I hate to toot our own horn, but it’s hard not to be a tad self-congratulatory when the Film Series has been going so gosh-darn well this year. But heck, isn’t a little self-horn-toot sometimes warranted? Take Muhammad Ali, for example – the guy consistently referred to himself as “The Greatest,” a self-fashioned nickname that would have seemed out of place if he hadn’t been, in fact, the greatest. But he was.
Now I wouldn’t dare compare the Wesleyan Film Series to a three-time world heavyweight champion. But last week’s one-two punch of “Pulp Fiction” and “Mr. Deeds Goes To Town” put me against the ropes for a few rounds, and this week’s “Fargo”/ “George Washington” combo might just knock me out. It’s pretty clear that we have trained hard in the off-season and hit the Goldsmith Ring with a killer calendar. So as you gear up for the next round of the film series, “The Greatest” thing to do on campus Wednesday through Saturday nights, make sure you know what kind of tussle you’re getting yourself into. We’re not some out-of-shape has-been, non-contender with a weak southpaw, we’re the champs, and we’ve been wearing the title belt for as long as you’ve been calling yourself a Cardinal. The Wesleyan Film Series: float like a Bergman, sting like Spike Lee.
FARGO
1996. USA. Dir: Joel Coen. With Frances McDormand, William H. Macy. 98 min.
TOMORROW, Sept. 29, 8 p.m., $5
Murder. Deception. Pregnancy. What more could you possibly ask for? A woodchipper, you say? Don’t worry, it’s got that covered too. The Coens’ tongue-in-cheek madcap masterpiece is finally on the big screen again. When bumbling idiot Jerry Lundegaard – played by a never-better, never-more-paranoid William H. Macy – arranges for his wife to be kidnapped, his faulty logic unravels with increasing hilarity and escalating levels of violence. Tied with “Raising Arizona” on the top of my Best-of-Coens list, “Fargo” is a bloody romp as masterfully executed as any caper in recent memory.
GEORGE WASHINGTON
2000. USA. Dir: David Gordon Green. With Candace Evanofski.
89 min.
Thursday, Sept. 30, 8 p.m., FREE
Before he traded in his lyrical visions for bong rips and bowl hits (see “Pineapple Express”), David Gordon Green crafted this tragically touching indie. Centering on a group of southern adolescents in the midst of a puzzling tragedy, this stunning debut from Green is at once simplistic and complex in theme and form – it’s the quiet, contemplative imagery that makes this film soar. Come see one of the crowning jewels of 21st Century American Independent Cinema, an astounding cine-poem that will hypnotize and shake you awake again.
SPIRITED AWAY
2001. Japan. Dir: Hayao Miyazaki. With Daveigh Chase. 125 min.
Friday, Oct. 1, 8 p.m., $5
After a long debate of which Miyazaki to show – a heated discussion during which names like “Princess Mononoke,” “My Neighbor Totoro,” “Howl’s Moving Castle,” and even last year’s “Ponyo” were tossed around – we finally and, in my opinion, successfully, settled on this modern classic. The recipient of the 2001 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, “Spirited Away” is probably Miyazaki’s best-known film, but not undeservingly so. It’s a visually captivating, wildly engrossing adventure that transports you to a world of magical, youthful imagination. Particularly notable is its position on the film series calendar —right next to “George Washington”—another film that explores the sweet terrors of adolescence, yet with a drastically different aesthetic. Drift over for both films and be reminded of the silliness and the sadness of your pre-pubescence.
SABRINA
1954. USA. Dir: Billy Wilder. With Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart. 113 min.
Saturday, Oct. 2, 8 p.m., FREE
Billy Wilder’s comedies form a canon that arguably deserves as much reverence as Hitchcock’s thrillers, containing such gems as “Some Like It Hot,” “One Two Three,” “A Foreign Affair,” “The Apartment,” and of course this Bogart/Hepburn classic. The genius of this category is that the label “comedy” doesn’t quite do it justice—these films tackle gender identity, marital problems, political insecurity, adultery, and suicide (respectively). They’re challenging yet still hilarious—important, yet still zany. The grace and charm of “Sabrina” set it apart from even this group—it’s classy, romantic, and elegant in all the right ways—a cinematic wink and kiss blown off the screen and the audience.
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