THE WACKNESS
July 25–27

The 2008 Sundance audience stood up and cheered for this funny and moving offbeat tale of two kindred spirits stumbling towards maturity, starring Ben Kingsley as a pothead psychiatrist and Josh Peck as his teenage pot-dealing patient.
R for pervasive drug use, language, and some sexuality; 107 minutes

ROMAN DE GARE
August 1–3

“The air of mystery here is appealing, because the secrets behind it seem to matter both a great deal and not at all—rather like love, which has been Lelouch’s subject ever since he made A Man and a Woman.” Anthony Lane, The New Yorker.

A popular novelist researches unlikely sources to find characters for her next bestseller in Claude Lelouch’s new mystery/thriller. R for brief language and sexual references, 103 minutes; French with English subtitles

BAGHEAD
August 8-10
“Kind of funny and kind of scary, Baghead’s central horror motif is merely a structure on which to hang its four-character story about the depth of relationships and the drive to find meaningful work.” Marjorie Baumgarten, The Austin Chronicle.

Four struggling actors retreat to a cabin in Big Bear, California in order to write a screenplay that will make them all stars in this quirky indie from Austin’s Duplass brothers. 84 minutes; R for language, some sexual content and nudity.

Still Moving: Classic Films from MoMA
August 14-17 and 21-24

FROZEN RIVER
August 29-31
“No trendsetter or breakthrough, this is more than anything else a welcome chance for the fine actor Melissa Leo to finally dominate a film in a terrific and affecting lead role.” Robert Koehler, Variety.

Two women—one white, one Mohawk, both single mothers faced with desperate circumstances—are drawn into the world of border smuggling across the frozen water of the St. Lawrence River in this winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival.
R for some language.

FLIGHT OF THE RED BALLOON
September 5-7
“Because it’s one of the most beautiful films ever. Because it’s a work of art on the order of a poem by Yeats or a painting by Rothko.” John Anderson, Washington Post.
“A gem made by a filmmaker who loves life, and knows how to capture its ebb and flow and sweet complication.” Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune.

A highlight at the 2007 Cannes, Toronto, and New York film festivals and the latest masterpiece from Hou Hsiao Hsien Flight of the Red Balloon was inspired by Albert Lamorisse’s 1956 Academy Award-winning classic. Hou expands on the original film’s key elements-a young boy, a red balloon, and Paris-to weave a touching and beautiful film about the bonds of family.
113 minutes; French with English subtitles

ALEXANDRA
September 12-14
“Alexander Sokurov’s Alexandra-a film of startling originality and beauty-feels like a communiqué from another time, another place, anywhere but here.” Manohla Dargis, The New York Times.

An elderly woman takes a train trip to visit her grandson at his army camp inside Chechnya in the latest film from the great Russian master.
95 minutes; Russian/Chechen with English subtitles