Monthly Film Series
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Red & Black Cafe Monthly Film Series
January
Lucio, Anarquista
A colorful documentary about the life of Lucio Uturbia, a Spanish bricklayer and anarchist. Uturbia resists fascism, assists in the kidnapping of a Nazi war criminal, aids Black Panthers wanted by the US government, and brings Citibank to its knees by forging $20 million in travelers cheques to finance Latin American guerillas.
Spanish with English subtitles.
Directed by Aitor Arregi and Jose Maria Goenaga, 2007
This film screening will be a fundraiser for the Institute for Anarchist Studies.
February
Quicksilver
An 80s cult classic starring Kevin Bacon as a successful young floor trader who loses everything and decides to leave the stock exchange to work as a bike messenger. Check out those mid-80s Raleighs!
Directed by Thomas Michael Donnelly, 1986
March
Flag Wars
A documentary about a historically Black neighborhood in Columbus, OH being gentrified by predominantly white queer newcomers. Filmed over the course of 4 years, Flag Wars depicts developments and tensions in Olde Town East as they unfold. Warning: this film contains racist and homophobic language.
Directed by Linda Goode Bryant, 2003
April
9 to 5
An early 80s comedy about a feminist office take-over! Watch Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda, and Lily Tomlin bind, gag, and kidnap their dimwitted sexist boss.
Directed by Collin Higgins, 1980
May
Harlan County USA
A mid-70s documentary about the struggle of 180 Kentucky coal miners on strike against the Duke Power Company.
Directed by Barbara Koppel, 1976
June
Network
A cult 1970s satire starring William Holden as Howard Beale, an aging news anchor. When Beale is fired due to low ratings, he attempts to get back at his bosses by rebelling on-air. Oddly enough, the public devours Beale’s cathartic rants and the ratings soar. Hailed as a “mad prophet,” Beale is given his own show. Meanwhile, brazen young producer Diana Christensen (Faye Dunaway) attempts to work with a left-wing “terrorist” group (a parody of the Symbionese Liberation Army) in order to create more “edgy” programming. Plot twists galore! Warning: this film contains racist and otherwise offensive language.
Directed by Sidney Lumet, 1976
July
The Cradle Will Rock
A film based on the true story of Orson Wells’ 1937 attempt to stage a lefty operetta about efforts to unionize steelworkers. Despite constant red-baiting and a sudden withdrawal of WPA funding, the show must go on! Subplots tackle the Depression, the Red Scare, the rise of fascism in Europe, labor activism, and dissident art. The all-star cast includes John Cusack, Rubén Blades, Bill Murray, John Turturro, Hank Azaria, and Susan Sarandon.
Directed by Tim Robbins, 2000
August
Salt of the Earth
Based on the story of the 1951 strike against Empire Zinc Mine in New Mexico, this powerful film deals with prejudice against Mexican workers, labor activism, and the role of women in the labor movement. Directed and produced by members of the blacklisted “Hollywood 10,” this film was initially banned in the United States.
Directed by Herbert J. Biberman, 1954
September
Afro-Punk
A documentary exploring racial identity in punk and hardcore. The film primarily follows the lives of 4 punks of color living in different US cities, but also features interviews with members of Candiria, Fishbone, the Dead Kennedys, and more. Performances by Bad Brains, Tamar Kali, Cipher, and Ten Grand.
Directed by James Spooner, 2003
October
The Take
¡Ocupar, Resistir, Producir! Occupy, Resist, Produce! When economic crisis devastated Argentina, a number of factories filed for bankruptcy and closed. Laid-off workers organized to re-open factories as democratically-run, worker-owned cooperatives. This documentary follows the lives and struggles of unemployed factory workers turned co-owners and other anti-capitalist activists.
Directed by Naomi Klein and Avi Lewis, 2004
November
Doctor Strangelove
Loosely based on Peter George’s Cold War thriller novel Red Alert, Stanley Kubrik’s cult-classic dark comedy satirizes the nuclear scare. The plot is driven by an unhinged US Air Force general who orders a nuclear attack on the Soviet Union. Politicians and military officers try to prevent nuclear annihilation, comedy ensues.
Directed by Stanley Kubrik, 1964
December
Quinceañera
Magdalena is a typical East L.A. teenager, surviving her quinceañera preparations, traditional parents, cliquish friends, and sometimes-boyfriend with a dry sense of humor. But when she finds out she is pregnant, Magdalena’s life is complicated beyond belief. Kicked out of her parents’ house, Magdalena creates a new family with other outcast relatives: her elderly great-uncle and her gay 18-year-old cousin. Side plots address a variety of social issues, including girlhood and feminism, Latino and queer identities, and the gentrification of Echo Park. Amateur actors deliver nuanced performances.
Directed by Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland, 2006
