St. Patrick's Day Movie Picks

By Mike Mazzanti, BMFI Intern

Instead of making jokes about leprechauns and large consumptions of alcohol for Saint Patrick’s Day, I will focus my attention on films starring famous Irish actors and actresses. With the 17th just around the corner, you can celebrate your Irish heritage with a few of these films, or just admire the awesome accents from afar.

Liam Neeson
Pick: Schindler’s List
In Steven Spielberg’s Schindler’s List, Liam Neeson was nominated for an Oscar for his starring role as Oskar Schindler, a German businessman who saved over a thousand Jews during the height of the Second World War. Based on a true story, this stirring and heartbreaking masterpiece was nominated for twelve Academy Awards and won seven including Best Picture and Best Director.
Most Irish Role: Gangs of New York
In Martin Scorsese’s ten-time Oscar-nominated Gangs of New York, Neeson plays Irish immigrant leader ‘Priest’ Vallon.

Cillian Murphy
Pick: Sunshine
With the sun beginning to dim, a small team of astronauts are sent out to reignite the dying star and mankind’s future. Visually striking and intelligent, Danny Boyle’s Sunshine has all the makings of a sci-fi classic. Thanks in large part to strong performances from Cillian Murphy, Chris Evans, Cliff Curtis, and Mark Strong, this cerebral drama is both grim and touching.

Honorable Mention:
28 Days Later
In another of Boyle’s sci-fi flicks, 28 Days Later, Cillian Murphy stars as Jim, a bicycle courier who wakes to find London seemingly deserted; as Jim travels the streets, he soon learns the truth behind the abandoned city and the creatures lurking in the shadows.

Maureen O’Hara
Pick/Most Irish: The Quiet Man
In this romantic comedy, Irish-born American boxer Sean Thornton (John Wayne) travels to his homeland to reclaim his family’s farm. He soon falls in love with Mary Kate Danaher (Maureen O’Hara), the fiery sister of the bullying landowner. Nominated for seven Academy Awards, The Quiet Man won two, including Best Director for John Ford.

One tough broad: Maureen O'Hara in John Ford's The Quiet Man

Colin Farrell
Pick: In Bruges
In Bruges follows Ray (Colin Farrell), a rookie hit-man with a guilty conscious who is sent to lay low in Bruges after a hit goes awry. Accompanied by veteran assassin Ken (Brendan Gleeson), they await orders from their hot-tempered and extremely principled boss, Harry (Ralph Fiennes). Instantly bored with the small town, Ray soon gets into a tangle of trouble and romance with the locals, tourists, and a film crew in this witty pitch-black comedy.

Honorable Mention: Tigerland
Farrell stars as Roland Bozz, a young man trying to fight the military system, only to find it fighting back in Joel Schumacher’s gritty war drama.

Peter O’Toole
Pick: Lawrence of Arabia
In a film that has been called the epic of all epics, Peter O’Toole stars as T.E. Lawrence, a complex and controversial military figure. Sweeping and spellbinding, director David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia was nominated for ten Academy Awards and won seven, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Cinematography.

Omar Sharif and Peter O'Toole star in Lawrence of Arabia

Honorable Mention: Becket
In Becket, winner of the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, Peter O’Toole stars as King Henry II alongside Richard Burton.

Brendan Gleeson
Pick/Most Irish: The Guard
Brendan Gleeson stars as Sergeant Gerry Boyle, an unorthodox Irish cop who is forced to work with a fish-out-of-water FBI agent (Don Cheadle). Brimming with dry wit and subversive humor, The Guard is an impressive directorial debut from John Michael McDonagh that is both raw and hilarious.

So, if you’d like to celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day with a flick or two, give a toast (okay, just one joke) to one of these Irish stars.

The Presidential Selections: 6 Films to Celebrate Presidents' Day

By Mike Mazzanti, BMFI Intern

Do you wish you could party in the White House this Presidents' Day but don’t, in fact, live in the White House? Well, fortunately, I’ve elected a few films to bring you into a president’s world from the comfort of your own home.

1776

Three of the Founding Fathers in 1776.

If you’re interested in celebrating Washington and Jefferson, 1776 is the candidate for you. Adapted from the hit Broadway musical and starring William Daniels and Howard Da Silva as two of America’s founding fathers, 1776 has been hailed as “a star-spangled, all-singing delight” (The Las Vegas Review-Journal), and a film “every American should watch ... once a year” (Common Sense Media).

Young Mr. Lincoln
John Ford’s classic Young Mr. Lincoln is the highly fictionalized account of the early life of Abraham Lincoln. Driven by Ford’s fine direction and a spellbinding performance from Henry Fonda, Young Mr. Lincoln received an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay and has been called both “a masterpiece” (Chicago Reader) and “one of the decade’s most significant works” (Variety).

Henry Fonda as a young Honest Abe.

The Conspirator
Robert Redford’s atmospheric and compelling courtroom drama The Conspirator follows Mary Surratt (Robin Wright), who is charged as a co-conspirator in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Swearing innocence, Mary must rely on her reluctant lawyer, Frederick Aiken (James McAvoy), to uncover the truth. The star-studded drama also includes Evan Rachel Wood, Tom Wilkinson, Kevin Kline, Alexis Bledel, and Justin Long.

Wright and McAvoy in The Conspirator.

Hoffman and Redford in
All the President's Men.

All the President’s Men
All the President’s Men is the smart and gripping drama/thriller about reporters Carl Bernstein (Dustin Hoffman) and Bob Woodward (Robert Redford) who uncovered the details about the Watergate scandal which led to President Nixon’s resignation. Nominated for Best Director at the Academy Awards, Alan J. Pakula’s classic was also nominated for Best Picture, and won four Oscars including Best Adapted Screenplay.

W.
Chronicling the life and presidency of George W. Bush, Oliver Stone’s W. is led by an astounding performance from Josh Brolin (No Country for Old Men, True Grit) in the title role. Called both “harsh” and “surprisingly sympathetic,” W. nevertheless fascinates thanks to Brolin’s engrossing and humanizing performance.

Brolin Portraying George Bush in W.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
Finally, Presidents' Day would not be complete without watching the trailer for Timur Bekmambetov’s (Wanted) adaptation of the New York Times bestseller Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. That’s right. It’s Honest Abe hacking up vampires with his trusty axe. Be warned: this trailer might shock those who were unaware that our 16th president was moonlighting as a slayer of nocturnal bloodsuckers.

So change into something formal this Presidents' Day and embark on a presidential journey through the power of cinema.

IN A LONELY PLACE and Four More Anti-Valentine's Day Flicks

By Mike Mazzanti, BMFI Intern

Romance does not fill the air for everyone this Valentine’s Day. If you find yourself in a lonely place today, the dreaded fourteenth of February, Bryn Mawr Film Institute has the perfect solution to break the romantic tradition. At 7:00 pm, BMFI will be showing the Humphrey Bogart noir classic In a Lonely Place. Suspected of murder, burnt-out screenwriter Dixon Steele (Bogart) begins a dangerous relationship with Laurel Gray (Gloria Grahame) after she provides the police with a solid alibi to clear his name. However, doubt and suspicion begin pushing the lovers apart in this taut thriller.

However, if your couch’s calls are too alluring, here are a four more anti-Valentine’s Day films to reassure you that being single isn’t always so bad:

Suspicion
In Alfred Hitchcock’s 1941 noir mystery Suspicion, Academy Award-winner Joan Fontaine plays Lina, a shy English woman who meets handsome gambler Johnnie Asygarth (Cary Grant) on a train. Married soon after, Lina begins to suspect Johnnie is not the man she fell for after his friend and business partner is mysteriously murdered. Blending drama and suspense, Hitchcock’s provocative tale shows just how much love can hurt.




Blue Valentine
If you’re looking for a modern story of love-gone-sour, 2010’s Blue Valentine charts the disintegration of a contemporary couple. Spanning their relationship through the years by cross-cutting between blossoming infatuation and collapsing marriage, Blue Valentine is a romantic, bleak, and ultimately harrowing depiction of love and loss. Starring Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams, Blue Valentine is the anti-Notebook.


(500) Days of Summer
(500) Days of Summer is a charming, witty, and offbeat romantic dramedy that is both depressing and uplifting. Quirky and intelligent, the film tells story of Summer (Zooey Deschanel), a girl who doesn’t believe true love exits, and Tom (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), the boy who falls for her. Perfect pacing, refreshing originality, and my personal favorite cinematic musical sequence ever make (500) Days of Summer an unusual, bittersweet romance.


True Romance
Finally, if romance is what you’re looking for but Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams kissing in the rain doesn’t cut it, give True Romance a shot. Written by Quentin Tarantino, True Romance is an off-kilter romantic pulp flick filled with humor and violence. After call-girl Alabama (Patricia Arquette) and Clarence (Christian Slater) fall hard for each other and get married, Alabama is afraid her boss, Drexel Spivey, won’t let her leave the business. Taking matters into his own hands, Clarence shoots Drexel (“So romantic!”), and accidently takes off with a briefcase full of cocaine. Looking to sell the cocaine and ride off into the sunset, the newlyweds must first outrun both the mob and police, who are both hot on their trail.

So, if you’re saying ‘no’ to The Vow and a bunch of roses this Valentine’s Day, BMFI's suggestions will keep you engaged... so to speak.

Thanksgiving Films to Feast On

By Mike Mazzanti, BMFI Intern

Starting today, November 23, Bryn Mawr Film Institute will begin screening two new films stirring up Oscar buzz. My Week with Marilyn tells the story of the tension between Marilyn Monroe and Laurence Olivier during the production of The Prince and the Showgirl and is led by a mesmerizing performance from Michelle Williams. Also showing is The Descendants, Alexander Payne's new dramedy that follows a land baron (George Clooney) as he attempts to reconnect with his two daughters. Critics have hailed it as “terrific” and “near perfect”.

My Week with Marilyn and The Descendants start today at BMFI

However, if you were looking for a movie themed more around turkey, mashed potatoes, and dinner tables filled with family and friends, here are five filling films for your Thanksgiving holiday feasting (though I don’t recommend adding gravy):

First, regarded as one of Woody Allen’s best, Hannah and Her Sisters is a sharp, tender, and witty comedy about three sisters, two Thanksgivings, and a tangled web of relationships. The film won three Academy Awards, for its sparkling script and performances by Michael Caine and Dianne Wiest.

Katie Holmes in Pieces of April

For a second helping, Pieces of April revolves around black-sheep April Burns (Katie Holmes) and her attempts to make the perfect Thankgiving dinner for her dying mother (Oscar-nominee Patricia Clarkson) and the rest of her estranged family in this intelligent and heartfelt 2003 indie dramedy.

Want something different on your plate? Ang Lee's The Ice Storm is a star-studded drama (Kevin Kline, Joan Allen, Sigourney Weaver, Tobey Maguire, Christina Ricci, and Elijah Wood) centered on a wealthy Connecticut family during the weekend after Thanksgiving in 1973 who find their lives spiraling out of control.

Al Pacino and Chris O'Donnell in Scent of a Woman

For more drama (with touches of comedy), Al Pacino gives a masterful performance in Scent of a Woman, the story of a prep school student in need of money who “babysits” a blind man (Pacino). The classic Thanksgiving scene may or may not end with Pacino putting someone in a chokehold. “Hoo-ahh!”

Finally, if you want something less touching and dramatic and with more killer turkeys, give thanks for the irreverent and ridiculous Thankskilling, which follows a group of teens getting axed off by a homicidal turkey. Thankskilling has become a fan favorite as a horrible-but-hilarious low-budget horror-comedy flick with a tagline so crude it cannot be quoted here.

So, be it gripping drama or heartfelt comedy, Pacino chokeholds or killer turkeys, this list should satisfy your holiday movie craving. Happy Thanksgiving!

Halloween Chills at BMFI

By Mike Mazzanti, BMFI Intern

It’s the time of year for costumes, pumpkins, and stores filled with aisle-after-aisle of candy. This week Bryn Mawr Film Institute celebrates with two spooky events, one R-rated and one for the whole family.

For those still donning masks, exotic get-ups, and wielding all assortments of weapons, wands, and pillow cases, Bryn Mawr Film Institute has a family-friendly movie just for you! On Saturday, October 29, three evil witches will haunt the screen in Disney’s Hocus Pocus, the spooky story about a brother and sister who accidently awaken an ancient evil. This campy family flick, which stars Bette Midler and Sarah Jessica Parker, concludes BMFI's month of Kids Matinees devoted to kid-friendly scares.

In Disney's Hocus Pocus, Kathy Najimy, Bette Midler, and Sarah Jessica Parker (left to right) play the Sanderson sisters, three nasty witches transported to modern-day Salem.

However, if going door-to-door and saying “Trick or treat!” to neighbor after neighbor doesn’t cut it anymore, we still have you covered. Tonight, Tuesday, October 25, BMFI will feature the provocative, atmospheric, and twisted sci-fi horror flick Splice. After two genetic engineers (Adrian Brody and Sarah Polley) attempt to splice the DNA of humans and animals together, things go disturbingly awry. You can ask real-life genetic researcher Dr. Janet Sawicki about the facts behind the fiction when she introduces the film, which is shown as part of Bryn Mawr Hospital's "What's Up, Doc?" series.

Sarah Polley (right) stars as one of the overzealous scientists in Splice whose experiments create the hybrid creature Dren (Delphine Chanéac), with dangerous consequences for all.

So, whether you’re moonlighting as a superhero or fairy princess with a pillowcase for the night, or are handing out endless pieces of candy to Hannah Montana and Captain America, you’re sure to find a perfectly eerie October at BMFI.