Viewer's Choice

Because I couldn't make up my mind regarding which film we should watch this week, I decided to let you the freedom to choose between one of the two titles Stephan suggested! So far, both are older than the oldest film we have screend in the film club, which means that we are heading in the right direction! Yey! And, not only are both films old (which isn't necessary a quality in itself), but both are real must-see classics of the film history.

I admit, I haven't watched any of the proposed movies, so, regardless of your choice I am really keen to this week's screening.

Luis Buñuel vs. Vittorio De Sica!

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*** El Angel Exterminador (Exterminating Angel)

Who needs Marx if one can watch a Bunuel? In a simple but ingenious twist, a surrealistic coup you wouldn't by all means expect, the movie forces its bourgeois subjects to drop their pants, showing little to admire. - Mexican director Luis Bunuel has done this trick more elegantly and more sophisticated in several films after this one, but "El Angel Exterminador" feels highly original, like an archetype. Both baffling and amusingly revealing, it is a treatment for the upper class and for us, thankfully, a treat. And there is more, of course: Referring to the movie's twist(s) Bunuel declared: "From the standpoint of pure reason there is no explanation." And a witty Roger Ebert added: "From the standpoint of explanation there is no pure reason."

Director: Luis Bunuel
Actors: Silvia Pinal et alia
Mexico 1962, 95 min
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*** Ladri di Biciclette (Bycicle Thieves)

Post-war Italy. The job of a poor workingman and the support of his family depend on his bicycle. After it gets stolen he and his little son embark on the desperate search for it throughout Rome. - A deceptively simple movie, but its richness sneaks up on the viewer: You may notice much more than the (neo)realistic method suggests. Yes, "Ladri di biciclette" shows a quest "just" for a bike, but the suspense, fueled by the despair of poverty and warmed by a no-kitsch father-son relationship, never lets up. Contains one of the most compelling child-performances ever and a climax that wets every eye.

Director: Vittori de Sica
Actors: Lamberto Maggiorani, Enzo Staiola
Italy 1948, 90 min
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When: Wednesday, 24 October 2012, 18:30
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Where: GSN Room, ground floor, Biocenter
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El Angel Exterminador (Exterminating Angel)

IMDB: HERE!

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Ladri di Biciclette (Bycicle Thieves)
IMDB: HERE!