2005 Labor Film Series
FRIDAY, 2 September. 8 p.m.
CLOCKWATCHERS (Jill Sprecher, US 1997, 105 min.)
Before Office Space, this funny and sometimes bittersweet comedy showed us
another authentic view of corporate hell. In her feature debut,
co-writer/director Sprecher focuses on a quartet of office temps
(talented actresses Toni Colette, Parker Posey, Alana Ubach and Lisa
Kudrow) and shows how the politics of career advancement affect their
friendship. Preceded by LOVELY (Graham Drysdale, UK 1998, 12 min.), the
story of a tea-girl’s last day at work before she joins the world of the
typist.
FRIDAY, 9 September. 8 p.m.
TASUMA (Daniel Kollo Sanou, France/Burkina-Faso,
2003, 88 min., French and Dioula with subtitles) Sogo, a proud retired
West African who fought with the French army in Indo-China and Algeria,
now battles red-tape to get his long overdue military pension. When Sogo
faces enormous pressure to pay his creditors, he sets out on a humorous,
quixotic journey to get what’s coming to him. A gentle and touching
portrait of African village life in decolonized times, Tasuma shows the
triumph of tribal values over bureaucracy.
FRIDAY, 16 September. 8 p.m.
Rochester Premiere. TELL THEM WHO YOU ARE (Mark
Wexler, US 2004, 95 min.) This tough, honest, and ultimately very moving
documentary about celebrated cinematographer and liberal activist Haskell
Wexler (Medium Cool) is the work of his son Mark, a professed
conservative and a talented filmmaker in his own right. At 83, Haskell
remains doggedly committed to his politics and his art and Mark
unflinchingly examines his dad’s reputation for being difficult to work
with and their own strained relationship. Through additional interviews
with Jane Fonda, Milos Forman, Conrad Hall and others, what ultimately
emerges is a thoroughly human portrait of a man thought by many to be a
genuine American hero.
FRIDAY, 23 September. 8 p.m.
23 FRI. 8 p.m THE WOBBLIES (Stewart Bird and Deborah Shaffer, US
1979, 89 min.) In commemoration of the Industrial Workers of the World’s
100th anniversary, we proudly present this invaluable record of an
unforgettable era of American history. The Wobblies integrates the songs
of the period with photographs, newsreel footage, and contemporary
interviews with IWW members.
FRIDAY, September 30. 8 p.m.
30 FRI. 8 p.m. MAN IN THE SHADOW (Jack Arnold, US 1957, 80 min.)
Orson Welles stars as Ben Sadler, the wealthy and despotic owner of a
ranch who practically runs the small town of Spurline. Sadler’s brutish
henchmen go too far one night and beat one of the farmhands to death. The
town’s sheriff (Jeff Chandler) investigates and finds an unlikely ally in
Sadler’s daughter. Welles, more subdued than usual, is powerful in this
David vs. Goliath story reset in a small western town.
FRIDAY, 7 October. 8 p.m.
REDS (Warren Beatty, US 1981, 200 min.) In the
epic-length, undeniable labor of love that earned him a Best Director
Oscar, Warren Beatty plays American anarchist John Reed, whose journeys
to revolutionary Russia prompted him to write Ten Days That Shook the
World. Reed’s political life is fueled by his love affair with fellow
activist Louise Bryant (Diane Keaton). Gripping throughout, the narrative
is aided by glorious Vittorio Storaro cinematography, a supporting cast
including Jack Nicholson, Maureen Stapleton, and author Jerzy Kosinski,
and documentary interviews with historical “eyewitnesses” like Will
and Ariel Durant, Henry Miller and George Jessel.
FRIDAY, 14 October. 8 p.m.
BOLIVIA (Adrián Caetano, Argentina 2001, 75 min., Spanish with subtitles)
With his wife and children 1,500 miles away, a Bolivian cook working illegally
in a Buenos Aires greasy spoon forms an alliance with his co-worker, a sympathetic
waitress. Their friendship and gradual romance, however, are not enough
to protect them from the harsh realities of living and working in a city
facing dire poverty and unemployment issues. This modestly budgeted but
emotionally powerful drama is a prime example of an exciting new wave of
Argentinian cinema.
FRIDAY, 22 October. 8 p.m.
21. FRI. 8 p.m. TIME OUT (L’EMPLOI DU TEMPS, Laurent Cantet,
France 2001, 134 min., French with subtitles) Hiding his jobless status
from his family, a laid-off executive drives to Switzerland where he
sleeps in his car and wanders aimlessly through offices and hotels. He
eventually finds himself embedded in an inextricable web of lies and
scams, leading to an unpredictable and moving conclusion. Director Cantet
(Human Resources) co-wrote the compassionate and compelling screenplay
with Robin Campillo.
FRIDAY, 28 October. 8 p.m.
28 FRI. 8 p.m. THEY CAME BACK (LES REVENANTS, Robin Campillo,
France 2004, 105 min., French with subtitles) In a small French town, the
dead emerge from their final resting places and return to their homes and
jobs. But the resurrected are not their old selves- they never tire and
are relatively emotionless. After initially experiencing amazement, the
rest of the neighborhood begins to resent, fear and hate those who have
returned and the undead are placed in ‘refugee’ camps. Campillo’s
thoughtful fantasy is a brilliant social allegory, particularly when it
reminds us of how communities react to unexpected floods of immigration.
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