December 2024

Posted December 1, 2024. Additions made December 6.

Contents

  • The Cinema Lounge ONLINE
  • Adam's Rib: The Terminator, 40 Years Later
  • The 68th BFI London Film Festival
  • We Need to Hear From You
  • Calendar of Events

    Last 12 issues of the Storyboard.


    The Cinema Lounge

    On Monday, December 16, 2024 at 8:00pm please join the Cinema Lounge, the DC Film Society's monthly film discussion group.

    TOPIC: Was 1999 Movies' Best Year? with Brian Raftery

    Twenty-five years ago, movies reached a pinnacle of creativity and innovation. Filmmakers took chances and connected with how audiences were feeling, including a discontent younger people in particular had, a rumbling underneath a prosperous America. The characters in many 1999 films wanted to change who they were and their reality. The most severe form was the red pill in The Matrix, but it could also be inventing a new version of yourself (Fight Club), assuming your friend’s identity (The Talented Mr. Ripley), changing your gender (Boys Don’t Cry), immersing yourself in a video game character (eXistenZ), quitting your dead-end job (American Beauty), or sabotaging your dead-end job (Office Space). Perhaps you could also jump into a movie star’s head, as the people in Being John Malkovich did. Or you may realize you were dead after all (The Sixth Sense). Other films such as The Iron Giant, Election, Magnolia and South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut pushed boundaries and featured emerging talents.

    To discuss how the legacy and resonance of 1999, we are honored to be joined by Brian Raftery, author of     Best. Movie. Year. Ever.: How 1999 Blew Up the Big Screen. Brian is a journalist who wrote and hosted the narrative podcasts The Hollywood Hack (2024), Do We Get to Win this Time? (2023), and Gene & Roger (2021), all produced by Spotify and The Ringer. A former senior writer for Wired, Brian’s writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Ringer, and New York, among several other publications. He’s currently at work on a book for Simon & Schuster about the “late, great” Hannibal Lecter.

    Please RSVP to atspector@hotmail.com and you'll get the Zoom link 1-2 days before the discussion.

    The Cinema Lounge, a film discussion group, meets the third Monday of every month (unless otherwise noted) at 8:00pm online via Zoom. You do not need to be a member of the Washington DC Film Society to attend. Cinema Lounge is moderated by Adam Spector, author of the DC Film Society's Adam's Rib column.


    Adam’s Rib: The Terminator, 40 Years Later

    In 1984 Ronald Reagan’s reelection campaign featured the famous “Morning in America” TV ad, filled with sunny optimism. Many blockbusters that year, such as Beverly Hills Cop, Ghostbusters, The Karate Kid, The Natural, and Splash reflected those good spirits. In November 2024, I did not feel optimistic. I did not feel happy. So when I decided to go back to 1984 I did not pick the films listed above. I picked The Terminator. Writer-director James Cameron ingeniously told a futuristic dystopian story set mostly during the then-present day. He launched his own record-breaking career while making Arnold Schwarzenegger a star along the way. My Modern Classics series continues with a reflection on this dark sci-fi action masterpiece in a new Adam’s Rib column.


    The 68th BFI London Film Festival

    By Ron Gordner, DC Film Society Member

    The 68th BFI London Film Festival sponsored by American Express was held October 9-20, 2024. The festival originated in 1957 and is somewhat a festival of festivals since it has many of the better films not yet released from earlier important film festivals. A number of world premieres and a bevy of British films are usually offered also. An expanded list of 253 films from 79 countries, and 63 languages, included some online screenings, over 20 world premieres, red carpets, screen talks, and special programs. This year there were a record 230,342 physical persons in attendance during 12 days. Occupancy per screen averaged 92% and 44% of the films had female or non-binary director involvement. Over 815 international filmmakers, XR artists and an industry forum of 3,000 delegates were involved this year.



    Categories or Sections of films included: Headline Galas, Special Presentations, Official Competitions, Love, Debate, Laugh, Dare, Thrill, Cult, Journey, Create, Family, Treasures, and Experimental films with smaller samples of films and highlighted films directed or co-directed by women and minorities. The LFF Expanded Immersive Arts also showcased 14 projects from a variety of countries showing at the Bargehouse at Oxo Tower Wharf and some in sections of the BFI Southbank complex.

    A new wrinkle in press screenings possibly to avoid long queuing was to have participants book screenings two days ahead starting at 8am (London time). This was seen by many as a double-edged sword or issue. It did cut down on lines, but you had to sign in early to book for the entire day and the site allowed you to book overlapping or similarly timed screened films. You were snapped if you booked and did not show up to scan your code for entry, and three strikes and your registration was nulled. So people would unbook at the last minute, so you would have to keep checking the site for possible open booking which was a pain. You could make up your mind to change films but it created chaos for people waiting to get into apparently booked screenings. There were still some small lines for rushing popular titles like Queer and Anora. You were also supposed to get to the theatres 15 minutes early or seats may be opened but I did not find this to be enforced and saw people often entering very late. This was the other negative issue, that having bookings, a number of people would enter late into screenings disrupting others. Seats were general audience, not seat assigned except for some disabled seats. Overlapped bookings also meant you could watch an hour of one film and then leave and go into another booked film.

    Kristy Matheson completed her second year as a fairly new festival director at the helm. In-person tickets were about 10 pounds each and available for only about five pounds for 18-25 year olds, and usually some complimentary access for young film students. A number of industry and media programs and special event speakers were also available. Screen Talks were presented with interviews with Andrea Arnold, Sean Baker, Daniel Kaluuya, Mike Leigh, Steve McQueen, Lupita Nyong’o, Zoe Saldana, Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, and Denis Villeneuve.


    MUST SEE FILMS:

  • All Shall Be Well (Ray Yeung, Hong Kong/China; 2024). Teddy Winner at this year’s Berlin Film Festival. Pat and Angie are senior lesbians who have spent over 40 years together somewhat open in their relationship but not totally with families. When Pat unexpectedly dies all kinds of family relationships and bureaucratic issues hinder Angie’s future.

  • All We Imagine as Light (Payal Kapadia, France/India/Netherlands/Luxembourg; 2024). Cannes’ Grand Prix winner is a delicate film about the interconnected lives of three working-class women in modern Mumbai, India who have find themselves sometimes unfamiliar in the urban landscape to their rural homes and families.

  • Blitz (Steve McQueen, United Kingdom; 2024). The opening gala and world premiere film from the writer/director of 12 Years a Slave, finds Saorise Ronan, as an East End mother working in a munitions factory who must decide to send her young bi-racial son Geroge to the English countryside for safety during the German bombing of London in World War II. Ronan may be nominated for an Oscar for this or for her work in the film The Outrun. The young actor playing George is also excellent in his many travails determined to reunite with his mother and grandfather.

  • I’m Still Here (Walter Salles; Brazil/France; 2024). Renowned director of films like Central Station and The Motorcycle Diaries has this time a film about Eunie (Fernanda Torred) captured and tortured by the military in 1970s Brazil who must live also apart from her close family for protection. Her older self is played by her real mother and famous actress Fernanda Montegro. Torres and the director were in attendance for Q&A sessions after some public screenings. The film is the Brazilian nominee for Best International Feature Film and has strong buzz to be at least in the final five selected.

  • Memoir of a Snail (Adam Elliot, Australia; 2024). An animated tale of twins Grace and Gilbert separated in childhood. One going to a strict abusive family and the other going to a pretty liberated loving family. Grace tries to find a way for them to reunite although far away and meets an older friend Pinky who has had a full and interesting life. Voice actors include Sarah Snook, Eric Bana, and Jacki Weaver.

  • The Room Next Door (Pedro Almodovar, Spain; 2024). The famous Spanish director’s first English language film starring Tilda Swinton and Julianne Moore as former lovers and now friends on a countryside restorative trip for one of the women, Ingrid, facing terminal cancer. Golden Lion winner at the Venice Film Festival it is scheduled to screen in the U.S around Christmas and can be seen also at this year’s AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.

  • Sound Track to a Coup D’Etat (Johan Grimonprez, Belgium/France/Netherlands; 2024). Based on the final period of Patrice Lumumba’s reign in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 1960, this is a wonderful collage and mix of post-war jazz, U.S. involvement and growing decolonization forces. It also can be seen at this year’s AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.

  • To A Land Unknown (Mahdi Fleifel, United Kingdom/Palestine/France/Greece/Qatar/Germany/ Saudi Arabia; 2024). Palestinian refugees stuck in Greece trying to get passage to Germany go through many trials and self-examination of their ethics and the dangers of staying in Greece versus the travel and maybe hazards in Europe if reached. It also screens at this year’s AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.

  • Vermiglio (Maura Delpero, Italy/France/Belgium; 2024). Silver Lion Grand Jury Prize winner at this year’s Venice Film Festival is a gorgeous cinematographic family saga in the Italian Alps of a family living near the end of World War II with a strong patriarch and a new deserting soldier who finds himself hiding in the isolated mountain village. Italy’s strong nominee for Best International Feature Film It also can be seen at this year’s AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.

  • When Fall is Coming (Francois Ozon; France; 2024). French auteur director Ozon has a more subtle film in a French countryside village about Marie-Claude. She is a retired woman with an estranged daughter and grandson whose past may come to haunt her calm life. Helen Vincent and Josiane Belasko are wonderful as older friends with generational traumas.


    VERY GOOD FILMS:

  • Baby (Marcelo Caetano, Brazil; 2024). Wellington, is a young gay teen who is released from a juvenile detention center but finds his parents have taken off to parts unknown. He goes to Sao Paulo and befriends an older hustler Ronaldo and creates a type of family but yearns for more.

  • Bring Them Down (Christopher Andrews, Ireland/United Kingdom/Belgium; 2024). Rival Irish rural shepherding families and patriarchal and generational toxic aggression spark continuing violent acts and grieving traumas. Excellent acting from Chrisopher Abbott, Barry Keoghan, and Colm Meaney. Picked up by streamer MUBI but may have theatrical release also in 2025.

  • Four Mothers (Darren Thornton, Ireland/United Kingdom; 2024). Wonderful comedy/drama adapted from the Italian film Mid-August Lunch finds Edward, a novelist trying to write and take care of his elderly mother at the same time. Some of his friends have the same issue but want to go on a European holiday. If you can care for your mother what harm is adding three more women to your care for a few days?

  • Frewaka (Aislinn Clarke, Ireland; 2024). Shoo, a grieving care worker is sent to rural Ireland to care for a woman afraid to leave her house. The woman also believes in Na Sidhe, demons of Irish folklore who want to abduct her. In the Irish language this slow burn horror film forces Shoo to face her own hidden fears also. It will also screen at this year’s AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.

  • Grand Tour (Miguel Gomes, Portugal/Italy/France; 2024). Gomes won Best Director at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. A black and white film set in 1917 Rangoon finds Edward, an engaged government civil servant who disappears on his wedding day. His fiancée Molly sets out to find him. This is Portugal’s submission for Best International Feature Film also screens at this year’s AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.

  • Holloway (Sophie Compton, United Kingdom; 2024). A documentary based on interviewing six women who had been incarcerated in Holloway, one of the largest European female prisons. Each woman revisits the now empty prison and recounts her own personal stories.

  • Joy (Ben Taylor, United Kingdom; 2024). The history (1960s) of nurse Jean Purdy, scientist Robert Edwards, and surgeon Patrick Septoe in in vitro fertilization research which took many years to develop and be accepted by medicine, religion, and society. A very timely film in our current political climate. Excellent ensemble acting by Thomasin McKenzie, James Norton, and Bill Nighy. It will also later screen on Netflix.

  • Misericordia (Alain Guiraude, France/Spain/Portugal; 2024). Director of the lauded Stranger by the Lake has another unpredictable story of untamed desire. Returning to his small French village for a funeral, Jeremie stays with a widow and draws the wrath of her jealous son and overlapping themes of disappearing people, violent neighbors and a very strange priest. It will also screen at this year’s AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.

  • Mother Vera (Cecile Embleton, Alys Tomlinson, United Kingdom; 2024). A feature documentary about Sister Vera who has a shady past and has ventured to the snowy Belarusian wooded monastery. She finds her power and self-acceptance amid other trials and personal desires.

  • Santosh (Sandhya Suri, United Kingdom/France/Germany; 2024). When Santosh’s husband in killed during his police duties, she is faced with going to her husband’s unfriendly family or has the right to assume his duties as a police officer in Northern India which includes maneuvering the police duties, corruption, and self-acceptance for survival in a hostile worksite. This is the United Kingdom’s submission for Best International Feature Film.

  • Sebastian (Mikko Makela, United Kingdom/Belgium/Finland; 2024). Max, a young hopeful writer, assumes a double life as an escort named Sebastian to capture the realism, empathy, and dialog of what an escort and his clients experience. When does the research end and is he Max or Sebastian?

  • Shambala (Min Bahadur, Nepal/France/Norway/Turkey/Hong Kong/China/Taiwan/U.S./Qatar; 2024). Pema, a young wife and newly pregnant must try to find her missing husband Tashi in the mountains since local gossip questions the origins of her pregnancy. She is joined by Tashi’s brother on the trek who is a Buddhist monk and the treacherous trip is also one of self-discover for both. This is Nepal’s submission for Best International Feature Film.

  • Superboys of Malegaon (Reema Kagti, India; 2024). Based on some real events and people, Nasir Shaikh is a young man who thinks only about being in a Bollywood action hero film similar to Superman. He and his friends create their own amateur films based on hero stories amid some more serious dramatic story threads. This may stream later on Amazon Prime.

  • Under the Volcano (Damian Kocur, Poland; 2024). A Ukrainian family is on vacation on Tenerife when Russia invades Ukraine and are stuck longer and trying to communicate with loved ones at home. There is also tension since Russian families also are vacationing at their hotel. This is Poland’s submission for Best International Feature Film and will also screen at this year’s AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.


    GOOD FILMS:

  • Architecton (Victor Kossakovsky, Germany/France/U.S./French Polynesia; 2024). Cinematic poet to the civilizations of concrete and stone and magnificent ruins around the world many caused by Nature and the question of their and human survival over time. It also screens at this year’s AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.

  • The Assessment (Fleur Fortune, Germany; 2024). A futuristic film where couples must apply to become parents through a rigorous several-day interview in their home. Actors include Alicia Vikander as the interviewer and Elizabeth Olsen and Himesh Patel as the hopeful couple.

  • Elton John: Never Too Late (R.J. Cutler, David Furnish [Elton’s husband]; 2024). A documentary about Elton John based on 50 years of archival and recent footage. It includes some little or never seen concert footage. A fairly honest portrayal of his early life and coming out and dealing with drugs and rehab and late marriage and fatherhood. Perhaps some of the warts are not exposed since it is a Disney+ film.

  • Julie Keeps Quiet (Leonardo Van Dijl, Belgium/Sweden; 2024). A rising tennis prodigy, Julie likes her tough coach but other players are suggesting he has had inappropriate actions with students. Has she had similar experiences and will she come forward with any accusations? This is Belgium’s submission for Best International Film and will also screen at the AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.

  • Kamay (Ryas Yourish, Shakrokh Bikaran; Afghanistan/Belgium/France/Germany; 2024). A documentary on a grieving Hazara family in rural Afghanistan wanting justice from Kabul University where their daughter Zahra was belittled in her research attempts and committed suicide. Told by her younger sister Freshta but not facially filmed.

  • Layla (Amrou Al-Kadhi, United Kingdom; 2024). Layla is a famous Palestinian-British drag queen who meets a straight-laced Max. Can their differences help or hinder possible romance?

  • Maldoror (Fabrice du Welz; Belgium/France; 2024). A 1990’s famous child kidnapping case in Belgium involves a new young talented officer who must try to solve the case and maneuver the barriers in law enforcement. It will also screen at this year’s AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.

  • Maria (Pablo Larrain, Italy/Germany/U.S.; 2024). Although being lauded by some, I am recommending it primarily for the secondary actors Pierfrancesco Favino and Alba Rohrwacher as Maria Callas’ servants and the cinematography and the music. Angelina Jolie does an ok job as Callas in later life and apparent poor health, but it is hard at times to see past Jolie herself in the role with pursed lips and wooden posing that reduces Callas to a strained shadow of her former vibrant self. It is currently in theaters and will stream on Netflix.

  • My Everything (Anne-Sophie Bailly, France; 2024). Laure Calamy is excellent as a mother trying to find romance but tied to her disabled son’s needs.

  • Patrice: The Movie (Ted Passon, U.S.; 2024). A motivational documentary about Patrice, an adult disabled woman whose positivity rallies her community to follow her dreams as a crossing guard, artist, ice skater and to marry her disabled boyfriend Garry.

  • The Summer Book (Charlie McDowell, Finland/U.S.; 2024). Based on Tove Jannson’s novel, this is a quiet story of a father and daughter after the wife dies visiting the grandmother (Glenn Close) during the summer on a remote Finnish island. Beautiful cinematography with a simple family relationship. This is the opening film at this year’s AFI European Union Film Showcase at the AFI Silver Theatre in December.

  • Twiggy (Sadie Frost, United Kingdom; 2024). A documentary about a young girl Lesley Hornby who in the mid 1960’s became the new androgynous look of models and with her large eyes and new name Twiggy captured the fashion world in England, America and the world. Her continued successful career in various venues such as singing and acting have made her an ongoing icon.

  • Universal Language (Matthew Rankin, Canada; 2024). Farsi speaking Winnipeg resident Omid guides tourists to very odd places in Winnipeg he feels are important historical sites. A recurring theme is Omid trying to find his glasses which were stolen by a turkey in this somewhat deadpan comedy. It is Canada’s submission for Best International Feature Film.

  • We Live in Time (Nick Payne, United Kingdom/France; 2024). Poignant British drama about love found and lost starring Florence Pugh as a chef and Andrew Garfield after meeting in a car crash. Relationship issues such as wanting children, terminal illness and support, and grief are explored.


    Award Winners:

    Official Competition Winner, Best Film: Memoir of a Snail (Adam Elliot, Australia; 2024).

    First Feature Competition (Sutherland Award): On Falling (Laura Carreira, United Kingdom/Portugal; 2024).

    Audience Award Feature: Four Mothers (Darren Thornton, Ireland/United Kingdom; 2024). Audience Award Documentary: Holloway (Sophie Taracampton, Daisy May Hudson, United Kingdom; 2024). Audience Award Short: Two Minutes (Jamie Benyon, United Kingdom; 2023).

    Documentary Competition Winner (Grierson Award): Mother Vera (Cecile Embleton, Alys Tomlinson, United Kingdom; 2024).

    Short Film Competition Winner, Best Short Film Award: Vibrations from Gaza (Rehab Nazzal, Palestine/Canada; 2023).

    See     the website for more information.


    We Need to Hear From YOU

    We are always looking for film-related material for the Storyboard. Our enthusiastic and well-traveled members have written about their trips to the Cannes Film Festival, Karlovy Vary Film Festival, London Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto Film Festival, Austin Film Festival, Edinburgh Film Festival, the Berlin Film Festival, the Palm Springs Film Festival, the Reykjavik Film Festival, the Munich Film Festival, the Virginia Film Festival, the Locarno Film Festival, The Nitrate Picture Show, and the Chicago Critics Film Festival. We also heard about what it's like being an extra in the movies. Have you gone to an interesting film festival? Have a favorite place to see movies that we aren't covering in the Calendar of Events? Seen a movie that blew you away? Read a film-related book? Gone to a film seminar? Interviewed a director? Taken notes at a Q&A? Read an article about something that didn't make our local news media? Send your contributions to Storyboard and share your stories with the membership. And we sincerely thank all our contributors for this issue of Storyboard.


    Calendar of Events

    FILMS

     American Film Institute Silver Theater
    The 37th annual "2024 AFI European Union Film Showcase" (December 4-22) is the big event for December. Fifty-four films from all 27 EU countries are shown, some with Q&As and/or receptions. Films include international film festival award winners, European box office hits and debut works by promising new talents, plus many countries' official Oscar submissions for Best International Feature Film. The Opening Night film is Summer Book from Finland and the Closing Night film is The Room Next Door from Spain. A festival pass is available.

    "Special Engagements" for December includes the anime/music Interstella 5555 (Kazuhisa Takenouch, 2003) in a new 4K remaster, followed by six music videos from Daft Punk; Amadeus (1984); Dinner in America (2020); "Best of the 48 Hour Film Holiday Project; Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2024); Paris, Texas (1984); the new 4K restoration of the animated Time Masters (1982); Pulp Fiction (1994) shown in 35mm; and The Wizard of Oz (1939).

    "Holiday Classics" (December 13-24) is an annual series of Holiday films. Select screenings feature introductions by Jeremy Arnold, author of "Christmas in the Movies: 30 Classics to Celebrate the Season." Titles include Metropolitan (1990); The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) in a restored Director's Cut; Elf (2003); Die Hard (1988); It's a Wonderful Life (1946); Black Christmas (1974); Little Women (1994); Meet Me in St. Louis (1944); and Gremlins (1984) shown with a cartoon Falling Hare (1943).

    "AFI Silver After Dark" is a series of midnight-style movies. The film for December is Black Christmas (1974) from Canada, also part of the Holiday movies.

    "Anime Expo Cinema Nights" (September 11, 2024-March 16, 2025) presents some of the most influential anime films. The series continues in December with Babymetal Legend-43 The Movie (Hiroya Brian Nakano, 2024), from Japan, shown December 11.

    Freer Gallery of Art
    On December 11 at 2:00pm is the great classic film Ugetsu (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1953) part of the "Japanese Classics" series of films.

    National Gallery of Art
    The series "Art Films and Special Screenings" presents the documentary 1874, The Birth of Impressionism (Julien Johan, 2024) on December 1 at 2:00pm and December 28 at 2:00pm. Note that this film has one more showing in January.

    The subject of the Rajiv Vaidya Memorial Lecture for 2024 is filmmaker Mira Nair who will present her 1988 award-winning film Salaam Bombay! on December 8 at 2:00pm.

    "Gordon Parks: Early Documentaries" is a two-part series to accompany the exhibit "Gordon Parks: Camera Portraits from the Corcoran Collection." On December 14 at 2:00pm is "Films by Gordon Parks: Harlem Family and other shorts" introduced by Philip Brookman, curator of the exhibit. The three short films shown in this program are from Brazil Flavio (1964); Harlem Diary of a Harlem Family (1968); and Spanish Harlem The World of Piri Thomas (1968). On December 15 at 2:00pm is part 2 "Films by Gordon Parks: Moments without Proper Names," with the filmic poem Moments Without Proper Names (1988) and Martin (1989), based on Parks' ballet on the life of Martin Luther King.

    "New Restorations: The ’80s Rewind" is a program of three newly restored films. On December 21 at 2:00pm is Candy Mountain (Robert Frank and Rudy Wurlitzer, 1987); on December 22 at 2:00pm is Paris, Texas (Wim Wenders, 1984); and on December 29 at 2:00pm is Amadeus (Milos Forman, 1984).

    Museum of American History
    On December 15 at 1:30pm is a discussion of composer-lyricist Irving Berlin's legacy followed by a singalong screening of the classic film White Christmas (Michael Curtiz, 1954). Location: The Warner Bros. Theater.

    National Museum of African American History and Culture
    On December 13 at 7:00pm is Unfinished Conversations, a documentary companion to the exhibit "In Slavery's Wake: Making Black Freedom in the World." A discussion will take place after the screening. Location: The Oprah Winfrey Theater.

    National Portrait Gallery
    On December 1 at 11:30am is a program of short films commissioned by Visual AIDS, part of the "Day With(out) Art" program. Location: McEvoy Auditorium.

    Washington Jewish Community Center
    On December 8 at 6:00pm is the short documentary The Path Forward (Julie Cohen and Mo Husseini, 2024). On December 12 at 7:30pm is Midas Man (Joe A. Stephenson, 2024) about Brian Epstein, the mastermind behind The Beatles’ meteoric rise. Jacob Fortune-Lloyd portrays Brian Epstein.

    French Embassy
    On December 3 at 7:00pm is a documentary The Heart of the Games (Jules and Gédéon Naudet, 2024), episodes 3 and 4, about the Paris 2024 Olympic games. A panel discussion takes place between the episodes.

    The Japan Information and Culture Center
    On December 5 at 6:30pm is Tampopo (Juzo Itami, 1986).

    Cinema Arts Bethesda
    "Cinema Arts Bethesda" is a monthly Sunday morning film discussion series held at Landmark's Bethesda Row Cinema. On December 15 at 10:00am is Crossing (Levan Akin, 2024) from Georgia.

    Breakfast is at 9:30am, the film is at 10:00am and discussion follows, moderated by Adam Spector, host of the DC Film Society's Cinema Lounge and author of the column "Adam's Rib." A season pass is available.

    The Avalon
    On December 1 at 10:30am is Van Gogh: Poets and Lovers (David Bickerstaff, 2024) in the "Exhibition on Screen" series.

    On December 4 at 8:00pm is Exhibiting Forgiveness (Titus Kaphar, 2024), part of the "Programmer's Choice" series.

    On December 11 at 8:00pm is Running on Sand (Adar Shafran, 2023) for "Reel Israel."

    Two Holiday movies are shown in December: Elf (Jon Favreau, 2003) on December 21 at 10:30am and It's a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1947) on December 22 at 10:30am.

    Kennedy Center
    On December 1 at 3:00pm is "Elf in Concert." Elf (Jon Favreau, 2003) will be accompanied by the National Symphony Orchestra with Steven Reineke conducting the score by John Debney. Location: Concert Hall.

    On December 1 at 3:00pm is Peggy Sue Got Married (Francis Ford Coppola, 1986) starring Kathleen Turner. On December 15 at 3:00pm is Frozen (2013). On December 22 at 3:00pm is Scrooged (1988). On December 29 at 3:00pm is National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989). Location: The Justice Forum.

    Embassy of Austria
    On December 4 at 6:15pm is a panel discussion and film screening of Ingeborg Bachmann: Journey into the Desert (Margarethe von Trotta, 2023) featuring two literary icons, Austrian poet and author Ingeborg Bachmann and Swiss author Max Frisch, with Vicky Krieps portraying Ingeborg Bachman. Swiss and Austrian wines will be served before the start of the event.

    Old Greenbelt Theater
    In the "Cinema Classics" series is A Christmas Story (Bob Clark, 1983) on December 2 at 1:00pm and December 5 at 8:00pm.

    On December 19 at 8:00pm is American Psycho (Mary Harron, 2000), part of the "Cult Classics" series shown on the third Thursday of the month.

    Alden Theater
    The foreign film for December is the animated Japanese film Tokyo Godfathers (2003) shown on December 5 at 1:00pm and December 18 at 6:30pm. The performing arts film this month is Matthew Bourne's “Nutcracker!” (2021).

    Angelika Film Center Mosaic
    The "Angelika Classics" series shows classic films on the first Monday of the month at 7:00pm. On December 2 at 7:00pm is Spaceballs (1987).

    "Pajama Party" (Holiday Favorites) are shown throughout December. On December 1 at 10:00am is Arthur Christmas (2011); on December 4 at 7:00pm, December 14 at 10:00am and December 15 at 10:00am is Elf (2003); on December 7 at 10:00am and December 8 at 10:00am is Polar Express (2004); and on December 21 at 10:00am and December 22 at 10:00am is Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000).

    "Dinner With..." is on the fourth Monday of the month at 7:00pm. On December 23 at 7:00pm is The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960) starring Jack Lemon.

    "Classics in Black and White" features a classic B&W film on the third Monday of each month at 7:00pm. On December 16 at 7:00pm is The Thin Man (1934).

    Korean Cultural Center
    On December 4 at 5:00pm is the award-winning Christmas In August (Hur Jin-Ho, 1998). On December 18 at 6:00pm is Decision to Leave (Park Chan-wook, 2022). Check the website for RSVP.


    FILM FESTIVALS

    GALA FILM FEST: Latin American Innovation
    Seven Latin American films are shown December 4-8 from emerging young directors. Q&As and receptions are part of the festival. A pass is available. Titles include The Punishment (Matias Bize, 2022) from Chile/Argentina; About Thirty (Martin Shanly, 2023) from Argentina; Rain (Rodrigo Garcia, 2023) from Mexico; Love and Mathematics (Claudia Sainte-Luce, 2022) from Mexico; Alien Island (Cristobal Valenzuela, 2023) from Chile; Take Me in Your Arms (Julio Bracho, 1954) from Mexico; and Malta (Natalia Santa, 2024) from Colombia.

    AFI European Union Film Showcase
    The 37th annual "2024 AFI European Union Film Showcase" (December 4-22) is the big event for December. Fifty-four films from all 27 EU countries are shown, some with Q&As and/or receptions. Films include international film festival award winners, European box office hits and debut works by promising new talents, plus many countries' official Oscar submissions for Best International Feature Film. The Opening Night film is Summer Book from Finland and the Closing Night film is The Room Next Door from Spain. A festival pass is available; see the website for titles and more information.



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