Miami Films

The Golden Bowl by James Ivory
Prince Amerigo (Jeremy Northam), impoverished Italian aristocrat, is to marry Maggie (Kate Beckinsale), daughter of Adam Verver (Nick Nolte), American tycoon and art collector. The Prince has a last rendezvous with his equally poor American lover, Charlotte Stant (Uma Thurman), when they go in search of a wedding present for Maggie. By a strange twist of fate, Charlotte marries Verver, so that the lives of the four of them -- father, daughter, and the two former lovers -- become entwined into one family. With his third and grandest Henry James adaptation, James Ivory reasserts his mastery of a genre he practically invented: the Edwardian period film. Filmed with his usual collaborators (screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, producer Ismail Merchant, composer Richard Robbins and cinematographer Tony Pierce-Roberts), The Golden Bowl is another one for the ages. A Lions Gate Films release. U.S./France/U.K., 2000.
Opening Night, Friday, February 23, 7:30 p.m.

The Other Side (El otro barrio)
Fate deals teenager Ramón a lousy hand. He is accused of murder after an unsettling chain of events. His family reaches out to Marcelo, an up-and-coming lawyer whose past may be as troubled as Ramón's present. Slowly, a warm empathy develops between suspect and attorney, as the film becomes a deeply moving tale of family and identity, lost and regained. Director Salvador García Ruiz has a keen, poetic eye and an elegant, graceful style of his own. He's one of Europe's brightest new talents. U.S. Premiere. Spain, 2000.
Saturday, February 24, 1:30 p.m.

The Dish by Rob Sitch
Neil Armstrong's famous moonwalk was transmitted to the world via the largest satellite in the Southern Hemisphere, located on a sheep farm in the sleepy town of Parkes, Australia. Project director Cliff Buxton (Sam Neill) heads a miniscule crew that includes NASA agent Al Burnett (Patrick Warburton of "Seinfeld"). Director Rob Sitch wittily captures the euphoria that overtakes Parkes and its citizens as they become - for the first time ever - the focus of considerable attention. The celebrations and calamitous accidents that ensue are depicted with dollops of affection and truckloads of humor. The tone recalls the early wistful comedies of Jonathan Demme that preceded Silence of the Lambs. Roy Billing, as the proud mayor of Parkes, nearly steals the show from under everyone's nose. Australia, 2000.
Saturday, February 24, 4:30 p.m.

In the Mood for Love by Wong Kar-wai
The latest revelation from Wong Kar-wai, one of the world's most adventurous filmmakers, is … a classic love story! Set in 1962, it concerns two married people (Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung) who discover their spouses are having an affair with each other. Nothing more radical, then, than to have the lovers keep their clothes on, to have the film revolve around their feelings and the difficulty in coming to terms with them. In the Mood for Love is a wonderful throwback to pre-cynical times when the movies actually believed in the spell they cast. Here it is once again conveyed more through nuance than hyperbole. Impossible to dismiss, loaded with rapturous detail, it is safe to say you won't see a romantic film like this in a very long time. Best Actor, Grand Prix Technique, Cannes Film Festival. Hong Kong, 2000. Saturday, February 24, 7 p.m.

Our Lady of the Assassins (La virgen de los sicarios) by Barbet Schroeder
Life is cheap in Medellín, home to the infamous drug cartel. Writer Fernando Vallejo's birthplace has become a boulevard of broken dreams to which he's come to die. Love intervenes when he (Germán Jaramillo) falls for Alexis (Anderson Ballesteros), a teenaged male prostitute who packs a hyperactive Beretta. Soon the lovers are poised precariously between damnation and salvation. Like Vallejo, director Barbet Schroeder grew up in Medellín. He went on to produce Eric Rohmer's Moral Tales and to direct several fine films of his own (Idi Amin Dada, Barfly, Reversal of Fortune). Nothing, however, prepares us for this searing vision of a long-lost heaven as imagined from the vantage point of hell. France/Colombia, 2000.
Saturday, February 24, 9:30 p.m.

Havanna, mi amor by Uli Gaulke
Director Uli Gaulke grew up in East Germany and he has found the memories of his own past in the crumbling façades of Havana. With ultimate subtlety, Gaulke captures indelible snapshots of several couples that escape the daily hardships by tuning in to soap operas, or telenovelas. The "reality" broadcasted by the dilapidated TVs contrasts sharply with the one they experience in their own flesh. Slowly but surely, an engaging portrait of the grand old city and its survivors emerges. Though Havanna, mi amor has been banned in Cuba, its intent is clearly not polemical. Above all, it is a love letter to a place and people lost in time. As such, it is a thing of beauty. Germany, 2000.
Sunday, February 25, 2 p.m.

Now or Never by Lars Büchel
At last, here's a film that gives the elderly their dignity and due. Three old ladies save money to go on a cruise, be attended by handsome waiters and go out in one final binge. Fate intervenes. However, a strong bond of friendship unites the trio. They will stick together and leave no stone unturned to make their dream come true. Director Lars Büchel has made a delightful, unsentimental comedy about senior citizens who enjoy life more fully than people half their age. It's a wise film about the freedom to act at the end of one's life. And it has an edge. Now or Never is in a class with The Shameless Old Lady and Harold and Maude, classics that recognize age has its privileges. Like them, it deserves to develop a cult following. The line starts here. Germany, 2001.
Sunday, February 25, 4:30 p.m.

Possible Loves by Sandra Werneck
Fifteen years ago, Carlos Eduardo was stood up by Julia, his girlfriend, at a movie theater. The film explores three possible stories that could have sprung from such a fortuitous event. Did he marry someone else? Find passion in the arms of another man? Did he idealize his missing love to the degree that nobody else comes near? Seamlessly weaving the different strands into a single narrative, director Sandra Werneck has fashioned a giddy, multi-layered tale about the mysterious ways of romantic destiny. Far from betraying the mystery, the film revels in it. Murilo Benício and Carolina Ferraz have a field day playing three characters for the price of one. The soundtrack features João Gilberto, Chico Buarque and Zizi Possi, among other tropical delights. It's the next best thing to a weekend in Rio. Brazil, 2001.
Sunday, February 25, 7 p.m.

Ten Days Without Love (El cielo abierto) by Miguel Albaladejo
Sara walks out on husband Miguel and leaves the country, neglecting to tell her spouse that her mother is coming to visit. The unexpected guest, naturally, blames Miguel for the breakup. This is the beginning of his problems. As a psychiatrist, he deals with other people's misfortunes for a living. Ironically, his luck begins to change when a junkie steals his wallet. Director Miguel Albaladejo's new film is a direct descendant of his first, the delightful First Night Of My Life. Both are comedies written by Elvira Lindo and share the heartwarming belief that people have the uncanny ability to rise above the most dispiriting adversity. Sergi López sweats bullets as the harried shrink. At first sight, you'd never guess the enterprising Jasmina (Mariola Fuentes) is just what the doctor ordered. U.S. Premiere. Spain, 2001.
Sunday, February 25, 9:30 p.m.

The Adventures of God by Eliseo Subiela
Eliseo Subiela calls his latest opus "a metaphysical thriller." To those familiar with the director's work, it's his most surreal effort to date, a cross between Buñuel's Phantom of Liberté and Resnais' Last Year at Marienbad. A man and a woman wander the halls of an ancient palatial hotel, not knowing how they got there. They have fallen in love. Each door they open leads them into a mystery. In his dreams, he finds himself in a rut. Could it be his reality? And if so, is the love affair doomed? In a liberating gesture, Subiela casts logic aside and allows his imagination to run unfettered. The result is exhilarating as one ravishing image succeeds another. Romantic, irreverent and ultimately moving, these Adventures are guaranteed to haunt you for days. Argentina, 2000.
Monday, February 26, 7 p.m.

No Place to Go by Oskar Roehler
Novelist Hanna Flanders is a salon communist, living in a posh Munich apartment and shopping at the Dior boutique. When the Berlin Wall comes crashing down, so does her carefully manicured existence. Suddenly, she finds herself at odds with the world around her. If often the film feels too close for comfort, it's because Flanders is based on director Oskar Roehler's mother, celebrated author Gisela Elsner. The portrayal by actress Hannelore Elsner (no relation) was hailed in Der Spiegel as "the greatest portrait of a woman in German filmmaking for years." Brilliantly lensed by Hagen Bogdanski in glorious black & white, No Place to Go is reminiscent of both Sunset Boulevard and Veronika Voss in its stunning depiction of a diva's fall from grace. Directors' Fortnight, Cannes Film Festival. Germany, 2000.
Monday, February 26, 9:30 p.m.

Spirits of Havana by Bay Weyman and Luis O. García
Long before Ry Cooder learned about the Buena Vista Social Club, Canadian flutist and soprano sax player Jane Bunnett and husband/trumpeter Larry Cramer had been visiting Havana steadily, fueling a cross-cultural musical interplay that harks back to the very origins of jazz. Unlike recent carpetbaggers, Bunnett and Cramer conduct workshops in the island and bring along technicians who repair broken-down instruments, all the while learning about the roots of Afro-Cuban music from its current practitioners and surviving masters. They're moved by love of people and music rather than politics. Filmmakers Bay Weyman and Luis O. García document a typical visit and follow the musicians as they jam around the country with Tata Güines, Los Muñequitos de Matanzas, Los Naranjos and Desandann. If you love the music, this is one tour you won't want to miss. U.S. Premiere.
Tuesday, February 27, 7 p.m.

Together by Lukas Moodysson
Elizabeth leaves her husband, taking her children in tow, and goes to live with her hippie brother at a commune. The year is 1975 and the ensuing culture clash produces hilarious - and startling - results. Although director Lukas Moodysson was born in 1969, he is quite adept at orchestrating a large ensemble and conducting this comic dirge to the idealistic sixties. A runaway hit at home, Together is bound to strike a chord with baby boomers the world over. It's a warm and fuzzy comedy that takes place in the dead of winter and leaves you feeling all tingly inside. An IFC Films release. Sweden, 2000.
Tuesday, February 27, 9:30 p.m.

Masterpiece (Obra maestra) by David Trueba
Benito's pet project is a Super 8 musical titled "A World Made for Us." His leading (would-be) actor is Carolo. Together they try to convince Amanda Castro, a beautiful well-known actress, to star in the film. Desperate measures are taken when she flatly refuses. David Trueba (The Good Life) has made a tonic film about movies as antidote to sorrow, as ultimate dream. He so loves his troubled characters that we share his affection for them. Comic star Santiago Segura (Torrente) plays Benito with impish determination. Newcomer Pablo Carbonell lends pathos to Carolo's starry dreams. Ariadna Gil makes the embittered Amanda abrasively funny and achingly real. U.S. Premiere. Spain, 2000.
Wednesday, February 28, 7 p.m.

Cure by Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Kiyoshi Kurosawa (no relation to the late master) is one of Japan's most original -- and prolific -- filmmakers. He works in a variety of genres, but his films all contain a profound philosophical undertow. This edge-of-the-seat thriller is no exception. A series of identical murders are being committed. The killer remains near the scene of the crime, unable to recall what happened. Hovering about the proceedings is a drifter with acute hypnotic powers. The larger issue in this cautionary tale is how the charismatic can exert an extraordinary pull on a society stripped of traditional values. One is tempted to label Cure a "supernatural" thriller, but that may be missing the point altogether. Whatever it is, chances are you won't find anything else like it. Japan, 1998.
Wednesday, February 28, 9:30 p.m.

Chop Suey by Bruce Weber
Using Peter Johnson's transition from boyhood to manhood documented over the course of a four-year road trip and footage from sources as eclectic as the dish for which the film is named, filmmaker and photographer Bruce Weber sews together an enthralling, visually stunning, first-person account of freedom, romance and desire. From the kinetic fashion runways of Paris to the isolated deserts of Arabia, the intimate moments between a photographer and his subject become the focus of the film. Chop Suey weaves indelible moments from the artist's early inspiration to the present day while paying homage to those who helped shape his world. These include Robert Mitchum, Diana Vreeland, Frances Faye and Jan Michael Vincent. Like Weber himself, his latest opus is unique and irreplaceable. U.S. Premiere. U.S., 2000.
Thursday, March 1st, 7 p.m.

Red Ink (Tinta roja) by Francisco Lombardi
This is not a film about debt. Director Francisco Lombardi's new film tells the story of Alfonso, an aspiring author, fresh out of college, who interns in the crime desk of a major tabloid newspaper in Lima. His cynical editor, Faúndez, sees in the young man the idealist he once was. Can Alfonso be corrupted? Is Faúndez as callous as he seems? Latin America's premier film storyteller asks tough questions relevant not only to Spanish-language media, but to journalists the world over. He does so with his customary verve and polish. This is one sleek thriller. Hold on to your popcorn. Gianfranco Brero (Faúndez) won the Best Actor Award at the San Sebastian and Havana Film Festivals. Lombardi won Best Director in Havana. U.S. Premiere. Peru/Spain, 2000. Thursday, March 1, 9:30 p.m.

Calle 54 by Fernando Trueba
This is Trueba's valentine to pulsating Latin Jazz, the vibrant, life-affirming music that has pulled him out of many a blue funk over the years. First, he travels to Havana, New York, San Juan, Stockholm and Cádiz to catch the musicians on their home turf. Then he films them with six Panavision cameras running simultaneously in Manhattan's state-of-the-art Sony Music Studio on West 54th Street (hence the title). A runaway crowd-pleasing hit at the Venice and Toronto Film Festivals, Calle made the New York Times list of the Top Ten films of the year. It amply demonstrates there's more to Latin music than salsa and merengue. Featuring Gato Barbieri, Cachao, Paquito D'Rivera, Chico O'Farrill, Bebo & Chucho Valdés, Chano Domínguez, Eliane Elias, Michel Camilo, Jerry González, Puntilla, Patato, and the great Tito Puente in his final barnstorming performance on film.
Festival Centerpiece, Friday, March 2, 7 p.m.

The Widow of St. Pierre by Patrice Leconte
The year is 1850. On a French island off the coast of Newfoundland, a sailor (played by director Emir Kusturica) commits a senseless murder and is condemned to death. However, there is no guillotine or executioner at hand, so the sailor must await his fate in the care of a military officer (Daniel Auteil). The officer's wife (Juliette Binoche) believes the convict can be redeemed and proceeds to help him find the way. Film by film over the past decade, Patrice Leconte has become one of his country's finest filmmakers. Here his trump cards are a trio of splendid performances from the principals, a superb screenplay penned by Claude Faraldo, and the rugged coastal landscape where the riveting drama transpires. Golden Globe Nominee, Best Foreign Language Film.
Friday, March 2, 9:30 p.m.

Storm the Skies (Asaltar los cielos) by Javier Rioyo and José Luis López-Linares
This portrait of assassin Ramón Mercader may be the most thorough and far-reaching telling of the spine-tingling saga yet. Culled from over one hundred hours shot in Russia, Spain, France, Mexico and Cuba, it spans events that range from the end of colonial Cuba to the first Rolling Stones concert in Barcelona. In its epic sprawl, we witness the rise of anarchism, the seductive appeal of the Bolshevik revolution, the Spanish Civil War, exile, the defeat of the USSR, and ultimately, the pathetic end of an anonymous hero. The cast of characters includes surviving relatives of the killer and his victim, and public figures as diverse as Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, Joseph Stalin, Sarita Montiel, G. Cabrera Infante and Fidel Castro.
Saturday, March 3, 1:30 p.m.

Me, You, Them by Andrucha Waddington
This is is a delicious feminist parable for the new millennium. Darlene is an impoverished peasant woman in the Brazilian nordeste who, tired of being neglected by the men in her life, one day decides to have things her way. So what if her husband cannot satisfy her every need? Maybe others can fill in the gaps. Stunningly photographed by Breno Silveira, Eu, tu, eles establishes director Andrucha Waddington as one of the bright lights of the New Brazilian Cinema. Best Film, Havana Film Festival.
Saturday, March 3, 4 p.m.

Un amore by Gianluca Maria Tavarelli
Twenty years in the life of a man and a woman in love are explored in twelve key scenes filmed in a single solitary take. If it all sounds a tad schematic, nothing could be further from the truth. Un amore is a love story of singular immediacy, blessed by superb performances from Fabrizio Gifuni and Lorenza Indovina as the couple who take us on a stormy journey from youth to maturity. The film's chronology is emotional rather than temporal and the screenplay is a thing of beauty in its ability to encapsulate almost a lifetime. Spare, lucid and incredibly moving, the film heralds the arrival of director Gianluca Maria Tavarelli, a new major figure in his country's cinema.
Saturday, March 3, 6:30 p.m.

Amores Perros by Alejandro González Iñárritu
In the most startling film to come out of Latin America in decades, three stories collide in a Mexico City car crash. A teenager dreams of running away with his brother's wife but must first raise money in clandestine dogfights. A businessman leaves wife and daughters to move in with a beautiful model. A guerrilla-turned-hired-gun seeks to reestablish ties with his estranged daughter. Director Iñárritu pulls no punches and takes no hostages in his brilliant, brutal tale of redemption, which has racked up the Grand Prize, Critics' Week, Cannes Film Festival; and been a Golden Globe Nominee for Best Foreign Language Film. Mexico, 2000.
Saturday, March 3, 9 p.m.

His Master's Voice (La voz de su amo) by Emilio Martínez Lázaro
This film is a stylish tale of intrigue set in the picturesque city of Bilbao. Charly (Eduard Fernández) is a fiercely loyal bodyguard working for Oliveira (Joaquim de Almeida), a shrewd businessman whose latest scheme has angry investors and Basque terrorists taking matters into their own hands. Oliveira trusts Charly implicitly, but Oliveira's nubile young daughter Martha (Silvia Abascal) may be more than the doting Charly can handle. Fernández carries the weight of the film with aplomb. In her screen début, Abascal is the epitome of brash, budding sensuality. Emilio Martínez Lázaro's deliciously complex film noir breathes new life into a classic genre. U.S. Premiere.
Sunday, March 4, 2 p.m.

Russian Doll by Stavros Kazantsidis
Katia (Natalia Novikova), a nice Jewish girl from St. Petersburg, arrives in Sydney as a mail-order bride. However, her husband-to-be is no longer. Instead, she meets Ethan (David Wenham), a happily married book publisher, and they fall in love. In order to remain Down Under, Katia must marry, as originally intended. Enter Ethan's best friend, Harvey (Hugo Weaving of The Matrix), a private eye who's lost his girlfriend on the job. Allanah Zitserman picked up the Best Original Screenplay prize from the Australian Film Institute for this charming concoction. It's to everyone's credit that this Doll is such an unalloyed delight. U.S. Premiere.
Sunday, March 4, 4:30 p.m.

The Luzhin Defence by Marleen Gorris
A chess Grand Master arrives at a swank Italian resort to play the match of his life and instead finds the love of his life. Luzhin (John Turturro) is a royal mess: unkempt, disheveled, and absolutely consumed by the game day and night. Into his life arrives Natalia (Emily Watson of Breaking the Waves), bringing with her the world beyond his grand obsession. For her second literary adaptation (after Mrs. Dalloway), director Marleen Gorris (Antonia's Line) does justice to one of Vladimir Nabokov's extraordinary Russian novels and this is quite possibly her finest film to date. U.S. Premiere.
Closing Night, Sunday, March 4, 7 p.m.