Here are the rest of the women directed films that will be playing the Tribeca Film Festival in April. There are also several women centric which I will hopefully check out. The shorts program will be announced this week. (All descriptions from the Tribeca Film Festival)
Spotlight
2 Days in New York, directed and written by Julie Delpy. (France) — New York Premiere, Narrative.
This deliriously witty follow-up to 2 Days in Paris finds Marion (writer/director Julie Delpy) living a comfortable life in New York with her latest hipster boyfriend, Mingus (Chris Rock, brilliantly playing it straight), and their two young kids from prior relationships. A riotous comedy of cultural errors ensues when Marion’s totally unhinged, gleefully unfiltered family arrives from Paris to meet Mingus for the first time. In English, French with subtitles. A Magnolia Pictures release.
Chicken With Plums (Poulet Aux Prunes), directed and written by Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud. (France, Germany, Belgium) — U.S. Premiere, Narrative.
Nasser Ali Khan (Mathieu Amalric) is the most celebrated violin player in 1950s Tehran, but his heart is broken. His true love is long lost, his marriage is passionless, and now his most precious instrument has met its demise. Convinced life without music is intolerable, he resigns to bed and loses himself in reveries from his youth. The Oscar®-nominated directors of Persepolis make magic again with a stylish fairy tale full of humor, whimsy, and melancholy. In French with subtitles. A Sony Pictures Classics release.
Don’t Stop Believin’: Everyman’s Journey, directed by Ramona Diaz. (USA) — World Premiere, Documentary.
It sounds like a dream: A charismatic Filipino singer from the slums of Manila posts videos of his cover band to YouTube, and soon he’s fronting an iconic rock band. Sounds crazy, but it’s the real-life rock-and-roll fairy tale that Arnel Pineda is living as the new lead singer of Journey. The pressure’s on Pineda as this rockin’ doc follows Journey’s dizzying world tour — can a man who has already overcome so many obstacles deal with the demands of his newfound fame? In English, Tagalog with subtitles.
Elles, directed by Malgoska Szumowska, written by Tine Byrckel and Malgoska Szumowska. (France, Poland, Germany) — U.S. Premiere, Narrative.
Juliette Binoche, exquisite and involved as always, stars in this sophisticated, sexually charged drama as Anne, a journalist getting in too deep with the research for her article on college students working as prostitutes. As the surprising stories of her two candid subjects stir up Anne’s image of femininity, she wonders if life with her workaholic husband and two spacey sons is all that different from her subjects’ lives. A Kino Lorber release.
Hysteria, directed by Tanya Wexler, written by Jonah Lisa Dyer and Stephen Dyer. (USA, UK, Luxembourg, France) — U.S. Premiere, Narrative.
Set in 19th-century London at the peak of Victorian prudishness, this racy romantic comedy tells the surprising story of the birth of the electro-mechanical vibrator. A progressive young doctor (Hugh Dancy, Adam) has his hands full relieving the city’s affluent society women of their melancholy, until an accidental discovery electrifies their lives forever — and sends sparks flying between him and a feminist rabble-rouser (Maggie Gyllenhaal). A Sony Pictures Classics release.
Knuckleball!, directed by Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg, written by Christine Schomer, Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg. (USA) — World Premiere, Documentary.
This classic sports story recounts the trials and triumphs of two of the best known knuckleball pitchers currently playing in the MLB: Tim Wakefield, a Red Sox veteran struggling to clinch his 200th career win, and R.A. Dickey, an up-and-comer with the Mets looking to make a name for himself. This energetic documentary from the directors of Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work deconstructs the controversial and erratic knuckleball style.
One Nation Under Dog, directed by Jenny Carchman, Ellen Goosenberg Kent and Amanda Micheli. (USA) — World Premiere, Documentary.
This heartfelt documentary explores people’s conflicted relationships with dogs and inspires us to rethink how we treat them. From a man who spends a fortune to defend his dogs in court, to a woman who can’t turn away a stray, to pet loss support groups to rescuers who take on difficult-to-place dogs and save them from death row, this is a film about love, loss, betrayal, and hope.
The Playroom, directed by Julia Dyer, written by Gretchen Dyer. (USA) — World Premiere, Narrative.
In 1970s suburbia, Maggie and her younger siblings spend the night telling each other stories in the attic. Downstairs, as their parents entertain guests over the course of a gin-soaked evening, truths are unearthed and betrayals come to light. With standout performances from John Hawkes, Molly Parker, and a cast of talented young actors, Julia Dyer’s second feature is an honest and challenging look at the reality behind the façade of a seemingly perfect American family.
Polisse, directed by Maïwenn, written by Maïwenn and Emmanuelle Bercot. (France) — U.S. Premiere, Narrative.
Confronting abusive parents, child molesters, traumatized kids, and oversexed teens is all part of the daily grind for the motley band of cops in the Juvenile Protection Unit, but so is chatting about their relationships at lunch and laughing uncontrollably. Grounded in documentary research and naturalistic performances, this unforgettable film from TFF alum Maïwenn (All About Actresses) explores the solidarity that helps hardened vice cops face the worst of society every day. In French, Italian, Romanian, Arabic with subtitles. An IFC Films release.
Take This Waltz, directed and written by Sarah Polley. (Canada) — U.S. Premiere, Narrative.
Margot (Michelle Williams) and Lou (Seth Rogen) are happily married. Their life is thrown out of order when Margot falls for another man and is forced to choose between the comfort of the familiar and the excitement of the unknown. Writer-director Sarah Polley’s follow-up to her acclaimed film Away From Here is a quirky, uncommonly heartfelt look at the evolving nature of love and the difficulty of sustaining a relationship over time. A Magnolia Pictures release.
Your Sister’s Sister, directed and written by Lynn Shelton. (USA) — New York Premiere, Narrative.
Jack (Mark Duplass) hasn’t recovered from his brother’s death. His best friend — and late brother’s ex — Iris (Emily Blunt) sends him to her family’s isolated cabin for some quiet reflection, but complications, rivalries, and surprising revelations arise when both Iris and her heartbroken sister Hannah (Rosemarie DeWitt) end up at the cabin as well. Lynn Shelton’s long-awaited follow-up to Humpday heralds a graceful maturation of the reliably against-the-grain filmmaker. An IFC Films release.
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
Joe Papp in Five Acts, directed by Tracie Holder and Karen Thorsen. (USA) — World Premiere.
In Joe Papp’s eyes, art is for everyone, not just a privileged few. This is the story of this indomitable, street-wise champion of the arts who brought more theater to more people than any other producer in history. Co-produced with American Masters and featuring Meryl Streep, Christopher Walken, Martin Sheen, Kevin Kline, James Earl Jones, and more, this documentary lets Papp’s great accomplishments and tumultuous personal history be revealed by the artists he helped create — and sometimes tried to destroy.
