The New Year has kicked off with
Cine Club's return to the screens of the Teatro Salón Cervantes following several months at the Multicines Cisneros cinema. This is great news for
Alcalá de Henares film buffs, published in the club's programme at the start of 2008.
'Still Life', one of the sensations of the year's crop of films, marked the return of the Cine Club to the Teatro Cervantes during the first week of January. The expectations of local film buffs in Alcalá desirous of quality auteur films will now be met by the screening of three more feature-length films.
British production
'Notes on a Scandal' (Richard Eyre, 2006) is first up, in which the limelight is assuredly taken by two of the world's most renowned acting talents,
Judi Dench and
Cate Blanchett. The film is based on a novel by
Zoë Heller adapted to the screen by
Patrick Barber. It narrates the close relationship between two school teachers, a recent arrival in a new post and a solitary veteran who sees the newcomer as an opportunity to gain a fresh start in life. Dench and Blanchett were both nominated for an Oscar at the 2006 ceremony for their work in 'Notes on a Scandal', a
complex puzzle full of suspense, intrigue, lies and passion. The film will be screened on
Wednesday 16th and
Thursday 17th in two sessions as per normal at 18.30 and 21.00.
The following week Cine Club will turn its attention to one of its favourite sons, Finnish auteur
Aki Kaurismäki. 'Lights in the Dusk' is the filmmaker's latest project, another story of outsiders in which the lead is a nightwatchman accused of a robbery he did not commit. The film, shot in Helsinki, was a candidate at the European Film Awards and entered the official section of the Cannes Film Festival. 'Lights in the Dusk' completes a trilogy of films made by Kaurismäki which includes
'Drifting Clouds' and
'The Man Without a Past'. The well-known obsessions of the director can all be found in the trilogy; tales of loneliness shot with an amazing simplicity and gentleness. The film will be screened on the
23rd and 24th in the
Teatro Salón Cervantes.
To bring January to a close (
30th and
31st 18.30 and 21.00)
Cine Club's screens will be filled with one of the jewels of North America's recent independent output,
'Little Children' (Todd Field, 2006), a slow-moving and thoughtful film dissecting with incredible raw authenticity the lives of a group of characters hanging out in a residential neighbourhood. It is an ensemble piece with outstanding performances from
Kate Winslet, Noah Emmerich and
Jennifer Connelly who lead this adaptation of a
Tom Perrotta novel, which unites stories of paedophilia, friendship, love, moral blindness and infidelity. The director of the film is
Todd Field, acclaimed for his work on 'In the Bedroom' (2001). He had three nominations at the last Oscar ceremony.
