QC Film Blog

Films bring Paris to your living room

Jean-Paul Belmondo and Jean Seberg in Jean-Luc Godard's Breathless (A Bout de Souffle) - 1960.

By Peter Rainer Special correspondent
The Christian Monitor

I’ll admit it: I am perfectly content to see an otherwise mediocre movie as long as it’s set in an alluring locale. Especially these days, movies can serve as passports to places otherwise out of reach. Few destinations are more scenic or romantic than Paris, which is why I’ve chosen the City of Lights to kick off this itinerary.

So many films – good ones – have been set in Paris that untravelled moviegoers may nevertheless feel like they know the place. Even if you’ve been there, you may discover, as I did, that you experience the city through cinematic eyes. Love of movies and love of Paris are, for many of us, inextricably entwined.

Read the complete story at: The Christian Monitor.

Augustana's Hispanic Film Festival presents "La Novia/The Bride" January 30

Augustana College's 24th Annual Hispanic Film Festival presents "La Novia/The Bride" on Wednesday, January 30, 7 p.m.-8:30 p.m. in Hanson Hall of Science, Room 102, 726 35th St., Rock Island, Illinois. 

The festival runs January 9th through February 6th.  Screenings are free and open to the public!

Synopsis:  A tragic tale of unappeased desires and forbidden yearnings, conflicted choices, deception and the unavoidable fate of three lovers standing powerless before the true nature of man.  "La Novia" is a 2015 Spanish drama film directed by Paula Ortiz.

Looking for great documentaries, independent, foreign, classic and other noteworthy films in the Quad-Cities area? Visit QCFilmBlog.com for the latest screenings and special film events.

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"Sin Nombre" Screens at Augustana's 24th Annual Hispanic Film Festival January 16

Augustana College will present "Sin Nombre" (Nameless) as the first film in its 24th annual Hispanic Film Festival, which runs January 9th through February 6th. 

This 2009 Mexican-American adventure thriller tells the story of Sayra (Paulina Gaitán), a Honduran teen, who hungers for a better life.  Her chance for one comes when she is reunited with her long-estranged father, who intends to emigrate to Mexico and then enter the United States. Sayra's life collides with a pair of Mexican gangmembers (Edgar Flores, Kristyan Ferrer) who have boarded the same American-bound train.. It won awards for directing and cinematography at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. It is rated R and runs one hour and 36 minutes.

The film festival will showcase Hispanic films each Wednesday between January 9 and February 6th at 7 p.m. in the Hanson Hall of Science auditorium, Room 102, 726 35th St. Rock Island, Illinois.

Films are free and open to the public. 

Looking for great documentaries, independent, foreign, classic and other noteworthy films in the Quad-Cities area? Visit QCFilmBlog.com for the latest screenings and special film events.

Like us on Facebook!

 

Linda Cook gives "A Quiet Heart" 3 1/2 stars as film finishes Israeli Film Series at Figge June 24

Quad City Times film critic Linda Cook gave "A Quiet Heart" 3 1/2 stars and wrote: "This is a dark, somber drama, with several plot lines revolving around Naomi: Her conflict with her parents, detachments from a relationship and the turmoil that is building up around her that connects to the mystery of the prior tenant’s demise.

The performances are all solid. Especially touching is the relationship between Naomi and the boy, who has the passion for music that Naomi must have had at one time. Each inspires the other as their fragile friendship builds.

This inspiring movie, with its smart, courageous central character, will be the final film in the Israeli Film Series that is presented by the Jewish Federation of the Quad-Cities. It will be shown at 4 p.m. Sunday, June 24, at the Figge Art Museum Auditorium, 225 W. 2nd St., Davenport. Admission: Adults, $7; seniors (60-plus) and military, $6; and students, free."

To read the full review, click HERE.

 

 

Attend "The Concert" at the Figge

 
The Concert

120 minutes - 2009 - French & Russian with English subtitles

Directed by Radu Mihaileanu

Starring Aleksey Guskov, Melanie Laurent, Dmitri Nazarov

Thirty years ago, Andrei Filipov was the conductor of the illustrious Bolshoi orchestra until he was fired for using Jewish musicians.  Now he works as a janitor and drinks too much.  But when he intercepts an invitation for the Bolshoi to perform in Paris, Andrei masterminds a plan to gather his own Bolshoi to go in their place in order to make a triumphant return to the music scene.  With a motley bunch of former musicians at his side, Andrei sets off for Paris to fulfill his destiny and return to his glory as a great conductor.  Along the way, he will reunite with a young, beautiful violin virtuoso who holds the key to his past and to his future.

The final film in the 9th Annual Jewish Film Series.

$5.00 - Students FREE

4:00 pm - Sunday, September 18, 2011

Figge Art Museum
225 West 2nd Street
Davenport, Iowa

More information: 309.793.1300

www.JFQC.org

"The Other Woman" Stars Natalie Portman

The Other Woman

119 min | Rated R | 2009

Friday May 27, 2011 - 6:30 p.m.

Directed by Don Roos
Starring Natalie Portman (Black Swan), Lisa Kudrow (Wonderland), and Scott Cohen (Love and Other Drugs)

A frank, funny and heart-wrenching adaption of author Ayelet Waldman's novel about life, loss, and family.

This comedy/drama details the story of a woman's difficult relationship with her stepson. (IMDb.com)

Coffee and discussion to follow in lobby.

Admission $8.00

563.271.6173

More info: http://www.backdoorifcafe.com/

"White Material" Unravels at Figge Tonight

White Material

102 min | French/Africa | Subtitled | 2009
Friday May 6, 2011
Feature Film: 6:30 p.m.
Directed by Claire Denis
Starring Isabelle Huppert (Heaven's Gate) 

Maria is a White farmer who runs (with her ex-husband, his father, and their son) a failing coffee plantation in an unnamed African country in the present day.  Civil war has broken out and rebel soldiers, many of them child soldiers, are advancing on the area.  Rebels on the radio advocate attacks on emblems of colonialism.  Maria's workers leave, but she refuses to abandon the plantation, and searches for men to finish harvesting of the coffee.  As she and her family await the inevitable, the tensions in their personal relationships, and in their relations with the African community, become exposed.  Maria puts the farm in even more danger when she looks after a wounded rebel officer known as 'The Boxer'. (Wikipedia)

Coffee and discussion to follow in lobby.

Admission $8.00

563.271.6173

More info: http://www.backdoorifcafe.com/

"Read" Poetry at Figge on Friday

 

POETRY | Korea | 2010 | 139 min | Drama
Friday April 15, 2011 - 6:30 p.m. -FIGGE ART MUSEUM
Directed by Lee Chang-dong
Starring Yun Jung-hee (Mija) and Lee David (Wook)

A sixty-something woman, faced with a crippling medical diagnosis and the discovery of a heinous family crime, finds strength and purpose when she enrolls in a poetry class. Lee Chang-dong's follow-up to his acclaimed Secret Sunshine is a masterful study of the subtle empowerment and moral compass of an elderly woman.

Coffee and discussion to follow in lobby.

Admission $8.00

563.271.6173

More info: http://www.backdoorifcafe.com/

"Bread & Roses" Served up at the Bettendorf Library on Saturday

Bread & Roses

110 minutes - 2000 - Greece

Part of St. Ambrose University's year-long series: The Ubiquity of Work.

Two latina sisters work as cleaners in a downtown office building, and fight for the right to unionize. (IMDb.com)

Saturday, March 26, 2011

1:30 pm - FREE

Bettendorf Public Library
2950 Learning Campus Drive
Bettendorf, Iowa

563.344.4175

See "The Father of My Children" at the Figge Tonight!

The Father of My Children

110 minutes - 2009 - Belgium

A film producer struggles with suicidal dispair. (IMDb.com)

Sounds fun. : )

More info: http://movies.nytimes.com/2010/05/28/movies/28father.html

Friday, March 25, 2011
Figge Art Museum
Davenport, Iowa

Feature Film: 6:30 p.m.

Coffee and discussion to follow in lobby.

Admission $8.00

563.271.6173

More info: http://www.backdoorifcafe.com/