Trylon Premiere Tuesdays lineup

People have asked me what the theme is of the Tuesday film series at the Trylon, and logistically, they are films that we can afford to bring in for four shows that deserve to play in the Twin Cities. Outside of films that get locked in at Landmark, creative and adventurous programming of new films only happens at St. Anthony Main and the Walker. But with the Walker cutting back on many of its film programs and St Anthony radically shifting from week-to-week, it leaves a lot of holes, especially for some of the smaller indie and international releases. Ours is a modest but what I feel is an important contribution to the Twin Cities film scene. As a film fan, many of these films are ones that I would want to see come to town. Twin Cities premieres are certainly what we are striving for, but occasionally that is a white lie. Case in point, I was feeling pretty cruddy about living in a place that only gave Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (a film that I dearly love) one screening. Fortunately I was able to do something about that.

Thematically though, the films are all over the map. Nothing exemplifies this more than the next four films—a solid mixture of international drama that may be the best lineup we’ve ever had. Yes, I’m a little bit proud of myself. If I had tail feathers, they would be splayed.

Here’s what I’m looking forward to in the next couple of months and I hope you are too:

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010)
Thailand, dir. Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Tuesday, July 5 7:00 & 9:15

There are two more screenings of Uncle Boonmee and if I've said it once, I've said it a hundred times, in one way or another: don't miss this movie. The patience and simplicity of this mystical film make it unlike anything you've ever seen before. Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s new film is a gentle and dreamy meditation on death and the magical possibilities of reincarnation. Boonmee is a man at the end of his life who is visited by spirits and visions of his past from the dense jungles of Northern Thailand.

Hadewich (2009)
France, dir. Bruno Dumont
Tuesday, July 12 7:00 & 9:15
Tuesday, July 19 7:00 & 9:15

Bruno Dumont has earned a reputation as a provocateur for the sake of provoking. But he pulls back ever so slightly with Hadewijch with a story about the incongruity between the blind faith most religions promote and the expectations of the modern world. Hadewijch is a young nun in training who is kicked out of the order because her faith is, ironically, too fervent. She returns to her bourgeois life in Paris and finds solitude with a group of men who have a passion for Allah that is equal for her passion for God. Hadewijch is an incredibly honest film even if it is allegorical and its message slight.

Caterpillar (2010)
Japan, dir. Koji Wakamatsu
Tuesday, July 26 7:00 & 9:00
Tuesday, August 2 7:00 & 9:00

Koji Wakamatsu last two films have recently gotten US releases. The first, United Red Army (2007), is an epic three hour critique on 1970s left wing politics in Japan. Caterpillar is conversely a commentary on the Right and the Nationalism that spawned the the revolutionary movement he depicted in United Red Army. At a mere 84 minutes, Caterpillar is a little more accessible not only in length, but also tone and style. (The possibility still remains that I might find a spot for United Red Army.) Loosely based on a banned short story by Edogawa Rampo, this period film tells the story of a soldier retuning from war a hero, but without his arms and legs. Caterpillar's potent metaphor is part horror film, part wartime drama.

World on a Wire (1973)
Germany, dir. Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Tuesday, August 9 7:00
Tuesday, August 16 7:00

Here's one I haven't seen yet, but am as excited as anyone to see it. Recently restored by Janus Films, we are thrilled to give this two screenings. From Janus' website: "A dystopic science-fiction epic, World on a Wire is German wunderkind Rainer Werner Fassbinder’s gloriously cracked, boundlessly inventive take on future paranoia. With dashes of Kubrick, Vonnegut, and Dick, but a flavor entirely his own, Fassbinder tells the noir-spiked tale of reluctant action hero Fred Stiller (Klaus Lowitsch), a cybernetics engineer who uncovers a massive corporate and governmental conspiracy. At risk? Our entire (virtual) reality as we know it. This long unseen three-and-a-half-hour labyrinth is a satiric and surreal look at the weird world of tomorrow from one of cinema’s kinkiest geniuses." Yeah! Although World on a Wire is not up on the Trylon website yet, it will be up on the site by Monday. Buy your tickets in advance!

Tuesday, After Christmas (2010)
Romania, dir. Radu Muntean
Tuesday, August 23 7:00 & 9:00
Tuesday, August 30 7:00 & 9:00

Another chapter in the book of the Romanian New Wave, Tuesday, After Christmas is a sparse, pared down tale about a man's temptation to turn his back on his family. The story is nothing new, but the long-take exposition focusing on the natural performances of the two leads makes this one of the best films of the year. In the days leading up to Christmas, a married man forces himself to choose between his wife and his mistress. A sharply observed, deeply felt drama from director Radu Muntean, showcasing the strengths of current Romanian cinema in its beautifully calibrated performances, expert craftsmanship, and dazzling technical mastery. (This also is not up on the site yet, but will be soon.)

Check out the full calendar of Take-Up.
And Trylon Premiere Tuesdays.