A selection of six European films, from the Lumière brothers on 28 December 1895 to the most avant-garde European film movements, will be presented this year at the University of Liverpool.
French Film: ‘400 Blows’, directed by François Truffaut – 1 June 2023
400 Blows (French: Les Quatre Cents Coups) is a 1959 French coming-of-age drama film. The most autobiographical of Truffaut’s films, 400 Blows follows a few months in the life of 12-year-old Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud) who, misunderstood and mistreated by his neglectful parents and repressive schoolteachers, seeks refuge in truancy, petty crime, and the cinema. The film’s French title actually means ‘raising hell’, and Antoine’s rebellion against rigid social norms, breaking out from the confinement of stifling classrooms or his parents’ cramped flat, is exhilaratingly captured in Henri Decaë’s lyrical location shooting on the streets of Paris.
German Film: ‘M’, directed by Fritz Lang – 2 June 2023
M is a 1931 German mystery suspense thriller, made two years before Hitler came to power. M, which stands for Murder of ‘Mörder’, was Fritz Lang’s first sound film and is a great psychological thriller, a trenchant treatise on crime and justice, and a vivid portrait of the rapidly disintegrating Weimar Republic. Peter Lorre shot to stardom as the compulsive child murderer who is hunted down not only by a desperate, frustrated police force, but – rather more ruthlessly – by Berlin’s criminal underworld. The extraordinarily detailed police procedures are based on Lang’s research at the Alexanderplatz police headquarters, while the documentary-style depiction of Berlin’s prostitutes, beggars and grotesquely respectable citizens recalls the sharp-eyed satire of artists such as Grosz and Dix. Lorre’s first major screen role was also his greatest – no monstrous caricature but a quietly credible psychopath who could easily be your next-door neighbour. The explosive revelation of his inner torment is one of cinema’s great set pieces.
Italian Film: ‘8 ½ ‘, directed by Federico Fellini – 8 June 2023
8 ½ (Italian title: Otto e mezzo) is a 1963 surrealist comedy-drama film directed by Federico Fellini. Struggling to find inspiration for his next project, acclaimed director Guido Anselmi (Marcello Mastroianni) wrestles with his dreams, memories and desires in his search for creativity. Blending visions with reality, Fellini’s exquisitely shot 8½ – now restored by Gaumont and Éclair – offers a unique portrayal of a restless creative talent battling with his past and the distractions of the present, as he fights to determine his future artistic voice. Elaborate and self-reflexive, 8½ is an impeccable example of Fellini’s unique style, a bravura and extravagance that has influenced countless generations of filmmakers – from Woody Allen to Wes Anderson. No. 4 in Sight & Sound’s Directors’ Poll of greatest films of all time (No. 10 in Critics’ Poll), 8½ is an undisputed classic of world cinema awaiting discovery by a new generation of cinemagoers.
Polish Film: ‘Camera Buff’, directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski – 9 June 2023
Camera Buff (Polish: Amator, meaning “amateur”) is a 1979 Polish drama film written and directed by Krzysztof Kieślowski and starring Jerzy Stuhr. An ordinary factory worker buys a camera on the occasion of the birth of his child. The authorities order him to make documentaries about the factory’s success. But his endeavour to be truthful leads him to opposition against censorship.
Czech Film: ‘The Firemen’s Ball’, directed by Miloš Forman – 15 June 2023
The Firemen’s Ball (Czech: Hoří, má panenko – “Fire, my lady”) is a 1967 comedy film directed by Miloš Forman. The volunteer fire department in a small town is having a big party when the ex-boss of the department celebrates his 86th birthday. The whole town is invited but things don’t go as planned. Someone is stealing the prizes to the lottery and the candidates for the Miss Fire-Department beauty contest are neither willing nor particularly beautiful.
Swedish Film: ‘Songs from the Second Floor’, directed by Roy Andersson – 16 June 2023
Songs from the Second Floor (Swedish: Sånger från andra våningen) is a Swedish black comedy-drama film, written and directed by Roy Andersson. A film poem inspired by the Peruvian poet César Vallejo. We meet people in the city. People trying to communicate, searching compassion and get the connection of small and large things.
Event Date: Thursday 1st June 2023 - Friday 16th June 2023
Categories: Community Event | Festival
