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Repertory rave
by MATTHEW HAYS What a town! So much to see! So much to do! At least that's how it must feel for cinephiles this week, as there really seems to be a ton of better-than-average to excellent films to screen. Adding to the list this Friday, Oct. 1, will be Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl at the ever-dependable Cinéma du Parc. Notably, this is the directorial debut of Chinese/American crossover star Joan Chen (Little Flower, The Last Emperor). It's a remarkable film, gorgeously shot, about one young girl who's "sent down" to a remote part of China as part of a government Cultural Revolution program (between '67 and '76, almost 8 million Chinese children were "sent down" under similar circumstances). Remarkably acted, young Xiu ends up training and boarding with an older man. Despite his support and friendship, Xiu has soon descended into the nasty trade of prostitution, in a desperate bid to earn enough to return home. Chen has crafted a truly devastating film about the effects of a rather ludicrous government plan on an innocent woman. Also at the Parc but on a very different note, Sex: The Annabel Chong Story continues this week. I caught it last Friday, where Chong herself spun tales of working in the porn biz. Though I've seen numerous docs on the subject of porn, I must say that this is one of the very best. It certainly has its faults (and mysteries): at one point, Chong says the reason she's making the film is to break down stereotypes about the business, but frankly, the film is structured in such a way as to mimic every rags-to-birthday-suit-and-riches porn myth ever heard (think Boogie Nights). The film may suffer a bit without Chong's post-screening Q&A session, in which she actually contradicts what appear to be many of the film's final conclusions. The worst part of the film, however, were many of the boneheaded questions from various boneheaded members of the audience. What too much porn can do to the mind! Useless factoid/funny coincidence dept.: much of Sex focuses on Chong's famous bestselling video, in which she has sex with 251 men in a 10-hour period, breaking the world record. The seating capacity of the Parc 1, where Sex is screening? 251. Isn't that eerie? Fans of the cult movie The Harder They Come (1973) will be very pleased to attend a special 25th-anniversary screening. Director-coscreenwriter-producer Perry Henzell will introduce the film and answer audience questions directly after. That happens this Friday, Oct. 1 at 7 p.m. at the De Sève Cinema (in Concordia's Library Building). Admission is $2.50 for Concordia staff and students, $5 for all those people unlucky enough not to be associated with that fine institution of higher learning. Henzell will also be reading from and signing copies of his new novel on Saturday, Oct. 2, 24 p.m. at Chapters. The big news about Henzell is that he's currently planning a sequel to Harder, with studio backing in the works. COMMENTS: matt_hays@babylon.montreal.qc.ca |