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Cinema Chat: RBG live on stage, 'All That Breathes,' 'To Leslie,' and more

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Michigan Theater Concesssions Stand

ALL THINGS EQUAL: THE LIFE & TRIALS OF RUTH BADER GINSBERG — LIVE ON STAGE TUESDAY, MARCH 14 AT THE MICHIGAN

Written by two-time Tony Award Winning playwright ("The Mystery of Edwin Drood" and "Curtains") Rupert Holmes (also known for “Escape,” the Pina Colada song).

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg "RBG" welcomes a friend of the family to her cozy chambers to convey, over the course of ninety fascinating and often funny minutes, a sense of her life and its many trials. An evening with a great and compassionate icon of straight-thinking American justice, emerges an RBG who is not only "notorious" but victorious as she takes a stand for ordinary people facing the many challenges of a changing world.

OPENING THIS WEEK

"All That Breathes" — OPENS FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10 AT THE MICHIGAN

A 2022 internationally co-produced Hindi-language documentary film. The film's intricately layered portrait reveals an evolving city and a fraternal relationship bonded by purpose as it follows siblings Mohammad Saud and Nadeem Shehzad, who rescue and treat injured birds. It had its world premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival in January 2022, where it won Grand Jury Prize in World Cinema Documentary Competition. It was also selected for screening at 2022 Cannes Film Festival where it won the Golden Eye award for the best documentary. It is now nominated for 95th Academy Awards in the said category.

The documentary is the story of Nadeem Shehzad and Mohammad Saud, the two brothers who run a bird clinic in Wazirabad, Delhi where 20,000 raptors have been cured over the last 20 years. Impressed with the dedication and the spirit, DirectorShaunak Sendecided to film them because, as he said, “I am drawn by the subject of the interconnectedness of an ecosystem — one that humans are a part of, not apart from. How man, animals share space and become part of the whole. It is a valuable story.”

"To Leslie" — OPENS FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10 AT THE MICHIGAN

A 2022 American independent drama film directed by Michael Morris (wife, actress Mary McCormack, sister-in-law Bridget Mary McCormack) in his feature directorial debut, from a screenplay by Ryan Binaco. The film starsAndrea Riseborough as Leslie Rowland, a single mother and alcoholic who uses up all the prize money she received after winning the lottery. She soon finds the chance to redeem herself when a motel owner offers her a job. Also stars Allison Janney, Marc Maron, Andre Royo, Owen Teague, and Stephen Root are featured in supporting roles.

The film premiered at South by Southwest on March 12, 2022 and was given a limited release on October 7, 2022 by Momentum Pictures. The film received critical acclaim, with Riseborough's performance garnering widespread praise and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress.

SPECIAL SCREENINGS DOWNTOWN

"My Neighbor Totoro" — PLAYS FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10 AT 9:30 PM AND MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13 AT 7:30 PM AT THE STATE

Part of the Not Just for Kids Family Friendly Series

This acclaimed animated tale by director Hayao Miyazakifollows schoolgirl Satsuke and her younger sister, Mei, as they settle into an old country house with their father and wait for their mother to recover from an illness in an area hospital. As the sisters explore their new home, they encounter and befriend playful spirits in their house and the nearby forest, most notably the massive cuddly creature known as Totoro.

"Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" — PLAYS FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10 AT 7:30 PM AT THE MICHIGAN

Part of the Science on Screen Series

After a painful breakup, Clementine (Kate Winslet) undergoes a procedure to erase memories of her former boyfriend Joel (Jim Carrey) from her mind. When Joel discovers that Clementine is going to extremes to forget their relationship, he undergoes the same procedure and slowly begins to forget the woman that he loved. Directed by former music video director Michel Gondry, the visually arresting film explores the intricacy of relationships and the pain of loss.

"The Thin Man" — PLAYS SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11 AT 7 PM AND MONDAY, FEBRUARY 13 AT 7 PM AT THE MICHIGAN

Part of the Films We Love Series

The recently divorced Clyde Wynant discovers that his new girlfriend has stolen $50,000 and is carrying on with other men. Not long afterward, he disappears. Anxious to locate her father, Wynant's daughter goes to private detective Nick and Nora for help.

"The Roundup" — PLAYS SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11 AT 1 PM AT THE MICHIGAN

Part of the Korean Cinema Now Series

Four years after the events of Garibong district round up operation, Geumcheon Police’s Major Crimes Unit is given a mission to repatriate a fugitive who fled to Vietnam. Beast cop Ma Seok-do and Capt. Jeon Il-man intuitively realize that there’s something wrong with the suspect’s willingness to turn himself in and uncover crimes committed by a terrifying killer named Kang Hae-sang. Ma and his unit begin their investigation across two countries and follow the bloody breadcrumbs left behind by Kang… No borders in catching the bad! Another exciting and tension-filled round up!

"Wajib"— PLAYS SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 12 AT 1:30 PM AT THE MICHIGAN

A father and his estranged son must come together to hand deliver his daughter's wedding invitations to each guest.

"Some Like it Hot" — PLAYS TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 14 AT 7:30 PM AT THE MICHIGAN

After witnessing a Mafia murder, slick saxophone player Joe (Tony Curtis) and his long-suffering buddy, Jerry (Jack Lemmon), improvise a quick plan to escape from Chicago with their lives. Disguising themselves as women, they join an all-female jazz band and hop a train bound for sunny Florida. While Joe pretends to be a millionaire to win the band's sexy singer, Sugar (Marilyn Monroe), Jerry finds himself pursued by a real millionaire (Joe E. Brown) as things heat up and the mobsters close in.

Cultura d'Italia Series (Thursdays at the State)

CONTINUING DOWNTOWN

"All Quiet on the Western Front" 

A 2022 German epic anti-war film based on the 1929 novel of the same name by Erich Maria Remarque. Directed by Edward Berger, it stars Felix Kammerer, Albrecht Schuch, Daniel Brühl, Sebastian Hülk,Aaron Hilmer, Edin Hasanovic, and Devid Striesow. Set in the closing days of World War I, it follows the life of an idealistic young German soldier named Paul Bäumer. After enlisting in the German Army with his friends, Bäumer finds himself exposed to the realities of war, shattering his early hopes of becoming a hero as he does his best to survive. The film adds a parallel storyline not found in the book, which follows the armistice negotiations to end the war.

The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and received positive reviews from critics for faithfulness to the source material's anti-war message. It received a leading 14 nominations at the 76th British Academy Film Awards and nine at the 95th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best International Feature.

"Knock at the Cabin"

A 2023 American apocalyptic psychological horror film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. It is based on the 2018 novel "The Cabin at the End of the World" by the award-winning horror author Paul G. Tremblay; it is the first adaptation of one of his works. The film stars Dave Bautista, Jonathan Groff, Ben Aldridge, Nikki Amuka-Bird,Kristen Cui, Abby Quinn, and Rupert Grint.

While vacationing at a remote cabin, a young girl and her parents are taken hostage by four armed strangers who demand that the family make an unthinkable choice to avert the apocalypse. With limited access to the outside world, the family must decide what they believe before all is lost.

"Everything Everywhere All at Once" 

Directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert ("Swiss Army Man"), collectively known as The Daniels, the film is a hilarious and big-hearted sci-fi action adventure about an exhausted Chinese American woman (Michelle Yeoh) who can't seem to finish her taxes.

"Living"

A 2022 British drama film adapted from the 1952 Japanese film "Ikiru" directed by Akira Kurosawa, which in turn was inspired by the 1886 Russian novella The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy. Set in 1953 London, it depicts a bureaucrat in the county Public Works department (played by Bill Nighy) facing a fatal illness. It had its world premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival and received positive reviews, with Nighy's performance receiving particular acclaim. It received nominations for Best Actor (for Nighy) and Best Adapted Screenplay at the 95th Academy Awards. The film is the story of an ordinary man, reduced by years of oppressive office routine to a shadow existence, who at the eleventh hour makes a supreme effort to turn his dull life into something wonderful.

"Women Talking" 

A 2022 American drama film written and directed by Sarah Polley. It is based on the 2018 novel of the same name by Miriam Toews and inspired by real-life events that occurred at the Manitoba Colony in Bolivia. The film stars Rooney Mara, Claire Foy, Jessie Buckley, Judith Ivey, Ben Whishaw, and Frances McDormand, who is also a producer on the film.

The film had its world premiere at the 49th Telluride Film Festival. The film received praise from critics for Polley's screenplay and direction, the performances of the cast (particularly Foy, Buckley, and Whishaw) and score. It was named one of the top ten films of 2022 by the American Film Institute, and at the 95th Academy Awards received nominations for Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay.

"Infinity Pool"

Writer-director Brandon Cronenberg ("Possessor," 2020 Sundance Film Festival, and son of director David Cronenberg) returns to Park City with a new sci-fi trip through the wicked exploits of foreigners abroad. Crushing violence and surreal horrors puncture this dark satire of the privileged few, centered on the depraved lead performances of Alexander Skarsgård and Mia Goth.

"Broker" 

Highly anticipated new film from acclaimed director Hirokazu Kore-eda ("Shoplifters;" "After the Storm;" "Like Father, Like Son")

The film follows two brokers who sell orphaned infants, circumventing the bureaucracy of legal adoption, to affluent couples who can't have children of their own. After an infant's mother surprises the duo by returning to ensure her child finds a good home, the three embark on a journey to find the right couple, building an unlikely family of their own.

Starring Song Kang-ho, who audiences will remember for his memorable role in 2019’s "Parasite," and who won the Best Actor Award at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, where the film was also nominated for the Palme d’Or.

"EO" 

An internationally co-produced 2022 road film directed byJerzy Skolimowski and inspired by Robert Bresson's 1966 film "Au Hasard Balthazar," it follows the life of a donkey born in a Polish circus. The film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2022, where it won the Jury Prize. It is on the shortlist for the 2023 Academy Award for Best International Feature Film.

The world is a mysterious place when seen through the eyes of an animal. EO, a grey donkey with melancholic eyes, meets good and bad people on his life's path, experiences joy and pain, endures the wheel of fortune randomly turn his luck into disaster and his despair into unexpected bliss. But not even for a moment does he lose his innocence.

"Decision to Leave" 

From writer/director Park Chan-wook, one of the most prominent South Korean filmmakers working today "‘Oldboy", "The Handmaiden")

From a mountain peak in South Korea, a man plummets to his death, leaving the question: Did he jump, or was he pushed? When detective Hae-joon arrives on the scene, he begins to suspect the dead man's wife, but as he digs deeper into the investigation, he finds himself trapped in a web of deception and desire.

The film was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, where Park won Best Director, and was also selected as the South Korean entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 95th Academy Awards. It was also named one of the top 5 international films of 2022 by the National Board of Review.

"The Whale"

From directorDarren Aronofsky, known for his psychological dramas "Pi", "Requiem for a Dream", and "Black Swan".

Starring Brendan Fraser as a reclusive English teacher suffering from severe obesity who attempts to reconnect with his estranged teenage daughter for one last chance at redemption.

Fraser has received a Best Actor nomination at the 80th Golden Globe Awards and is inspiring the discussion of a “Frasierssance” that may be upon us.

"The Fabelmans" 

A 2022 American coming-of-age drama film directed by Steven Spielberg and written and produced by Tony Kushner and Spielberg. It is a semi-autobiographical story loosely based on Spielberg's adolescence and first years as a director, told through an original story of the fictional Sammy Fabelman, a young aspiring filmmaker who explores how the power of movies can help him see the truth about his dysfunctional family and those around him. The film features an ensemble cast that includes Gabriel LaBelle, Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, and Judd Hirsch. It is dedicated to the memories of Spielberg's real-life parents Arnold Spielberg and Leah Adler. The film had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 10, 2022, where it won the People's Choice Award.

Young Sammy Fabelman falls in love with movies after his parents take him to see "The Greatest Show on Earth." Armed with a camera, Sammy starts to make his own films at home, much to the delight of his supportive mother.

"The Menu"

A 2022 American comedy horror film directed by Mark Mylod, written by Seth Reiss and Will Tracy, and produced by Adam McKay, Betsy Koch, and Will Ferrellthrough their production banners Hyperobject Industries and Gary Sanchez Productions respectively. The film stars Ralph Fiennes, Anya Taylor-Joy, Nicholas Hoult, Hong Chau, Janet McTeer, Judith Light, and John Leguizamo. It had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Young couple Margot and Tyler (Anya Taylor-Joy and Nicholas Hoult) travel to a remote island to eat at Hawthorne, an exclusive restaurant run by celebrity chef Julian Slowik (Ralph Fiennes), who has prepared a lavish molecular gastronomy menu where food is treated as conceptual art, although his approach to cuisine has some shocking surprises for the wealthy guests.

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Mat Hopson is the local news producer for WEMU’s broadcast of Morning Edition and announcer for the Saturday morning 8AM-1 PM block. He also produces “creative:impact” hosted by Deb Polich and assembles and publishes the news stories and special features found here on wemu.org.
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