On Sept. 20-22, Iowa City residents will have the opportunity to attend the grand opening weekend of FilmScene’s new location in the recently raised Chauncey building. The Chauncey is FilmScene’s second space, located off of Gilbert Street in downtown Iowa City; FilmScene will keep their original Ped Mall cinema open as well. The Chauncey
FilmScene
Posted inArts & Entertainment
As Oscar season approaches, FilmScene’s fall lineup is ripe for the picking
A Jeff Goldblum-led drama about a lobotomy-happy physician; a documentary on beekeeping traditions in Macedonia, and another chronicling the fraught one-child policy in China; a remake of a 2006 Oscar-nominated foreign film, starring Julianne Moore and Michelle Williams; a quiet thriller about a Pentecostal snake-handling cult
Posted inOpinion
The evils of white supremacy are on stark display in ‘The Nightingale,’ a grim rape-revenge drama set in colonial Tasmania
On Friday, Aug. 23, FilmScene opened Jennifer Kent’s The Nightingale for a limited run. Art house audiences know Kent from her critically lauded horror film The Babadook (2014), which chronicles the mental deterioration of single mother, Amelia, reeling from her husband’s death and desperately struggling to parent her young son. The Nightingale also features a […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
The South won the war, and this sword proves it! ‘Sword of Truth’ milks conspiracy theory for comedy
You don’t have to believe a conspiracy theory to buy into it. Sword of Trust, the latest film from indie queen Lynn Shelton, follows four adults who dabble in the world of Deep State conspiracy in hopes of a pay-out — and, adversely, a little enlightenment. The tight 90-minute comedy is now playing at FilmScene.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Ethiopian life through the eyes of a precocious and imaginative boy in ‘Anbessa’
FilmScene’s Vino Vérité series presents Anbessa, directed by Mo Scarpelli on July 14. The hors d’oeuvres and wine tasting, part of the experience of the series, start at 6:30 p.m.
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Within these walls: Belonging, change and ‘The Last Black Man in San Francisco’
Joe Talbot’s film — his first — is a collaboration between the director and his friend/scriptwriter/main character Jimmie Fails, who tells a story at least partly autobiographical about changes to the city of San Francisco and the struggles that members of its lower classes face as they adapt.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
‘The Dead Don’t Die’ is summer blockbuster parody, Romero homage and philosophy treatise rolled into one
I appreciated ‘Broken Flowers,’ enjoyed ‘Coffee and Cigarettes,’ have a copy of ‘Paterson’ that remains unwatched — and loved ‘Only Lovers Left Alive.’ I was thus incredibly excited to see that Jim Jarmusch was exploring the horror genre again in ‘The Dead Don’t Die,’ playing now at FilmScene.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
‘Non-Fiction’ exemplifies its own ideas, taking a backseat as a film to the philosophies it presents
Written and directed by Olivier Assayas, ‘Non-Fiction,’ showing currently at FilmScene, is definitely a thought-provoking and overall enjoyable use of time. It is a meaty movie that hearkens back to past themes in Assyas’s work.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
‘Late Night’: A relentlessly entertaining and engaging comedy
As superhero movies and Star Wars flicks continue to reign as the most popular entertainment to see on the big screen, it becomes increasingly harder for completely original stories to grab people’s attention. With Late Night, we have a great example of why we should be going out and supporting original stories.
Posted inArts & Entertainment
You’ve cat to be kitten me: Get ready for FilmScene’s Caturday Film Fest right meow
Starting June 13, the Caturday Film Fest will take over FilmScene, though most showings will take place on Saturday, June 15. Caturday films will be available individually at regular FilmScene prices, but the fest can be experienced entirely for $15, for those who can get their paws on a Caturday pass.
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Colorful romp ‘Rocketman’ struggles in singer’s youth, hits stride when John does
Rocketman, a biographical film about Elton John which takes full control of the color wheel and coats it in feathers and sequins, started showing at FilmScene last Friday. The film, directed by Dexter Fletcher and starring Taron Egerton as John, poignantly shows audiences what it looks like for a rockstar to be put under too […]
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Pride at FilmScene kicks off Iowa City Pride Week with ‘Stonewall Uprising’
FilmScene and Iowa City Pride will recognize the 50th anniversary of Stonewall by showing ‘Stonewall Uprising’ for free on June 10, the day before Iowa City’s 49th Pride Festival begins. ‘Stonewall Uprising’ is just one of many LGBTQ+ affirming films shown as part of their monthly series, Pride at FilmScene.
