viewing: verano tropical at instituto cervantes this july & august

this summer, instituto cervantes partners with cinema tropical to present films from the organization's celebrated film collection, showcasing the diversity of latin american production over the past few years. verano tropical will feature eight films from different latin american countries including a wide variety of genres, from ingenious comedies to highly stylized dramas and stirring documentaries. the series will take place every wednesday in july and august, and will feature special guests to introduce each screening.

screenings at:

instituto cervantes at amster yard
211 - 215 east 49th street, new york city
(212) 308-7720 | www.nuevayork.cervantes.es

wednesday, july 7, 6:30pm historias de fútbol / soccer stories

(andrés wood, chile, 1997, 90 min. in spanish with english subtitles)
just in tune with the 2010 edition of the world cup, the 'verano tropical' film series kicks off with andrés wood acclaimed soccer film. some say in latin america, football (soccer to the us) is the center of everything. Watch the trailer (in Spanish)

wednesday, july 14, 6:30pm suite habana

(fernando pérez, cuba/spain, 2003, 80 min.)
a poetic homage to the city of havana, this breathtaking film portrays cuba's capital as no other art form has before. a loving and melancholic picture over a 24 hour period of life of this city, the film follows ten ordinary habaneros as they go about their daily routine. there is no dialogue and no need for it either;

wednesday, july 21, 6:30pm la desazón suprema: retrato incesante de fernando vallejo /
the supreme uneasiness: incessant portrait of fernando vallejo
(luis ospina, colombia, 2003, 90 min. in spanish with english subtitles)
colombian biographer, linguist, filmmaker, novelist, musician and biologist fernando vallejo came to global acclaim through filmmaker barbet schroeder's adaptation of his novel, "our lady of the assassins."

wednesday, july 28, 6:30pm el perro

(carlos sorín, argentina, 2004, 96 min. in spanish with english subtitles)
"lovely! flawlessly directed by carlos sorin" — a.o. scott, the new york times
in this warm-hearted and poignant road movie, a man and a dog embark on a delightful adventure across the stunningly beautiful argentine patagonia.

wednesday, august 4, 6:30pm mi vida dentro / my life inside
(lucía gajá, mexico, 2007, 120 min. in spanish and english with english subtitles)
"in january 2003, 21-year-old rosa estela olera jiménez, an undocumented immigrant from mexico working as a nanny in austin, texas, is brought to trial for the homicide of 21-month-old bryan gutierrez, a young boy who died under mysterious circumstances while in her care.

wednesday, august 11*, 6:30pm hermanas / sisters

(julia solomonoff, argentina/spain, 2005, 88 min. in spanish with english subtitles)
natalia and elena levin, two sisters forced to separate as teenagers in 1975, right after natalia's militant boyfriend martin was disappeared by the military dictatorship, reunite in 1984 in a country foreign to both of them. *q&a with filmmaker.

wednesday, august 18, 6:30pm hasta el último trago corazón / till the last drop… my heart
(beto gómez, mexico, 2006, 90 min. in spanish with english subtitles)

a declaration of love to mexico and its cultural roots through the women who gave their voices and essence to mexican music.

wednesday, august 25, 6:30pm días de santiago

(josué méndez, peru, 2004, 83 min. in spanish with english subtitles)
selected by over 80 film festivals worldwide and winning no less than a dozen prestigious awards, josué méndez's extraordinary debut explores the tragic impossibility of a war veteran to re-integrate into civilian life.

PeruFest: festival of new peruvian films

lions den (leonera)

lion's den/leonera
a film by pablo trapero
(argentina, 2009, 113 min. in spanish with english subtitles)

Watch the trailer!

Sent to prison for allegedly killing her lover, Julia discovers she is pregnant and is sent to a high-security maternity ward to serve her time. Julia’s only concern now is her son. Her fellow inmate Marta becomes her ally; her mother Sofía, her opponent. One attempts to teach her how to be a mother; the other wishes to take over rearing the child. The film, shot in a real prison with inmates as extras, shines a light on a little known aspect of prison life: motherhood behind bars.

IFC Center
323 Sixth Avenue at West Third Street
(212) 924-7771 / www.ifccenter.com

sugar

source: nyremezcla.com

Baseball fans, check this movie which will come as a reminder that some dreams can come true in sports and life.

"Sugar, Sundance Grand Jury Prize nominee, follows the story of Miguel Santos (Algenis Perez Soto), a Dominican pitcher from San Pedro De Macorís, struggling to make it to the big leagues and pull himself and his family out of poverty.

Playing professionally at a baseball academy in the Dominican Republic, Miguel finally gets his break at age 19 when he advances to the United States’ minor league system; but when his play on the mound falters, he begins to question the single-mindedness of his life’s ambition." 

Opens at Angelika on Friday, but you can catch a sneak preview at 92YTribeca on Thursday.
For more information:

angelikafilmcenter.com

'XXY' - coming soon!

Opening on Friday, May 2nd
Cinema Village
22 East 12th Street (between University Place and Fifth Ave.)
(212) 924-3363 / www.cinemavillage.com
Showtimes: 1pm, 3:05pm, 5:10pm, 7:15pm, 9:20pm

For just about everybody, adolescence means having to confront a number of choices and life decisions, but rarely any as monumental as the one facing 15 year-old Alex (Ines Efrón,) who was born an intersex child. As Alex begins to explore her sexuality, her mother invites friends from Buenos Aires to come for a visit at their house on the gorgeous Uruguayan shore, along with their 16-year-old son Álvaro (Martin Piroyanski.) Alex is immediately attracted to the young man, which adds yet another level of complexity to her personal search for identity, and forces both families to face their worst fears.

Diego Luna and Chávez

source: Splendora

Contemporary Latin American cinema has had a pronounced presence in the international scene this year, with directors such as Guillermo del Toro, Alfonso Cuaron, and Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu attracting attention to cinematic voices outside of the Hollywood paradigm. Add another name to this creative vanguard: Diego Luna, the 27-year-old actor-turned-director heretofore best known for his role in Cuaron's Y Tu Mama Tambien.
Continue reading "Sneak Preview: Diego Luna and Chavez"