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Bulgarian
The Father
Directed by Kristina Grozeva, Petar Valchanov
(Bulgaria/Greece, 2019, 87 min.)
Pavel is seemingly cold and indifferent to the passing of his mother Valentina, but his father Vasil is devastated and convinced her spirit still remains after a funeral attendee claims to have received a call from Valentina on her cellphone during the burial. Now Pavel must put his life on hold to help his father process the loss and begrudgingly come to terms with his own grief (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 13 to 18
Croatian
Mali
Directed by Antonio Nuić
(Croatia, 2018, 90 min.)
Frenki is a drug dealer, and four years in prison haven’t changed him much. With his wife on her deathbed, his in-laws are determined to get custody of Mali, Frenki’s teenaged son. But Mali loves his dad — and his unorthodox parenting style (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 12 to 17
Czech
Bear with Us
(Chata na prodej)
Directed by Tomás Pavlícek
(Czech Republic, 2018, 77 min.)
A family decides to sell their lovely cottage, so the mother suggests they all spend one last day there before the sale takes place. During their time together, issues among the members of the family inevitably come out into the open in this deliberately paced comedy.
The Avalon Theatre
Wed., Dec. 11, 8 p.m.
The Painted Bird
Directed by Václav Marhoul
(Czech Republic/Slovakia/Ukraine, 2019, 169 min.)
Based on the celebrated novel by Jerzy Kosinski, this staggering work of beauty follows the brutal hardships of a young, Jewish boy as he wanders the countryside during World War II in search of some respite from the atrocities of daily life (Czech, German and Russian; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sun., Dec. 15, 6:05 p.m.
Danish
Out of Tune
Directed by Frederikke Aspöck
(Denmark, 2019, 89 min.)
Newly imprisoned celebrity financier Markus gets a rude awakening on his first day behind bars when he’s greeted with a beatdown from a biker gang. Scared into voluntary solitary confinement, he reluctantly joins his fellow inmates in the choir, where his ego compels him to reach the top of the established hierarchy (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Fri., Dec. 10, 7:45 p.m.,
Sat., Dec. 21, 3 p.m.
Dutch
Instinct
Directed by Halina Reijn
(Netherlands, 2019, 108 min.)
Psychologist Nicoline accepts an assignment in a men’s rehab facility housing violent sexual criminals. There, she takes on the case of Iris, a handsome and charismatic manipulator who has served five years for rape and assault. Professionally, Nicoline doubts that Idris is reformed, yet personally, against all better judgment, she experiences an undeniable attraction to him (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 7 to 12
English
63 UP
Directed by Michael Apted
(U.K., 2019, 180 min.)
Director Michael Apted returns with the latest installment of his groundbreaking documentary series, unmatched in the history of cinema for its astonishing and revelatory longevity. The original “7 UP” was broadcast in 1964 and featured 14 British children talking about their hopes and dreams for the future. Subsequent visits every seven years over six decades have documented the group as they grew up, became adults and entered middle-age, dealing with everything life has thrown at them in between.
Landmark’s Theatres
Opens Fri., Dec. 13
The Aeronauts
Directed by Tom Harper
(U.K./U.S., 2019, 100 min.)
In 1862, daredevil pilot Amelia Wren (Felicity Jones) and pioneering meteorologist James Glaisher (Eddie Redmayne) find themselves in an epic fight for survival while attempting to make discoveries in a gas balloon.
The Avalon Theatre
Landmark’s Bethesda Row Cinema
Opens Fri., Dec. 6
Bait
Directed by Mark Jenkin
(U.K., 2019, 89 min.)
Set in a once-thriving Cornish fishing village, “Bait” tracks the ongoing war between locals and tourists through the eyes of a proud fisherman forced to sell his boat and relinquish his home to a fancy London family looking for a weekend getaway spot (part of the AFI European Union Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Fri., Dec. 20, 5:45 p.m.,
Sat., Dec. 21, 5 p.m.
Beats
Directed by Brian Welsh
(U.K., 2019, 101 min.)
In this bittersweet, nostalgic view of ’90s rave culture in suburban Scotland, 15-year-old Jonno — against his parents’ wishes — is best friends with likable lunkhead Spanner, a kid from the wrong side of the tracks (part of the AFI European Union Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Fri., Dec. 6, 9:30 p.m.,
Mon., Dec. 9, 9:20 p.m.,
Tue., Dec. 10, 5 p.m.
A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
Directed by Marielle Heller
(China/U.S., 2019)
Tom Hanks portrays Mister Rogers in this timely story of kindness triumphing over cynicism, based on the true story of the real-life friendship between Fred Rogers and journalist Tom Junod.
Angelika Mosaic
Atlantic Plumbing Cinema
The Avalon Theatre
Landmark’s Bethesda Row Cinema
Bombshell
Directed by Jay Roach
(Canada/U.S., 2019, 108 min.)
A group of women decide to take on Fox News head Roger Ailes and the toxic atmosphere he presided over at the network.
Angelika Mosaic
Opens Fri., Dec. 20
Dark Waters
Directed by Todd Haynes
(U.S., 2019, 126 min.)
Inspired by a shocking true story, a tenacious attorney uncovers a dark secret that connects a growing number of unexplained deaths due to one of the world’s largest corporations. In the process, he risks everything — his future, his family and his own life — to expose the truth.
Angelika Mosaic
Landmark’s Bethesda Row Cinema
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
The Good Liar
Directed by Bill Condon
(U.S., 2019, 109 min.)
Consummate con man Roy Courtnay has set his sights on his latest mark: the recently widowed Betty McLeish, worth millions. But this time, what should have been a simple swindle escalates into a cat-and-mouse game with the ultimate stakes.
Angelika Mosaic
The Ground Beneath My Feet
Directed by Marie Kreutzer
(Austria, 2019, 108 min.)
Ruthlessly efficient and seamlessly together Lola is thriving as a successful business consultant. But she is also in the midst of a secret relationship with her boss Elise and struggling to support her sister, who is battling long-term mental illness (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 15 to 18
Harriet
Directed by Kasi Lemmons
(U.S., 2019, 125 min.)
Based on the thrilling and inspirational life of an iconic American freedom fighter, Harriet tells the extraordinary tale of Harriet Tubman’s escape from slavery and transformation into one of America’s greatest heroes.
Angelika Pop-Up
Atlantic Plumbing Cinema
The Avalon Theatre
A Hidden Life
Directed by Terrence Malick
(Germany/U.S., 2019, 173 min.)
Based on real events, Franz Jägerstätter refuses to fight for the Nazis in World War II. When the Austrian peasant farmer is faced with the threat of execution for treason, it is his unwavering faith and his love for his wife and children that keeps his spirit alive (English, German and Italian).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sat., Dec. 7, 3:30 p.m.
Angelika Mosaic
Landmark’s Theatres
Opens Fri., Dec. 20
The Irishman
Directed by Martin Scorsese
(U.S., 2019, 209 min.)
Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci star in Martin Scorsese saga of organized crime in post-war America told through the eyes of World War II veteran Frank Sheeran, a hustler and hitman who worked alongside some of the most notorious figures of the 20th century.
AFI Silver Theatre
Landmark’s Bethesda Row Cinema
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
Jojo Rabbit
Directed by Taika Waititi
(Germany/U.S., 2019, 108 min.)
This World War II satire follows a lonely German boy named Jojo whose world view is turned upside down when he discovers his single mother (Scarlett Johansson) is hiding a young Jewish girl in their attic.
Angelika Mosaic
Landmark’s Bethesda Row Cinema
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
The Lighthouse
Directed by Robert Eggers
(U.S./Brazil, 2019, 109 min.)
This is the hypnotic and hallucinatory tale of two lighthouse keepers on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s.
West End Cinema
Little Joe
Directed by Jessica Hausner
(Austria/U.K./Germany, 2019, 105 min.)
Alice, a single mother, is a dedicated senior plant breeder at a corporation engaged in developing new species. She has engineered a very special crimson flower that, if fed properly and spoken to regularly, makes its owner happy. Alice takes one home as a gift for her teenage son, Joe, but as it grows, so too does Alice’s suspicion that her new creations may not be as harmless as their nickname suggests.
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
Opens Fri., Dec. 6
Little Women
Directed by Greta Gerwig
(U.S., 2019, 134 min.)
Four sisters come of age in America in the aftermath of the Civil War.
Angelika Mosaic
Landmark’s Theatres
Opens Tue., Dec. 25
Mr. Jones
Directed by Agnieszka Holland
(Poland/U.K./Ukraine, 2019, 119 min.)
The latest film from Agnieszka tells the real-life story of Gareth Jones, a Welsh journalist who made a tour of the Soviet Union in 1931 but failed to get the interview with Stalin he desperately wanted. In 1933, he scored a major scoop as the first international journalist with firsthand coverage of Hitler’s ascension to chancellor. Then he undertook his most daring investigation ever: slipping into Ukraine incognito to report on the widespread famine taking place there (English, Ukrainian, Russian and Welsh; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sun., Dec. 15, 12:30 p.m.,
Tue. Dec. 17, 7:10 p.m.
Official Secrets
Directed by Gavin Hood
(U.K./U.S., 2019, 112 min.)
In this true story, a British whistleblower leaks information to the press about an illegal NSA spy operation designed to push the U.N. Security Council into sanctioning the 2003 invasion of Iraq. This film is presented by the Center for International Policy and features a brief post-film discussion. To RSVP, email rsvp@internationalpolicy.org.
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
Tue., Dec. 10, 6 p.m.
Patrick
Directed by Tim Mielants
(Belgium, 2019, 97 min.)
Meet Patrick (Kevin Janssens, THE ARDENNES), the handyman and carpenter at his family’s nudist camp, who has just lost his father — but more importantly, his hammer. On a mission to get back his prized possession, he must fend off the swarming buzzards who will stop at nothing to take his dad’s vacant seat as owner of the camp (English, Dutch, French and German; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sat., Dec. 21, 7 p.m.,
Sun., Dec. 22, 5:30 p.m.
Péitruss
Directed by Max Jacoby
(Luxembourg, 2019, 93 min.)
Since she’s started a passionate new relationship with the handsome and mysterious Joakim, life is smiling back at Lara again. Her marriage to detective Toni is now a distant memory. But when Toni accuses Joakim of having committed a series of unsolved murders, Lara’s world is thrown into chaos (English, German and Luxembourgish; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Mon., Dec. 16, 9:30 p.m.,
Tue., Dec. 17, 3 p.m.
Queen & Slim
Directed by Melina Matsoukas
(Canada/U.S., 2019, 132 min.)
Slim and Queen’s first date takes an unexpected turn when a policeman pulls them over for a minor traffic violation and Slim shoots the officer in self-defense. When a video of the incident goes viral, the unwitting outlaws soon become a symbol of trauma, terror, grief and pain for people all across the country.
Angelika Mosaic
Angelika Pop-Up
Atlantic Plumbing Cinema
The Report
Directed by Scott Z. Burns
(U.S., 2019, 119 min.)
Idealistic Senate staffer Daniel J. Jones, tasked by his boss to lead an investigation into the CIA’s post-9/11 detention and interrogation program, uncovers shocking secrets.
The Avalon Theatre
West End Cinema
Rosie
Directed by Paddy Breathnach
(Ireland, 2018, 86 min.)
When the landlord unexpectedly sells their rental home, Rosie, John Paul and their young family find themselves homeless. Cramming their belongings into their car, the family begins a daily search for a place to sleep (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 13 to 16
Shooting the Mafia
Directed by Kim Longinotto
(Ireland, 2019, 94 min.)
Sicilian photographer Letizia Battaglia began a lifelong battle with the Mafia when she first dared to point her camera at a brutally slain victim. A woman whose passions led her to abandon traditional family life and become a photojournalist in the 1970s, she fearlessly and artfully captured everyday Sicilian life — from weddings and funerals to the grisly murders of ordinary citizens— to tell the narrative of how the community she loved in her native Palermo was forced into silence by the Cosa Nostra.
West End Cinema
Opens Fri., Dec. 6
Sorry We Missed You
Directed by Ken Loach
(U.K./France/Belgium, 2019, 100 min.)
Ken Loach looks at a facet of life in contemporary Britain through the harsh realities of the gig economy and the lens of one family struggling to make ends meet in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crash (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Fri., Dec. 6, 7:20 p.m.
The Traitor
Directed by Marco Bellocchio
(Italy/France/Brazil/Germany, 2019, 145 min.)
Veteran Italian master Marco Bellocchio crafts a gangster epic for the ages with this powerful profile of real-life mafia boss-turned-pentito Tommaso Buscetta, whose work as an informant led to the largest, most public prosecution of the Sicilian mafia in Italian history (English, Italian, Sicilian and Portuguese; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sat., Dec. 14, 3:30 p.m.
The Two Popes
Directed by Fernando Meirelles
(U.K./Italy/Argentina/U.S., 2019, 125 min.)
Behind Vatican walls, the conservative Pope Benedict and the liberal future Pope Francis must find common ground to forge a new path for the Catholic Church a(English, Latin, Spanish, Italian, French, Portuguese and German).
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
Opens Fri., Dec. 6
Variações – Guardian Angel
Directed by João Maia
(Portugal, 2019, 109 min.)
Portuguese pop music icon António Variações gets his due in this long-awaited biopic, which charts the singer’s unlikely rise to fame before his untimely death from HIV/AIDS in 1984 (English, Portuguese and Dutch; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Mon., Dec. 9, 7 p.m.,
Thu., Dec. 12, 2:45 p.m.
The Whistlers
Directed by Corneliu Porumboiu
(Romania/France/Germany/Sweden, 2019, 97 min.)
This twisty neo-noir caper has it all: a corrupt cop, a femme fatale, a Mexican mobster, government surveillance, double-crosses galore, a mattress full of money and, of course, an indigenous whistling language called “el Silbo Gomero” (English, Romanian and Spanish; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Fri., Dec. 13, 7:30 p.m.,
Tue., Dec. 17, 7:15 p.m.
Zombi Child
Directed by Bertrand Bonello
(France, 2019, 103 min.)
Mixing zombie lore with mean-girl angst and a smart examination of France’s colonial history, Bertrand Bonello (expertly shifts between 1960s Haiti and contemporary France to meditate on the intricacies of race, class and cultural appropriation (English, French and Haitian; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Fri., Dec. 13, 9:45 p.m.,
Thu., Dec. 19, 7:35 p.m.
Estonian
The Little Comrade
Directed by Moonika Siimets
(Estonia, 2018, 99 min.)
In the midst of Stalinist tyranny, 6-year-old Leelo’s mother is sent to a prison camp. Haunted by her mother’s last words telling her to be good, Leelo vows to be on her best behavior in the confusing grown-up world, in hopes that it will bring her mother back (Estonian and Russian; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 6 to 11
Finnish
Maria’s Paradise
Directed by Zaida Bergroth
(Finland/Estonia, 2019, 110 min.)
In this chilling tale based on a real-life scandal from 1920s Finland, charismatic cult leader Maria Åkerblom leads her devout followers to Helsinki. Among them is the adoring teenager Salome, who was orphaned at a young age and knows nothing of life outside her community in their rural farmhouse. When Salome befriends local sex worker Malin, her worldview is challenged, and she is torn between the promise of newfound freedom and Maria’s dangerous, all-consuming love (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 5 to 8
French
Alice and the Mayor
Directed by Nicolas Pariser
(France/Belgium, 2019, 113 min.)
After 30 years in politics, the mayor of Lyon, has become a creature of habit: over-cautious, bureaucratic to a fault and lacking the passion and ideas he once had. Enter Alice, a recent Oxford grad with a degree in philosophy. Inspired, for the first time in years, by his conversations with Alice, the mayor creates a new position for her before she can be slated for reassignment: to be his ideas person (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Wed., Dec. 4, 7:15 p.m..,
Sun., Dec. 8, 3:15 p.m.
Deerskin
Directed by Quentin Dupieux
(France, 2019, 77 min.)
In this daring and hilarious tale, a troubled man takes his obsession with his designer deerskin jacket (admittedly, a very nice coat) to murderous extremes (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 6 to 11
Les Misérables
Directed by Ladj Ly
(France, 2019, 102 min.)
Inspired by the riots which swept the Parisian banlieue in 2005, Ladj Ly’s urgent, frenetic debut centers on three members of an anti-crime unit and their tense relationship with the community in the tough Montfermeil district, where they are charged with patrolling the neighborhood and keeping the peace (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
Tue., Dec. 10, 7:20 p.m.,
Sat., Dec. 14, 1 p.m.
On a Magical Night
Directed by Christophe Honoré
(France/Belgium/Luxembourg, 2019, 86 min.)
In this screwball sex comedy, Maria is a law professor with a good eye for handsome young men, and no qualms about pursuing them. Richard. Maria’s husband of 20 years, is less than keen on her extramarital interests, and when he discovers her latest infidelity, it’s the last straw. Maria retreats to a hotel across the street where she can gaze down on her apartment and keep an eye on her pained husband. But waiting for her in the room are the ghosts of affairs past (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 7 to 12
Portrait of a Lady on Fire
Directed by Céline Sciamma
(France, 2019, 119 min.)
In rugged, 18th-century Brittany, when budding painter Marianne is commissioned by an Italian comtesse to paint a portrait of her soon-to-be-wed daughter, her assignment is complicated by the fact that she must not disclose the reason for her visit to their remote coastal abode, where the two women form a close bond (French and Italian; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sun., Dec. 8, 8:15 p.m.,
Mon., Dec. 9, 7:10 p.m.
The Truth
Directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda
(France/Japan, 2019, 106 min.)
With her American husband Hank (Ethan Hawke) in tow, Lumir (Juliette Binoche) goes to visit her mother Fabienne (Catherine Deneuve) in her beautiful country home to celebrate the release of Fabienne’s memoir chronicling her lifelong career in front of the camera. Meanwhile, Hank, the TV actor who speaks no French, is just happy to be along for the ride (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sat., Dec. 14, 8:30 p.m.,
Thu., Dec. 19, 7:20 p.m.
Young Ahmed
Directed by Jean-Pierre Dardenne
(Belgium/France, 2019, 90 min.)
Ahmed, 13, a psychologically fragile Brussels teen, begins to fall under the spell of a charismatic imam who preaches an extremist, intolerant interpretation of Islam (French and Arabic; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sat., Dec. 14, 5:15 p.m.,
Wed., Dec. 18, 7:20 p.m.
Georgian
And Then We Danced
Directed by Levan Akin
(Sweden/Georgia/France, 2019, 105 min.)
Levan Gelbakhiani dazzles as Merab, the star student at Georgia’s national dance academy whose customary role as the leading male dancer is usurped by the arrival of a talented newcomer (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sat., Dec. 7, 7:10 p.m.,
Sun., Dec. 8, 7:10 p.m.,
Mon., Dec. 9, 5 p.m.
German
I Was At Home, But
Directed by Angela Schanelec
(Germany/Serbia, 2019, 105 min.)
Astrid, a Berlin mother of two, faces a crisis after her 13-year-old son disappears, only to reappear a week later, seemingly unharmed, with the event going largely unexplained (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Wed., Dec. 11, 9:15 p.m.,
Sun., Dec. 15, 8:30 p.m.
Lara
Directed by Jan Ole Gerster
(Germany, 2019, 98 min.)
It’s Lara’s 60th birthday, and she has every reason to celebrate: Tonight, her son Viktor will give the most important piano concert of his career. Yet despite the fact that she paved the way for his musical success, Viktor has been unreachable for weeks, and nothing indicates that his mother will be welcome at his debut performance (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sat., Dec. 21, 1 p.m.,
Sun., Dec. 22, 3:30 p.m.
Pelican Blood
Directed by Katrin Gebbe
(Germany/Bulgaria, 2019, 121 min.)
Wiebke and her adopted 9-year-old daughter Nicolina live alone on an idyllic horse farm. After many years of waiting, Wiebke now has the chance to adopt another girl, 5-year-old Raya, but what begins as a harmonious new family takes a turn for the worse when Raya’s increasing aggression grows violent (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 6 to 11
Greek
Pause
Directed by Tonia Mishiali
(Cyprus/Greece, 2018, 96 min.)
Locked for years in a stifling routine with her uncaring but demanding husband Costas, fiftyish housewife Elpida begins to see things in a new light as she enters menopause, with visions of retribution playing out in her mind, perhaps inspired by the steady diet of thrillers she watches in the evenings (Greek and English; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 7 to 9
Zizotek
Directed by Vardis Marinakis
(Greece, 2019, 92 min.)
Nine-year-old Jason’s world is shattered when he is abandoned by his mother on an afternoon trip to the local folk festival. Panicked and afraid, he wanders into the woods and into the cabin of a reclusive, bearded man with a shotgun who reluctantly takes him in (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 6 to 11
Hungarian
Those Who Remained
Directed by Barnabás Tóth
(Hungary, 2019, 83 min.)
In 1948 Budapest, having survived the war’s extermination camps, Dr. Kőrner has revived his medical practice but is still haunted by the loss of his wife and sons. He begins an unconventional but vitally supportive friendship with Klára, a 16-year-old survivor of the camps who is full of life but who has not yet fully processed her own trauma (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sat., Dec. 14, 6:30 p.m.
Italian
Dafne
Directed by Federico Bondi
(Italy, 2019, 94 min.)
Dafne, a bright young woman with Down syndrome, finds her stable family life upended by the unexpected death of her mother. As Dafne’s father struggles with his grief, Dafne finds her own way to process the loss, assuming increasing responsibility at home and at work (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatare
Dec. 10 to 16
Martin Eden
Directed by Pietro Marcello
(Italy/France/Germany, 2019, 129 min.)
Filmmaker Pietro Marcello transposes Jack London’s 1909 American novel about a rugged, radical individual — seaman-turned-novelist Martin Eden — to a Neapolitan port city in the late 20th century (Italian, Neapolitan and French; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sun., Dec. 15, 3:30 p.m.,
Mon., Dec. 16, 7 p.m.
Japanese
13 Assassins
Directed by Takashi Miike
(U.K./Japan, 2010, 125 min.)
DJ 2-Tone Jones, who performed to a packed house during the Freer’s 2018 Made in Hong Kong Film Festival, returns with another “Can I Kick It?” performance, this time with a bloody historical epic directed by the notorious Takashi Miike. In this remake of a 1963 film based on actual historical events, 13 of the best samurai in Japan are recruited to take down a ruthless warlord who is oppressing his people.
Freer Gallery of Art
Thu., Dec. 5, 7 p.m.
The Minamata Mural
Directed by Noriaki Tsuchimoto
(Japan, 1981, 111 min.)
After a handful of groundbreaking films detailing the tragedy and suffering of the mercury-poisoned Japanese town of Minamata, documentary master Noriaki Tsuchimoto revisits the subject of Minamata through the eyes of the celebrated husband-and-wife painting duo Iri and Toshi Maruki.
Freer Gallery of Art
Sun., Dec. 8, 2 p.m.
A Story from Chikamatsu
Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi
(Japan, 1954, 102 min.)
Based on a classic of 18th-century Japanese drama, this film traces the injustices that befall the wife of a Kyoto scrollmaker and his apprentice after each is unfairly accused of wrongdoing. Bound by fate in an illicit, star-crossed romance, they go on the run in search of refuge from the punishment prescribed them: death.
Freer Gallery of Art
Wed., Dec. 4, 2 p.m.
Korean
Parasite
Directed by Joon-ho Bong
(South Korea, 2019, 132 min.)
Meet the Park Family: the picture of aspirational wealth. And the Kim Family, rich in street smarts but not much else. Masterminded by college-aged Ki-woo, the Kim children expediently install themselves as tutor and art therapist to the Parks. Soon, a symbiotic relationship forms between the two families. But when a parasitic interloper threatens the Kims’ newfound comfort, a savage, underhanded battle for dominance breaks out.
Angelika Mosaic
Landmark’s Bethesda Row Cinema
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
Lithuanian
Nova Lituania
Directed by Karolis Kaupinis
(Lithuania, 2019, 96 min.)
In the late 1930s, with a potential war looming on the horizon for the young country of Lithuania, geographer Feliksas Gruodis convinces the prime minister to establish a tropical colony overseas in case of emergency, and the two begin meeting in secret to make his dream a reality (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 5 to 10
Maltese
The Weeping House of Qala
Directed by Mark Doneo
(Malta, 2018, 85 min.)
In the quaint village of Qala in Gozo, Emily Edevane was abandoned, along with her three small children, by her husband. No one seems to have heard of them since. Four decades later, a Maltese documentary crew agrees to spend a day at the now desolate and decaying mansion, hoping to find out what became of the family (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 15 to 18
Mandarin
White Snake
Directed by Amp Wong and Ji Zhao
(China/U.S., 2019, 99 min.)
In this visually stunning new take on a classic legend, from Light Chaser Animation, one of China’s premiere animation studios, a young woman named Blanca is saved by Xuan, a poor snake catcher from a nearby village. She has lost her memory, but learns she has magical powers. Together they go on a journey to discover her real identity, meeting many adventures, and developing deeper feelings for one another along the way.
Landmark’s E Street Cinema
Polish
Corpus Christi
Directed by Jan Komasa
(Poland, 2019, 115 min.)
When 20-year-old Daniel is released from a youth detention center, his dream of entering the priesthood is squashed by the weight of his violent criminal record. Instead, he is sent to work at a carpenter’s workshop in a rural town, where the community is struggling to heal from a recent tragedy. Mistaken for a priest in a strange turn of events, Daniel decides to run with it, gradually becoming a beloved fixture in the community (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 5 to 12
Portuguese
The Domain
Directed by Tiago Guedes
(Portugal/France, 2019, 166 min.)
In this epic story, the lives of three generations of landowners unfold on the south bank of the River Tagus, against the backdrop of several tumultuous decades of Portuguese history (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Sun., Dec. 15, 7:45 p.m.,
Wed., Dec. 18, 8:30 p.m.
Russian
Oleg
Directed by Juris Kursietis
(Latvia/Lithuania/Belgium/France, 2019, 108 min.)
fter Oleg, a young Latvian butcher living and working in Brussels, finds himself out of a job, he falls under the spell of Andrzej, a fast-talking, Polish, small-time crook he meets at a party. What starts as a promising opportunity to get back on his feet soon turns into anything but as Oleg tries to escape his newfound life of crime (Russian, Polish, Latvian, English, French and Flemish; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 6 to 12
Silent
Broken Blossoms
Directed by D.W. Griffith
(U.S., 1919, 90 min.)
Set in London’s East End, this moody fog-bound tale is a tender love story, a tragic melodrama and a prescient study in immigrant relations.
Freer Gallery of Art
Sun., Dec. 15, 2 p.m.
The Children of the Dead
Directed by Kelly Copper, Pavol Liska
(Austria, 2019, 90 min.)
Nobel laureate Elfriede Jelinek’s 666-page novel “The Children of the Dead” depicts a zombie uprising highlighted by conveniently forgotten figures from Austria’s recent past, both Nazis and Jews alike. As realized for the screen by producer Ulrich Seidl, Jelinek’s scabrous novel becomes a most unusual modern-day silent film, featuring an amateur but very game cast (part of the AFI European Union Showcase).
Sat., Dec. 14, 10:45 p.m.,
Wed., Dec. 18, 10 p.m.,
Thu., Dec. 19, 9:45 p.m.
Slovak
Let There Be Light
Directed by Marko Škop
(Slovakia/Czech Republic, 2019, 93 min.)
Milan, a father of three, does construction work in Germany in order to provide for his family back in Slovakia. While visiting home over Christmas, he discovers that his eldest son is a member of a paramilitary youth group and has been involved in the bullying and death of a classmate — and now Milan must decide what to do (part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 16 to 22
Slovanian
Half-Sister
Directed by Damjan Kozole
(Slovenia/Serbia/Republic of Macedonia, 2019, 105 min.)
Neža is going back to school and Irena is getting a divorce. Despite their past grievances and outspoken hatred for one another, the two half-sisters decide to rent a flat together in the capital city of Ljubljana (Slovenian and Albanian; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
Dec. 8 to 12
Stories from the Chestnut Woods
Directed by Gregor Božič
(Slovenia, 2019, 81 min.)
This touching homage to a lost way of life unfolds in a decaying forest on the Yugoslav-Italian border in the years after World War II. In these decaying surroundings, twp lonely souls share fond memories — transformed into imaginative tales — and melancholic contemplations of their futures (Slovenian and Italian; part of the AFI European Union Film Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Dec. 14 to 19
Spanish
The August Virgin
Directed by Jonás Trueba
(Spain, 2019, 125 min.)
On the verge of turning 33, Eva decides to spend her August in Madrid, where the heat and holiday festivities drive most locals to abandon the city. Seeking small revelations from the world around her, Eva embarks on a journey of self-discovery that unfolds on screen as a joyous, magical summer tale (part of the AFI European Union Showcase).
AFI Silver Theatre
Wed., Dec. 18, 7 p.m.,
Thu., Dec. 19, 5 p.m.
Pain & Glory
Directed by Pedro Almodóvar
(Spain, 2019, 113 min.)
Antonio Banderas plays Salvador Mallo, a film director in physical decline who reflects on his past as his present comes crashing down around him.
Landmark’s Bethesda Row Cinema
West End Cinema
