This is it: our last week of screenings for 2014 has arrived and we plan on ending the year with a bang!
We have two fantastic films lined up -- the much talked about, critically acclaimed GONE GIRL and Robert Downey Jr’s legal drama THE JUDGE -- plus, we’ll be giving away tickets to New Zealand drama THE DARK HORSE too. Read on to find out how to win.
• Sat 22 Nov @ ** 7 PM**: GONE GIRL + THE JUDGE
In GONE GIRL, a man (Ben Affleck) discovers that his wife (Rosamund Pike) has gone missing, and soon finds himself the focus of an intense media circus when it’s suspected he may not be innocent. Directed by David Fincher.
Then, in THE JUDGE (at approx. 9:30 PM), Robert Downey Jr. stars a slick, big city lawyer who must return to his small hometown when his estranged father (Robert Duvall) is arrested on suspicion of murder.
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LAST DAY TO SUGGEST FILMS FOR 2015
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Saturday 22 November is the last day to suggest films you’d like to see on our Semester One 2015 programme. So if you haven’t already done so, head over to www.anufg.org.au/suggestions to let us know what films you'd like to see at the ANU Film Group next year.
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WIN TICKETS TO ‘THE DARK HORSE’!
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Thanks to Transmission films, we have tickets to give away to the powerful new Kiwi drama THE DARK HORSE, which is in cinemas from November 20.
Based on the inspiring true story of a little-known New Zealand hero, the film tells the story of Genesis Potini (Cliff Curtis), a former chess master, who seeks to overcome his own personal adversities to lead a group of children to victory at a national chess championship.
Ten in-season double passes will be given away at the door to attendees at this Saturday’s screening of GONE GIRL, at randomly pre-selected intervals (e.g. the 15th, 42nd, 70th person to arrive). So be sure to come along, join in the fun, and try your luck on the night!
Only two weeks to go until screenings end for the year! In our penultimate week, check out an Indonesian action epic hailed by many as one of the best action flicks in recent years, as well as a riveting, multi-award-winning Palestinian crime drama.
• Sat 15 Nov @ ** 7 PM**: THE RAID 2 + OMAR
In THE RAID 2, a rookie cop goes undercover in the Jakarta criminal underworld to bring down a crime syndicate as well as corrupt officials within his own police force, embarking on an odyssey of violence in this acclaimed action epic.
Then, in OMAR (at approx. 9:30 PM), a young Palestinian freedom fighter is forced to work as an informant after he is implicated in the killing of an Israeli soldier in this tense Oscar-nominated thriller.
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PRE-PURCHASE MEMBERSHIPS FOR 2015 NOW
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It’s never too soon to jump on the Film Group bandwagon for next year: memberships for 2015 are now available for pre-purchase!
You can purchase Annual or Semester One memberships online right now for yourself, or for friends, family and loved ones. After all, what better Christmas gift is there for your favourite film lover than a year’s worth of movies at Australia’s largest film society?
Semester One kicks off in early February 2015. To join up now, head over to www.anufg.org.au/join
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COMPETITION: WIN TICKETS TO WINDOWS ON EUROPE FILM FESTIVAL
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Thanks to our friends at Dendy, we have tickets to give away to the opening night film of the 9th Windows on Europe Film Festival, screening exclusively at Dendy Canberra.
Award-winning Austrian documentary THE GREAT MUSEUM kicks off the festival in witty fashion, offering a curious and humorous behind the scenes peek at Vienna’s world-famous Kunsthistorisches Museum. Compiled without interviews or voice-over, this clever observational documentary follows curators and conservators as they work to engage modern audiences while preserving, displaying and contextualising the past.
For your chance to win one of ten double passes to the film, screening on MONDAY 24 NOVEMBER at 6:30 PM, simply email info@anufg.org.au with your name, membership number (located underneath the barcode on your card), and the answer to the following question: ‘Where is the Kunsthistorisches Museum located?’
Entries close at noon on Thursday 20 November, with winners to be contacted via email, and prizes to be collected from the Dendy Canberra box office on the night. Good luck!
This week at the Film Group, we kick off the month of November with our usual eclectic mix of box office hits, heartfelt dramas and quirky films you won’t see elsewhere. Read on to find out what’s on, and if you haven’t already done so, don’t forget to suggest films for our Semester One 2015 programme at www.anufg.org.au/suggestions
• Fri 7 Nov @ 7:30 PM: MY SWEET PEPPER LAND + MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING
In MY SWEET PEPPER LAND, a former city sheriff takes on the corrupt ruler of a lawless territory on the borders of Iran, Turkey, and Iraq, with the help of a damsel in distress in this unique, off-beat take on the Spaghetti Western genre.
Then, geek king Joss Whedon takes on Shakespeare’s classic romantic comedy in MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING (at approx. 9 PM), in which two sparring couples discover they have very different concepts of love.
• Sat 8 Nov @ ** 7 PM**: THE MAZE RUNNER + WORDS AND PICTURES
In THE MAZE RUNNER, a young boy wakes up trapped in a massive maze with a group of other boys, all with no memory of the outside world, and sets out to uncover his true purpose and a way to escape.
Then, in WORDS AND PICTURES (at approx. 9 PM), Clive Owen and Juliette Binoche star as rival schoolteachers who compete to determine whether words or pictures are more important.
** NOTE: THE MAZE RUNNER replaces the originally scheduled THE BOOK OF LIFE as the night’s first feature. WORDS AND PICTURES takes the place of THE MAZE RUNNER as the second feature of the night. **
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SEMESTER TWO MEMBERSHIPS: $30 FROM OCTOBER 30
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As the screening year winds to a close, we’re dropping the price of our Semester Two memberships to $30 for the remainder of the programme starting from this Thursday (October 30).
If you’re not already a member (and if not, what have you been waiting for?), be sure to come along and join up to check out some of the year’s biggest hits at the ANU Film Group, including GONE GIRL, THE MAZE RUNNER, THE JUDGE and many more!
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WHAT’S ON THIS WEEK
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This week, celebrate Halloween with the untold origins of Dracula, see Scarlett Johansson kick butt, check out the latest film from Roman Polanski, and revel in the animated beauty of our Hayao Miyazaki double feature.
• Thu 30 Oct @ 7:30 PM: VENUS IN FUR
While holding auditions to cast the lead in his next production, a director finds himself falling under the seductive spell of an actress, in the latest film from director Roman Polanski.
• Fri 31 Oct @ 7:30 PM: DRACULA UNTOLD + LUCY
Explore the untold origins of the legendary vampire on Halloween night with DRACULA UNTOLD, in which a young prince (Luke Evans) makes the ultimate sacrifice in order to protect his kingdom and his family.
Then, in LUCY (at approx. 9 PM), Scarlett Johansson plays a woman who inadvertently ingests a powerful new drug, which unlocks the full capacity of her mind and grants her mysterious powers.
** NOTE: DRACULA UNTOLD replaces the originally scheduled GET ON UP at the same screening time. **
• Sat 1 Nov @ **7 PM**: THE WIND RISES + SPIRITED AWAY
In THE WIND RISES, a young aspiring pilot begins on a path that leads to him becoming one of the world’s foremost plane designers in the final film from famed director Hayao Miyazaki.
Then, revisit Miyazaki’s Oscar-winning masterpiece in SPIRITED AWAY (at approx. 9:15 PM) in which a young girl unknowingly wanders into a magical and mysterious world ruled by spirits, gods and monsters. Screening in 35mm film.
** NOTE: Both THE WIND RISES and SPIRITED AWAY will be screening in their original Japanese language versions, with English subtitles. **
How time flies... There’s only one month to go before Semester Two screenings conclude, and we hope that you’ve all been enjoying the films we’ve been screening this year. It’s now time for us to start working on our Semester One 2015 programme, so be sure to let us know what films you’d like to see at the ANU Film Group next year.
Whether it’s an upcoming release, something you’ve seen at the movies lately, or a beloved favourite, please head over to www.anufg.org.au/suggestions to let us know. Printed forms will also be available at the door at all screenings from this Thursday onwards.
Suggestions close on Saturday 22 November!
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WHAT’S ON THIS WEEK
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This week, Denzel Washington rights some wrongs, the world ends (again), Mia Wasikowska graces our screen (twice), and 35mm film returns!
• Wed 22 Oct @ 7:30 PM: THESE FINAL HOURS
Twelve hours before a cataclysmic event will end all life on Earth, a self-obsessed young man inadvertently saves the life of a young girl, and is forced to come to terms with what really matters in life.
• Thu 23 Oct @ 7:30 PM: THE EQUALIZER
A man (Denzel Washington) puts his mysterious past behind him and sets out to live a new, quiet life. But when he meets a young girl under the control of Russian gangsters, his desire for justice is reawakened.
• Fri 24 Oct @ 7:30 PM: THE DOUBLE + SUBMARINE
In our Canberra premiere screening of director Richard Ayoade’s THE DOUBLE, the life of a mild-mannered clerk (Jesse Eisenberg) takes an unexpected turn with the arrival of a new co-worker who is his exact physical double.
Then, catch a rare 35mm screening of Ayoade’s directorial debut SUBMARINE (at approx. 9:15 PM), in which a precocious teenager sets out to improve his life by getting a girlfriend and mending his parents’ rocky relationship.
• Sat 25 Oct @ **7 PM**: ONLY LOVERS LEFT ALIVE + THE PAST
In Jim Jarmusch’s ONLY LOVERS LEFT ALIVE, two vampire lovers (Tilda Swinton and Tom Hiddleston) finds their centuries-old romance disrupted by the arrival of an uncontrollable younger sister (Mia Wasikowska).
Then, in THE PAST (at approx. 9:15 PM), an Iranian man returns to France to confront his estranged wife’s request for a divorce, as well as the reality that both his wife and his children may have moved on.
Escape reality this week at the ANU Film Group with a line-up that includes dystopian futures, papier mâché heads, a return to form for Nicolas Cage, a vengeance-seeking priest, and four heroes in a half shell. Only at the Film Group!
Plus, read on for a chance to win tickets to the thrilling new drama KILL THE MESSENGER, starring Jeremy Renner.
• Thu 16 Oct @ 7:30 PM: THE GIVER
In a seemingly perfect community without war, pain or suffering, a young boy (Brenton Thwaites) is chosen to learn from a mysterious old man known as The Giver (Jeff Bridges) about the reality of his world. Also starring Meryl Streep.
• Fri 17 Oct @ 7:30 PM: FRANK + JOE
In FRANK, an aspiring musician (Domhnall Gleeson) discovers that he’s in over his head when he joins an eccentric pop band led by the mysterious, enigmatic, papier-mâché-head-wearing Frank (Michael Fassbender).
Then, in JOE (at approx. 9:15 PM), an ex-con (Nicolas Cage, in an acclaimed return to form) sees a chance at redemption when he becomes an unlikely role model to a tormented fifteen-year-old boy.
• Sat 18 Oct @ **7 PM**: TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES + CALVARY
In TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES, four outcast mutant brothers rise from the sewers and discover their destiny when an evil criminal mastermind threatens New York City.
Then, in CALVARY (at approx. 8:45 PM), a good-natured priest (Brendan Gleeson) sets out to discover who may want him dead after he is threatened with imminent death during a confession.
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WIN TICKETS TO ‘KILL THE MESSENGER’!
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Thanks to Transmission Films, we have tickets to give away to KILL THE MESSENGER, the thrilling new political drama starring Jeremy Renner.
The film is on the remarkable true story of journalist Gary Webb (Renner), as he uncovers one of the most elaborate criminal conspiracies in the history of the US government, unleashing a CIA smear campaign that turns the American public against him.
Featuring an all-star cast including Michael Sheen, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Ray Liotta, Oliver Platt and Andy Garcia, the film is in cinemas from October 30. For a look at its trailer, click here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2N2nuDtJX0M
For your chance to win one of ten in-season double passes to see the film, simply email info@anufg.org.au with your name, membership number (located underneath the barcode on your card) and your answer to the following question: ‘In which Oscar-nominated 2013 film did Jeremy Renner play a politician who was also caught up in a conspiracy?’
Entries close on Thursday 23 October, with winners to be notified via email and prizes to be collected at ANU Film Group screenings.
It’s a week of spies, strong women and acclaimed Australian films, including GALORE, set and filmed entirely in Canberra, and a powerful posthumous performance by the late Phillip Seymour Hoffman in A MOST WANTED MAN. Only at the ANU Film Group!
• Wed 8 Oct @ 7:30 PM: GLORIA
In this award-winning Chilean comedy-drama, a free-spirited older woman embarks on a whirl of singles’ parties until she meets a divorced man, and then finds herself torn between hope for her future and nostalgia for the past.
• Thu 9 Oct @ 7:30 PM: A MOST WANTED MAN
When a tortured immigrant turns up in Hamburg, both German and US security agencies race to establish his true identity. Based on the novel by John le Carré and starring Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Rachel McAdams, Willem Dafoe and Robin Wright.
• Fri 10 Oct @ 7:30 PM: CHARLIE’S COUNTRY + GALORE
In the award-winning CHARLIE’S COUNTRY, a frustrated Aboriginal Australian elder (David Gulpilil) leaves his remote community in the North Territory and takes to the bush to live life the old way, but sets off events that change his life forever.
Then, in GALORE (at approx. 9:30 PM), a group of reckless teenage friends and lovers find their lives in suburbia disrupted by the revelation of a secret in the chaotic days surrounding the 2003 Canberra bushfires.
• Sat 11 Oct @ 7 PM: THE INVISIBLE WOMAN + WADJDA
In THE INVISIBLE WOMAN, famed author Charles Dickens (Ralph Fiennes), at the height of his career and bored with his life, enters into a stormy relationship with a younger woman (Felicity Jones) who becomes his secret lover until his death.
Then, in WADJDA (at approx. 9 PM), an enterprising young Saudi girl joins a Koran recitation competition at her school in the hopes of winning a cash prize to buy a green bicycle that has captured her interest.
We head into the month of October with our usual eclectic selection of films: the latest acclaimed musical from the director of ONCE, a double feature of award-winning foreign films, and a four-hour erotic opus, courtesy of director Lars von Trier. What more could you want?
• Thu 2 Oct @ 7:30 PM: BEGIN AGAIN
A chance encounter between a disgraced music executive (Mark Ruffalo) and a young singer (Keira Knightley) turns into a life-changing collaboration between the two talents, in the latest musical from the director of ONCE.
• Fri 3 Oct @ 7:30 PM: STILL LIFE + A GUN IN EACH HAND
In the poignant British drama STILL LIFE, a council worker (Eddie Marsan) whose job is to find the next of kin for people who have passed away alone learns that he is being made redundant, and embarks on one last, liberating case.
Then, in the hit Spanish comedy A GUN IN EACH HAND (at approx. 9 PM), chance encounters between old friends and acquaintances form an engrossing series of six intertwined tales of love, lost and found, in this witty battle of the sexes.
• Sat 4 Oct @ **7 PM**: NYMPHOMANIAC
In director Lars von Trier latest controversial film, after being rescued by a stranger, a self-diagnosed nymphomaniac (Charlotte Gainsbourg) recounts the lustful story of her highly erotic life from infancy into the present day.
** NOTE: NYMPHOMANIAC was released theatrically in two volumes, both of which will be showing on Saturday. The two parts will be separated by a 10-minute intermission at approximately 9 PM. **
It’s back to business as usual with a fully packed week of screenings at the Film Group. Documentaries, action stars, biopics, raunchy comedies and even horror flicks -- there’s bound to be something for everyone!
• Tue 23 Sep @ 7:30 PM: BEYOND THE EDGE
A stunning documentary that brings to life Tenzing Norgay and Edmund Hillary's monumental ascent of Mount Everest in 1953, retold through original footage and photographs, as well as dramatised reconstructions of the climb.
• Thu 25 Sep @ 7:30 PM: THE EXPENDABLES 3
The Expendables embark on their most personal mission yet: to take down a former member of the team bent on wiping them out. Featuring an all-star cast of action heroes including Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Jet Li, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Harrison Ford, Antonio Banderas and Mel Gibson.
• Fri 26 Sep @ 7:30 PM: GRACE OF MONACO + YVES SAINT LAURENT
In GRACE OF MONACO, former Hollywood star Grace Kelly (Nicole Kidman) struggles with a crisis of identity and marriage during a political dispute between Monaco and France in the early 1960s.
Then, YVES SAINT LAURENT (at approx. 9:15 PM) takes a revelatory look at the life of the iconic French designer, from the very beginning of his illustrious career at the young age of 21.
• Sat 27 Sep @ **7 PM**: SEX TAPE + DELIVER US FROM EVIL
In SEX TAPE, a couple (Cameron Diaz and Jason Segel) wake up to discover that the sex tape they made the evening before has gone missing, and embark on a frantic search to recover it before it is made public.
Then, in DELIVER US FROM EVIL (at approx. 8:45 PM), a New York cop (Eric Bana) begins investigating a series of disturbing crimes, and joins forces with a priest to combat supernatural forces terrorising the city.
Already this year we’ve had screenings of films mere weeks after their theatrical releases, but one of this weekend’s films is about to top all that. Gripping Georgian drama IN BLOOM will be getting a limited release in Sydney and Melbourne from September 25 -- and we’ll be screening it this weekend before it’s even out!
Set in 1992 in the newly independent state of Georgia, the film follows two fourteen-year-old best friends whose childhood comes to a halt amid civil war in the region. Unsure of what the future might bring, the two girls find themselves reacting to the pressures in very different and life-changing ways.
IN BLOOM screens on Saturday 20 September at approx. 9 PM, following CHILD’S POSE.
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WHAT'S ON THIS WEEK
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We return to full screenings from next week with a string of highly anticipated films, including THE EXPENDABLES 3, GRACE OF MONACO and SEX TAPE. This week, for the second and last week of the university vacation period, we head to Eastern Europe for a double feature of two celebrated dramas from Romania and Georgia.
• Sat 20 Sep @ **7 PM**: CHILD’S POSE + IN BLOOM
In CHILD’S POSE, when her adult son is charged with manslaughter, a woman sets out on a campaign of emotional and social manipulation to keep him out of prison and, in turn, reassert control over him.
Then, in IN BLOOM (at approx. 9 PM), two young girls are forced to leave their childhood behind as they work to escape their turbulent family lives amidst civil war in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi in 1992.