COMING IN FEBRUARY
In honor of Black History Month, the Stafford Library will be holding four DVD discussion groups on consecutive Thursday nights at 7pm.
The 79th Annual Academy Awards will be broadcast on Sunday, February 25th, 2007, on ABC channels. We'll be discussing two films that received Academy Awards in 2006, Crash and Hustle & Flow. Our other two discussion films, Akeelah & the Bee and Inside Man, have received a great deal of critical attention and may be among the 2007 Academy Award nominees announced on January 23rd, 2007. All of these films have performances by notable African American actors, and director Spike Lee has been nominated for Best Documentary (for Four Little Girls, 1997) and Best Original Screenplay (Do the Right Thing, 1989) in the past.
2/1 - Crash
Winner, Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, 2006 Academy Awards
Winner, Outstanding Motion Picture, 37th Annual NAACP Image Awards
A car accident brings together a group of strangers in Los Angeles. Crash takes a provocative, unflinching look at the complexities of racial tolerance in contemporary America.
2/8 - Hustle & Flow
Winner, Best Original Song, 2006 Academy Awards
Winners, Best Actor (Terrence Howard), Best Supporting Actor (Anthony Anderson), Best Supporting Actress (Taraji P. Henson), 2006 Black Movie Awards
DJay, who dreams of becoming the next big rap superstar, works all the angles to get his first record made. He even has the help from assorted people in his Memphis 'hood. When he hears that rap superstar Skinny Black is heading to his area, DJay decides to throw together a supreme hustle to grab Skinny's attention.
2/15 - Akeelah and the Bee
Winners, Outstanding Motion Picture, Best Actress (Keke Palmer), Best Supporting Actor (Laurence Fishburne), Best Supporting Actress (Angela Bassett), 2006 Black Movie Awards
Eleven year-old Akeelah Anderson's life is not easy: her father is dead, her mom ignores her, her brother runs with the local gangbangers. Akeelah participates in a spelling bee to avoid detention for her many absences, and much to her surprise and embarrassment, she wins. As the possibility of making it all the way to the Scripps National Spelling Bee looms, Akeelah could provide her community with someone to rally around and be proud of, if she can overcome her insecurities, her distracting home life, and the knowledge that there is a field of more experienced and privileged fellow spellers.
2/22 - Inside Man
Winner, Best Director (Spike Lee), Nominated, Best Actor (Denzel Washington), 2006 Black Movie Awards
NYPD Detective Keith Frazier struggles to outsmart Dalton, a high-stakes bank robber who, along with a well-trained crew of accomplices, has seized control of a Wall Street bank. The robbers turn what initially looks like a hostage crisis into a personal crusade to expose some mysterious evil secrets.
12/08/2006
11/04/2006
December 7th discussion : Kandahar
Register for this discussion starting November 16th.
Pick up your copy of the DVD starting November 31st.
Director – Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Screenplay – Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Stars – Nelofer Pazira, Hassan Tantai, Hassan Tantai, Hoyatala Hakimi
Plot: Nafas (Niloufar Pazira) is a reporter who was born in Afghanistan, but fled with her family to Canada when she was a child. However, her sister wasn't so lucky; she lost her legs to a land mine while young, and when Nafas and her family left the country, her sister was accidentally left behind. Nafas receives a letter from her sister announcing that she's decided to commit suicide during the final eclipse before the dawn of the 21st century; desperate to spare her sister's life, Nafas makes haste to Afghanistan, where she joins a caravan of refugees who, for a variety of reasons, are returning to the war-torn nation. As Nafas searches for her sister, she soon gets a clear and disturbing portrait of the toll the Taliban regime has taken upon its people. [from amazon.com]
Review links:
Roger Ebert - Chicago Sun-Times
Owen Gleiberman - Entertainment Weekly
Other Reviews:
Metacritic
Pick up your copy of the DVD starting November 31st.
Director – Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Screenplay – Mohsen Makhmalbaf
Stars – Nelofer Pazira, Hassan Tantai, Hassan Tantai, Hoyatala Hakimi
Plot: Nafas (Niloufar Pazira) is a reporter who was born in Afghanistan, but fled with her family to Canada when she was a child. However, her sister wasn't so lucky; she lost her legs to a land mine while young, and when Nafas and her family left the country, her sister was accidentally left behind. Nafas receives a letter from her sister announcing that she's decided to commit suicide during the final eclipse before the dawn of the 21st century; desperate to spare her sister's life, Nafas makes haste to Afghanistan, where she joins a caravan of refugees who, for a variety of reasons, are returning to the war-torn nation. As Nafas searches for her sister, she soon gets a clear and disturbing portrait of the toll the Taliban regime has taken upon its people. [from amazon.com]
Review links:
Roger Ebert - Chicago Sun-Times
Owen Gleiberman - Entertainment Weekly
Other Reviews:
Metacritic
9/21/2006
8/11/2006
September 21st discussion : The Motorcycle Diaries
Register for this discussion starting September 4th.
Pick up your copy of the DVD starting September 15th.
Director – Walter Salles
Screenplay – Jose Rivera, adapted from the memoir Notas de viaje by Ernesto Guevara, and the biography Con el Che por America Latina by Alberto Granado
Stars – Gael Garcia Bernal, Rodrigo de la Serna
Plot: Ernesto Guevara and his friend Alberto are medical students on the verge of graduation. They head out on a life-changing motorcycle trip across South America in 1952, a trip that alters their views of privilege and poverty.
Review links:
Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times
Peter Travers Rolling Stone
Read more reviews:
IMDB
Metacritic
6/29/2006
June 29th discussion : The Dying Gaul
Register for this discussion starting June 2nd.
Pick up your copy of the DVD starting June 2nd.
Director – Craig Lucas
Screenplay – Craig Lucas
Stars – Peter Sarsgaard, Campbell Scott, Patricia Clarkson
Plot: A powerful and seductive Hollywood mogul convinces an impoverished West Hollywood writer, whose lover has recently died of AIDS, to sell his autobiographical screenplay for big bucks. The writer, Robert, knows he'll have to make major changes in the script (like changing the sex of the dying lover). During the rewrite, the producer, Jeffrey, takes Robert under his wing, introducing him to his wife Elaine, herself a closet screenwriter. Jeffrey approaches Robert for sex and Elaine approaches Robert out of curiosity about his sex life in grief. The entangled triangle of relationships threatens more than the completion of a film script. Plot synopsis from amazon.com
Review links:
Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times
David Edelstein Slate
Read more reviews:
IMDB
Metacritic
6/22/2006
June 22nd discussion : Capote
Register for this discussion starting June 2nd.
Pick up your copy of the DVD starting June 2nd.
Director – Bennett Miller
Screenplay – Dan Futterman (adapted from the book by Gerald Clarke)
Stars – Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Clifton Collins Jr., Chris Cooper
“In November, 1959, the shocking murder of a smalltown Kansas family captures the imagination of Truman Capote (Philip Seymour Hoffman), famed author of Breakfast at Tiffany's. With his childhood friend Harper Lee (Catherine Keener), writer of the soon-to-be published To Kill a Mockingbird, Capote sets out to investigate, winning over the locals despite his flamboyant appearance and style. When he forms a bond with the killers and their execution date nears, the writing of "In Cold Blood," a book that will change the course of American literature, takes a drastic toll on Capote, changing him in ways he never imagined.” Product description via amazon.com
Review links:
Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times
David Edelstein Slate
Read more reviews:
IMDB
Metacritic
6/15/2006
June 15th discussion : TransAmerica
Register for this discussion starting June 2nd.
Pick up your copy of the DVD starting June 8th.
Director: Duncan Tucker
Screenplay: Duncan Tucker
Stars: Felicity Huffman, Kevin Zegars, Fionnula Flanagan, Burt Young, Graham Greene
Plot: “Huffman plays Bree Osbourne, a conservative transsexual woman, who learns she is the parent of a long-lost 17-year-old son (Kevin Zegers). The wheels of fortune take Bree and son on a cross-country adventure, including a memorable visit with Bree’s parents, that will change both of their lives. A funny, touching, completely original look at the modern American family” Product description via amazon.com
Review links:
Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times
David Edelstein Slate
Read more reviews:
IMDB
Metacritic
6/14/2006
Thanks are in order...
...to Liz B. at Pop Goes the Library for talking up the DVD Discussion Group here. As a result, both PGtL and this very blog have gotten mentions in two cool places: Superpatron and Scrappy Librarian. Check them all out!
Another "thanks" goes out to Homewood Public Library Film Group for the inspiration to blog the OCL group. When I did a Google search, theirs was the only library group I found blogging. They also create beautiful brochures containing supporting information for film viewers. Kudos!
Another "thanks" goes out to Homewood Public Library Film Group for the inspiration to blog the OCL group. When I did a Google search, theirs was the only library group I found blogging. They also create beautiful brochures containing supporting information for film viewers. Kudos!
6/08/2006
June 8th discussion : Brokeback Mountain
Can't make it to the discussion group meeting? Click on the Comments link at the bottom of this post and tell us what you think about this film!
Director: Ang Lee
Screenplay: Larry McMurtry & Diana Ossana; based on the short story by Annie Proulx
Stars: Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michelle Williams, Anne Hathaway, Randy Quaid
Plot: “An epic love story set against the sweeping vistas of Alberta's Rocky Mountains, Brokeback Mountain tells the story of two young men - a ranch-hand and a rodeo cowboy - who meet in the summer of 1963, and unexpectedly forge a lifelong connection, one whose complications, joys and tragedies provide a testament to the endurance and power of love.” Focus Features plot summary via imdb.com
Review links:
Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times
David Edelstein Slate
Lisa Anne Cockrel Christianity Today
Read more reviews:
5/24/2006
Join the Discussion at the Stafford Library!
When people see a movie, they talk about it. Whether they loved it or hated it, whether it moved them or left them cold, whether they identified with a particular character, how they felt about the hero's victory or the villain's defeat.
The best movies have the ability to make us see things from a new perspective. They give us insight into our own lives and the lives of others. With this in mind, join us to share your views on some current movies that have stimulated conversations among viewers and critics alike.
We've chosen four films from the past year that have attracted widespread media attention, critical praise and film award consideration: Brokeback Mountain (discussion on 6/8), Transamerica (6/15), Capote (6/22) and The Dying Gaul (6/29). You can choose which films you'd like to see and discuss, or sign up for the whole series. Call the Stafford Branch at 609-597-3381 to sign up for any DVD discussion or to get more information.
Come in and check out your specially reserved dvds to view at home. Join us at the Thursday night discussions to share your thoughts and opinions with other folks, or let us know what you think about the films by posting a comment here on the blog.
This DVD discussion series is part of Ocean County Library's celebration of Gay Pride Month during June, 2006. Please check out our other Gay Pride Month Events and our June 2006 Calendar.
The best movies have the ability to make us see things from a new perspective. They give us insight into our own lives and the lives of others. With this in mind, join us to share your views on some current movies that have stimulated conversations among viewers and critics alike.
We've chosen four films from the past year that have attracted widespread media attention, critical praise and film award consideration: Brokeback Mountain (discussion on 6/8), Transamerica (6/15), Capote (6/22) and The Dying Gaul (6/29). You can choose which films you'd like to see and discuss, or sign up for the whole series. Call the Stafford Branch at 609-597-3381 to sign up for any DVD discussion or to get more information.
Come in and check out your specially reserved dvds to view at home. Join us at the Thursday night discussions to share your thoughts and opinions with other folks, or let us know what you think about the films by posting a comment here on the blog.
This DVD discussion series is part of Ocean County Library's celebration of Gay Pride Month during June, 2006. Please check out our other Gay Pride Month Events and our June 2006 Calendar.
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