Hal Hartley Films to Screen at Rio’s Caixa Cultural Until February

By Beatriz Miranda, Contributing Reporter

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – This Tuesday, January 23rd, Caixa Cultural, in Centro, opens the film exhibit “O Cinema de Hal Hartley” (The Cinema of Hal Hartley), dedicated to the renowned American director and screenwriter. Until February 4th, the festival will screen 14 of Hartley’s feature lengths and promote debates and a screenwriting course.

The director of “Trust” (1990), “Amateur” (1994) and “Henry Fool” (1997) is considered one of the most important names for the American independent cinema from the 1980s and 1990s. Known for a filmography with straight-faced humor, Hartley has already earned prizes in Cannes and Sundance, the biggest independent film festival in the world.

“Hartley stands out for creating in his films a fascinating universe of characters that penetrate in the spectators’ mind. The director knew how to get the best from the European and American cinema to dialogue with genres like comedy, black humor and drama, all at once,” says Leonardo Luiz Ferreira, the exhibit’s curator.

The opening session this Tuesday, January 23rd, at 7PM, will screen “Flirt” (1995), whose drama story is played out in three different cities: New York, Berlin and Tokyo. The session will be followed by the release of the catalogue “The Cinema of Hal Hartley”, produced by Caixa Cultural’s curatorship.

A commented session with curator Leonardo Luiz Ferreira happens tomorrow, January 4th, when the festival screens two shorts, “Ambition” (1991) and “Theory of Achievement” (1991), and the feature length “Surviving Desire” (1992), a comedy drama that portrays the turbulent love story between a college professor and a student.

One of Hartley’s most commented works, “Henry Fool” (1997), winner of the best screenplay award in the 1988 Cannes Festival, will be exhibited this Friday, January 26th, at 4PM.

Another session, at 6:30 PM, will display the shorts “The Other Also” (1997) and “The Sisters of Mercy” (2004), and the feature length “The Book of Life” (1998). Following, cinema critic Raphaela Ximenes de Elviras will debate the music and the female characters in Hartley’s films.

Besides the film exhibitions and debates, the event will also offer a course on cinematographic screenwriting for beginners. Run by screenwriter Sylvio Gonçalves, the course will happen this Saturday, January 27th, and the next, February 3rd, at 1PM. Those interested in participating can enroll through the email [email protected].

What: “O Cinema de Hal Hartley” (The Cinema of Hal Hartley)
When: January 23rd to February 4th – see event to check time details.
Where: Caixa Cultural do Rio de Janeiro – Av. Almirante Barroso, 25 – Centro
Entrance: R$2 – R$4