LIQUID SKY now handled by Chicago Cinema Society in collaboration with Director Slava Tsukerman.

The Chicago Cinema Society is incredibly excited to announce that we are working with Director Slava Tsukerman to arrange 35mm screenings of LIQUID SKY nationwide. A few years back, The Chicago Cinema Society managed to obtain a 35mm print of LIQUID SKY with perfect color and in good condition which is now a part of The Chicago Cinema Society Film Archive. If you are already not familiar with Liquid Sky, you need to be, because it is a masterpiece, and this link will help acquaint you:

Just recently, Slava Tsukerman hosted what were termed as the final screenings of Liquid Sky at Quad Cinema in New York City from his personal 35mm print, which has endured much wear over the years, and has now since been retired. Shortly after these screenings, Tsukerman had learned of our film archive and that we had a 35mm print of Liquid Sky. Slava then reached out to us to learn more about the print and to collaborate with us on arranging screenings of LIQUID SKY using our 35mm print for theatrical screenings. We are thrilled about this collaboration as we have immense love for this film and are excited in helping more people be able to see it in 35mm as it was meant to be seen. If you are a film programmer that has reel to reel 35mm ability, would like to screen our print of Liquid Sky and potentially have Slava Tsukerman attend your screening, please reach out to us at:

contact@chicagocinemasociety.org

Check back at our website or facebook page for more updates on LIQUID SKY screenings.

Posted in News

Nigerien PURPLE RAIN remake “Akounak Tedalat Taha Tazoughai” hosted by The Chicago Cinema Society.

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Starring real life guitarist, Mdou Moctar, Akounak Tedalat Taha Tazoughai is the first-ever Tuareg language feature, and a remake of Prince’s Purple Rain. Akounak tells the universal story of a musician trying to make it against all odds, set against the backdrop of the raucous subculture of Tuareg guitar. Mdou must battle fierce competition from jealous musicians, overcome family conflicts, and endure the trials of love – all while coming to terms with one of the biggest barriers: himself. Musicologist/director Christopher Kirkley first heard the music of Moctar on cellphones in the Sahara and Sahel, where he has been living, traveling and recording music since 2009, then visited him in Niger and recorded a full length album.

https://vimeo.com/148962354

SCREENING INFORMATION:

Akounak Tedalat Taha Tazoughai
Digital Projection
Location: Chicago Filmmakers
5243 N Clark St. 60640
Dates:
March 25th at 8:00pm
March 27th at 7:00pm
Ticket price: $9.00

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Posted in Screenings

DER NACHTMAHR (Chicago Premiere) hosted by The Chicago Cinema Society.

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Jarring, disturbing, and thoroughly disorienting, Der Nachtmahr is a psy­cho­phan­tas­magoric coming-of-age story about a teenage girl thrust into an unnaturally symbiotic relationship.

Secret raves, drugs, and late nights are par for the course for sixteen-year-old Tina (Carolyn Genzkow) and her friends on the decadent Berlin party scene. When Tina passes out at a party one night, she assumes it was just a side effect of her wild lifestyle — that is, until a mysterious creature begins haunting both her dreams and her waking hours. Tina struggles to make those around her see the thing, but to no avail, and as she becomes ever more unsettled and manic, her parents are forced to get her psychiatric help. But as the little beastie seems to lurk around every corner, she is forced to overcome her fears and forge a bond with the monster.

Carolyn Genzkow delivers a spirited performance, and the moody electronic score keeps us on constant edge, but it’s the creepy parasitic manifestation that steals the show: looking like a cross between E.T. and Belial (the twisted brother from Frank Henenlotter’s Basket Case), this nightmare creature is at once repellent and oddly endearing. In his feature directorial debut, multi-disciplinary artist AKIZ gives us a depiction of teen life that balances drug-enhanced highs with the sobering struggle for approval from BFFs, parents, teachers, and doctors. Ratcheting up the unease and tension in the plain light of day as well as in the shadows of night, he has crafted a visually striking tale of teenage paranoia. – by Colin Geddes

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SCREENING INFORMATION:

1st screening:
Digital Projection, 88mins
Location: Chicago Filmmakers
5243 N Clark St. 60640
Date: Saturday, April 16th
Time: 8:00pm
Ticket price: $9.00

2nd screening:
Digital Projection, 88mins
Location: Columbia College (Hokin Hall)
600 S Michigan Ave. 60605
Date: Tuesday, April 19th
Time: 6:30pm
Ticket price: $9.00

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Posted in Screenings

THEY LOOK LIKE PEOPLE and THE INTERIOR double feature hosted by The Chicago Cinema Society

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We are incredibly proud to be hosting a double feature for two of our most favorite independent genre films of 2015:

THEY LOOK LIKE PEOPLE
THE INTERIOR

Perry Blackshear and Trevor Juras, respectively, have tremendous directorial talent and are sure to go on to have magnificent careers in cinema! Be sure not to miss each of their debut features on February 19th and 21st at Chicago Filmmakers!

THEY LOOK LIKE PEOPLE

They look normal. But Wyatt knows that they’re hiding their true form behind their human shells. These diabolical creatures have been secretly living among us since the beginning of time. The day of their uprising is fast approaching. Late one night, Wyatt receives a phone call warning him that these cunning spirits are planning to take over the Earth’s population. Summoned to join this imminent war between good and evil, hardware stores now provide him with the weapons he’ll need. If the need to kill should arise, he’ll do so without hesitation. No one will be able to stop him, not even Christian, an old friend who’s letting him stay in his apartment. Burdened with problems of his own, this anxious, career-driven straight shooter is completely oblivious to Wyatt’s mission. He is aware, however, of his friend’s increasingly strange behavior, which causes him to ultimately expect the worst. In order to save him, Chris will have to confront the Apocalypse that is threatening their friendship.

Perry Blackshear’s THEY LOOK LIKE PEOPLE will freeze your blood from its very first scene. With the help of a simple yet terribly efficient concept, he plunges the viewer into an intensely brutal atmosphere of paranoia. Shying away from sensationalism, this first feature creates fear through silence as it recreates a daily reality identical to ours in which every town, every street and every house can potentially be hiding one of these evildoers. The ambiguity between sanity and lunacy, a recurrent theme of fantastic cinema, is approached unusually as the director sympathetically explores the ties that bind his characters. THEY LOOK LIKE PEOPLE combines horror film and human drama, exploring compassion and loyalty as it achieves the ultimate goal of being both spinetingling and heart-wrenching. — by Simon Laperrière

THE INTERIOR

James is fed up. Fed up with his lifestyle, his boss, his girlfriend. But mostly fed up with himself. To avoid a mental breakdown, this young man spontaneously decides to leave everything behind. First, he quits a high-paying career with promising prospects for a dead-end job. But that’s not enough for James, who yearns for an urgent change of scenery. On the spur of the moment, he flees the chaotic city of Toronto and flies off to beautiful British Columbia. Once there, he discovers a subalpine forest and begins life as a hermit. He wanders aimlessly through the woods, sporadically breaking into cabins in hopes of finding a bit of food and booze. Cut off from civilization, he’s still unable to escape from himself. He’s also feeling observed by some disquieting predator. A man in a red jacket is spying on him, silently logging his every move. And when night falls, insanity kicks in.

Having followed film classes given by none other than Werner Herzog, talented Trevor Juras delivers an engaging first-feature christening with THE INTERIOR, an ambitious Canadian film divided in two disparately different acts. What first looks like mumblecore comedy suddenly turns into a powerful psychological thriller. The noise of city life is replaced by nature’s heavy silence through which the protagonist’s isolation is reflected. His anxiety becomes the viewer’s as he sinks deeper into the magnificently intimidating woods. Itself a character in the film, the forest is filmed with such remarkable deftness as to give it the impression of reacting to James’ psychological torments. Generating genuine moments of pure terror, THE INTERIOR follows a dreamlike experience in which reality capsizes into pure nightmare. — by Simon Laperrière

THEY LOOK LIKE PEOPLE (80mins)
THE INTERIOR (80mins)
Digital Projection
Location: Chicago Filmmakers
5243 N Clark St. 60640
Dates:
February 19th at 7:30pm
February 21st at 7:00pm
Ticket price: $9.00

Posted in Screenings

LOVE & PEACE (Chicago Premiere) hosted by The Chicago Cinema Society at Chicago Filmmakers.

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Describing a Sion Sono film is always a challenge, but this time, the creator of the masterpieces LOVE EXPOSURE and SUICIDE CLUB surpasses himself! With LOVE & PEACE, he fuses together tokusatsu films, the musical and fantastic comedy, throwing in talking toys that inhabit a fairlyland in the Tokyo sewers and casting a critical but loving eye on contemporary Japan. Dusting off a 20-year-old script of his, Sono poured his heart into LOVE & PEACE, for which he composed a few catchy numbers, and kept the special effects old-school for Pikadon and his toybox pals. LOVE & PEACE is a funny, touching and deliciously strange feel-good flick (written by Nicolas Archambault)

SYNOPSIS:

Ryoichi, a disgraced musician, is treated with contempt by his co-workers at the third-rate company where he toils. To bring a little light into his miserable life, he adopts a tiny turtle, which he names Pikadon. With this new companion, Ryoichi’s spirits are lifted enough to rekindle his musical dreams, but the day he brings Pikadon to work, his colleagues force him to flush the reptile down the toilet. Ryoichi is devastated, but his obsession with the animal, oddly, brings him back to music. Meanwhile, Pikadon’s journey through the sewage system leads him to a strange fellow who takes abandoned toys and animals under his wing. The old man even gives them the means to talk. However, a ludicrous mistake invests the Pikadon with the potential for incredible growth. Pikadon and Ryoichi are destined to reconnect in a wild frenzy of love, rock ’n’ roll and collateral damage.

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SCREENING INFORMATION:

LOVE & PEACE
Digital Projection, 117mins
Location: Chicago Filmmakers
5243 N Clark St. 60640
Dates:
January 8th at 8:00pm
January 10th at 7:00pm
Ticket price: $9.00

Love & Peace is one of three Sion Sono films screening as part of this year’s Fantasia International Film Festival. Credit: Fantasia.

Posted in Uncategorized

SUNRISE (Chicago premiere) hosted by The Chicago Cinema Society at Chicago Filmmakers.

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With SUNRISE, Partho Sen-Gupta reveals himself to be, not unlike Anurag Kashyap (UGLY, GANGS OF WASSEYPUR), one of India’s most promising independent filmmakers. Staying off Bollywood’s beaten path, he instead offers with SUNRISE a poignant and maddening noir-inflected thriller, set in Mumbai’s child-trafficking industry. Deliberately provocative, structurally challenging and exquisitely stylized, in alternating Refn-esque garish colours and expressive chiaroscuro that would make Pedro Costa proud, SUNRISE unfolds like a lucid dream, or rather, the nightmare of one police officer, whose guilt materializes as horror. Powerful, bold and uncompromising, there is nothing even remotely sunny about SUNRISE, yet it shines bright, violently eclipsing the competition. (by Ariel Esteban Cayer)

SYNOPSIS:

The life of Inspector Lakshman Joshi (Adil Hussain, seen in LIFE OF PI) has been a living hell ever since his young daughter Aruna vanished without a trace. Driven nearly insane by her disappearance, he walks his police beat by day and furiously roams the streets at night, pursuing an elusive shadow-man into the darkest, seediest, most haunted corners of Mumbai. Night and night again, this fever-dream pursuit leads him to Paradise, a gentlemen’s club where disgusting men prey on underage dancers. Powerless, he heads home every night, to find a broken wife. Another case soon lands on his desk: that of Naina, a kidnapped six-year-old, brought into a nearby brothel. Are Paradise and Naina connected? Joshi spirals further and further downward…

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SUNRISE
1st screening:
Digital Projection, 85mins
Location: Chicago Filmmakers
5243 N Clark St. 60640
Date: Saturday, January 16th
Time: 8:00pm
Ticket price: $9.00

2nd screening:
Digital Projection, 85mins
Location: Columbia College (Hokin Hall)
600 S Michigan Ave. 60605
Date: Tuesday, January 19th
Time: 6:30pm
Ticket price: $9.00

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Posted in Uncategorized

THE CASE OF HANA AND ALICE (Chicago premiere) hosted by The Chicago Cinema Society at Chicago Filmmakers.

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Following several memorable projects, such as ALL ABOUT LILY CHOU-CHOU, auteur Shunji Iwai surprises us with a more playful tone in a first foray into the world of animated film, which weds rotoscoping and digital animation. While he tackles touchy subjects such as divorce and bullying, THE CASE OF HANA & ALICE remains first and foremost a charming comedy that uses the vivid imagination of its characters as means to create hilarious situations. Actually a prequel to its predecessor HANA & ALICE (2004), our joy at reuniting with these characters is almost equal to that felt by Yu Aoi (RUROUNI KENSHIN) and Anne Suzuki (HELTER SKELTER) in revisiting them. However, except for a few references that will please fans of the first film, THE CASE can totally be appreciated on its own. By throwing everything he had as a director, writer and composer at this irresistible animated debut, Shunji Iwai confirms his rightful place amongst the most eclectic directors of his time. (by Nicolas Archambault, Fantasia International Film Festival)

SYNOPSIS:

Spunky Tetsuko, AKA Alice, is off to a fresh start. Having just settled down with her recently divorced mother, she’s set to begin school at Ishinomori College. Upon arrival, she quickly falls victim to peer bullying, but after running into Fuko, an old ballet partner, she finds solace in her return to dance. It is during such a dancing session that she overhears about the enigmatic affair of the Ishinomori High murder. According to rumour, a student named Judas was supposedly killed by four other students also named Judas. Despite its inherent absurdity, the story fuels many fiery discussions and leads to much strange behaviour, including ludicrous rituals and in-class possessions. When Alice discovers that her next-door neighbour Hana, who’s been holed up inside her apartment for months, might hold the missing pieces to this homicidal puzzle, she decides to pay her a visit. Together, they’ll follow the threads of a shady investigation that will cement their friendship forever.

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THE CASE OF HANA AND ALICE
Digital Projection, 110mins
Location: Chicago Filmmakers
5243 N Clark St. 60640
Dates:
December 4th at 8:00pm
December 6th at 7:00pm
Ticket price: $9.00

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Posted in Uncategorized

CRUMBS (Chicago premiere) hosted by The Chicago Cinema Society at Chicago Filmmakers.

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Ethiopia’s first sci-fi feature also happens to be a post-apocalyptic black comedy, an eccentric love story and a brilliant blast of politically charged surrealism. The most jaded cinephile will be lit up by this intelligent and offbeat blast of Afro-futurism. It’s an extraordinary feature debut for writer/producer/director Miguel Llansó, sumptuously photographed with widescreen panoramas the make potent use of Ethiopia’s largely alien-to-Western-eyes landscapes, and staged with a bottomless sense of invention, poetry and wit. Llansó has created a hugely original futureworld oddity, where magic fuses with history, and religious faith evolves into something even more absurdist than the extremes of our current age — all fronted by a performer every bit as singular as the film itself. To state the obvious, CRUMBS is quite unlike anything you’ve ever encountered. (by Mitch Davis – Fantasia International Film Festival)

SYNOPSIS:

In a distant future wasteland, many years after an apocalypse wiped out most of humankind’s history, a new religion has emerged. Random found artifacts of late 20th century pop culture that have been collected into a twisted spiritual narrative of gods and wonders. This is a land where a vintage Michael Jackson LP is a sacred object. Physically malformed Candy (the incredible Daniel Tadesse, a star in the new wave of Ethiopian film) is tired of his day-to-day routine, salvaging and bartering scraps from bygone civilizations. He embarks on a quest to conquer his fears and learn more about a mysterious UFO that’s been hovering in the sky “since the beginning of the big war.” His journey will see him crossing paths with numerous unexpected obstacles, including witches, Nazis and an emaciated and rather belligerent Santa Claus.

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CRUMBS
1st screening:
Digital Projection, 68mins
Location: Chicago Filmmakers
5243 N Clark St. 60640
Date: Saturday, October 24th
Time: 8:00pm
Ticket price: $8.00

2nd screening:
Digital Projection, 68mins
Location: Columbia College (Hokin Hall)
600 S Michigan Ave. 60605
Date: Tuesday, October 27th
Time: 6:30pm
Ticket price: $8.00

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Posted in Uncategorized

TURBO KID (Chicago premiere) hosted by The Chicago Cinema Society at Chicago Filmmakers.

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The Chicago Cinema Society is extremely proud and excited to announce the Chicago Premiere of TURBO KID at Chicago Filmmakers for three screenings starting on August 28th (see bottom of post for specifics)! The debut feature from Canadian filmmaking collective RKSS, TURBO KID is a wild throwback to post-apocalyptic action cinema of the 80s filtered through colorful Saturday morning cartoons and video game box art. Featuring Michael Ironside and a killer synth soundtrack, TURBO KID bursts off the screen with adventure, gore, and heart. Don’t miss one of the most fun and unique movies of the year!

Synopsis:

In a post-apocalyptic parallel future of 1997, an orphaned teenager called The Kid scavenges the Wasteland searching for relics from a better time (the 80s). During one of his expeditions he meets Apple, a mysterious girl with a rather large secret. As their relationship deepens, they accidentally run afoul of Zeus, the self-proclaimed leader of the Wasteland. Zeus, a sadistically droll maniac who murdered The Kid’s parents, now controls the Wasteland’s most precious commodity: fresh water. When Zeus’ gang kidnaps Apple, The Kid joins forces with Frederick, the laconic leader of the legendary Arm-Wrestling Clan. Armed with little more than blind faith and an ancient turbo-charged weapon, The Kid must fulfill his ultimate destiny: destroy Zeus, avenge his parents’ death and get the girl of his dreams.
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FILM FESTIVAL SELECTIONS & AWARDS:

Audience Award – Best Film: Fantaspoa International Fantastic Film Festival
Jury Award – Best Art Direction (International Film): Fantaspoa International Fantastic Film Festival

Audience Award – Midnighters: SXSW Film Festival

Best Director (RKSS): Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival

Official Selection: Sundance Film Festival

REVIEWS:

“Perhaps the most colorful film ever made with a postapocalyptic setting, TURBO KID is a loud, energetic homage to Eighties kitsch (though set in 1997) with so much going on that it makes sense that it took three directors (François Simard and Anouk and Yoann-Karl Whissell, aka RKSS or Road Kill Super Stars) to wrangle it all.” – Laura Kern, Film Comment

“TURBO KID is the ultimate midnight movie… RKSS creates a rich, vibrant world and packs it to the brim with fun idiosyncrasies, details and characters.” – Perri Nemiroff, Collider

“A post-apocalyptic homage that’s kitschy on purpose (which is sort of easy), very funny on its own merits (which is not), and actually sort of sweet — which is practically unheard of when you’re dealing with this particular sub-genre.” – Scott Weinberg, Nerdist

“A pitch-perfect pastiche that never mocks its inspirations…” – John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter

“TURBO KID is insane… feels like no other film in the last decade.” – Peter Sciretta, Slashfilm

“TURBO KID is a magical can’t-miss experience that’s like a Saturday morning cartoon turned into an apocalyptic 80s fever-dream… an invigorating adventure that has its phasers set to WOW!” – Matt Donato, We Got This Covered

SCREENING INFORMATION:

TURBO KID
Digital Projection, 93mins
Location: Chicago Filmmakers
5243 N Clark St. 60640
Dates:
August 28th at 8:00pm
August 29th at 8:00pm
August 30th at 7:00pm
Ticket price: $8.00

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Posted in Uncategorized

TOKYO TRIBE (Chicago premiere) hosted by The Chicago Cinema Society at Chicago Filmmakers.

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The Chicago Cinema Society is extremely proud and excited to announce the Chicago Premiere of Sion Sono’s TOKYO TRIBE at Chicago Filmmakers on August 15th and Columbia College on August 19th! This is one of the craziest films of the year: you DO NOT want to miss this one. To say that TOKYO TRIBE is Sion Sono’s most entertaining film is to spectacularly undersell just how insanely fun it actually is. It’s a loud, vibrant, hilarious, bizarre explosion that comes across as an amalgam of Takashi Miike’s V-Cinema gangster movies, Walter Hill’s THE WARRIORS, JET SET RADIO, and the constantly floating camera and eye-searing neon color schemes of ENTER THE VOID. Incredible! Check out the trailer below and do not miss it!

 

“In a futuristic, alternate-world Tokyo, the city is made up of ghetto slums and nightclub playgrounds where gangs of wayward youth rule the streets. The city is carved up into ‘hoods, and the crossing of territorial lines quickly leads to riots and rumbles. On the turf ruled by the savage yakuza Big Buppa (Riki Takeuchi, from Takashi Miike’s Fudoh: The New Generation and Dead or Alive series), the simmering tension is about to boil over into all-out war.
With Tokyo Tribe, Sono has crafted a cinematic melting pot of madness referencing everything from Walter Hill’s The Warriors and Streets of Fire to Shûji Terayama’s legendary experimental film Emperor Tomato Ketchup, John Carpenter’s Escape from New York, Julien Temple’s Sex Pistols documentaries, the final showdown from Scarface and, of course, West Side Story.

Avoiding the usual fresh young faces of Japanese films, director Sion Sono chose to cast real rappers, tattoo artists and stunt performers in many of the main acting roles, a rebellious move that brings vibrancy and freshness to his outlandish street-fighting epic. Set to a score of bangin’ beats and bizarre rap lyrics, Tokyo Tribe will leave you beat-boxing for more. ”  Colin Geddes – TIFF

TOKYO TRIBE
1st screening:
Digital Projection, 116mins
Location: Chicago Filmmakers
5243 N Clark St. 60640
Date: Saturday, August 15th
Time: 8:00pm
Ticket price: $8.00

2nd screening:
Digital Projection, 116mins
Location: Columbia College (Hokin Hall)
600 S Michigan Ave. 60605
Date: Wednesday, August 19th
Time: 6:30pm
Ticket price: $8.00

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