It’s been underway since the start of December but I keep forgetting to blog about the Drawn To Screen program which is currently on at the Gallery Of Modern Art in Brisbane.
For those who haven’t been there before, the Gallery has a nice theatre which is often used to show classic / cult movies. I remember going there a few years ago to see one of my all time favourite films, The Ice Storm, as part of an Ang Lee retrospective.
The current “Drawn To Screen” program features “over 60 films from around the world that chart the shift from printed page to screen and the way comic genres and themes challenge personal and cultural expectations.”
If that sounded a little too wordy, let me say this – there are some f***king good films being shown. I’ve only given out four A+ gradings since 2007 and one of them screened a week ago – Persepolis. I went along to see it for a second time and it was as wonderful as I remembered it. Has a finer animated film been made? I’m not sure.
Tickets to all films are just $9 and you can pick up a 5-film pass for $36. You won’t get fleeced with candy bar prices either (very refreshing).
The program continues for another month and so I thought I’d quickly mention some of those I’m more familiar with. If you haven’t seen any of these, here’s a great chance to do so on the big screen. I’ve included the quick plot overviews from the IMDB…
V For Vendetta (2006) – Saturday, 11 February at 3:30pm
A shadowy freedom fighter known only as "V" uses terrorist tactics to fight against his totalitarian society.
Weird Science (1985) – Sunday, 12 February at 1:00pm
Two nerdish boys attempt to create the perfect woman, but she turns out to be more than that.
X-Men 2 (2003) – Wednesday, 15 February at 8:15pm
The X-Men band together to find a mutant assassin who has made an attempt on the President's life, while the Mutant Academy is attacked by military forces.
Akira (1988) – Friday, 17 February at 8:30pm
A secret military project endangers Neo-Tokyo when it turns a biker gang member into a rampaging psionic psychopath that only two kids and a group of psionics can stop.
Fritz The Cat (1972) – Saturday, 18 February at 8:00pm
A hypocritical swinging college student cat raises hell in a satiric vision of various elements on the 1960's.
Oldboy (2003) – Wednesday, 22 February at 9:00pm
After being kidnapped and imprisoned for 15 years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must find his captor in 5 days.
The Dark Knight (2008) – Saturday, 25 February at 9:00pm
Batman, Gordon and Harvey Dent are forced to deal with the chaos unleashed by a terrorist mastermind known only as the Joker, as he drives each of them to their limits.
Crumb (1994) – Saturday, 3 March at 2:00pm
A cinematic portrait of the controversial comic book writer/artist and his traumatized family.
American Splendor (2003) – Saturday, 3 March at 6:00pm
An original mix of fiction and reality illuminates the life of comic book hero everyman Harvey Pekar.
Ghost World (2001) – Saturday, 3 March at 8:00pm
Enid and Rebecca are social outsiders who, after graduating from high school, play a mean prank on a middle-aged geek.
Hopefully I’ll see you in one of the screenings!