Weekend Screenings (6/20-6/22)
Friday, June 20
Tonight at 8 pm at the Tower Theater director Gianni Amelio's film Cosi Ridevano (The Way We Laughed) screens as part of the New Italian Filmmamker Showcase. This showcase celebrates the rich world of Italian History, Art and culture through the country's cinematic history.
Cosi Ridevano tells the story of two Sicilian brothers, Giovanni and Pietro, who emigrate to the city of Turin. Giovanni works odd jobs and encourages Pietro to keep up with his studies, but when an economic shift allows Giovanni to profit through ill-gotten gains, the once irresponsible Pietro must cover up the corrupt actions of his older brother.
Tower Theater: The intersection of SW Eighth Street and Fifteenth Avenue: 305-642-1264. Admission for tonight's event is free.
This weekend the Miami Beach Cinematheque is holding multiple screenings of the film Chop Shop. This 2007 film takes place in the Willet's Point neighborhood in Queens, New York. Known as the "Iron Triangle" to local residents, Willet's Point teems with auto-body repair shops, scrap yards, and garbage dumps. Protagonist Alejandro is an ambitious Latino street orphan struggling to make a better life for himself and his 16-year-old sister. The film played at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. For a complete list of show times check MBC's schedule.
Miami Beach Cinematheque: 512 Espanola Way, Miami Beach; 305-673-4567. Tickets for non-member are $10; $6 for members and students.
The Jewish Heritage Film Series continues tonight at Cinema Paradiso with the documentary The Power of Good: Nicholas Winton at 5:45 pm and Hester Street, a drama about a young Jewish woman who arrives in America with her philandering husband in the 1890's, at 8 pm.
The festival is celebrating 100 years of Jewish Culture in the United States and Europe through 10 award winning films. The festival will screen films all weekend.
Cinema Paradiso in Ft. Lauderdale: 503 SE 6 Street, Ft. Lauderdale; 954-525-3456. Admission for all films at the Retro Beach Film Festival is $5.
Flight of the Red Balloon is Chinese director Hsia-hsien Hou's re-imagination of the 1956 children's classic The Red Balloon. Selected for both the Cannes and New York Film Festivals, it stars Juliette Binoche as an overburdened single mother who entrusts the care of her son, Simon, to a Taiwanese film student named Song and a mysterious red balloon that has taken an interest in him. The film is playing several times this weekend. For a complete schedule click here.
While Orson Welles is best known for his infamous 1938 radio braodcast of H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds - which convinced many hapless listeners that an actual Martian invasion was in progress - and his 1941 film Citizen Kane, Welles directed other films many of which do not receive the credit they deserve.
One of these films is Touch of Evil starring Charlton Heston, Janet Leigh, Orson Welles and Marlene Dietrich in one her last major appearances on screen. One of the last film noirs from the 1950's, Touch of Evil revolves around a honeymooning couple and their involvement with a mysterious explosion. The film is playing several times this weekend. For a complete schedule click here.
Cosford Cinema: 1111 Memorial Drive, Coral Gables; 305-284-4861. Admission is free for University of Miami Students, $8 for the general public and $6 for seniors and students from other universities. Only cash is accepted.
Contact Kevin Craft at kevcraft@yahoo.com.
