cinémathèque archive 2008

Melbourne Cinémathèque

Discover the richness of the twentieth century's greatest art form. Whether you're a dedicated cinephile or an occasional film buff, Cinémathèque membership provides access to rare and imported prints and the opportunity to revel in a passion for truly great cinema.

Annual membership: Full $90 Concession $75
Mini membership (4 consecutive weeks):
Full $20 Concession $15

Curated by The Melbourne Cinémathèque
http://www.melbournecinematheque.org/

May be subject to variation. Additional charges apply to some events. All films are rated unclassified 18+ unless indicated. Membership may not guarantee admission. Presented by The Melbourne Cinémathèque and ACMI.


the dawn patrol + the criminal code

Two powerfully authentic works from the early 30s, including Hawks' first 'talkie', feature startling aerial photography and real-life convict drama.

tiger shark + the crowd roars + a hell of a good life

Edward G. Robinson as a hapless sea dog and James Cagney as a hotshot racing car driver, screening with a documentary about the director and his work.

only angels have wings + ceiling zero

Two of Hawks' many aviation films focus on the camaraderie and stoicism, and oftentime wildcat recklessness, of the original 'top guns'.

in vanda's room + bones

Two devastating portraits of life in the shantytown which, through Costa's artistry, assert the dignity of women under inconceivable stress.

the blood + colossal youth

Costa's dramatic feature debut follows three teenagers on the run. Screens with his third fiction / documentary work, about Lisbon's slum dwellers.

casa de lava + where does your hidden smile lie?

Costa's second film delves into the haunted past of Cape Verde. Screens with his acclaimed documentary on Jean-Marie Straub and Danièle Huillet.

short lives + my sex life ... or how I got into an argument

Desplechin's touching character study screens with a series of shorts introducing Cinémathèque's next season, on Portugese filmmaker Pedro Costa.

la sentinelle + playing 'in the company of men'

Desplechin explores post-Cold War hangovers and truth/fiction using unexpected storylines and complex characters in these two gripping dramatic plays.

esther kahn + kings and queens

Desplechin's most strange and beguiling film Kings and Queen screens with his story of a Jewish immigrant family in London's East end.


svankmajer + the joke + witches' hammer

Two seminal works of the Czech cinema deal metaphorically with the suppression of the Prague Spring.

'nam 68 + no vietnamese ever called me nigger + america is hard to see

A collection of documentaries that take us into the complex social and civil rights issues that troubled America as it drafted its sons into war.

medium cool + petulia

Politics, history and (free) love - two films explore, through fact and fiction, the catalysing themes of 1960s America.

experiments in time and place + high school + targets

Emotions boil over and satire cuts deep in these shorts and features from a Vietnam-weary America.

if... + the witchfinder general

Delirious images of brutality and savage melodrama - two films that captured the unsettled mood of late '60s Britain.

the mother and the whore

Jean Eustache's marathon post-nouvelle vague drama focuses on three 20-something Parisians in a bizarre love triangle.

scarlet street + dr mabuse, der spieler pt 2

A true classic of film noir, screening with the conclusion of Lang's two-part masterwork.

you only live once + dr mabuse, der spieler pt 1

An ex-con tries to go straight, and Dr. Mabuse gets completely bent in two of Lang's classic expressionist dramas.

moonfleet + fury + die vier um die frau

Melodrama, intrigue and adventures in Cinemascope - three seminal works by Fritz Lang.

keaton and arbuckle + the palm beach story + remember the night

Take a quick trip through the early days of American comedy. Two classics from the silent days, matched with fast-talking films of Sturges and Leisen.

the passion of joan of arc + vampyr + once upon a time

Two landmarks of early cinema - the true story of Joan of Arc, screening with the most unsettling version of Bram Stoker's classic story ever filmed.

gertrud + the president

A serene but devastating film about an unconventional woman who demands total commitment to love. Screens with Dreyer's first film, The President.

day of wrath + ordet

The young second wife of a much older pastor falls in love with her stepson. Screens with Ordet, Dreyer's exploration of the agonies of faith.

come out fighting + carlton + godard = cinema

The Melbourne independent filmmaking scene in the 1960s and 70s, as seen through the unflinching lens of Nigel Buesst.

june bride + from the highway

In June Bride a young woman breaks with 1960s social conventions. Screens with From the Highway, often regarded as the first modern Kung Fu film.

our dream car + sister long legs

Newlyweds dream of the greatest of all middle-class status symbols. Screens with an enduring favourite of Hong Kong audiences Sister Long Legs.

mambo girl + escorts over tiger hills

One of the all-time Hong Kong favourites, features toothy singer Grace Chang. Screens with a groundbreaking and spectacular classic.

ashes & diamonds + landscape after battle

A film about the Polish Resistance in World War II screens with Landscape After Battle, a love story set in liberated Poland.


kanal + man of marble

Wadja's celebrated Kanal is set in the last years of World War II. Screens with Man of Marble, his stinging critique of Stalinism.

the 400 blows + les deux anglaises et le continent

Truffaut's emotionally wrenching debut screens with one of the most physical films about love.

mississippi mermaid + jules et jim

A mix of noir and melodrama and a defining film of the early nouvelle vague.

day for night + the bride wore black

Truffaut's autobiographical homage to the joys and torments of filmmaking screens with his classic story of a femme fatale.

les demoiselles de wilko + the wedding

A dark romance of bittersweet loss screens with The Wedding - an allegory of Polish identity.


the machine in the garden + landscape suicide + the land of nothing

Six short films and two features on the theme of experimental landscapes.

state legislature

A film on the 2004 session of the Idaho Legislature.

russian ark + the end of st petersburg + the tailor from torzhok

Sokurov's journey through the riches of Russian history screens with Pudovkin's silent masterpiece and Protazanov's satirical comedy.

a woman of paris + the godless girl

Chaplin's bold romantic drama screens with DeMille's final silent drama.

macbeth + knife in the water

Roman Polanski double feature.

dance of the vampires + rosemary's baby

The first of three weeks of Roman Polanski double features.

histoire(s) du cinema

This epic work is widely regarded as Godard's late reflective masterpiece.

three shorts & a wardrobe + tess

Three of Polanski's early shorts screen with his European comeback Tess featuring Nastassja Kinski.

dracula + night of the eagle (burn, witch, burn)

Two thrillers that will chill you to the bone.

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