May 2008
FILM
Menu of this month's listings, stories and columns '
Film Salon -- The Film Salon at Trinity First United Methodist Church, Mesa & Yandell, celebrates its 6th Anniversary Saturday, May 3, in Resler Hall. Reception begins at 7 p.m. with a special program and film commentary, including summary of films shown to date, at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free. Nursery available with two-day advance reservation. Information: 533-2674 or filmsalon.org.
The salon’s summer season includes an eclectic ride through some of the finest fantasy films of the past including Jean Cocteau’s “Beauty and The Beast (La Belle et La Bete)” (June 7), Walt Disney’s “Sleeping Beauty” (July 5) and Michael Powell’s version of “The Thief of Bagdad” (Aug. 2). Showtime is 7:30 p.m.
‘Black Gold’ -- Pax Christi Film Series presents a free screening of documentary and in-depth look at the world of coffee and global trade at 3 p.m. Sunday, May 4, at El Convento de Loretto Room 106, 1400 Hardaway. The film shows the obstacles Ethiopian coffee growers face from multinational corporations and makes a quiet case for having a code of global conduct in doing business. Admission is free, donations welcome. Information: 532-0527 or paxchristiusa.org.
Movie Night in the Philanthropy Theatre -- The theatre in The Plaza Theatre Annex will host a classic movie at 6 p.m. the first Wednesday of the month. Drinks and light fare offered at 5 p.m. in the Oasis Lounge in the annex. The May 7 movie is “The Sting.” Admission: $5. Information: 231-1176.
‘The Last Conquistador’ -- Filmmaker John J. Valadez will present a free screening of his upcoming film for the award winning PBS series “POV” at 7 p.m. Friday, May 16, at the Chamizal National Memorial, 800 S. San Marcial. The show will air nationwide this summer. A discussion with Valadez will follow the screening. Information: 532-7273.
Filmmakers John J. Valadez and Cristina Ibarra spent seven years trailing renowned sculptor John Houser as he pursued his quixotic quest.
When Houser began creating a monument to the Spanish conquistador Juan de Oñate for the city of El Paso it was supposed to be a little larger than life size. But, he secretly harbored a dream: to build the largest bronze equestrian statue ever created in human history. Cloistered in a remote and forgotten corner of Mexico City, John and his son Ethan worked endlessly for ten years crafting an exquisite and foreboding icon.
Movies at Branigan Library -- Thomas Branigan Memorial Library, 200 E. Picacho, shows films at 2 p.m. on the fourth Sunday of every month in the Dresp Room. Admission is free. Information: Elise Vidal, (575) 528-4014.
The May 25 movie is the political thriller “The Lives of Others.” Before the collapse of the Berlin Wall, East Germany’s population was closely monitored by the State Secret Police or Stasi. Only a few citizens above suspicion, like pro-Socialist playwright Georg Dreyman were permitted to lead private lives. Times change when a corrupt government official falls for Dreyman’s girlfriend, and an ambitious Stasi policeman is ordered to bug the writer’s apartment to gain incriminating evidence against the rival.
Fellini Film Cafe -- The cafe at 220 Cincinnati offers movie foreign or alternative film showings at 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Foreign language films have English subtitles. Cafe hours are 2 to 10 p.m. Admission: $5 minimum coffee shop purchase. Information: 544-5420 or fellinifilmcafe@aol.com.
Fountain Theatre -- 2469 Calle de Guadalupe, 1/2 block south of the plaza in Mesilla. The historic theater, operated by the Mesilla Valley Film Society, features films at 7:30 p.m. nightly, plus 2:30 p.m. Sunday.
Admission: $7 ($6 seniors and students with ID; $5 society members and children); $5 on Wednesday; $6 for Sunday matinee. Information, film schedule: fountaintheatre.org.
-- Through May 1: “4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days.” Drama about a woman who assists her friend to arrange an illegal abortion in 1980s Romania.
-- May 2-8: ”In Bruges.” Holed up in Bruges, Belgium after a difficult job, two hit men begin to differ on their views of life and death as they become used to local customs.
-- May 9-15: “The Counterfeiters.” Set in a Nazi concentration camp, this drama centers on history’s biggest counterfeit operation. Prisoners must choose between aiding the Third Reich in their moneymaking scheme and their own well-being.
-- May 16-22: “Caramel.” In Beirut, five women meet regularly in a beauty salon where their intimate and liberated conversations revolve around men, sex and motherhood, between haircuts and sugar waxing with caramel.
-- May 23-29: “Vanaja.” Set in rural South India, Vanaja explores the chasm that divides social classes as a young girl struggles to come of age.
-- May 30-June 5: “Flawless.” A crime drama set in 1960 London, where a soon-to-retire janitor convinces an American executive to help him steal a handful of diamonds from their employer.
The CinéMatinee Film series is 1:30 p.m. every Saturday, focusing on New Mexico and western themes. Admission: $4 ($1 for society members). See separate listing for schedule.
CinéMatinee Film Series -- Films with western, rural or New Mexico themes are shown at 1:30 p.m. Saturdays at the Fountain Theatre, 2469 Calle de Guadalupe, 1/2 block south of the plaza in Mesilla. Admission: $4 ($1 for Mesilla Valley Film Society members), unless otherwise listed. Information: (575) 522-0286 or (575) 524-8287.
-- May 3 -- “Santitos” (2000). A hilarious Mexican comedy of Catholicism, religious visions and wrestling stars. Rated R (in Spanish with English subtitles).
A screening of the 10-minute film, “The Tehuacan Project,” a documentary about two deaf individuals hoping to find a cure at Mexico’s first school for the deaf, precedes the film.
-- May 10 -- “Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid” (1973). Sam Peckinpah’s final western stars Kris Kristofferson as Billy the Kid and James Coburn as lawman Pat Garrett. In this director’s cut the film stands as one of Peckinpah’s most beautiful and complex films, killing the Western myth even as he salutes it. Rated R.
Live music by James Michael precedes the screening at 1 p.m.
-- May 17 -- “Payday” (1972). Rip Torn stars as a singer-songwriter struggling to hold onto his footing as one of the top names in country & western music. Rated R
-- May 24 -- “A Prairie Home Companion.” (2006) In anticipation of the live version of this long-running NPR show coming to Las Cruces, Cinematinee presents the film version of Garrison Keillor’s program, directed by the late Robert Altman. Starring Keillor, Meryl Streep, Lily Tomlin, Woody Harrelson, John C. Reilly, Lindsay Lohan, Kevin Kline and L.Q. Jones. Rated PG-13.
Two tickets to the May 31 live performance will be given away at the screening.
-- May 31 -- “Coyote Waits” (2003). Based on Tony Hillerman’s bestselling novel, the story once again teams Jim Chee and Joe Leaphorn. Not Rated. Filmed in New Mexico.
New Mexico Museum of Space History -- Alamogordo, N.M. The museum’s Tombaugh IMAX Dome Theater presents:
-- “Dolphins” (noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.). Journey from the warm waters of the Bahamas to the colder shores of Argentina and beyond to visit the world of these intelligent, playful mammals.
-- “T-Rex: Back to the Cretaceous” (11 a.m. and 1 p.m.). Photo-realistic, 3D stereoscopic dinosaurs are brought to life.
-- “Blue Planet” -- (3 and 5 p.m. daily; and 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday with planetarium show). Filmed by astronauts from five space shuttle missions, “Blue Planet” shows the forces affecting earth’s fragile ecological balance.
Tickets: $6 ($5.50 for seniors and military; $4.50 ages 4-12). Evening show at 6 p.m. Friday includes planetarium show, and is $6.50 for everyone. Ages 3 and under free for all shows. Information: (877) 333-6589 or (575) 437-2840 or nmspacemuseum.org.
Jay’s Film Forecast -- Film historian Jay Duncan prepared this list of top monthly “Coming Attractions” for movie fans, listed by studio and release date. Release dates are subject to change.
May 2:
-- Iron Man (Paramount)--Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard. Directed by Jon Favreau.
-- Made of Honor (Sony Pictures Entertainment) -- Patrick Dempsey, Michelle Monaghan, Kevin McKidd. Directed by Paul Weiland.
-- Mister Lonely (IFC Films) -- Diego Luna, Samantha Morton, Denis Lavant. Directed by Harmony Korine.
-- Son of Rambow (Paramount Vantage) -- Bill Milner, Zofia Brooks, Neil Dudgeon. Directed by Garth Jennings.
May 9:
-- Frontier(s) (After Dark Films) -- Karina Testa, Aurelien Wiik, Patrick Ligardes. Directed by Xavier Gens.
-- Redbelt (Sony Pictures Classics) -- Chiwetel Ejiofor, Emily Mortimer, Tim Allen. Directed by David Mamet.
-- Speed Racer (Warner Bros.) -- Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci, Matthew Fox. Directed by Andy and Larry Wachowski. (Based on the 1967 animated TV show)
-- What Happens in Vegas… (20th Century Fox) -- Cameron Diaz, Ashton Kutcher, Queen Latifah. Directed by Tom Vaughan.
May 16:
-- The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (Walt Disney) -- George Henley, Skandar Keynes, William Moseley. Directed by Andrew Adamson. (second of four planned movies)
May 23:
-- Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (Paramount) -- Harrison Ford, Cate Blanchett, Shia LeBeouf. Directed by Steven Spielberg. (fourth in series)
May 30:
-- The Foot Fist Way (Paramount Vantage) -- Danny R. McBride, Mary Jane Bostic, Ben Best. Directed by Jody Hill.
-- Sex and the City: The Movie (New Line Cinema) -- Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Cynthia Nixon. Directed by Michael Patrick King. (Based on the television show)
-- The Strangers (Rogue Pictures) -- Scott Speedman, Liv Tyler, Gemma Ward. Directed by Bryan Bertino.
DVD/Video Releases
May 6
-- I’m Not There / R
-- P.S. I Love You / PG-13
-- First Sunday / PG-13
May 13
-- Untraceable / R
-- Youth Without Youth / R
-- The Great Debaters / PG-13
-- Mad Money / PG-13
May 20
-- National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets / PG
-- Strange Wilderness / R
May 27
-- Rambo / R / PG-13
-- Cassandra’s Dream / PG-13
El Paso Scene MONTHLY
This month's listings,
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Roundup
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Here's the Ticket
Program Notes
On Stage
Sports
Southwest Art Scene
At the Museum
History Lessons
Nature
Film Scene
Keep on Bookin'
Becoming Bicultural
Liner Notes
Stage Talk
Gallery Talk
Better ParentingCopyright 2008 by Cristo Rey Communications.