Library presenting international film festival
Lethbridge continues to become a more cosmopolitan city, so it’s no surprise we have a well-appreciated international film festival.
Festival organizers have selected six features this year, on topics ranging from hockey players’ concussions to “the ravages of colonialism.”
They'll be screened March 20-25, in partnership with the Lethbridge Public Library.
The festival — open to all — will begin Monday, March 20 with “Embrace of the Serpent,” the story of a 19th-century Amazonian shaman and his 40-year relationship with two scientists who are looking for a sacred, psychedelic plant.
The Tuesday selection is a National Film Board documentary, “A Dark Room,” looking at hockey culture and in particular, at concussions. Professional players share their stories of recovery.
An Academy Award nominee for best foreign film, “Theeb” is scheduled for Wednesday. It’s set in 1916, during a war between Arab nationalists and Ottoman Turks, when a British army officer comes looking for a guide to lead him through dangerous terrain — and finds Theeb, a boy who’s willing to risk it.
Thursday’s event may stir some debate. It’s “Requiem for the American Dream,” a documentary interview with controversial commentator Noam Chomsky. He warns that U.S. policies and forces that increasingly concentrate wealth and power in the hands of a select few are leading to the destruction of the middle class — and American democracy itself.
A more light-hearted film will conclude the evening series on Friday, “The Road to La Paz.” It’s a travel story, with an unemployed resident of Buenos Aires agreeing to drive an elderly, devout Muslim man to Bolivia — 2,000 miles west. Featured last year in both the Calgary and Vancouver festivals, it shows how an ongoing conflict, in between accidents, brings them to new understandings by journey’s end.
On Saturday, a familyfriendly matinee (2 p.m.) will offer “The Eagle Huntress,” the true story of a 13-year-old Kazakh girl who becomes the first female in many generations to train as an eagle hunter — a skill traditionally handed down from father to son.
All screenings will be in the downtown library’s Theatre Gallery, where the weekday films will begin at 7 p.m. Free Friday evening films continue in the Theatre Gallery all month, as usual. On Friday, it’s “Arrival,” with a dozen spacecraft surrounding the Earth. On March 17, it’s
Mary Tyler Moore, Donald Sutherland, Judd Hirsch Timothy Hutton
and in the classic “Ordinary People.”
The film festival selection, “The Road to La Paz” will screen on March 24, followed a week later by “Lion,” the story of a small boy who gets lost in Calcutta only to be raised by a family in Australia. Adding more international flavour, this month’s Wednesday evening films at the Crossings branch will all be in Arabic, with subtitles in English. On Wednesday, a dangerous cat-and-mouse game pits “Omar” against the military police.
A documentary of non-violent resistance, “5 Broken Cameras” is set for March 15, followed March 22 by the comedy/drama “The Source,” where wives vow to resist their husbands’ advances unless they assume the arduous task of bringing home the water!
And on March 26, the love story “Sabah” tells the tale of a Muslim woman who falls in love with someone from a different faith tradition.
While the March 23 film will screen at 6:30 p.m. due to its length, the rest will start at 7 p.m. Time for music: A concert in honour of International Women's Day will be presented March 11, featuring the
University of Lethbridge Women's Chorus, the Lethbridge Collegiate Institute
Singers and the Ventus Women’s Choir, along with the Kainai
Grasslands Singers as special guests. It’s planned for Southminster United Church, 7:30 p.m.
“Mozart and Mario” will share the spotlight when the Lethbridge Community Band organization’s Silver Band performs March 18 at 7 p.m. in College Drive Community Church.
Two days later, music fans can take in a no-charge University of Lethbridge “Birthday Concert Series” event, a celebration of J.S. Bach. It’s scheduled for 4:30 p.m. at Casa.
Then at 7:30 p.m. at Southminster that day, the Lethbridge Symphony Orchestra will feature works by
and modern-day
Johannes Brahms John Williams. Chee Meng Low
composer
Soloist will perform on alto saxophone — an instrument seldom heard with an orchestra — on selections from “Catch Me if You Can.” Tickets are available from the symphony office, 403-328-6808. For folk music fans, the Misery
Mountain Boys will be presented by the Lethbridge Folk Club next Saturday, starting at 8 p.m. in the Cave at Lethbridge College. Tickets are available at Casa.
Andrea Superstein performs March 16 at the Geomatic Attic, followed on March 21 by Ben Caplan, with tickets at Blueprint. Our last-minute reminders:
Aaron Copland’s famous “Fanfare for the Common Man” will be among selections on the program tonight, during the season’s final performance by the Lethbridge Community Brass Choir. Conductors Josh Davies and Don
Robb will lead the ensemble in a “Celebration of Brass,” starting at 7 p.m. in La Cite des Prairies on 6 Avenue at Mayor Magrath Drive South, with tickets at the door. And performing arts students at
St. Francis Junior High are staging “Shrek Jr., the Musical” from Tuesday to Saturday at the school. Showtime on the weekdays is 7 p.m., with Saturday matinee shows scheduled for noon and 2:30 p.m. and then a final performance at 7 p.m. Tickets are available from the school office, 403-327-3402.