DECEMBER 2014

THE GRANDMASTER

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THE IRISHFILM INSTITUTE

EXHIBITPRESERVEEDUCATE

The Irish Film Institute is Ireland’s national cultural institution for film. It aims to exhibit the finest in independent, Irish and international cinema, preserve Ireland’s moving image heritage at the IFI Irish Film Archive, and encourage engagement with film through its various educational programmes.

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Are you a cultural, community, voluntary or non-profit organisation? Join our Group Membership scheme and receive all IFI Members’ benefits (including free and discounted tickets) at the discount rate of €20 per person (usually €25). Groups must be minimum ten people. Join by December 11th and enjoy a special screening of It’s a Wonderful Life on Saturday December 13th at 11.00 for only €5 per person. For further details please contact Saidhbh Ní Dhúlaing on 01 679 5744 or membership@irishfilm.ie.

GROUP MEMBERSHIP

Stuck for Christmas gift ideas? Why not give an IFI Gift Card?Credit can be added to cards and spent in the IFI Film Shop, IFI Café Bar and IFI Cinemas. It will take the hassle out of Christmas shopping this year. The perfect present for family, friends and film fans this December.

GIFT CARDOur French Film Club screening this month will be Julie Bertuccelli’s fascinating and significant new documentary, School of Babel (see page 8 for more details). IFI and Alliance Française members who attend the film on the evening of December 8th can avail of a discounted ticket price of €7. See www.ifi.ie for the screening time.

FRENCH FILM CLUB

The IFI Brunch deal is back! Get in out of the cold, get comfy in the IFI Café Bar and enjoy a mouth-watering mid-afternoon tasty treat. From 12pm to 4pm, every Sunday this December, we are offering our popular Brunch and movie deal in the IFI for just €16. You can book a table for before or after a film by calling 01 679 8712 or simply ask at the bar. (The deal excludes any other special offers, see www.ifi.ie for details.)

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DIRECTOR’S NOTE

DECEMBERAT THE IFI

This December the programme brings to a close a very busy year for the IFI with some fantastic new releases and Christmas classics.

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It’s been a very busy year at the IFI. In Dublin we’ve screened over 320 different films, over half of which were only available to be seen at the IFI. For IFI National we’ve had numerous touring programmes and special events nationwide, along with the introduction of a new initiative called Local Films for Local People with specially curated films of local interest for specific communities. As part of IFI International, we’ve promoted Irish film at over 100 festivals worldwide including partners in Australia, Brazil and India, and we also unveiled the new online IFI Irish Film Directory. IFI Education has engaged with over 20,000 school children at screenings across the country, has published new study guides for French and German titles, and developed a new short course on film for Junior Cycle students. The IFI Irish Film Archive has made significant advancements in digital preservation with a major upgrade which will allow for our vast collections to be digitised and made available online. We’re now halfway through the IFI Strategy 2013 – 2016 and we’re delighted with the progress that has been made to date on the many projects that were identified, and I would like to thank the IFI Board and the IFI staff for all of their hard work during 2014. We look forward to 2015 to continue to deliver on these key objectives.

But before 2015, we have one last exciting month of events for your enjoyment. It wouldn’t be December without a selection of Christmas classics, and this year we’re bringing back the old favourite It’s a Wonderful Life for a short run, alongside special screenings of our IFI Festive Favourites Miracle on 34th Street, The Apartment, My Night with Maud and The Shop Around the Corner (see page 12). IFI Family is also pulling out all the stops for the festive season with the IFI Family Christmas screenings of Peter and the Wolf, A Christmoose Story and The Muppet Christmas Carol (see page 13).

Each month we are proud to present a film from the IFI Irish Film Archive for audiences to rediscover, and this month we have a special screening of a beautifully restored print of Rex Ingram’s Mare Nostrum accompanied with live music by Dublin collective 3epkano. This promises to be a very special event.

This month we are also pleased to announce the second year of the Pete Walsh Critical Writing Award in memory of our late colleague. We are inviting anyone and everyone with a strong interest in cinema to write about a film they saw at the IFI (or elsewhere) during the course of 2014. Entries will be evaluated by a panel of industry experts. The winner of the Pete Walsh Critical Writing Award will once again be offered a pass for a year of free films at the IFI. Full details on the Award will be announced this month, so please visit our website for further details on how to apply.

And finally, if you’re stuck for Christmas shopping ideas, make sure to visit the IFI Film Shop which has perfect stocking fillers for everyone. For the person who truly has everything, IFI Gift Cards are the perfect present.

On behalf of everyone at the IFI, I’d like to wish all of our patrons and supporters a very merry Christmas.

Ross KeaneDirector

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NEW RELEASES & IFI CLASSICS

SEASONS & EVENTS CALENDARDATE SCREENING TIME

7TH SUN

IFI FAMILY CHRISTMAS: PETER AND THE WOLF (+ OTHER SHORT FILMS)

11.00

9TH TUE

FROM THE VAULTS: MARE NOSTRUM + 3EPKANO IFI & EXPERIMENTAL FILM CLUB: HENRY HILLS

18.30

18.30

14TH SUN

IFI FAMILY CHRISTMAS: A CHRISTMOOSE STORYIRELAND ON SUNDAY: MARATHON MEN + DIRECTOR Q&AIFI FESTIVE FAVOURITES: MY NIGHT WITH MAUD SPECIAL EVENT: BLADE RUNNER: THE FINAL CUT

11.0013.00

16.00 18.00

16TH TUE

FEAST YOUR EYES: BABETTE'S FEAST 18.30

19TH FRI

WILD STRAWBERRIES: THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER

11.00

20TH SAT

IFI FESTIVE FAVOURITES: MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET IFI FESTIVE FAVOURITES: THE APARTMENT

13.00 16.00

21ST SUN

IFI FAMILY CHRISTMAS: THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROLIFI FESTIVE FAVOURITES: THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER

11.00 16.00

22ND MON

IFI FESTIVE FAVOURITES: THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER

18.15

23RD TUE

IFI FESTIVE FAVOURITES: MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET IFI FESTIVE FAVOURITES: THE APARTMENT

16.00 18.15

24TH WED

CINEMAS CLOSED

25TH THU

CINEMAS CLOSED

26TH FRI

CINEMAS CLOSED

31ST WED

WILD STRAWBERRIES: JOYEUX NOËL 11.00

For a breakdown of times and dates of IFI New Releases & IFI Classics, check out our weekly schedule on www.ifi.ie or the IFI ads in The Irish Times on Fridays and Saturdays. You can also sign up to receive our weekly ezine by emailing admin@irishfilm.ie

Scan the QR code to take you straight to the IFI homepage on your smart phone.

TIMES

2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY FROM DEC 1STI AM ALI FROM DEC 1STTHE POSSIBILITIES ARE ENDLESS FROM DEC 1ST STATIONS OF THE CROSS FROM DEC 1STCONCERNING VIOLENCE OPENS DEC 5THTHE GRANDMASTER OPENS DEC 5TH SCHOOL OF BABEL OPENS DEC 5THELECTRICITY OPENS DEC 12TH IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE OPENS DEC 12THTHE CIRCLE OPENS DEC 12THTHE GREAT MUSEUM OPENS DEC 12THTHE GREEN PRINCE OPENS DEC 12THGUYS AND DOLLS OPENS DEC 19THKON-TIKI OPENS DEC 19TH

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DECEMBER 2014NEW RELEASES & IFI CLASSICS

FROM DEC 1ST Newly restored and digitally re-released, Stanley Kubrick’s iconic 2001: A Space Odyssey, written in collaboration with Arthur C. Clarke, has come to occupy a unique place in popular culture, its elements part of our shared lexicon, whether it be its association with particular pieces of music (Richard Strauss’ Also Sprach Zarathustra, for example), or arguably the most famous match cut in cinematic history, or the voice of the rational but deadly HAL 9000.

However, Kubrick’s film is so much more than these isolated moments; its grand scale covers the history of human evolution, posing insightful questions about who we are, why we behave as we do, and where our species might go from here. Kubrick presents future wonders as habitual, banal, but the real wonder is in his making such abstract concepts so relatable, and so beautiful.

IFI CLASSIC

FILM INFO:141 minutes, U.S.A.-U.K., 1968, Colour, D-Cinema Notes by Kevin Coyne

2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY

FROM DEC 1ST Having occupied an undisputable position as a defining icon of the 20th century, the life story of Mohammad Ali has been frequently told in film and literature. Clare Lewins' enthralling documentary features incredible archive footage and allows the people who were closest to the man tell his story, an inner circle of family and friends that includes his daughters, sons, his ex-wife and his brother, who speak with enormous affection for Ali while refusing to

ignore some of his human faults and failings. The greats from the fight world, including George Foreman and Mike Tyson, are represented here, too, though what marks the film out from other biographical projects is unprecedented access to Ali’s personal audio archive, which includes some touching telephone communications he had with his family while he was away from them during his illustrious boxing career.

EXCLUSIVELY AT IFI†

FILM INFO:111 minutes, U.K.-U.S.A., 2014, Colour, D-Cinema Notes by Michael Hayden

I AM ALI

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DECEMBER 2014NEW RELEASES & IFI CLASSICS

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FROM DEC 1ST Maria (Lea van Acken) is a devout 14-year-old Catholic girl counting down the days to her confirmation. She is determined to devote her life to Jesus and longs to attain sainthood. Encouraged by her fundamentalist family, and just like Jesus on the road to Golgotha, Maria embarks on a fraught path measured out in 14 stations and leading to her own sacrifice, resolutely resisting being distracted from her course, despite attracting attention from Christian (Moritz Knapp), a boy

she meets at school. Filmmaker Dietrich Brüggemann presents each chapter of Maria’s story in static, single shots, each incident framed impeccably, and it is an arresting and inventive device that serves the intensity of the drama. Stations of the Cross is a rigorous examination of radical faith and devotion, a study of the dangers of unquestioning dogma that is daring, intelligent, and slyly humorous.

(KREUZWEG)

FILM INFO:107 minutes, Germany, 2014, Subtitled, Colour, D-CinemaNotes by Michael Hayden

STATIONS OF THE CROSS

FROM DEC 1ST Edwyn Collins suffered life-threatening cerebral haemorrhages in 2005, and lost the ability to talk. As he edged towards a recovery, the only words he could initially say were "yes" and "no", and "the possibilities are endless." In this beautiful, heart-wrenching documentary, filmmakers James Hall and Edward Lovelace pay tribute to Collins’ strength of character, celebrate the love between him and his devoted, indomitable wife, Grace Maxwell, and attempt to convey what it must

have been like for Edwyn following his illness, when his memory was essentially wiped. They do this by snatching archive from a glorious pop career, from the cocky jangle of Collins’ influential post-punk group Orange Juice through to his brilliant solo work that reaped rewards with the global hit that was A Girl Like You, and by recreating sweet scenes with Edwyn’s son William playing Edwyn as a younger man.

FILM INFO:83 minutes, U.K., 2014, Colour, D-CinemaNotes by Michael Hayden

THE POSSIBILITIES ARE ENDLESS

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OPENS DEC 5TH Following The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975, which used rare archive footage from Swedish television to tell the story of the Civil Rights movement in America, award-winning filmmaker Göran Hugo Olsson uses a similar technique to illustrate the effects of colonialism in Africa and the independence movements it provoked. Inspired by the controversial writings of Frantz Fanon and featuring Miss Lauren Hill narrating Fanon’s text, Concerning Violence pieces

together footage taken by Swedish documentary filmmakers who had ventured to places such as Angola, Mozambique, Tanzania and Liberia between 1966 and 1984. The result is an intellectually demanding film that has great relevance and resonance for what is happening in Africa today, a condemnation of European intervention in the continent and a brilliant example of the creative ways documentary filmmakers are finding to use archive to tell important stories.

EXCLUSIVELY AT IFI†

FILM INFO:85 minutes, Sweden-U.S.A.-Denmark, 2014, Colour and Black and White, D-CinemaNotes by Michael Hayden

CONCERNING VIOLENCE

OPENS DEC 5TH From the director of the mesmeric In the Mood for Love and 2046 comes this vivid account of the life of Ip Man, legendary Wing Chun grandmaster and towering figure in the history of martial arts. Beginning in 1930s Foshan, where we first encounter Ip Man levelling a swarm of combatants in a dark rain-swept alleyway, the film chronicles the fighter’s hurdles in combat but also in his turbulent personal life, which sees him forced to

leave his family and move to Hong Kong for work as a teacher after the crippling Second Sino-Japanese War. While the fight sequences are staggering, the scenes between Ip Man, played by the ineffable Tony Leung, and Zhang Ziyi’s beguiling Gong Er remind the viewer of the sultry and ill-fated romances of the director’s earlier output and make this, as with all his films, an entry point into another, more sublime world.

FILM INFO:108 minutes, Hong Kong-China, 2013, Colour, D-Cinema, Subtitled Notes by Alice Butler

THE GRANDMASTER

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DECEMBER 2014NEW RELEASES & IFI CLASSICS

OPENS DEC 12TH Lily O'Connor is a determined and sharp-witted northerner working at an amusement arcade in an English seaside town. In the wake of a family tragedy, she travels to London in search of her brother, who has been missing for years having disappeared in mysterious circumstances. Her mission leads Lily to skirt the capital’s dark underworld, while she has the complication of having to manage her epilepsy, a condition that makes her quest even more treacherous. Adapted from a

novel by Ray Robinson, Electricity is a refreshingly ambitious British film and a great achievement for its lead actor and its director in particular. Model Agyness Deyn carries the film with an assured confidence that’s revelatory from someone who has had such rare acting experience previously, while filmmaker Bryn Higgins employs inventive, daring visual tricks to convey the disconcerting effect of Lily’s illness.

EXCLUSIVELY AT IFI†

FILM INFO:96 minutes, U.K., 2014, Colour, D-Cinema Notes by Michael Hayden

ELECTRICITY

OPENS DEC 5TH Shot almost entirely in the classroom of a Parisian school where a group of international students are enrolled in a programme to facilitate their integration, Bertuccelli’s astute School of Babel follows them as they struggle to adapt to a new language, culture and identity. Aged between 11 and 15, the students come from a variety of backgrounds and from dispersed corners of the world – Senegal, China, Venezuela, Ukraine, Libya and Ireland. Some are staying with relatives and

others are coping largely independently at home while their parents work long hours for low pay. The film captures this complexity with sensitivity but also conveys each of the students’ different personalities and the close relationships they develop with each other as well as with their intuitive and compassionate teacher Madame Cervoni.

These screenings will be preceded by Eoin Duffy's IFB funded short animation The Missing Scarf. (6 mins, Ireland, 2013)

(LA COUR DE BABEL)

FILM INFO:89 minutes, France, 2014, Colour, D-Cinema, SubtitledNotes by Alice Butler

SCHOOL OF BABEL

IFI FRENCH FILM CLUBIFI French Film Club screening this month will take place on December 8th. Tickets €7 for IFI and Alliance Française members.

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Famously a critical and commercial disappointment on its release in 1946, the heart-warming It’s a Wonderful Life found a new lease of life on television, and is now required viewing during the Christmas period. James Stewart is at his most likeable as everyman George Bailey, loyal family man and friend whose generosity to others, whatever the cost to himself, has resulted in his spending his whole life in hometown Bedford Falls,

where he runs the local Buildings and Loan Association. When despotic merchant Mr. Potter seizes an opportunity to ruin George, and thus consolidate his own control over the town, George finds himself preparing to jump from a bridge. However, a higher power intervenes and sends Angel (Second Class) Clarence Odbody (Henry Travers) to show George what life in Bedford Falls would have been like had he never been born.

OPENS DEC 12TH

IFI CLASSIC

FILM INFO:130 minutes, U.S.A., 1946, Black and White, D-Cinema Notes by Kevin Coyne

IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE

OPENS DEC 12TH Award winner and festival hit, including at GAZE 2014, this intriguing and touching story skilfully combines documentary with period piece in recounting the history of The Circle, a 1950s magazine for gay men, through the story of partners Ernst and Röbi, still together after 58 years. When he moves from post-war Germany to Switzerland, teacher Ernst starts to explore what The Circle has to offer, both in print and at secret parties, where he encounters

Röbi. Through dramatic re-enactments, the men affectionately and humbly relive their falling in love during a time of police brutality, criminalisation and open relationships. Director Stefan Haupt also affords The Circle a role through careful cutaways of illustrations, printing processes and essays, conveying the magazine’s sense and the industry and loyalty it inspired. A unique film that unsurprisingly is up for Oscar consideration.

(DER KREIS)

EXCLUSIVELY AT IFI†

FILM INFO:102 minutes, Switzerland, 2014, Subtitled, Colour, D-Cinema Notes by Alicia McGivern

THE CIRCLE

IFI FESTIVE FAVOURITESPlease see pages 12 and 13 for our seasonal screenings this December.

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DECEMBER 2014NEW RELEASES & IFI CLASSICS

OPENS DEC 12TH Mosab Hassan Yousef is the son of a prominent Palestinian leader from Ramallah, bought up in an atmosphere where Hamas is regarded as the family business and any contact with Israelis is treated with suspicion. Arrested at the age of 17, Yousef is interrogated by the Shin Bet, Israel’s security service. It’s at this time he first comes into contact with Gonen Ben Yitzhak, who attempts to convince him to spy for Israel. Torn between familial and cultural allegiance

and his own moral convictions, Yousef starts to pass information to Israel through his handler, Gonen. A curious bond grows between the two men. Based on Yousef’s bestselling memoir, Son of Hamas, Nadav Schirman’s superb, timely documentary is a tension-filled film that broods on notions of loyalty, betrayal and the shifting nature of right and wrong. Yousef is a fascinating figure at the centre of the film, recounting his story with sincere clarity.

FILM INFO:95 minutes, Germany-U.S.A.-U.K.-Israel, 2014, Colour, D-Cinema Notes by Michael Hayden

THE GREEN PRINCE

OPENS DEC 12TH

(DAS GROßE MUSEUM)

FILM INFO:94 minutes, Austria, 2014, Colour, Subtitles, D-Cinema Notes by Michael Hayden

Johannes Holzhausen’s enthralling film looks behind the scenes of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, providing great insight into the sometimes problematic relationship between art and commerce. Holzhausen and his crew spent two years filming at the venerable institution, bearing witness to the painstaking preservation activity, the intense research and the care taken in presenting historic work of significance, while the chatter of marketing meetings, anxiety of

budget planning and preparations for the visit of a politician are noted distractions. Allowing a focus on every cog in the working machine of the museum, from cleaners and picture hangers to its managing director and lofty art historians, while eschewing commentary, interviews or background music, The Great Museum is documentary filmmaking in its purest form, though that still allows for moments of wry humour, beautiful observations and a disarming charm.

THE GREAT MUSEUM

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GUYS AND DOLLS

OPENS DEC 19TH Adapted from the hit 1950 stage musical, Mankiewicz’s stylish version of Guys and Dolls has been restored. It remains a treasurable delight, with its quaint vision of a New York inhabited by illegal gamblers and the religiously pious created on a Hollywood sound stage. The plot revolves around a bet made between beleaguered fixer Nathan Detroit (Frank Sinatra) and the flash gadabout Sky Masterson (Marlon Brando). Masterson has to woo the leader of the local save-a-soul mission

or face losing $1000. While there was reportedly tension between Sinatra and Brando after Sinatra thought he should have had the showier role of Masterson, both give captivating performances and Frank Loesser’s songs are brilliantly performed. Sinatra’s vocal chops are unquestionable, Brando’s are fascinating (this would be his only performance in a musical) though it’s arguable that Stubby Kaye steals the show from both of them with his rousing rendition of Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat.

IFI CLASSIC

FILM INFO:150 minutes, U.S.A., 1955, Colour, D-CinemaNotes by Michael Hayden

OPENS DEC 19TH Joachim Rønning’s and Espen Sandberg’s Oscar-nominated film is a cracking adventure yarn based on the exploits of Norwegian explorer and anthropologist Thor Heyerdahl. In 1947, Heyerdahl built a raft made from balsa log and, having assembled a small crew, set sail in it from Peru determined to prove his theory that Polynesia had been inhabited by South American travellers in pre-Columbian times. A film of the expedition itself

won an Academy Award in 1951 and Heyerdahl’s book detailing it was translated in 70 languages and sold 50 million copies. While it is a matter of record, what Kon-Tiki manages to convey beyond its thrilling spectacle is the fierce drive and dedication such endeavour demands, as well as the sacrifices involved. Pål Sverre Hagen gives a charismatic performance as Heyerdahl and he is well supported by a committed cast.

FILM INFO:118 minutes, U.K.-Norway-Denmark-Germany-Sweden, 2012, Colour, D-Cinema Notes by Michael Hayden

KON-TIKI

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IFI FESTIVE FAVOURITES

If James Stewart as a curmudgeonly character reminds you of the best in Christmas film, well this one is just the thing to whet your appetite. Based on Hungarian playwright Miklós László’s drama, and the inspiration for Nora Ephron’s You’ve Got Mail, this comic gem is set in pre-war Budapest. Gift shop workers Klara and Alfred bicker their way through the days in mutual loathing while their outside lives are enlivened by their anonymous pen pals with whom they are falling in love. No Christmas parcels for guessing the outcome, but there’s plenty still to smile at in this irresistible romantic comedy. The Shop Around the Corner will have a Wild Strawberries screening on December 19th at 11.00 (see page 14 for more details).FILM INFO: 99 minutes, U.S.A., 1940, Black and White, 35mmNotes by Alicia McGivern

The third of Rohmer’s Six Moral Tales and his most commercially successful film, My Night With Maud is set at Christmas in Clermont-Ferrand (birthplace of mathematician-philosopher Blaise Pascal). Jean-Louis, recently moved there, becomes fixated on Françoise, whom he first sees at Mass, determining that she will be his wife. A chance meeting with a university pal leads to dinner on Christmas Eve at beautiful Maud’s. The evening is filled with talk of marriage, morales, religion and of Pascal’s Wager. Through long but rigorous dialogue, director Rohmer poses questions of fidelity and freedom. Shot in revealing black and white, the characters talk while the image speaks otherwise. FILM INFO: 110 minutes, France, 1969, Black and White, D-Cinema. Notes by Marie-Pierre Richard

DEC 21ST (16.00) & 22ND (18.15)DEC 14TH (16.00)

DEC 20TH (16.00) & 23RD (18.15)

Billy Wilder’s abiding, humane and Oscar-laden film has enough moments of melancholia and intensity amidst its many laughs that it seems inadequate to describe it as merely a comedy. Jack Lemmon is at his everyman best as C.C. Baxter, a lowly clerk at an insurance company who is keen to climb the corporate ladder, but is too nice a guy to be taken seriously. His superiors take advantage of his good nature and his apartment, which is convenient for their extramarital liaisons. When the object of C.C.’s affection, lift girl Fran (Shirley MacLaine), becomes embroiled in an affair with company director Jeff D. Sheldrake (Fred MacMurray), C.C. bears painful witness, until events take a turn one Christmas Eve.

FILM INFO: 125 minutes, U.S.A., 1960, Black and White, D-Cinema Notes by Michael Hayden

DEC 20TH (13.00) & 23RD (16.00)

When passer-by Kris Kringle (Edmund Gwenn) complains that the man due to play Santa Claus in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is unsuitable, he himself is soon persuaded to play the role at the company’s flagship store. When Kris begins to insist that he is the real Santa, a court case ensues in which everyone’s Christmas beliefs are put to the test. Despite studio head Darryl F. Zanuck’s insistence that the seasonal setting be kept secret, and that it be released in May because of higher cinema attendances in the summer, the film is now an unassailable Christmas favourite.

FILM INFO: 96 minutes, U.S.A., 1947, Black and White, D-CinemaNotes by Kevin Coyne

MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET

THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER

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MY NIGHT WITH MAUD

(MA NUIT CHEZ MAUD)

THE APARTMENT

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IFI FAMILY CHRISTMAS

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IFI Family Christmas gets off to a howling start with this stunning animated version of Sergei Prokofiev’s classic work. Using puppets, miniature sets, lots of fur and stop-motion animation, the familiar story of young Peter and the wicked wolf is given

a new and comic take with the boy and his grumpy Grandfather living in contemporary Russia. With his only friend Duck, he sets off on his search, watched all the while by a heavily made up, very fat and smug cat. The much loved score is performed by the London Philharmonia.

Age recommended: 6+

Tickets: €4.80 per person, €14.40 family ticket (2 adults + 2 children/ 1 adult + 3 children)

FILM INFO:32 minutes, U.K.-Poland-Norway-Mexico, 2006, Animation

DEC 7TH (11.00)

THE MUPPET CHRISTMAS CAROL

What happens when you give a classic Dickens story the Muppet treatment? A lot of laughs, songs and a terrific story too! Led by the Great Gonzo we take a journey through Victorian London which is unexpectedly full of Muppets and

we learn of the miserly Scrooge (a deadpan Michael Caine).

Saying ‘Bah humbug’ to Christmas, he refuses to let his employees celebrate and torments those who owe him money. The Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present and Future will come to teach him a lesson. And along the way he’ll meet Kermit and Miss Piggy Cratchit and their children, including Tiny Tim.

Tickets: €4.80 per person, €14.40 family ticket (2 adults + 2 children/ 1 adult + 3 children)

FILM INFO:85 minutes, U.S.A., 1992, Comedy/Drama/Fantasy/Musical

DEC 21ST (11.00)

Christmas is a time for family get togethers, but Max’s dad won’t make it home and the boy is worried that the holiday is going to be very dull. But that’s before the crash-land-wallop arrival through the roof of a talking moose. He tells Max that

he was doing a testdrive with Santa, and caused the sleigh to crash. Now Santa has gone missing too. Can Moos and Max find some stardust, get the better of a wicked neighbour, and rescue Santa in time to deliver presents for Christmas Day? Find out in this fun and lively story from Holland, showing exclusively at the IFI this Christmas.

Age recommended: 8+

Tickets: €4.80 per person, €14.40 family ticket (2 adults + 2 children/ 1 adult + 3 children)

(MIDDEN IN DE WINTERNACHT)

FILM INFO:85 minutes, Netherlands-Sweden-Belgium, 2013, English Subtitles

Please note: There will be a subtitles reader for this screening

DEC 14TH (11.00)

A CHRISTMOOSE STORY

PETER AND THE WOLF

SHORT FILMS This film will be accompanied by a selection of the best new short films for young people. Come and see what other animals get up to during the wintery season! Total run time: 60 mins approx

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IFI EVENTS

IFI EVENTS

IRELAND ON SUNDAYWILD STRAWBERRIESARCHIVE AT LUNCHTIME FROM THE VAULTS FEAST YOUR EYES IFI & EXPERIMENTAL FILM CLUB SPECIAL EVENT: BLADE RUNNER

Wild Strawberries is our bi-monthly film club for over 55s.

A timely revisiting of this moving and evocative World War One drama, set in the treacherous, hand-dug trenches, from which the bloodiest of battles took place. On Christmas Eve 1914, in defiance of their superiors,

a number of German, Scots and French break off from fighting to first sing, then play a game of football in No-Mans-Land. Although the aftermath is also clear, for a brief moment hostilities are suspended. The three armies join together in a willingess to step away from the carnage and rejoice in one another’s humanity. Also screening as part of Wild Strawberries is The Shop Around the Corner on December 19th at 11.00. (See page 12 for more details.)

Wild Strawberries is our film club for over 55s. If you are lucky enough to look younger, please don’t take offence if we ask your age.

DIRECTOR:Christian Carion

FILM INFO:116 minutes, France-Germany-UK-Belgium-Romania-Norway, 2005, Drama/Music/History, English subtitles

DEC 31ST (11.00)

Ireland on Sunday is our monthly showcase for new Irish film.

Marathon Men is a new feature documentary from Earth Horizon telling the uplifting story of two men and their boundary-defying dream to run 32 full marathons in

32 consecutive days in the 32 counties of Ireland. In 2010 Gerry Duffy and Ken Whitelaw embarked on this incredible challenge – their aim to inspire people all over the country to come out and run their first ever marathons and to raise funds (over half a million Euro) and awareness for Autism Ireland. The film follows over two years of planning and months of exhaustive training for this unprecedented test of endurance, a challenge that would become much more than just a mark of personal triumph, it would be one of the greatest amateur sporting achievements in Irish history.

DEC 14TH (13.00)

DIRECTORS:Marcus Stewart, Marc O Gleasain

FILM INFO:67 minutes, Ireland, 2014, D-Cinema

IRELAND ON SUNDAYMARATHON MEN

WILDSTRAWBERRIESJOYEUX NOËL

Tickets €3.85 (inc tea and coffee before the screening).

DIRECTORS Q&AMarcus Stewart and Marc O Gleasain will participate in a post-screening Q&A.

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FROM THE VAULTS

ARCHIVE AT LUNCHTIME

Join us for free lunchtime screenings of films from the IFI Irish Film Archive. Simply collect your tickets at the IFI Box Office. Please see www.ifi.ie for dates and times.

Escape the festive hustle and bustle with these programmes of exquisitely crafted landscape films from Patrick Carey, one of Ireland’s greatest cinematographers.

PROGRAMME 1: OISÍN A film made for the Department of Land of Ireland as a contribution to European Conservation Year, this short mesmeric film captures the gentle rhythms of Ireland’s natural beauty. There is no narration, only the sights and sounds of wind and water, birds and beast, against breath-taking imagery. FILM INFO: 17 minutes, 1970, Colour

PROGRAMME 2: REFLECTIONS-IRELAND This lyrical, non-narrated film is a celebration of the Irish landscape and its people. From the Cliffs of Moher to Ben Bulben and the wilds of Donegal, the people of Ireland go about their business. FILM INFO: 17 minutes, 1978, Colour

MARE NOSTRUMDEC 9TH (18.30)

Silent epic with live score accompaniment by 3epkano.

Mare Nostrum was the favourite film of Irishman Rex Ingram, the prolific, world-renowned director of the silent screen. It is an exciting World War I story about a Spanish merchant sailor and a beautiful spy (played by Ingram's wife, Alice Terry) featuring many Ingram trademarks such as his eye for scenery, his love of grotesque characters and his exploration of supernatural themes.

This print, beautifully restored by Photoplay Productions, is a reminder of what an extraordinarily talented filmmaker Ingram was.

The film is accompanied by Dublin musical collective, 3epkano, with a score created especially for this screening which has been funded by the Trinity College Dublin Visual and Performing Arts Fund.

Introduced by Ruth Barton, author of Rex Ingram: Visionary Director of the Silent Screen.

Tickets €15.00

DIRECTOR: Rex Ingram

FILM INFO: 102 minutes, U.S.A., 1926, Silent, Black and White

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Henry Hills has been making short, intensely rhythmic experimental films since 1975. Primarily New York-based (where he frequently collaborates with composer John Zorn, choreographer Sally Silvers, and poet Charles Bernstein), he has been living half-time

in Vienna since 2008, teaches at FAMU in Prague and was a Guggenheim Fellow in 2009.

This programme, curated by seminal Irish filmmaker Vivienne Dick, represents many of the highlights of Hills’ career, and has been similarly presented in recent months at the Austrian Film Museum, REDCAT in L.A. and Media City in Windsor, Ontario. His work, which seeks abstraction within sharply focused naturalistic imagery and the ethereal within the mundane, promotes an active attentiveness through a relentlessly concentrated montage.

DEC 9TH (18.30)

IFI & EXPERIMENTAL FILM CLUB HENRY HILLS

DIRECTOR:Henry Hills

FILM INFO:Total duration approx 75 mins

See www.ifi.ie for full details on all short films in our programme.

Our monthly gastronomic feature followed by a meal in the IFI Café Bar.

Set in a remote Danish village in the mid-1800s, this Oscar-winning film follows the devout and elderly sisters

Martine and Philippa, who take in Babette as a housekeeper when she appears unannounced on their doorstep having fled political upheaval in Paris.

When Babette unexpectedly wins a handsome sum in a lottery, she decides to use the money to prepare a lavish meal for her new Danish friends, something which doesn’t sit well with the pious crowd. However when they taste the food she has prepared they struggle to contain the pleasure they find in devouring her extraordinary French dishes, including buckwheat cakes with caviar and sour cream, quail in puff pastry shell and rum sponge cake.

DEC 16TH (18.30)

DIRECTOR:Gabriel Axel

FILM INFO:102 minutes, Denmark, 1987, Colour, D-Cinema

FEAST YOUR EYESBABETTE’S FEAST

Tickets €20. Free list suspended.

DIRECTOR:Ridley Scott

FILM INFO:117 minutes, U.K., 1982/2007, Colour, D-Cinema Notes by Kevin Coyne

Unavailable for theatrical exhibition for a number of years due to protracted legal issues, Ridley Scott’s legendary Blade Runner, based on a novel by sci-fi author Philip K. Dick, returns to the big

screen for this one-off preview in advance of a full scale re-release in April 2015. Harrison Ford is Rick Deckard, hired to locate and destroy ‘replicants’, bioengineered humans who have come to Earth illegally.

Blade Runner has existed in numerous iterations since its release in 1982; here, we present Scott’s final and definitive edit of the film, the only version over which he had complete artistic control.

BLADE RUNNER: THE FINAL CUTRIDLEY SCOTT

DEC 14TH (18.00)

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From the best in Irish film and T.V. to the top DVDs of 2014, from documentaries to dramas, from serials to sci-fi, there is something for everyone!

Beautiful books and classic posters, along with IFI vouchers and various box sets, the IFI Film Shop can cater for all your shopping needs.

Don’t forget, if you’re an IFI Member, you’ll automatically get 10% off!* *Excludes gift vouchers/cards

If you have any queries, please ask our staff who will be happy to help you with all your shopping needs and specialist searches.

IFI Film Shop, 6 Eustace Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2 www.ifi.ie filmshop@irishfilm.ie 01 679 5727 @IFI_FilmShop

EXTENDED OPENING HOURS FOR CHRISTMAS

ALSO OPEN CHRISTMAS EVE!

SHOPPING FOR A GREAT CHRISTMAS GIFT? LOOK NO FURTHER THAN THE IFI FILM SHOP THIS DECEMBER.

IRISH FEATURES

FRANKONE MILLION DUBLINERS

THE GUARANTEEJIMMY'S HALL

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IFI MEMBERSHIP gives you free film tickets, free screenings, discounts and much more…

Your IFI Membership helps support the IFI’s vital work in preserving and restoring Ireland’s unique and precious moving image heritage, and in engaging young people through our national education programme.

Apply online at www.ifi.ie or pick up an application form at the IFI Box Office.

For Group Membership, contact Saidhbh Ní Dhúlaing T: 01 679 5744 E: snidhulaing@irishfilm.ie

For Corporate Membership, contact Fiona Clark T: 01 679 5744 E: fclark@irishfilm.ie

www.ifi.ie

Irish Film Institute The home of film in Ireland.Be part of it.

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Help us look after the nation’s moving image heritage for audiences now and in the future.

The Irish Film Institute is the Home of Film in Ireland, bringing audiences throughout Ireland the finest independent, Irish and international cinema since 1945.

We are the custodians of Ireland’s unique and precious moving image heritage through the IFI Irish Film Archive (which holds over 30,000 cans

of film and 10,000 broadcast tapes), and these unique collections span from 1897 to the present day, chronicling the social, political and cultural development of modern Ireland.

We provide wide-reaching educational opportunities each year for schools and 40,000 people of all ages and backgrounds to enjoy, learn about, and critically engage with film through IFI Education, and the IFI curates Irish film programmes for over 100 festivals and cultural organisations worldwide annually.

To find out more about IFI Friends and IFI Sponsorship opportunities, please contact Fiona Clark, Head of Development & Fundraising: fclark@irishfilm.ie or 01 612 9402.

A Year at the IFIDid you know that this year the IFI programmed:

– 322 films (over 50% exclusive to the IFI)– 16 Irish new releases– 24 Archive feature titles– 192 free lunchtime screenings of Archive material– 4 national touring programmes– 107 curated film events internationally in 50

different countriesPlus 15,000 school children participated in education activities and our Archive acquired over 8,000 film, digital and paper acquisitions.

Be part of it. Help support the IFI’s vital work in film exhibition, preservation and education.

IFI FriendsBecome a Friend of the IFI and play a vital role in the ongoing development of the IFI’s diverse programme and in particular support our Archive and Education activities. As an IFI Friend, you will enjoy a closer relationship with the IFI and receive a range of benefits, including tickets and bespoke events, whilst gaining greater access to the fascinating world of film.

IFI SponsorshipBecome a Sponsor of an IFI Festival, programme strand, Archive or Education project and align with a successful and innovative flagship cultural organisation. IFI Sponsors and Partners enjoy great benefits, including:– Brand advocacy and enhancement– Dynamic marketing environment with thousands of

visitors to our iconic venue and online– Private access to cinemas and screenings– Unique platform to promote products and services– Year-round employee engagement opportunities

www.ifi.ieIFI Support

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IFI BESTMEMBERS

Mohamed AbbasMohammed AlkabourStephanie AndersonPatrick Barrett Peter BassettPaul BatesChristine BaynesMarina BogautdinovaEugene BradyEileen Brennan FreemanGavin Byers Rob Byrne Eoghan CassidyJerry ClancyKatrina CollinsPeter ConnollyTara Coogan Philip CoonaghAnthony Coote Jason CrossPeter CullivanDominic Cunniffe Evan Lee D'AltonJohn Daly

Liam Daly Marie-Claire De StoppelaarVladimir DotsenkoMichael Doyle Fabian Doyle Philip Doyle Maura DuncanBarbara EganMaribe FallonRichard FitzpatrickKen FletcherEmma FortuneJamie FoxParaic Gonoude Roderick Hanlon Dermott HayesJason HickeyNoel Hiney Petar Iordanov Fred JohnstonJosh Joyce Eileen Kelly Ethna KennonAlan Keran

Bronagh KingstonKeisuke Kishida David KivelRosi Leonard Oscar Leonard Fidelma MaddenLiz MaddenJuan MaddrellMaureen Mahon Margaret MartinEadaoin McCarthyAlison McConeBarbara McDonnellMartin McKennaJoseph McLoughlinSean MisteilHajime MiyauchiDonal Moore Niall Murphy Fintan MurrayCaoimhe Nic Dhomhnail Linda Ni Chualladh Dermot NolanConall Ó Duibhir

Francis O'Doherty Liam O'Dwyer Marion O'DwyerKillian O'HigginsFionn O'Leary Martin O'Malley Terence O'Rourke Kevin O'Rourke Liam O'Sullivan Petra PeliskovaMaria Pramaggiore Marian QuinnMatthew Rally Joe Redmond Jerry ShelleyDavid SkellyEugene SlevinPaddy StapletonDavid Tarrant Catherine ThomsonPaul Tyrrell William Freddy WalshHelen WalshPaolo Zaccagnini

The IFI would like to thank the following patrons for their valued support as Best Members. To become an IFI Best Member, see www.ifi.ie or call 01 679 5744.

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NEVERMISSOUT

The Arts Council’s new, upgraded CULTUREFOX events guide is now live. Free, faster, easy to use – and personalised for you. Never miss out again.

CULTUREFOX.IE

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PUBLIC & CLUB SCREENINGSAround half of our films are classified by the Irish Film Classification Office, are open to the general public and do not require membership. Unclassified films require membership. You have two options: annual membership (€25 or €15 concessions) or daily membership (€1 per person each time you visit the cinema). For further details on membership, please go to www.ifi.ie or call our Box Office.

†The exclusivity status of films is correct at time of going to print

LOYALTY & MEMBERSHIPThe IFI Loyalty Card is free and allows you to earn points that you can later exchange for free cinema tickets. Membership gives you the chance to attend a free preview screening every single month and discounts when you spend at the IFI. Go to www.ifi.ie or call our Box Office for details. Please remember: no card, no points!

PARKINGOn presentation of your IFI cinema ticket, the Fleet Street Car Park will offer IFI patrons a special rate of €5.00 for 3 hours’ parking. Simply present the cinema ticket along with the parking ticket when you pay at the cash desk, prior to collecting your car.

BOX OFFICE & PRICESADMISSION FEESThese apply to regular IFI screenings and do not necessarily apply to special events or festivals. Reduced admission fees for annual members and their guests are detailed in brackets.

MONDAY – FRIDAY12.30pm to 6pm €7.60 (€6.90) Conc. €5.90 (€5.40)6pm to 10pm €9.00 (€7.90) Conc. €7.60 (€6.90)

SATURDAY – SUNDAY*12.30pm to 4pm €7.60 (€6.90) Conc. €5.90 (€5.40)4pm to 10pm €9.00 (€7.90) Conc. €7.60 (€6.90)

*including Bank Holidays

Credit card bookings can be taken between 12.30pm and 9.00pm on (01) 679 3477 or 24-hours at www.ifibooking.ie. Online and telephone bookings are subject to a booking fee of 50c per ticket to a maximum of €1 per transaction. There are no booking fees on any ticket purchase made in person at the IFI Box Office.Please be advised that tickets cannot be exchanged or refunded.

All cinema screens at the IFI are wheelchair accessible. If you are a wheelchair user, please let the IFI Box Office know at least 30 minutes in advance of a screening (01 679 5744 /boxoffice@irishfilm.ie). To enable us to determine your requirements and assist you fully, we regret that we are unable to offer wheelchair bookings online.

YOUR VISITTO THE IFI

Films start at the times stated in this programme. Latecomers may be refused admission after the start of the feature.

LATECOMERS POLICY

IFI BOARDPatron: Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland Board Members: Lenny Abrahamson, Paddy Breathnach, Michael Collins, Maeve Connolly, Sheila de Courcy, Garry Hynes, Neil Jordan, Margaret Kelleher (Chairperson), Trish Long, Kevin Moriarty, Patsy Murphy, Dr. Harvey O’Brien, Dearbhla Walsh.

CONTACTIrish Film Institute, 6 Eustace Street,Temple Bar, Dublin 2

Box Office: (01) 679 3477, Web: www.ifi.ie

Facebook.com/irishfilminstitute Facebook.com/IFICafe

@IFI_Dub@IFI_Filmshop

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THE UNBELIEVABLE TRUE STORY

S U R V I V A L . R E S I L I E N C E . R E D E M P T I O N . UNBROKEN

FROM DIRECTOR ANGELINA JOLIE

SOUNDTRACK ONPARLOPHONE RECORDS

VISUAL EFFECTS AND ANIMATIONBY INDUSTRIAL LIGHT & MAGIC

I N C I N E M A S D E C E M B E R 2 6