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JAN 3
FRI 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
SOUTH AFRICA 2001
DIRECTOR: LEE HIRSCH Winner of the Audience Award and Freedom
of Expression Award at the Sundance Film Festival, AMANDALA! ("Power to the
people!") documents the history of freedom songs during the near half-century
that South Africa suffered under apartheid. Notes one activist, "Because
you can't beat these people physically, you've got to scare the shit out
of them with songs." Most songs featured in the film became so popular that
the government banned them along with the artists who sang them. Still, the
freedom songs created an effective underground form of communication within
prison boundaries and united a nation of oppressed citizens. Director Lee
Hirsch combines an engaging mix of interviews with previously exiled activists
and musicians along with archival footage of organized protests and performances
featuring Abdullah Ibrahim, Sibingile Khumalo, Vusi Mahlasela, Miriam Makeba,
Hugh Masekela, and Dolly Rathebe. (108 mins.)
JAN 4
SAT 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2001
DIRECTORS: KRIS CURRY, RICH FOX Watching a film about tribute bands
may sound like a horrifying prospect, but in the hands of Curry and Fox,
the expectation of camp and sub culture gawking gives way to a heartfelt,
insightful and yes, often hilarious, look at the inexhaustible dream of fame,
fortune and the simple joy of performing. Focusing on five LA bands: Larger
Than Life (a tribute to KISS), Bloodstone (Judas Priest), Sheer Heart Attack
(Queen), The Missing Links (The Monkees), and Escape (Journey), the directors
capture two years of on and off-stage antics and trials in the music business,
from bitter rivalries and creative differences, to psychopathic fans and
equally bizarre performance venues. While the laughs sometimes come at the
expense of the bands, for the most part the humor and humanity is shared
by the subjects, who emerge with their passion and energy held high. Winner
of the Golden Gate Award at the San Francisco Film Festival for Best Documentary.
(89 mins.)
JAN 5
SUN 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2002
DIRECTORS: MORGAN NEVILLE, ROBERT GORDON Morgan Neville,
who has treated past Reel Music audiences to such fabulous films as SAM PHILLIPS:
THE MAN WHO INVENTED ROCK AND ROLL and WORDS AND MUSIC BY LEIBER & STOLLER,
and Robert Gordon, whose biography shares the same title, new film is on
the inventor of electric blues, the great Muddy Waters. Fabulous performance
footage, rare interviews and the commentary of many of the greats Waters
worked with and influenced combine to tell the rich story of this towering
Chicago blues legend. (75 mins.)
WITH
US 2001
DIRECTOR: ALTHEA RODGERS CHAMPION BLUES follows a Los Angeles blues
singing legend, Mickey Champion, from her roots in Lake Charles, La., to
Los Angeles Central Avenue where she performed with Billie Holiday, Dinah
Washington and doubled for Esther Phillips, to the California venues of the
present day. The late Charles Brown saw Mickey Champion as one of the greatest
powerhouse blues singers of all time. Ain t no one left that can sing like
that when Mickey s gone, he said. CHAMPION BLUES tells the story of a woman
who has been of service to the community she loves through her singing and
her cooking. Ms. Champion was a cook for the Los Angeles Unified School District
for 17-years.The documentary is intertwined with interviews with Mickey Champion,
and some of her peers such as singers, Barbara Morrison, and Linda Hopkins,
trumpet player, Clora Bryant, and singer Ray Brewster, as well as live performances
by Ms. Champion. (48 mins.)
JAN 6
MON 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
FRANCE 2001
DIRECTOR: BENOIT JACQUOT "This beautifully sung, exceptional film
adaptation of one of Giacomo Puccini s greatest operas (whose most famous
arias and duets are instantly recognizable to aficionado and amateur alike)
features two of the hottest opera stars working today. Real-life couple Angela
Gheorghiu and Roberto Alagna, whose love for one another adds a rare emotional
depth to Puccini s gloriously romantic tale , portrays the star-crossed lovers.
Ruggero Raimondi plays the evil Scarpia, and the trio excels under Antonio
Pappano s superb musical direction. In this dazzling marriage of opera and
cinema, Jacquot burnishes Puccini s luster."-LE MONDE (120 mins.)
JAN 7 - Visiting Artist
TUE 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2002
DIRECTOR:
ROBERT MUGGE The newest addition to Mugge s diverse body of music films (SAXOPHONE
COLOSSUS, COOL RUNNINGS, THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO AL GREEN, DEEP BLUES, The
KINGDOM OF ZYDECO) is a lively homage to one of the birth places of the blues
Southern, mostly rural clubs that provided the showcase for black artists
and the social center for many communities. Focusing on the Subway Lounge
in Jackson, Mississippi, one of the last juke joints still operating, Mugge
explores the history of these regional musical incubators and their decline
while capturing performances of local house bands The King Edwards Blues
Band and The House Rockers, and such blues legends as Chris Thomas, Alvin
Youngblood Hart and Bobby Rush. Actor Morgan Freeman, himself a passionate
devotee of the blues and owner of a blues club in Clarksdale, Mississippi,
provides the narration. (88 mins.) Robert Mugge will introduce the film.
6JAN 8
WED 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
BRITAIN 2001
DIRECTOR: MIKE DIBB Eleven years after his death in 1991, legendary
trumpeter Miles Davis remains the best known and most influential jazz musician
of the last 50 years. To mark what would have been his 75th anniversary,
British television s Channel 4 commissioned this engrossing portrait that
explores the evolution of the man and his music from his East St. Louis roots
to rock-like international stardom. Interweaving rare interviews and brilliant
performances from over forty years with the memories of friends, family,
ex-girlfriends and stellar musical associates, Dibb reveals a singular creative
odyssey fractured by racism, illness, drug addiction and brushes with the
law. (124 mins.)
JAN 10
FRI 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
GERMANY/FINLAND 2002
DIRECTOR: MIKA KAURISMAKI Take Buena Vista Social Club, pump the volume
up to 11 (Spinal Tap style), and crank the color beyond garish. This musical
road movie is a 2,500 mile journey of discovery into the musicians, singers
and dancers in Rio de Janeiro, Pernambuco and Bahia three Brazilian states
that symbolize Brazils musical diversity and history. From live concert footage
to spontaneous recordings on gritty back streets, Sound of Brazil offers
much more than the familiar rhythms of bossa nova and samba. Starting in
infancy, the daily staple of music is built on a rich history that embraces
indigenous Indo populations as well as influences from Africa, Portugal and
Arab nations. Kaurismäkis (TIGRERO, LA WITHOUT A MAP) spirited road trip
is as free and spontaneous as the music itself. (85 mins.)
JAN 11 - Visiting Artist
SAT 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2002
DIRECTOR:
JOEY GARFIELD "Beatboxing is the art of making sounds with the mouth that
are normally made by machines. The human beat box is one of the key elements
in the development of Hip Hop culture, along with Dj-ing, Graffiti, Breakdancing,
and MC-ing. Its contribution has been largely overlooked, as has the fun,
expressive, human, and spontaneous dimension of Hip-Hop that it represents.
Garfield uses interviews, live performances, archival footage, and animation
to bring to light this important ingredient of Hip Hop's identity. With the
help of Beat Box pioneers Doug E. Fresh, Biz Markie and The Fat Boys, the
documentary traces the art form from its basic beat beginnings in the 1980s
to its present day multi-layered, polyrhythmic figureheads such as Rahzel,
Scratch of the Hip Hop group The Roots, and Zap Mama. Breath Control is a
half-historical, half-tutorial look at humans as actual instruments. This
is the real Hip-Hop: no turntables, no band, and no type of mechanical devices.
Just the mic in my hand" - Rahzel, the Godfather of Noize.(80 mins.) Co-filmmaker
Jacob Craycroft will introduce the film.
JAN 11
SAT 9 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2002
DIRECTOR:
LORENZO DESTEFANO "In the wake of the Cuban Missile Crisis, while missiles
and wrath were trained on Havana, a group of musicians from the Cayo Hueso
district came together as Los Zafiros (The Sapphires) with a singing style
that took Cuba and much of non-US western world by storm. Stars trapped in
a parallel universe of pop, they hit the big time in Moscow, Minsk, Paris
and Warsaw, but not America, inspiration to their unique musical formula.
A combination of doo-wop, r&b, Calypso, rumba, bossa nova and other Latin
American dance music, the Zafiros developed a sound and style much like The
Platters and other vocal quintets of the 50 s and 60's. Returning to Cuba
for the first time in 13 years, founder Miguel Cancio reunites with the only
other surviving member of the group, Manuel Galbån. The ensuing trip reveals
the still legendary status the have in their home neighborhood of Cayo Hueso,
and the tragic lives and early deaths of the groups other 3 members, and
through rich film clips and recording, their brilliant harmonies"-NORTH BY
NORTHWEST. (87 mins.)
JAN 12 - Visiting Artist
SUN 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2002
DIRECTOR:
MATTHEW BUZZELL 77-year-old jazz vocal legend Jimmy Scott's distinctive voice
is able to effortlessly caress high notes in a range that no normal adult
male singer should ever expect to reach. But Scott's vocal range is the result
of a hereditary condition that kept his body and voice from developing beyond
boyhood. Scott is no mere freak of nature however; it's his masterful command
of his vocal instrument, his worldly wise sense of phrasing a lyric and breathtakingly
dramatic sense of time that has left critics and fans alike grasping at superlatives
for over five decades. JIMMY SCOTT: IF ONLY YOU KNEW is a profoundly moving
portrait of Scott through a look at his personal and professional hardships
and eventual triumphs. Concert footage, interviews with Scott, family, friends,
bandmates, and scholars offer a detailed view of the artist. (77 mins.) Matthew
Buzzell will introduce the film.
JAN 15
WED 7 P.M
GUILD THEATRE
US 2002
DIRECTOR: SAM JONES What started out as a humble 16mm black-and-white
documentary look at the making of alt-country rock band Wilcos' fourth album,
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, felicitously became an absorbing chronicle of Reprise
Records rejection of Foxtrots "uncommercial" sound, as well as the albums
subsequent critical success at a new label, and the bands ultimate dissolution.
Award-winning photographer Jones brings compelling immediacy to one of the
most discussed music industry stories of recent years. The films style recalls
the direct cinema techniques and energy of rockumentaries like DON'T LOOK
BACK. (90 mins.)
JAN 16
THU 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2002
DIRECTOR: SCOTT L. TARADASH "'Blues ain't nothing but a lowdown aching
chill. You ain't never had them? People pray to God you never will...' How
appropriate that a film telling the truth of the blues should be about a
great talent who never had the breaks. Scott Taradashs atmospheric and music-laden
biography of 87-year-old Mississippi Delta blues legend David "Honeyboy"
Edwards (writer of "Sweet Home Chicago") tells the fascinating story of Edwards'
life in the pre-civil rights era Deep South. One of the few remaining original
practitioners of the acoustic Delta blues style, Edwards not only sings of
hard times, he's lived them. Born in 1915, Edwards lived on the road from
an early age, playing music in juke joints and hustling in the streets of
Memphis and the rural South to escape the labors of sharecropping. Through
his travels he played and toured with the greatest Delta bluesmen, many of
who remained his friends and greatest musical influences, including Big Joe
Williams, Charley Patton, Robert Johnson, and Little Walter Jacobs. Interwoven
among his colorful storytelling and raw guitar and vocal performances are
appearances by B.B. King, Willie Foster and Waymon Meeks, who lend their
own insights into the significance of the blues."-Vancouver Film Festival.
(82 mins.)
JAN 17
FRI 7 P.M.
US 2002
DIRECTOR: A.J. SCHNACK "Welcome to the strange and poetic
planet of They Might Be Giants, the Brooklyn-based alt-pop duo that uses
answering machines, dark lyrics and bouncing melodies to make a little birdhouse
in your soul. The twenty-year story begins with John Flansburgh and John
Linnell meeting as junior high school students in Lincoln, Massachusetts
the rest, as they say, is history. In addition to a concert given for the
film, Schnack weaves appearances by Frank Black (Pixies), Mark Hoppus (Blink
182), author Dave Eggers, Conan O Brien, Jon Stewart, Ira Glass (This American
Life) and Janeane Garofalo to fashion a compelling case for their important
influence on the alternative movement. Dry wit rules, sharp left turns are
encouraged, absurd running jokes abound, and a goofy, vaguely avant-garde
aesthetic colors the whole thing while remaining utterly accessible to anyone
interested in the idea of a couple of whip-smart wise-guys playing whimsical
pop songs."-THE BOSTON GLOBE (102 mins.)
JAN 18
SAT 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
BY EMIR KUSTURICA
GERMANY 2001
DIRECTOR: EMIR KUSTURICA Emir Kusturica is best know for his fiction
films (UNDERGROUND, BLACK CAT, WHITE CAT, TIME OF THE GYPSIES) and as an
actor (THE WIDOW OF ST. PIERRE). For the past fifteen years, he has played
bass with The No Smoking Orchestra, a gypsy techno-rock band that uses violins,
saxophones and accordions, as well as electric guitars and drums. The melange
is uniquely Slavic and intensely contemporary, prompting the prestigious
Italian journal La Republica to observe, "A furious, merry carousel of notes
is the key to the wild success of Emir Kusturica and his band: these are
people who know how to make great music and great cinema." Kusturica documents
the group via concert footage but, more to the point, he gives a real insider's
view into the workings of a wild amalgamation of individuals who have come
together to play in a kinetic, intensely popular band. Using Super-8 footage
as a texture that matches the rough and ready sound of the group, this is
a rollicking, hot concert film. (90 mins.)
JAN 18
SAT 9 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2001
DIRECTORS: DANNY CLINCH, SAM LEE Combining shuddering, groove-laden
funky soul and folky, handcrafted acoustics, singer songwriter Ben Harper
has cultivated a cult following in the past decade. Pleasure & Pain is
an intriguing and intimate portrait of the charismatic roots/rock musician,
singer/songwriter Ben Harper. Harper, whose music is a vibrant fusion of
rock, reggae, funk, blues and jazz, is a truly unique counterpoint to our
modern-day, pre-fabricated pop bands. He and his band, The Innocent Criminals,
have built an enormous following, not from videos or radio play, but through
the word of mouth generated from their powerful concerts. Directed by popular
rock photographer Danny Clinch, who has worked with such icons as Bruce Springsteen,
Bob Dylan, and bands like Radiohead, Metallica, and the Beastie Boys, this
remarkable first film follows Harper as he tours across the US and Europe.
(92 mins.)
JAN 19
SUN 4 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2001
DIRECTOR: ROGERSHERMAN A celebration of Rodgers's music and an investigation
into the genius of a composer, whose melodies emerged from a "fundamental
River of Sadness." With, among others, Julie Andrews, Diahann Carroll, Celeste
Holm, John Macueri, Maureen McGovern, Trevor Nunn, Billy Taylor, Andrew Lloyd
Webber, and Rodgers's daughters, Linda and Mary. (115 mins.)
JAN 22
WED 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
GERMANY/HUNGARY 2002
DIRECTOR: JULIAN BENEDIKT Julian Benedikt s (BLUE NOTE: A STORY OF
MODERN JAZZ, JAZZ SCENE) is a lovingly researched exploration of the jazz
life of Chico Hamilton from his early years performing with his school buddies
Dexter Gordon and Charles Mingus, through the orchestras of Count Basie and
Duke Ellington, his time with the legendary Gerry Mulligan Quartet, which
he helped put together with Chet Baker in the late 50s. In addition to a
treasury of live footage, the film features interviews with a gallery of
Chico Hamilton s peers and fans including the Rolling Stones Charlie Watts
who originally played under the name Chico Watts to express his admiration
for his hero. Throughout the film the key interviews with Hamilton are conducted
by Roman Polanski (Hamilton scored Polanski s 1966 film, REPULSION). Benedikt
salutes Hamilton s current group, Euphoria, documenting a complete performance
of the epic composition, Sculpture. (82 mins.)
JAN 24
FRI 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US/FRANCE 2001
DIRECTOR: MARK KIDEL The raga and you become one, says eloquent 82-year-old
Indian sitar player, composer and international ambassador Ravi Shankar.
Following Shankar from California to India aound the time of his 80th birthday,
British director Mark Kidel s serene, informative and uplifting portrait
traces this legend s life from the days of his Brahmin upbringing and introduction
to the arts as a child in Paris to musical education under Ustad Baba Allaudin
Khan and collaborations with filmmaker Satyajit Ray and fellow musician Yehudi
Menuhin. An incalculable influence on such key musicians as John Coltrane
and George Harrison and an international star, Shankar explains that his
creativity an ecstasy that cannot be explained. Kidel s quiet, joyful profile,
leavened with rare and fascinating newsreel and film clips, comes inspiringly
close. (89 mins.)
Thank you to Timbuktunes World Music for sponsoring this film.
JAN 24
FRI 9 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2000
DIRECTOR: MARC EVANS John Cale has been a driving force in New York's
avant-garde music world since he left his native Wales in the 1960s. Cale
was co-founder of The Velvet Underground and has produced works by such
artists as Nico, Patti Smith, The Stooges, and Brian Eno. BEAUTIFUL MISTAKE
documents Cale's return, at age 58, to his homeland to collaborate with
a variety of emerging Welsh artists, including Catatonia, Super Furry
Animals, and James Dean Bradfield (of Manic Street Preachers). Shot in
Cardiff, the film mixes performance footage with montages showcasing the
daily poetry of this great city. (75 mins.)
JAN 25
SAT 7 P.M.
WHITSELL AUDITORIUM
IRELAND 2001
DIRECTOR: PHILIP KING, NUALA O CONNOR Music is as much a means of
inspiration as it is one of expression, and there is much to be inspired
by in the "songs of resistance and liberation" discussed and performed in
Philip King s s eloquent tribute. Tibetan singer Yungchen Lhamo's heartrending
a cappella siren song; June Tabor's rendition and explanation of "Lili Marlene";
Ani DiFranco, Emmylou Harris, and Irish singer Karan Casey singing Woody
Guthrie even the Soweto String Quartet playing classical music becomes a
political act, simply because black people were told they couldn't play these
instruments. Others affirming song as a powerful motivating force in the
last century s fight against social injustice include Elvis Costello, Billy
Bragg, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Pete Seeger, Tom Waits, Los Lobos. The
archival images of soldiers, migrant workers, and civil rights marchers,
and the tributes to Guthrie, Paul Robeson, and slain Chilean songwriter Victor
Jara are stirring reminders that you can take away the singer, but you can't
silence the song. (90 mins.)
JAN 29
WED 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 1966
DIRECTOR: ALAN LOMAX On the occasion of the 1966 Newport
Film Festival, legendary folk and blues musicologist Alan Lomax built (off
site) a make-shift juke-joint a special environment in which to spontaneously
film many of the blues greats assembled for the Festival. His calculation
resulted in a remarkable time-capsul of fine performances and conversation
by seminal bluesman in an unusually relaxed moment. In the house: Howlin
Wolf, Son House, Bukka White, Skip James and a host of others. (60 mins.)
WITH
US 2002
DIRECTOR: LEAH MAHAN Howard Armstrong, first immortalized in Terry
(CRUMB) Zwigoff's LOUIE BLUIE (1983) has been performing for most of his
91 years, ever since his father carved his first fiddle from a wooden crate.
At the film's center are the two great loves of Howard's life: his music
and artist Barbara Ward, age 60. Their two-decade romance has been a creative
partnership yielding new work and an outpouring of memories. As they take
on life's challenges, Howard and Barbara defy our most basic assumptions
about what it means to grow older. (60 mins.)
JAN 30 31
THU 7 P.M. FRI 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
CZECH republic 2001
DIRECTOR: JANA CHYTILOVA As Lou Reed points out at the beginning of
Czech filmmaker Jana Chytilova's intriguing film, it's hard to conceive of
a situation in which song lyrics could get you thrown in prison and harder
to imagine one in which the fate of a country is stirred by a rock-and-roll
band. But for all the lip service paid to rock-and-roll revolutionaries,
few groups can match the sheer courage of The Plastic People of the Universe,
quite possibly the most politically significant, virtually unheard-of rock
band in history. Named after a Frank Zappa lyric, the original line-up assembled
in the fall of 1968, not in response to the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia,
bassist and founding member Milan Hlavsa insists, but to the release of the
Velvet Underground's groundbreaking first album. The Velvets remained a seminal
influence on the P.P.U., who combined their poetic rock minimalism with the
more free-form jazz and blues of Captain Beefheart, Zappa and the Fugs. A
true celebration to rock and revolution. (90 mins.)
JAN 31
FRI 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2002
DIRECTOR: MARK MOORMAN Mormans new film profiles the work of legendary
music producer/recording engineer Tom Dowd. A charismatic man who has seemingly
fit many lives into one lifetime, the recently deceased Dowd entered the
recording industry in the late 1940s and quickly became the brilliant, best-kept
secret in the business. His half-century of extraordinary music included
everything from classic rock n roll (Coasters, Drifters, Bobby Darin, Big
Joe Turner), to jazz recordings (John Coltrane, Thelonius Monk, Dizzy Gillespie,
Charles Mingus), 60s era hits (Sonny & Cher, Young Rascals, Buffalo Springfield),
the soul sounds of Stax Records in Memphis (Otis Redding, Sam & Dave,
Booker T. & the M.G.s), live recordings at Winterland (Cream) and the
Fillmore East, as well as over thirty years worth of hits at Criteria Studios
in Miami (Rod Stewart). In addition to performance footage and in-studio
insight into what goes on in the recording process, interviews with legends
Ray Charles, Eric Clapton, the Allman Brothers Band, Aretha Franklin, Les
Paul, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Barry Gibb, Phil Ramone, and Ahmet Ertegun fashion
the portrait of a man who eloquently speaks a universal language. (90 mins.)
FEB 1
SAT 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2002
DIRECTOR: DAVID TURNLEY Aficionados call it the best dance hall in
the world. But you won t find it in any travel brochure. The Salon Rosado
at La Tropical is the club where generations of working class Cubans of color
have gathered for dance and romance. Stunningly photographed, Turnley s film
is a sensual and visually elaborate depiction of this exceptional locale,
which according to New York Times music critic Peter Watrous, "seems as if
it's going to levitate with the joy of the Cuban soul." The film captures
the pulsating rhythms of the bands that inspire the dancers. Among them are
the Grammy Award-winning Los Van Van, the tough, young group Son Candela,
the astonishing vocal "girl singing group" La Caro Band and Charanga Habanera.
A vibrant celebration of music, dance and community, famed music documentarian
Albert Maysles has called LA TROPICAL "the most human, dynamic, and liberated
documentary ever shot in Cuba." (91 mins.)
FEB 1
SAT 9 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
NETHERLANDS 2002
DIRECTOR: SIMONE DE VRIES With commentary by Lyle Lovett,
Bill Clinton and others, this documentary follows Texas troubadour and wisecracking
author Friedman's outrageous trajectory from his first stage show at the
age of 13 to the L.A. years (with pals Tom Waits and Iggy Pop) to his current
station as mystery writer and pure-bred Texas bon vivant. "Van Gogh, Oscar
Wilde, Jesus Christ, Lenny Bruce those are the people I identify with," says
Friedman, and by the end of de Vries' doc, you realize this crazy Jew fits
right in among those other iconoclastic luminaries. (54 mins.)
WITH
US 2001
DIRECTOR: JOHN PAGET Images of Elvis , the pinnacle of the Elvis impersonator
s art, is an annual cutthroat competition in Memphis to determine the world
s finest Elvis (almost). Paget s cheeky documentary plumbs the dedication,
desire and devotion of Elvis fandom, specifically a half dozen impersonators
hungry for the spotlight. Irv Cass has been runner-up twice. He s determined
to make it third-time-lucky or hang-up his jumpsuit. The competition is fierce.
. . and peculiar: Quentin Flagg, child Elvis, a paperboy by day, The King
by night; Doug Church, playboy Elvis who owes his charm to a pair of stick-on
sideburns he keeps in a special case; Robert Washington, the competition
s only black Elvis; Ginger, lady Elvis; and of course, a few Japanese Elvises.
Working through cosmetic surgery, outrageously expensive costumes, blue suede
shoes and bad Karate moves, the contestants circle for the final showdown
and the title of America s No. 1 hunk-a hunk-a burnin love. (66 mins.)
FEB 2
SUN 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 2002
DIRECTOR: VERONIQUE N. DOUMBE If it's true that jazz music represents
being triumphant in the face of adversity, then Denis Charles is the perfect
jazz musician. Born in the Caribbean, sent to his mother in New York at a
young age, by a well meaning father, who snuck off the plane once Denis was
secured, Denis Charles sustained a diverse and nomadic career. In his early
days he anchored legends like Cecil Taylor, Steve Lacy, Don Cherry, and Jimmy
Giuffre (who stopped using a drummer when Denis left). His later years, like
some other brilliant New York musicians (Charles Gayle for one) were spent
homeless, surrounding himself with young creative musicians (such as Susie
Ibarra, seen performing a marvelous duet with Charles) who admired his gentle
spirit, and fierce devotion to his craft. "DENIS A. CHARLES: AN INTERUPTED
CONVERSATION perfectly captures the humor and sweetness of this fearless
musician, who, it can be said, literally played for his life." - SOUND UNSEEN.
(75 mins)
FEB 6
THU 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
US 1927 1963
DIRECTORS: VARIOUS Tonight we welcome film archivist Dennis Nyback
for a program of rare musical moments drawn from personal collection of music
on film. Included in the program are vintage performances by Bob Wills, Johnny
Cash, Carl Perkins, Jimmie Rodgers, Hank Williams Jr. (at 14!), and a dozen
other country, rockabilly, and even Hawaiian musicians. (90 mins.)
FEB 6
THU 7 P.M.
WHITSELL AUDITORIUM
KARMEN GEI
SENEGAL 2001
DIRECTOR: JOSEPH GAI RAMAKA "Carmen is a myth, but what does
Carmen represent today? Where do Carmens love and freedom stand at the outset
of the 21st century? Therein lies my films intent, a black Carmen, plunged
in the magical and chaotic urbanity of an African city." Adapting Bizet’s
famous opera about love and freedom to Dakar, Senegal with an enchanting
explosion of color, pulsing Senegalese music and dance, and smoldering sexual
passion, Ramaka sets the story in the underworld of smugglers. After seducing
Angelique, the warden, Karmen escapes the all-women penitentiary and returns
to her world of crime, possessed with the power to command all with her magnetic
spirit. Dancer Djeinaba Diop Gai is riveting as the sensual outlaw queen
willing to break the rules and risk her life to preserve her freedom. The
first African Carmen and, arguably, the first African filmed "musical," Gaï
Ramaka employees the music and choreography of Doudou N'Diaye Rose's sabar
drummers, Julien Jouga's choir, El Hadj Ndiaye's songs and Yandé Coudou Sène's
prophetic voices, woven together with a contemporary jazz score by saxophonist
Davis Murray. (86 mins.)
FEB 7
FRI 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
CHARLIE “BIRD” PARKER 1920-1955
NORWAY 1989
DIRECTOR: JAN HORNE Produced by the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation,
Jan Horne’s documentary series on the life of jazz saxophonist Charlie Parker
is the definitive chronicle of his remarkable life. Divided into four chronological
chapters, each features film clips and interviews that bring to life his
brilliant career. Part 1, Now s the Time, examines Parker’s early years in
Kansas City and his impact on fellow musicians (Dizzy Gillespie, John Lewis,
Flip Phillips) after he came to New York in the 1940s. Part 2, "Just Friends,"
centers on the New York years and his collaborations with Red Rodney, Max
Roach, Roy Haynes and others. Part 3, What Is This Thing Called Love, follows
Parker to the West Coast and his collaborations with Chet Baker, Bud Powell
and Thelonius Monk. Part 4, Autumn in New York, explores his broader artistic
search with the help of composer Edgar Varése and painter Harvey Cropper
and the overview of his life through the eyes of Chan Parker and others.
(3 hrs.)
FEB 8
SAT 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
BLUEGRASS JOURNEY
US 2002
DIRECTOR: RUTH OXENBERG In the tradition of WOODSTOCK and
JAZZ ON A SUMMERS DAY, BLUEGRASS JOURNEY weaves together extended performances,
behind the scenes interviews and laid back event ambiance to celebrate one
of America’s great musical genres. Set largely at the Grey Fox Blugrass Festival
in upstate New York, Oxenberg’s affectionate portrait celebrates musical
virtuosity, audience dedication and a fine time being had by all. Among the
performers caught in concert and workshop settings are The Del McCoury Band,
Tim O’Brien, Jerry Douglas, Peter Rowan, Tony Rice, Rhonda Vincent, Nickel
Creek and a host of others. (90 mins.)
FEB 8
SAT 9 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
VELVET GOLDMINE
US 1998
DIRECTOR: TODD HAYNES “This witty, evocative re-creation
of the heady days of glam rock is loosely structured on the lines of a CITIZEN
KANE-style flashback narrative, with a journalist (Christian Bale) sent back
from New York to Britain to investigate, ten years after, the disappear ance
of Bowie-like star Brian Slade (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) after an onstage assassination
is revealed to be a hoax. Partly a film a clef which translates real-life
events and personalities into a dazzling fiction, partly an unsentimental
celebration of an era of potentially pan-sexual liberation (complete with
unexpected but fitting tribute to Oscar Wilde), and partly a Haynesian study
of transgression, identity and the gulf between public and private image,
it s superbly shot, edited and performed, and exhilaratingly inventive throughout.”
—TIME OUT. (120 mins.) TODD HAYNES INVITED TO ATTEND.
FEB 9
SUN 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
THE BALLAD OF THE BERING STRAIT
US/JAPAN 2002
DIRECTOR: NINA GILDEN SEAVEY To the casual listener, the music of
Bering Strait is an exciting, satisfying blend of traditional country and
bluegrass sounds with the sleek production and propulsive, rock-tinged arrangements
found in contemporary pop. It's a distinct surprise to learn that most of
the seven members of the band, who have been together for well over a decade,
first met and played together when they were young music students in Obninsk,
Russia. How Bering Strait got from Obninsk to Nashville (and then garnered
their first major studio release) is the subject of Nina Gilden Seavey’s
beguiling The Ballad of Bering Strait. The determined Russian teenagers never
lose sight of their goal to make their music in America. (98 mins.)
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