a resort for supernatural beings who need a break from their time spent in the earthly realm, and that she must work there to free herself and her parents.

Three Colours Red
1994 99mins France, Poland, Switzerland (15) Drama
Directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski Starring Irène Jacob, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Frédérique Feder

A model discovers a retired judge is keen on invading people's privacy.

The Bitter Tears of Petra Von Kant
1972 124mins Germany (12) Romance/Drama
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Starring Margit Carstensen, Hanna Schygulla, Katrin Schaake, Eva Mattes

Petra von Kant is a successful fashion designer – arrogant, caustic, and self-satisfied. She mistreats Marlene (her secretary, maid, and co-designer). Enter Karin, a 23-year-old beauty who wants to be a model. Petra falls in love with Karin and invites her to move in.

The Marquise of O [La Marquise d'O...]
1976 102mins France, West Germany (PG) Historical
Directed by Éric Rohmer Starring Edith Clever, Bruno Ganz, Edda Seippel

A German Marquise has to deal with a pregnancy she cannot explain and an infatuated Russian Count.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Wo hu cang long)
2000 120mins Taiwan, USA, Hong Kong, China (12) Action/Adventure
Directed by Ang Lee Starring Yun-Fat Chow, Michelle Yeoh, Ziyi Zhang

In 19th century Qing Dynasty China, a warrior (Chow Yun-Fat) gives his sword, Green Destiny, to his lover (Michelle Yeoh) to deliver to safe keeping, but it is stolen, and the chase is on to find it. The search leads to the House of Yu where the story takes on a whole different level.

Solaris (1972)
1972 167mins Soviet Union (12A) Science Fiction
Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky Starring Natalya Bondarchuk, Donatas Banionis, Jüri Järvet

A psychologist is sent to a station orbiting a distant planet in order to discover what has caused the crew to go insane.

High and Low
1963 143mins Japan (12) Crime / Thriller
Directed by Akira Kurosawa Starring Toshirô Mifune, Tatsuya Nakadai, Kyôko Kagawa

Toshiro Mifune is unforgettable as Kingo Gondo, a wealthy industrialist whose family becomes the target of a cold-blooded kidnapper in High and Low (Tengoku to jigoku), the highly influential domestic drama and police procedural from director Akira Kurosawa. Adapting Ed McBain's detective novel King's Ransom, Kurosawa moves effortlessly from compelling race-against-time thriller to exacting social commentary, creating a diabolical treatise on contemporary Japanese society.

Ali : Fear Eats the Soul [Angst essen Seele auf]
1974 92mins Germany (12A) Romance/Drama
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Starring Brigitte Mira, El Hedi ben Salem, Barbara Valentin

Emmi Kurowski (Brigitte Mira), a cleaning lady, is lonely in her old age. Her husband died years ago, and her grown children offer little companionship. One night she goes to a bar frequented by Arab immigrants and strikes up a friendship with middle-aged mechanic Ali (El Hedi ben Salem). Their relationship soon develops into something more, and Emmi's family and neighbors criticize their spontaneous marriage. Soon Emmi and Ali are forced to confront their own insecurities about their future.

Stray Dog
1949 122mins Japan (PG) Film Noir
Directed by Akira Kurosawa Starring Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Keiko Awaji

A bad day gets worse for young detective Murakami when a pickpocket steals his gun on a hot, crowded bus. Desperate to right the wrong, he goes undercover, scavenging Tokyo's sweltering streets for the stray dog whose desperation has led him to a life of crime. With each step, cop and criminal's lives become more intertwined and the investigation becomes an examination of Murakami's own dark side. Starring Toshiro Mifune as the rookie cop and Takashi Shimura as the seasoned detective who keeps him on the right side of the law, Stray Dog (Nora inu) goes beyond crime thriller, probing the squalid world of postwar Japan and the nature of the criminal mind.

Perceval le Gallois
1978 140mins Italy, France, West Germany (PG) Historical
Directed by Éric Rohmer Starring Fabrice Luchini, André Dussollier, Solange Boulanger

The film chronicles Perceval's knighthood, maturation and eventual peerage amongst the Knights of the Round Table, and also contains brief episodes from the story of Gawain and the crucifixion of Christ.

Battleship Potemkin [Bronenosets Potyomkin]
1925 75mins Soviet Union (PG) War
Directed by Sergei M. Eisenstein Starring Aleksandr Antonov, Vladimir Barsky, Grigori Aleksandrov

When they are fed rancid meat, the sailors on the Potemkin revolt against their harsh conditions. Led by Vakulinchuk (Aleksandr Antonov), the sailors kill the officers of the ship to gain their freedom. Vakulinchuk is also killed, and the people of Odessa honor him as a symbol of revolution. Tsarist soldiers arrive and massacre the civilians to quell the uprising. A squadron of ships is sent to overthrow the Potemkin, but the ships side with the revolt and refuse to attack.

Memories
1995 115mins Japan (12) Anime
Directed by Katsuhiro Ôtomo|Koji Morimoto (Magnetic Rose)|Tensai Okamura|Tensai Okamura (Stink Bomb)|Katsuhiro Otomo (Chief|Cannon Fodder)|Koji Morimoto

Three back-to-back anime films by three different directors make up this sci-fi trilogy three years in the making. In the chilling "Magnetic Rose," engineers on a spacecraft board an abandoned space station and encounter disturbing paranormal forces. A young lab worker accidentally swallows a chemical weapon and becomes a walking killing machine in "Stink Bomb." In "Cannon Fodder," a young boy and his father fight for survival in a city functioning on paranoia.

Effi Briest [1974]
1974 140mins Germany (U) Romance/Drama
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Starring Ulli Lommel, Hanna Schygulla, Irm Hermann, Wolfgang Schenck

A young woman is married to a much older man and begins a flirtation with one of his close friends that leads to dire consequences.

The Aviator's Wife [La Femme de l'aviateur]
1981 108mins France (PG) Romance/Comedy
Directed by Éric Rohmer Starring Philippe Marlaud, Marie Rivière, Anne-Laure Meury

A student is devastated when he finds that his girlfriend is cheating on him. In order to find out why she did it, he decides to spy on her and her airline pilot lover. Then he sees the pilot with a blonde woman and he begins to follow them…

Stalker
1979 161mins Soviet Union (PG) Science Fiction
Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky Starring Anatoliy Solonitsyn, Alisa Freyndlikh, Aleksandr Kaydanovskiy

In an unnamed country at an unspecified time, there is a fiercely protected post-apocalyptic wasteland known as The Zone. An illegal guide (Aleksandr Kajdanovsky), whose mutant child suggests unspeakable horrors within The Zone, leads a writer (Anatoliy Solonitsyn) and a scientist (Nikolay Grinko) into the heart of the devastation in search of a mythical place known only as The Room. Anyone who enters The Room will supposedly have any of his earthly desires immediately fulfilled.

A Good Marriage [Le Beau Marriage]
1982 100mins France (PG) Romance/Comedy
Directed by Éric Rohmer Starring Béatrice Romand, André Dussollier, Féodor Atkine

Impetuous and restless art student Sabine (Béatrice Romand) is tired of her dead-end job and her married boyfriend, Simon (Féodor Atkine), so she drops both of them. Then, through her pal Clarisse (Arielle Dombasle), she meets Edmond (André Dussollier), an attorney 10 years her senior. Immediately, she decides marriage is just the change she needs, and that Edmond is the perfect candidate for a husband. And so begins her relentless pursuit of matrimony, much to Edmond's chagrin.

Fox and His Friends [Faustrecht der Freiheit]
1975 123mins Germany (15) Drama
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Starring Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Karlheinz Böhm, Peter Chatel, Adrian Hoven

A lottery win leads not to financial and emotional freedom but to social captivity, in this wildly cynical classic about love and exploitation by Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Casting himself against type, the director plays a suggestible working-class innocent who lets himself be taken advantage of by his bourgeois new boyfriend and his circle of materialistic friends, leading to the kind of resonant misery that only Fassbinder could create. Fox and His Friends is unsparing social commentary, an amusingly pitiless and groundbreaking if controversial depiction of a gay community in 1970s West Germany.

Chimes at Midnight
1965 115mins Spain (PG) Comedy / Drama
Directed by Orson Welles Starring Orson Welles, Keith Baxter, John Gielgud

The crowning achievement of Orson Welles's extraordinary cinematic career, Chimes at Midnight was the culmination of the filmmaker's lifelong obsession with Shakespeare's ultimate rapscallion, Sir John Falstaff. Usually a comic supporting figure, Falstaff—the loyal, often soused friend of King Henry IV's wayward son Prince Hal—here becomes the focus: a robustly funny and ultimately tragic screen antihero played by Welles with looming, lumbering grace. Integrating elements from both Henry IV plays as well as Richard II, Henry V, and The Merry Wives of Windsor, Welles created a gritty and unorthodox Shakespeare film as a lament, he said, “for the death of Merrie England.” Poetic, philosophical, and visceral—with a kinetic centerpiece battle sequence that rivals anything in the director's body of work—Chimes at Midnight is as monumental as the figure at its heart.

Nosferatu
1922 94mins Germany (PG) Horror
Directed by F.W. Murnau Starring Max Schreck, Alexander Granach, Gustav von Wangenheim

This performance will feature a live score performed by Hugo Max.

"I first saw Murnau’s Symphony of Horror when I was nine years old. The film’s expressionistic images continue to haunt me, the chiaroscuro compositions tapping vividly into timeless subconscious fears.

My improvisations on viola and piano draw inspiration from the leitmotifs and sound effects of 70s horror soundtracks and the languages of Second Viennese School composers contemporary to Murnau, also Jewish Traditional Music that informs my personal approach to creating a score for the film." - Hugo Max

Please view this YouTube video for a sample of Hugo's work.


Photo Credit - Richard Ecclestone

An iconic film of the German expressionist cinema, and one of the most famous of all silent movies, F. W. Murnau's Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror continues to haunt — and, indeed, terrify — modern audiences with the unshakable power of its images. By teasing a host of occult atmospherics out of dilapidated set-pieces and innocuous real-world locations alike, Murnau captured on celluloid the deeply-rooted elements of a waking nightmare, and launched the signature "Murnau-style" that would change cinema history forever.

In this first-ever screen adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula, a simple real-estate transaction leads an intrepid businessman deep into the superstitious heart of Transylvania. There he encounters the otherworldly Count Orlok — portrayed by the legendary Max Schreck, in a performance the very backstory of which has spawned its own mythology — who soon after embarks upon a cross-continental voyage to take up residence in a distant new land... and establish his ambiguous dominion. As to whether the count's campaign against the plague-wracked populace erupts from satanic decree, erotic compulsion, or the simple impulse of survival — that remains, perhaps, the greatest mystery of all in this film that's like a blackout...

Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles
1975 202mins Belgium, France (15) Drama
Directed by Chantal Akerman Starring Delphine Seyrig, January Decorte, Henri Storck

Jeanne Dielman (Delphine Seyrig), the widowed mother of a teenage son, Sylvain (Jan Decorte), ekes out a drab, repetitive existence in her tiny Brussels apartment. Jeanne's days are divided between humdrum domestic chores -- shopping, cooking, housework -- and her job as an occasional prostitute, which keeps her financially afloat. She seems perfectly resigned to her situation until a series of slight interruptions in her routine leads to unexpected and dramatic changes.

El Topo
1970 125mins Mexico (18) Mind F**k
Directed by Alejandro Jodorowsky Starring Alejandro Jodorowsky, Brontis Jodorowsky, José Legarreta

El Topo decides to confront warrior Masters on a trans-formative desert journey he begins with his 6 year old son, who must bury his childhood totems to become a man.

Chinese Roulette
1976 86mins Germany (15) Drama
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Starring Ulli Lommel, Margit Carstensen, Brigitte Mira, Anna Karina

A husband and wife lie to each other about their weekend travel plans, only to both show up at the family's country house with their lovers.

Pauline at the Beach [Pauline à la plage]
1983 95mins France (15) Romance/Comedy
Directed by Éric Rohmer Starring Amanda Langlet, Arielle Dombasle, Pascal Greggory

Fifteen-year-old Pauline (Amanda Langlet) journeys to the Normandy coast for a summer vacation with her adult cousin Marion (Arielle Dombasle). Marion is waiting out her divorce and, along the shore, runs into her old flame Pierre (Pascal Greggory). Although he's anxious to rekindle their former romance, Marion wants nothing to do with him, and she sets him up with Pauline. The romantic web gets more tangled yet when Marion starts a liaison with Henri (Féodor Atkine), a middle-aged playboy.

The Marriage of Maria Braun [Die Ehe der Maria Braun]
1979 120mins Germany (15) Romance/Drama
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Starring Hanna Schygulla, Klaus Löwitsch, Ivan Desny, Gisela Uhlen, Micahel Ballhaus

Maria (Hanna Schygulla) marries Hermann Braun in the last days of World War II, only for him to go missing in the war. Alone, Maria puts to use her beauty and ambition in order to find prosperity during Germany’s “economic miracle” of the 1950s. Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s biggest international box-office success, The Marriage of Maria Braun is a heartbreaking study of a woman picking herself up from the ruins of her own life, as well as a pointed metaphorical attack on a society determined to forget its past.

Full Moon in Paris [Les nuits de la pleine lune]
1984 105mins France (15) Romance/Comedy
Directed by Éric Rohmer Starring Pascale Ogier, Tchéky Karyo, Fabrice Luchini

After Louise (Pascale Ogier) completes her art school studies, she begins to work as an interior designer in Paris, but her burgeoning career soon takes a back seat to her personal life. Although Louise lives with her lover Remi (Tcheky Karyo), an architect, his desire to settle down and experience marital bliss conflicts with her late-night lifestyle. Also complicating matters is Octave (Fabrice Luchini), a charming, married writer who is smitten with Louise.

The Men Who Tread on the Tiger's Tail
1945 59mins Japan (PG) Adventure / Drama
Directed by Akira Kurosawa Starring Takashi Shimura, Denjiro Okochi, Masayuki Mori, Tadayoshi Nishina, Susumu Fujita

A routed Japanese general, Yoshitsune (Hanshiro Iwai), and his group of loyal retainers are forced to flee from Yoshitsune's own traitorous brother. En route to a safe zone, Yoshitsune and his bodyguards must pass through a heavily garrisoned mountain stronghold held by his brother's forces. Hopelessly outnumbered, Yoshitsune and his guards, led by samurai Benkei (Denjirô Ôkôchi), decided that the safest way to pass through the checkpoint unharmed is to dress themselves as monks.

The Third Generation
1979 110mins West Germany (15) Comedy/Crime
Directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder Starring Harry Baer, Hark Bohm, Margit Carstensen

Rainer Werner Fassbinder's follow-up to his international breakthrough THE MARRIAGE OF MARIA BRAUN is a wildly anarchic satire of guerrilla terrorism in which a band of leftist radicals inadvertently become puppets of the West German government, which uses them to justify its authoritarian policies. Taking aim at the entire spectrum of political ideologies, THE THIRD GENERATION stands as one of Fassbinder's most provocative and explosively controversial explorations of power and control.

I Live in Fear [Ikimono no kiroku]
1955 104mins Japan (PG) Drama
Directed by Akira Kurosawa Starring Toshirô Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Toshi, Minoru Chiaki

Both the final film of this period in which Akira Kurosawa would directly wrestle with the demons of the Second World War and his most literal representation of living in an atomic age, the galvanizing I Live in Fear presents Toshiro Mifune as an elderly, stubborn businessman so fearful of a nuclear attack that he resolves to move his reluctant family to South America. With this mournful film, the director depicts a society emerging from the shadows but still terrorized by memories of the past and anxieties for the future.

The Green Ray [Le rayon vert]
1986 98mins France (12A) Romance
Directed by Éric Rohmer Starring Marie Rivière, María Luisa García, Vincent Gauthier

Delphine (Marie Rivière) is a beautiful young Parisian who is still smarting from a recent break-up. When a friend nixes their travel plans shortly before the trip, Delphine is left to decide how to spend her holiday. Soon she is dealing with various uncomfortable situations, including a beach getaway where she is the only single person. After attempting a trip to the overcrowded Alps, Delphine entertains more vacation options, but will the restless soul ever find what she's looking for?

The Cranes are Flying
1957 91mins Soviet Union (PG) War
Directed by Mikhail Kalatozov Starring Tatyana Samojlova, Aleksey Batalov, Vasili Merkuryev, Aleksandr Shvorin

Veronica and Boris are blissfully in love, until the eruption of World War II tears them apart. Boris is sent to the front lines…and then communication stops. Meanwhile, Veronica tries to ward off spiritual numbness while Boris's draft-dodging cousin makes increasingly forceful overtures. Winner of the Palme d'Or at the 1958 Cannes Film Festival, The Cranes Are Flying is a superbly crafted drama, bolstered by stunning cinematography and impassioned performances.

My Girlfriend's Boyfriend [L'ami de mon amie]
1987 103mins France (PG) Romance/Comedy
Directed by Éric Rohmer Starring Emmanuelle Chaulet, Sophie Renoir, Anne-Laure Meury

The lives of various young French people intersect in a recently constructed suburb near Paris. Blanche (Emmanuelle Chaulet), an uptight office worker, falls for the handsome Alexandre (Francois-Eric Gendron), whom she meets through her vibrant new friend, Lea (Sophie Renoir). Unfortunately for Blanche, Alexandre is dating the artistic Adrienne (Anne-Laure Meury), while Lea is seeing Fabien (Eric Viellard). Before long, though, these relationships shift, leading to new romantic pairings.

The Bad Sleep Well
1960 131mins Japan (PG) Neo Noir
Directed by Akira Kurosawa Starring Toshirô Mifune, Masayuki Mori, Toshi, Kyôko Kagawa

A young executive hunts down his father's killer in director Akira Kurosawa's scathing The Bad Sleep Well. Continuing his legendary collaboration with actor Toshiro Mifune, Kurosawa combines elements of Hamlet and American film noir to chilling effect in exposing the corrupt boardrooms of postwar corporate Japan.

Four Adventures of Reinette and Mirabelle
1987 99mins France (PG) Comedy / Drama
Directed by Éric Rohmer Starring Joëlle Miquel, Jessica Forde, Mr. Housseau

Two young girls meet, Reinette from the countryside and Mirabelle from Paris, and decide to take a flat together in Paris where they attend University. Four successive stories about their daily lives illustrate the very different views, characters and relation to the world of these two friends.

The Tree, the Mayor and the Mediatheque
1993 105mins France (PG) Comedy / Drama
Directed by Éric Rohmer Starring Pascal Greggory, Arielle Dombasle, Fabrice Luchini

The socialist mayor of a small village in France dreams of building an arts center but he runs up against some opposition.

Dreams
1990 120mins Japan, USA (PG) Fantasy
Directed by Akira Kurosawa Starring Akira Terao, Toshi, Mitsuko Baishô, Toshie Negishi

This imaginative Japanese production presents a series of short films by lauded director Akira Kurosawa. In one chapter, a young boy spies on foxes that are holding a wedding ceremony; the following installment features another youth, who witnesses a magical moment in an orchard. In the segment "Crows," an aspiring artist enters the world of a painting and encounters Vincent van Gogh (Martin Scorsese). Many of the films in this inventive movie are tied together by an environmental theme.