Spring 2008
Milano Calibro 9
Wednesday, January 23
Presented by the French & Italian Department
(1972) Italy. Director: Fernando Di Leo. In this excellent crime thriller, a small-town gangster gets released from prison and tries to convince everyone he wants to go straight. Italian with English subtitles. 100 mins
The Twilight Samurai “Tasogare Seibei”
Wednesday, January 30
Presented by the East Asian Studies Department
(2002) Japan. Director: Yoji Yamada. Set during mid 19th century, a low-ranking samurai is forced to choose service over love. Academy Award nominee. Japanese with English subtitles. 129 mins
The Lives of Others “Das Leben der Anderen”
Wednesday, February 6
Presented by the Germanic & Slavic Languages Department
(2006) Germany. Director: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck. An agent of the secret police in 1984 East Berlin conducts surveillance on a writer and his lover and becomes increasingly absorbed by their lives. Academy Award winner for Best Foreign Film. German with English subtitles. 137 mins
V-Day: Until the Violence Stops
Monday, February 11
Presented by Project Safe, Margaret Cuninggim Women’s Center
(2003) United States. Director: Abby Epstein. Chronicles how Eve Ensler’s hit off-Broadway solo show The Vagina Monologues grew into V-Day, an international grassroots movement to stop violence against women and girls. Extraordinarily empowering and heartbreakingly funny. 73 mins
All About Darfur
Wednesday, February 13
Presented by Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center
(2005) Sudan. Director: Taghreed Elsanhouri. Civil strife in Sudan is explored in this film that gives voice to the people of Darfur. Arabic and English with English subtitles. 81 mins
Battle of Algiers “La bataille d’Alger”
Wednesday, February 20 
Presented by Communication Studies and Film Studies Program
(1966) Algeria. Director: Gillo Pontecorvo. An unbiased account of the bloodiest revolution in modern history depicting the Algerian people’s struggle to liberate themselves from France between 1954 and 1962. Winner of 11 International awards, nominated for three Academy Awards. French and Arabic with English subtitles. 121 mins
Yesterday
Monday, February 21
Presented by Bishop Joseph Johnson Black Cultural Center
(2004) South Africa. Director: Darrell James Roodt. A poor, young HIV-positive mother struggles to raise her daughter alone while coming to terms with her imminent death from AIDS. First South African film to win an Oscar nomination. Zulu with English subtitles. 96 mins
Vanaja
Wednesday, February 27
Presented by Vanderbilt India Association
(2006) India. Director: Rajnesh Domalpalli. Set in rural South India, a place where social barriers are built stronger than fort walls, Vanaja explores the chasm that divides classes as a young girl struggles to come of age and better herself through Indian classical dance. Engrossing and timeless. Telugu with English subtitles. 111 mins
Hijos de la Guerra
Wednesday, March 12
Presented by the Center for Latin American & Iberian Studies
(2007) United Kingdom. Director: Alexandre Fuchs. This documentary tells the story of the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), an international Hispanic street gang founded by Salvadoran civil war refugees. Estimated to have more than 100,000 members, it has the distinction of being the largest and most violent street gang in the world. Spanish and English with English subtitles. 81 mins
The Return “Vozvrashcheniye”
Wednesday, March 19
Presented by the Germanic & Slavic Languages Department
(2004) Russia. Director: Andrei Zvyagintsev. In this cinematically stunning film, two brothers must deal with their father’s reappearance after a twelve year absence. Winner of 28 International awards. Russian with English subtitles. 105 mins
Pixote
Wednesday, March 26
Presented by the Theatre Department and Film Studies Program
(1981) Brazil. Director: Hector Babenco. This haunting docu-style expose offers heartbreaking insights of the brutal underworld inhabited by Brazil’s unwanted children. Academy Award winner for Best Foreign Film. Portuguese with English subtitles. 127 mins
Night Stop
Wednesday, April 2
Presented by the Institute for Global Health
(2001) Mozambique. Director: Licínio Azevedo. The highest incidence of HIV in Mozambique is concentrated along three roads. This dark documentary depicts a night in the life of the truckers who travel these roads and the women who make their living from them. Ndebele, Shona, Nhungwe & Portuguese with English Subtitles. 52 mins
Le Corbeau
Wednesday, April 9
Presented by the French & Italian Department
(1943) France. Director: Henri-Georges Clouzot. This suspense thriller portrays a small French village whose everyday existence is shaken by a series of mysterious poison pen letters. French with English subtitles. 91 mins
Whisky
Wednesday, April 16
Presented by the Spanish & Portuguese Department
(2004) Uruguay. Directors: Juan Pablo Rebella and Pablo Stoll. A perversely funny film set in Uruguay, depicts a lonely sock factory owner who convinces his employee to pose as his wife to impress his visiting long-lost brother. Winner of 17 International awards. Spanish with English subtitles. 94 mins