Community Film Screenings: In Honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day at Real Art Ways

“…a rousing success that got me thinking about my own experiences.” – The Boston Globe 

“One of the best and boldest American comedies in years with a dynamite performance by an Oscar-ready Jeffrey Wright.” – ABC News

“The best picture of the year.” – Washington Post 

92% on Rotten Tomatoes

Synopsis:

American Fiction confronts our culture’s obsession with reducing people to outrageous stereotypes. Jeffrey Wright stars as Monk, a frustrated novelist who’s fed up with the establishment profiting from “Black” entertainment that relies on tired and offensive tropes. To prove his point, Monk uses a pen name to write an outlandish “Black” book of his own, a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.

Nominated for 5 Academy Awards!

Best Picture

Best Actor – Jeffrey Wright

Best Supporting Actor – Sterling K. Brown

Best Adapted Screenplay

Best Original Screenplay

“Often beautiful, never pretty, occasionally creepy and perpetually surprising, Poor Things lives in Stone’s fiery eyes; her performance is, to borrow Bella’s words, a changeable feast.” – Seattle Times

“The best movie of the year.” – RogerEbert.com

“You won’t know what hit you, which is just one reason why I’m rabid to see it again.” – ABC News

“Both literary and cinematic, Poor Things gives the audience everything we can ask for in a film — beauty and wonder; hefty ideas and clever storytelling; twists, shocks and laughter.” – Wall Street Journal 

“mordantly funny, whimsical and wacky, unprecious and unpretentious, filled with so much to adore that to try and parse it all here feels like a pitiful response to the film’s ambitions.” – indieWire

93% on Rotten Tomatoes

Synopsis:

From filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos and producer Emma Stone comes the incredible tale and fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter (Stone), a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist Dr. Godwin Baxter (Willem Dafoe).

Under Baxter’s protection, Bella is eager to learn. Hungry for the worldliness she is lacking, Bella runs off with Duncan Wedderburn (Mark Ruffalo), a slick and debauched lawyer, on a whirlwind adventure across the continents. Free from the prejudices of her times, Bella grows steadfast in her purpose to stand for equality and liberation.

“A fond character study that luxuriates in its subject’s livewire personality while acknowledging how exasperating and exhausting he could be.” – BBC.com

“Engrave an Oscar for Bradley Cooper for his heart-full-to-bursting tour de force as Leonard Bernstein. Alive with glorious music, the film resonates with the love the bisexual legend feels for the wife (a sublime Carey Mulligan) who lives with his demons.” – ABC News

“…Maestro is the real deal: the rousing, complex and heartbreaking rhapsody its subject deserves.” – Financial Times

“An absolute marvel. One of the finest films of the year.” – Rolling Stone

“Bradley Cooper exerts and exhausts his soul.” – IndieWire

Golden Globe nominee for Actor in a Drama Motion Picture, Actress in a Drama Motion Picture, and Drama Motion Picture.

Synopsis:

Maestro is a towering and fearless love story chronicling the lifelong relationship between Leonard Bernstein and Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein.

Starring Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan, this film is a love letter to life and art. At its core, it’s an emotionally epic portrayal of family and love.

“The film – the latest in the Exhibition on Screen series – blends beautiful footage of the painting and its setting in the Belvedere Museum in Vienna with insightful criticism from curators and scholars to bring the artwork to life. There is a lot to unpack.” – The Guardian 

Synopsis:

This documentary delves into the detail and passion surrounding Gustav Klimt’s exquisite artwork, his scandalous life, the decadent Art Nouveau movement, and the painting that has become one of the most recognized and reproduced in the world—The Kiss.

“A portrait of the determination and grit—and self-absorption—possessed by athletes who push themselves to their limits.” – RogerEbert.com

“…will have you cheering.” – ABC News

“It is quite the tale of heroism and courage in the face of adversity, as well as the importance of teamwork and never giving up.” – Entertainment Weekly 

Synopsis:

A remarkable true story of tenacity, friendship and the triumph of the human spirit, NYAD recounts a riveting chapter in the life of world-class athlete Diana Nyad. Three decades after giving up marathon swimming in exchange for a prominent career as a sports journalist, at the age of 60, Diana (four-time Academy Award nominee Annette Bening) becomes obsessed with completing an epic swim that always eluded her: the 110 mile trek from Cuba to Florida, often referred to as the “Mount Everest” of swims. Determined to become the first person to finish the swim without a shark cage, Diana goes on a thrilling, four-year journey with her best friend and coach Bonnie Stoll (two-time Academy Award winner Jodie Foster) and a dedicated sailing team.

“A darkly funny, and often truthful, look at the rapid hysteria of our real-world cancel culture.” – Huffington Post 

“It’s undeniably enjoyable and sharp, a reminder that a great idea can go a long way.” – RogerEbert.com 

“This is an ambitious, often provocative interrogation of masculinity, cancel culture, social media, and the power of celebrity through a humorous lens.” – Screen International

Synopsis:

Hapless family man Paul Matthews (Nicolas Cage) finds his life turned upside down when millions of strangers suddenly start seeing him in their dreams. But when his nighttime appearances take a nightmarish turn, Paul is forced to navigate his newfound stardom, in this wickedly entertaining comedy from writer-director Kristoffer Borgli (Sick of Myself) and producer Ari Aster.

“Never less than compelling, her [Helen Mirren] work here feels true from scene to scene.” – Financial Times

“Golda is unusually blunt about the internal devastation that comes with overseeing military operations.” – Wall Street Journal 

“For those with a particular interest in Meir, Israel, or 20th century Middle East history, there’s enough here to hold a viewer’s attention.” – ReelViews

“Mirren portrays Meir in her darkest days at the height of the 1973 Yom Kippur War with empathy and loving subtlety. It’s hard to imagine anyone doing it better…” – San Francisco Chronicle

Synopsis:

Golda is a ticking-clock thriller set during the tense 19 days of the Yom Kippur War in 1973. Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir (Helen Mirren), faced with the potential of Israel’s complete destruction, must navigate overwhelming odds, a skeptical cabinet, and a complex relationship with US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger (Liev Schreiber), with millions of lives in the balance. Her tough leadership and compassion would ultimately decide the fate of her nation and leave her with a controversial legacy around the world.

“This elaborate documentary navigates adroitly through the professional and the personal aspects of a very full life.” – Deadline Hollywood Daily

“Directors Miri Navasky, Karen O’Connor and Maeve O’Boyle finally do an impressive and affecting job of hitting all those marks, in a film whose chief sin may just be that it doesn’t run about a half-hour longer.” – Variety 

“Anyone with an interest in the key artists of the counterculture movement will find much to appreciate here.” – Hollywood Reporter

Synopsis:

Neither a conventional biopic nor a traditional concert film, JOAN BAEZ I AM A NOISE is a raw and intimate portrait of the legendary folk singer and activist that shifts back and forth through time as it follows Joan on her final tour and delves into her extraordinary archive, including newly discovered home movies, diaries, artwork, therapy tapes, and audio recordings. Baez is remarkably revealing about her life on and off stage — from her lifelong emotional struggles to her civil rights work with MLK and a heartbreaking romance with a young Bob Dylan. A searingly honest look at a living legend, this film is a compelling and deeply personal exploration of an iconic artist who has never told the full truth of her life, as she experienced it, until now.

“[A] consistently smart, funny movie about people who are easy to root for and like the ones we know.” – RogerEbert.com

“It’s the warmest cinematic experience you’ll have all year.” – The New York Post

“The vibes are immaculate from the start and only grow more so as the characters gradually start to become as detailed as the world that The Holdovers constructs around them.” – indieWire

Synopsis:

This film follows a curmudgeonly instructor (Paul Giamatti) at a New England prep school who is forced to remain on campus during Christmas break to babysit the handful of students with nowhere to go. Eventually he forms an unlikely bond with one of them — a damaged, brainy troublemaker (newcomer Dominic Sessa) — and with the school’s head cook, who has just lost a son in Vietnam (Da’Vine Joy Randolph).

“The occasional exposure flares and soundtrack sync pops reminds us this is a movie, but also that we’re watching what’s raw and possible in art and life, that it’s good to be open to wherever images and sounds may take us.” – Los Angeles Times 

“The film’s provocations have a playfulness and generosity that are enormously appealing.” – The New York Times 

“A narrative that maintains a stolid demeanor even as it takes the oddest turns.” – RogerEbert.com

91% on Rotten Tomatoes

Synopsis:

Introverted and unqualified, Eva is unexpectedly tasked with foleying the sound for a commercial featuring a horse. As she slowly acclimates to the new job, her obsession with creating the perfect equine sounds grows into something more tangible. Eva harnesses this new physicality, becoming more confident and empowered, and lures an unassuming botanist into an intriguing game of submission. Shot on lush 16mm, Piaffe is a visceral journey into control, gender, and artifice.

In German with English subtitles.

“Truly captivating.” – Empire Magazine

“It’s a treat for fans…and a chance for the uninitiated to tune in to the band that has come to personify postmodernist rock ‘n’ roll.” – Washington Post 

“Stop Making Sense successfully captures almost everything that was great about the Talking Heads, and there’s no better endorsement of a concert film than that.” – Austin Chronicle

100% on Rotten Tomatoes

Synopsis:

“Enthralling! Revels in Carlos Santana’s musical life force.” – Variety 

Synopsis:

A music industry legend for 50 years and a 10-time Grammy-winning global sensation, as well as a recipient of a Kennedy Center Honor and a Billboard Century award, Carlos Santana continues to be one of the music world’s premiere artists, blending jazz, blues, and the Mariachi sound with a rock n’ roll spirituality and a sense of connection to music’s primal connection to our deepest emotions. The electric documentary CARLOS utilizes new interviews with Santana and his family alongside extraordinary, never-before-seen archival footage — including home video recordings Santana himself made; concert footage; and behind-the-scenes moments — as two-time Emmy-winning director Rudy Valdez (The Sentence; Through Our Eyes; We Are: The Brooklyn Saints) creates an intimate, rich documentary about a man whose sound casts a spell on fans who love — as one of Santana’s famous titles says — “how his rhythm goes.”

“A luminous, fascinating look at the life and times of Mary Cassatt.” – Sydney Arts Guide 

Synopsis:

“Director/co-screenwriter Aristotle Torres’ street-smart story feels as if someone experienced it and is most effective when Kadir feels the tug between being in a gang and pursuing his artistic talents.” – San Jose Mercury News

“As a touching portrait of an outer-borough New Yorker whose talents are just waiting to be harnessed, it shows some true potential.” – Hollywood Reporter

100% on Rotten Tomatoes

Synopsis:

“Watching these two mutually suspicious strangers stumble toward forming a family makes Scrapper an invigorating treat, like finding wild flowers bursting out of broken pavement.” – Wall Street Journal 

“… tender without falling into sappiness.” – New York Times 

“Scrapper, which seeks to parse through the fears felt in grief, change, and maturation, is full of rare heart, a spunky embrace of ambitious empathy.” – RogerEbert.com

“A smart, sensitive debut and a promising arrival for its talented director.” – indieWire

93% on Rotten Tomatoes

Synopsis:

“A wickedly funny, absorbing character study.” – RoberEbert.com

“The movie is funny and touching, with star-making performances and a script full of lovely, self-aware little touches…” – The New York Times

“A profoundly perceptive movie.” – Playlist

Synopsis:

Ben, a struggling filmmaker, lives in Berkeley, California, with his girlfriend, Miko, who works for a local Asian American film festival. When he’s not managing an arthouse movie theater as his day job, Ben spends his time obsessing over unavailable blonde women, watching Criterion Collection DVDs, and eating in diners with his best friend Alice, a queer grad student with a serial dating habit. When Miko moves to New York for an internship, Ben is left to his own devices, and begins to explore what he thinks he might want.

“…reminds us that the tribulations of getting old are more natural than sad, and best done in the company of loved ones.” – Washington Post 

“Featuring sterling performances from an uncharacteristically underplaying Ben Kingsley alongside Harriet Sansom Harris and Jane Curtin, Jules emerges as a low-key delight.” – Hollywood Reporter

Synopsis:

Jules follows Milton (Ben Kingsley) who lives a quiet life of routine in a small western Pennsylvania town, but finds his day upended when a UFO and its extra-terrestrial passenger crash land in his backyard. Before long, Milton develops a close relationship with the extra-terrestrial he calls “Jules.” Things become complicated when two neighbors (Harriet Sansom Harris and Jane Curtin) discover Jules and the government quickly closes in. What follows is a funny, wildly inventive ride as the three neighbors find meaning and connection later in life — thanks to this unlikely stranger.