1970s

The magical fairy tale of Krabat is the story of a boy on the threshold of adulthood facing dark forces which fascinate him until he realizes they can destroy him. The Krabat fable dates back to the end of the 17th century from Silesian Upper Lausitz. Inspired by the book by Otfried Preussler, master filmmaker Karel Zeman managed convert this story into a movie in his own inimitable way. This fairy tale deals with forces of the heart that control our emotions and behavior, and can’t be changed. They can be a source of hatred and love, anger, envy and joy. In this eternal battle, only a strong will and a faith in love can lead to liberation from the snares of evil.Read More »

Plot and Background
Director Hellmuth Costard asked himself in 1974: “Is it possible to make films in Germany today?”. Benefiting from a television job, he equips himself with his own camera system and films with several cameras in order to make the illusion of filming clear. In 1977 he failed, interviewed colleagues like Hark Bohm (“North Sea is Murder Sea”) and met his idol Jean-Luc Godard, who came to Hamburg for a day but failed at the NDR and left again. Costard is speechless.Read More »

Cheriyachan, a landlord, feels threatened by industrialisation and leftist activities. But when he witnesses police atrocities on poor peasants, a feeling of guilt engulfs him and he feels responsible for the guilt of his entire class. He is last seen up a coconut tree trying to keep away from the police. The film is about a peasant’s movement against the feudal system.Read More »

THE DEVIL’S BRIDE (VELNIO NUOTAKA) – 1974, Lithuanian Film Centre, 78 min. Imagine a wildly surreal early 1970s Lithuanian rock opera directed by Ken Russell circa TOMMY that is equal parts JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR (wailing guitar-heavy ballads, religious theme), FIDDLER ON THE ROOF (rural village setting) and THE WICKER MAN / BLOOD ON SATAN’S CLAW (folklore / folk magic), and you have some idea of the elemental strangeness and beauty of director Arūnas Žebriūnas’ THE DEVIL’S BRIDE. The film opens with one of our favorite musical sequences ever: a long-haired flower child God sits on his throne in the heavenly mountains, adored by angelic hosts in white robes and wings. Read More »

Quote:
Griffith stars as Abel Marsh, a small-town police chief whose casual demeanors hides a sharp analytical mind and gift for deduction. The plot gets under way when a young girl shows up in town. It happens that the girl is supposed to be dead: in fact, virtually everyone in the community attended her funeral. Who is the girl in the grave–and, more importantly, who was responsible for the murder of the “dead” girl’s parents? First telecast September 20, 1977, Girl in the Empty Grave was followed two months later by The Deadly Game; neither film would yield a weekly series.Read More »

Quote:
Penned by renowned screenwriter Joyce Chan, The Secret (1979) is the first feature film of director Ann Hui. Based on a homicide case in the 1970s, it utilizes a non-linear narrative structure to unpeel layer after layer of secrets and illusions. Its clever use of visual contrast not only underscores the clashes between traditional and modern cultures, but also mirrors the psychological tension of characters. The film explores the dark side of the human psyche and experiments with innovative styles, heralding the Hong Kong New Wave.Read More »

Plot summary:
Karl Kassbach, age 54, lives in Vienna and is the owner of a grocery shop. He can no longer communicate with his wife and his 18 year old son. He has an affair with the new apprentice, Liesi, and his inclination to brutality becomes more pronounced from meeting to meeting. But it is only among his jovial old friends who, like himself, are involved in the activities of the right-extremist organization, ‘Initiative’ tvonhat he feels really secure, the fascist characteristics which he acquired during his youth are here intensified: Together, the comrades go bowling, practice shooting, carry out attacks on guest workers and democratic clubs. During one of these ‘actions’, Kassbach shoots dead a journalist… The portrait of a petty bourgeois who was exposed to national socialism and is unable to cope with it.Read More »

Experimental film adaption of Dante’s Divine Comedy directed by Polish-born pupeteer Michael Meschke. The film was bashed by most critics which eventually made Meschke give up filmmaking.Read More »

Synopsis:
Gregory Ulas Powell is a disturbed ex-con who recruits Jimmy Lee “Youngblood” Smith, a petty thief, as his partner in crime. Powell panics one night when the two of them are pulled over by a pair of cops for broken brake lights. Powell decides to kidnap the cops, and Smith, as always, reluctantly goes along with Powell’s crazy scheme. The group drives out to a deserted onion field in Bakersfield, California, and one officer is shot while the other escapes. The remainder of the film explores the nature of the American justice system, as well as the devastating psychological effects of this event, and the trial on the surviving officer.Read More »