International film series returns for a fourth season

RELEASED: Oct. 5, 2006

DANVILLE, KY—The International Film Series brings a wide range of critically acclaimed international films to the Centre College campus. Now in its fourth season, the fall showcase began Tuesday, Oct. 3, and will continue through Tuesday, Nov. 14.

The films will show at 7 p.m. in the Vahlkamp Theater in Crounse Hall. There will be a brief introduction and discussion afterwards for each film.

Tuesday, October 24: Closely Watched Trains
Directed by Jirí Menzel
Unrated; 91 minutes; 1966
Czech and German with English subtitles
Miloš Hrma works in a tiny train station in occupied Czechosolvakia during World War II.  Longing to gain experience with women and oblivious to the war and the resistance that surround him, he embarks on a journey of sexual awakening and self-discovery.  Ultimately faced with history and vital questions of morality, Miloš gets involved in a plot to blow up a German ammunition train, known as a "closely watched train."  Shot in gorgeous black and white, this film was part of the Czech New Wave of the 1960s. Discussion following the film with Spanish professor David Slade and German professor Ian Wilson. Sponsored by Student Activities.

Tuesday, October 31: Death of a Bureaucrat
Directed by Tomás Gutiérrez Alea
Unrated; 85 minutes; 1966
Spanish with English subtitles
When a well-loved artist is accidentally killed by the machine he created to mass-produce busts of the nineteenth-century revolutionary hero José Martí, his family decides he should be buried gripping his union work permit in a symbol of his dedication to Castro’s cause. Unfortunately, when his wife goes to receive her pension, the paperwork cannot be completed without her husband’s work permit.  Distraught, she enlists her nephew to exhume the body.  He follows a maddening paper trail that ends in a hilarious climax about the insanity of bureaucracy. Discussion following the film with Spanish professor David Slade.  Sponsored by Academic Affairs and the Humanities Division.

Tuesday, November 7: Fanny and Alexander
Directed by Ingmar Bergman
Rated R; 188 minutes; 1982
Swedish, German, and Yiddish with English subtitles; English
Following rich and entertaining years as children in a milieu dominated by a theater-loving family (led by their father, the local theater director, and their mother, its star actress), Fanny and Alexander find themselves thrust into a somber world of piety when their mother marries the local bishop following the death of their father.  Throughout, viewers follow the perspective of young Alexander, whose story flows through joy, misery and into wonder.  Introduction to the film (at 6:45) and discussion afterward with Philosophy professor Jason Leddington.  Sponsored by the Film Society.

Tuesday, November 14: Breathless
Directed by Jean-Luc Godard
Unrated; 87 minutes; 1960
French with English subtitles
Jean-Luc Godard’s first feature has been widely hailed as one of the most influential motion pictures ever made.  On the run after killing a cop, a small-time crook hides out in Paris with an American girl.  After she betrays him, he chooses to face his fate with an absurd stoicism modeled on his hero, Humphrey Bogart.  Breathless is arguably the cornerstone of the French New Wave, exhibiting the trademark documentary shooting style, natural sound design, and thematic interest in the detritus of American popular culture. Discussion following the film with emeritus professor of French Charles Vahlkamp. Sponsored by the Film Society.

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