Spring is just around the corner, and Metro is celebrating the equinox weekend with a Popcorn Pop-up! Order your popcorn and treats by Friday for pickup at the Garneau theatre on Saturday, March 20 from 12–6pm.

Visit shop.metrocinema.org to pre-order popcorn, candy, Alley Kat  beers, merch, and more for pickup at the Garneau Theatre. Please maintain a safe distance from other customers while waiting your turn. Only one person will be permitted to pick up their order at a time.

Pre-orders close on Friday, March 19 at 10pm.
Beer orders must be picked up by an adult with valid ID.

In honour of this year’s International Women’s Day, Metro’s programming committee members have put our heads together (while staying physically far apart) to bring you a list of recommended films by women directors. Each member of the committee submitted a list of their personal favourites and we’ve compiled them for you below. Only 4 films showed up more than once, and the range of genres, styles, and eras represented speaks to the diversity of film appreciation within our ranks.

The members of the programming committee are:

Nick Keating,
Heather Noel
Maggie Hardy
Ryn Climenhaga
Nnett Rhys
Elliot Konkin
Lindsey Wasserman
Farrah Cheriet

 

 

FISH TANK
(Andrea Arnold, 2009)

The new millennium has seen many directors bring the “documentary style” of filmmaking—mostly characterized by using available light and hand-held camerawork—to the world of narrative. But British auteur Andrea Arnold (who started her career as a background dancer!) somehow elevates this aesthetic to unparalleled heights through a potent combination of empathy, vulnerability, compassion, and attention to detail. Her films live in a space that somehow marries documentary and dream. Fish Tank—the story of a volatile teenager from a poor East London neighbourhood who longs for freedom—will charm you, then terrify you, and never let you go.  (Nnett Rhys)

 

MEEK’S CUTOFF
(Kelly Reichardt, 2010)

Director Kelly Reichardt brings a heroic level of restraint and naturalism to this masterpiece of contemporary filmmaking. With a bracingly feminist approach to the story of a group of 1840s settlers led astray by a blustery, fraudulent, unworthy leader on a journey to the American West, this film resonates loudly today. Reichardt’s command of deliberate pacing and blistering tension make this her most accomplished film.  (Lindsey Wasserman)

 

BLOOD TEA AND RED STRING
(Christiane Cegavske, 2006)

You’re in a forest – serene trees and whimsical creatures surround you but a dark undercurrent of fear lurks, fetid, ruining the spell and making the hairs on your neck bristle. You’re having a dream—white mice in dress coats sit around a table, play cards, and drink tea made of blood. Maybe it’s a nightmare—little woodland critters fashion a doll stitched with red string. No one talks but you understand. A fable of obsessive love and a struggle for power. Christiane Cegavske’s Blood Tea and Red String is a hypnotic fairy-tale both terrifying and beautiful. The result of laborious stop-motion animation and 13(!) years, it is not only a testament to the power of animation as an art-form but to what can be accomplished by a lone artist with Cegavske handling almost every aspect of the project (save the score by Mark Growden) from the creation of the puppets to the writing and animation.  A masterwork. (Maggie Hardy)

 

PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE
(Céline Sciamma, 2019)

What does dramatic conflict look like if it arises not between two warring parties struggling to gain power over the other, but rather between two equals trying to understand their own desires? French filmmaker Céline Sciamma agonized over this question while writing the screenplay for Portrait Of A Lady On Fire, hoping to find an alternative to the conventions proliferated by the film schools and literature classes of her past. The resulting film is an enrapturing story of clandestine romance between two women in the late 1800s. Unequivocally a tour de force in writing, direction, acting, cinematography, and production design, Sciamma has set the bar for what mastery in narrative filmmaking looks like in the 21st Century. (Nnett Rhys)

 

VAGABOND
(Agnès Varda, 1985)

The body of a young vagrant woman is found in a farmer’s field. We are then presented with episodes from the final days of her life, as told by the rural folk that crossed paths with her. Her name is Mona, and on the surface she is the antithesis of the objectified central character of Cléo from 5 to 7. Unkempt and unruly, Mona embodies a full-scale rejection of feminine ideals.  But for Varda, the lives of both women are characterized by a profound inability to connect with others. While Cléo and Mona are both introduced with death sentences, Cléo is offered a way out, and her story is ultimately hopeful. Vagabond, with its eerie Hitchcockian score and ill-fated end, is a significantly darker, though no less compassionate or beautiful portrayal of social isolation. (Heather Noel)

 

WAYNE’S WORLD
(Penelope Spheeris, 1992)

I think it’s very likely that I have seen this film more than any other and as far as I am concerned it is one of the funniest films ever made. While extremely silly, all the jokes are executed with an earnestness that makes them timeless and the quotables never stop coming. In addition to being a great comedy, it is worth noting that Penelope Spheeris has directed many great films focusing on music culture including the punk classic Suburbia (1984) and the quintessential documentary trilogy The Decline of Western Civilization. (Nick Keating)

 

GAEA GIRLS
(Kim Longinotto & Jano Williams 2000)

What does it take to be a wrestler? What would a person go through to get their shot at being somebody? GAEA Girls thrusts headfirst into the world of joshi puroresu as we join some rookies at the start of training. Saika Takeuchi is a second-time rookie and under the harsh tutelage of  Chigusa Nagayo (founder of GAEA and one-half of tag team titans The Crush Gals) she seeks redemption. This documentary takes us from matches to the behind-the-scenes daily lives in the GAEA dorm. Will the girls find freedom from patriarchal society or just a dropkick to the face?  While Kim Longinotto and Jano Williams spend little time explaining the world of Japanese women’s wrestling this snapshot into the astounding lives of these women is unforgettable. (Maggie Hardy)

 

RAW
(Julie Ducournau, 2016)

While it certainly is not the first film to use the horror genre as a trapping for a coming-of-age story (Ginger Snaps, The Witch), Julie Ducournau’s debut feature certainly sits among the greats of this trope. Garance Marillier is incredible as a vet school freshman who gains an appetite for flesh after eating meat for the first time. Combining a college film and a body horror, the film excels with its restraint that makes the moments of extremity all the more palpable and horrifying. Very excited to see what Ducournau’s next film Titane (Due out this year) has to offer. (Nick Keating)

 

TOMBOY
(Céline Sciamma, 2011)

Growing up I had always been a tomboy. Wearing dresses was physically painful for me and I was lucky enough to have a supportive mother who let me wear, play and be whoever I wanted. Little did I know that around 20 years later I would come out to my friends and family as transgender. This movie I watched when I was younger and still identifying as a woman but it evoked such an intense reaction out of me. Looking back, I can see why. Tomboy is a raw and intimate look at childhood and identity centering on a 10-year-old french child Laure who, when their family moves, takes the opportunity to explore themselves with a new name and identity. Céline Sciamma, the director, has now been flung into the public eye with her film Portrait of a Lady on Fire but her other works deserve to be viewed as well. Her ability to capture these intimacies is something that I haven’t quite seen another director do when it comes to sexual and gender identity. And most importantly it really pushes home something we all need to remember—protect trans kids. (Elliot Konkin)

 

OTHER NOTABLE SELECTIONS:

The Ascent  (Larisa Shepitko, 1977)

Amer  (Hélène Cattet & Bruno Forzani, 2009)

The Babadook  (Jennifer Kent, 2014)

Beau Travail  (Claire Denis, 1999)

Bend it Like Beckham  (Gurinder Chadha, 2002)

Cléo from 5 to 7  (Agnès Varda, 1962)

Desert Hearts  (Donna Deitch, 1985)

The Dressmaker  (Jocelyn Moorhouse, 2015)

The Farewell  (Lulu Wang, 2019)

Firecrackers  (Jasmin Mozaffari, 2018)

The Gleaners and I  (Agnès Varda, 2000)

The House is Black  (Forough Farrokhzad, 1963)

High Art  (Lisa Cholodenko, 1998)

Little Miss Sunshine  (Valerie Farris and Jonathan Dayton, 2006)

Marock  (Laïla Marrakchi, 2005)

A New Leaf  (Elaine May, 1971)

Pariah  (Dee Rees, 2011)

Paris Is Burning  (Jennie Livingston, 1990)

Persepolis  (Marjane Satrapi and Winshluss, 2007)

Ratcatcher  (Lynne Ramsay, 1999)

Reason over Passion (Joyce Wieland, 1969)

The Secret Garden (Agnieszka Holland, 1993)

Tomboy  (Céline Sciamma, 2011)

Toni Erdmann   (Maren Ade, 2016)

Tunnitt: Retracing the Lines of Inuit Tattoos  (Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, 2011)

Whale Rider (Niki Caro, 2002)

Metro Cinema is a community-based not-for-profit organization, meaning we rely on donations from patrons like you to continue providing diverse and unique programming. Whether or not you have donated to Metro Cinema Society before, we encourage you to fill out this survey and help provide feedback for our fundraising campaigns and initiatives.

Fill out the survey here.

Happy Family Day! It’s a perfect day to kick off our first ever, all-ages colouring contest!

Take your pick of these beautiful colouring pages created by Metro’s team of fabulous volunteer designers, and dig out your crayons, markers, digital art, or your favourite art supplies.

Download colouring pages here

A jury of Metro’s staff and board will choose a winner in the following categories based on our favourite entries. Winners will receive a Metro prize pack and will be announced on Feb 26.

Category 1: Age 0-8
Category 2: Age 8-12
Category 3: Age 13+ (Adults welcome and encouraged!)

To enter, submit your full name, age, and a scan or photo of your completed work to contests@metrocinema.org by February 21. By entering, you agree to allow your entry to be used online and on social media.

No printer? No scanner? Pop by the Garneau Theatre. Paper copies are available for curbside pickup at the front door, and completed entries may be dropped off in the mailbox located next to the red side door on 87 Avenue.

Winners must pick up their prize at the Garneau Theatre.

By Maggie Hardy

Oscar Micheaux was a leader, his art blazed trails and his self-sufficiency and DIY nature has paved the way for countless independent creators. Like many pioneers, however, his true impact wasn’t realized until decades after his passing. He was born on  January 2, 1884 in Metropolis, Illinois to a former slave. Micheaux was a jack of all trades, his work spanned from writer to steelworker to Pullman porter. After seeing most of America via the rails and building up some decent savings he became a homesteader in South Dakota and began to write articles and books about his experience farming. Some of his early articles were published in the Chicago Defender (which at that time was the most circulated Black-owned newspaper in the country) and in 1918 his semi-autobiographical novel The Homesteader caught the eye of George Johnson.

Actor Noble Johnson (King Kong) and George Johnson founded the Lincoln Motion Picture Company in 1916, it was the first Black owned film production company and focused exclusively on race films. While Lincoln only lasted five years and made a scant five pictures, it was George Johnson’s interest in Micheaux that pushed him into film. Lincoln never managed to produce The Homesteader, so Micheaux decided to start his own company, the Micheaux Film Corporation, and make the film himself.

Micheaux quickly became a director, writer, and producer of renown. His projects were numerous, in 1922 alone he made four films and between 1920 and 1934 he made an average of 2.3 films a year! He worked in multiple genres and even did a few horror films, though no examples of this work exist today.

If anything Micheaux was a passionate and somewhat blunt filmmaker. Almost all of his pictures dealt with the bigger picture issues of Blackness in America and he focused on particular themes like “passing”, interracial relationships, and the social standing of mixed peoples.

Lost Films, Lost Histories

One of the most tragic aspects of early cinema is the staggering number of films which have been totally lost. While some lost films can be traced to specific events like the 1937 Fox vault fire where more than 40,000 reels went up in flames, the loss of race films in part due to their perceived lack of value and niche distribution is tantamount to the suppression of marginalized voices.  Of Micheax’s forty-two directorial credits a scant ten of them appear to be available in any sort of form today and of those only six are readily watchable (you can however read almost all of his novels). This tragedy is further compounded because the ‘20s and ‘30s had some of the highest representation that Black filmmakers would see for decades in the USA. There’s almost a 50 year gap between some of the first feature films directed by Black women and Kathleen Collins’ Losing Ground in 1982. From Losing Ground it would be another 10 years before Julie Dash’s Daughters of the Dust would be the first commercially distributed narrative feature created by a Black woman. Black history is the history of American film and the seeds that were sown by Black pioneers like Micheaux a hundred years ago are still growing proud and strong today.

 

Body and Soul
A stunning debut from civil rights activist and singer Paul Robeson. Body and Soul tells the story of a prisoner who disguises himself as a Reverend in a small town. High melodrama ensues, featuring enough lies, loves, and evil identical twins to make most modern soaps blush. Selected by the Library of Congress for inclusion in the National Film Registry in 2019.

Watch the film here.

 

Swing!
In this Harlem Renaissance talkie a love triangle gone wrong sees Eloise Jackson (Hazel Diaz) leave Alabama for the excitement of Harlem. A great showbiz drama. Starring famed vaudeville singer Cora Green and features a cavalcade of talent, from song and dance to some fabulous trumpet courtesy of Dolly Jones (the first female trumpet player to record a jazz album).

Watch the film here.

Pre-orders are now open for our long weekend popcorn pop-up, celebrating both Valentine’s Day and Family Day!

Visit shop.metrocinema.org to pre-order popcorn, candy, Blindman Brewing beers, merch, and more for pickup at the Garneau Theatre on your choice of Sunday, Feb. 14, or Monday, Feb. 15 from 12-6pm.

Choose your preferred pickup day as you add popcorn to your cart, so our staff know which morning to pop it fresh for you and your loved ones to enjoy. Please maintain a safe distance from other customers while waiting your turn. Only one person will be permitted to pick up their order at a time.

Pre-orders close on February 13 at 10pm.
Beer orders must be picked up by an adult with valid ID. 

Written by Erin E. Fraser

I have never been to Hong Kong, and yet I have a sense for Hong Kong. A sense for its streets, a sense for its mood, a sense for its people. I have never been to Hong Kong, but I have seen the films of Wong Kar-wai.

Known for his vibrant, atmospheric romances and crime dramas, Wong’s films are best described as concentrated feelings rather than traditional, plot-driven cinema. His dazzling visuals—courtesy of a long-standing collaboration with idiosyncratic Australian cinematographer Christopher Doyle—and often non-linear narratives evoke a certain yearning and desire. He finds romance in the mundane, like when he’s able to make a dishcloth and a bar of soap into a metaphor for longing and unrequited love in Chungking Express. His superb use of popular music wrings new meaning out of Western pop songs, contrasting and recontextualizing them against the neon backdrop of Hong Kong’s crowded-yet-lonely streets.

Wong won the Best Director prize at the Cannes Film Festival in 1997 for Happy Together. In 2016 when the BBC polled 177 film critics from around the world to find out what they thought the 100 greatest films of the 21st Century were so far, Wong’s masterpiece In the Mood For Love came in second only to David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive and just ahead of Paul Thomas Anderson’s There Will Be Blood.

These six feature films and one short in Criterion’s World of Wong Kar-wai highlight some of Wong’s best work, including indelible performances from frequent collaborators Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung, and Andy Lau. Wong is constantly tinkering with his films, changing things here and there for different releases. It’s as if he is never completely satisfied with the “finished” versions and wants to keep returning to their worlds over and over. This collection of new restorations is no exception and he has said that the changes he has made here are to align with how he had originally envisioned the films. Unsurprisingly, there has been some debate over this choice. While some might see it as a betrayal of the original theatrical releases, I find it only adds to this sensation that his films are living, evolving things rather than static works of art. They exist in a liminal state, shifting and changing and mirroring the melancholy narratives they convey.

Wong Kar-wai makes films about the importance of human connection in a lonely world, something that feels especially relevant at the moment as we find ourselves physically separated from one another.

And I promise, you will never look at a dishcloth and a bar of soap the same way.

—

Watch all seven films here, through our virtual cinema.