Sabzian Selects: Week 4

Sabzian Selects: Week 4

Now that we have to maintain physical distance, our experience of cinema has become a solitary delight. But in this time of confinement, we can find our cinephile community in the non-endemic space of the online environment. In the next weeks, Sabzian will select three films a week, available on online platforms. You can find more information about our online selection here.

Firstly, we would like to draw your attention to Avila, a brand-new Belgian online video platform. Avila makes films available online through video on demand and offers both contemporary and classic documentary and fiction films. The platform kicks off with a selection of Belgian work, including films by Samy Szlingerbaum, Jan Vromman, Chantal Akerman, the Dardenne brothers, Claudio Pazienza, Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, among others, as well as the work of upcoming filmmakers. Sabzian selected Le chantier des gosses (1970) by Jean Harlez. Set in the 1950s, the film follows the community of children who resist the arrival of building contractors on their territory in the Marolles, a popular neighbourhood in Brussels. Watch the film here.

Last year, the new film by Pedro Costa, Vitalina Varela (2019), was awarded with the Golden Leopard with the following words by the president of the jury of Film Festival Locarno: “This prize isn’t enough, though we give it unanimously, as we were all stunned, overwhelmed, by this film, a major film in the history of cinema from here on out.” Now, Film at Lincoln Center has made the film available for those situated in the USA or Canada.

For our third film, we have chosen Old Joy (2006), a precious film by Kelly Reichardt. “I was approaching it the whole time as a western. Instead of guys proving their toughness, it's a battle of openness. I kept calling it a New Age western.” The two friends are accompanied by Lucy, the same dog that featured in Reichardt’s Wendy and Lucy (2008). Stoffel Debuysere, one of the programmers of the Courtisane festival, wrote a Prisma about Wendy and Lucy, that you can read here. On the Criterion Channel, available in the USA and Canada, you can watch Old Joy and additionally several interviews with among others the actors and the director. You can find Old Joy also online for free.

 

Le chantier des gosses (Jean Harlez, 1970) | Watch here
Vitalina Varela (Pedro Costa, 2019) | Watch here
Old Joy (Kelly Reichardt, 2016) | Watch here 

Online Selection
-
11 May 2020 - 17 May 2020