Azor
This month MUBI presents
Azor
(2021), a slick and sophisticated debut from breakout director
Andreas Fontana. Written in collaboration with Argentinian
filmmaker Mariano Llinás (La Flor), Azor invites us into a seductive, moneyed world where
political violence simmers just under the surface.
Set in Argentina in 1980, Swiss banker Yvan arrives from Geneva to replace
a colleague who has mysteriously disappeared in military-ruled Buenos
Aires. Moving through the smoke-filled lounges and lush gardens of a
society under intense surveillance, he finds himself untangling a sinister
web of colonialism, high finance, and a nation's “Dirty War.”
Azor evocatively depicts the uneasy interplay between wealth
and power.
Gagarine
A hidden gem from the Cannes Film Festival 2020 official selection,
directors Fanny Liatard and Jérémy Trouilh bring to life with
a celestial and enchanting style the story of a vast red brick housing
project on the outskirts of Paris and the working class and immigrant
communities housed there. Based on their own short film by the same name,
Gagarine
(2020) focuses on one of its residents, Yuri, and his journey to save the
complex as his community's home faces the threat of demolition.
Deerskin
Quentin Dupieux constructs an existential comedy following a man in
the midst of a midlife crisis in his deadpan and absurdist feature
Deerskin
(2019). After his wife leaves him, Georges, played by
Jean Dujardin (The Artist), becomes obsessed with a deerskin jacket which quickly possesses him and
convinces him no other coats should exist. With the help of an amateur
editor, played by Adèle Haenel, they record and document his new goal
— to eradicate all jackets.
Paolo Sorrentino Focus
In anticipation of the release of Paolo Sorrentino’s latest title
The Hand of God (2021), MUBI presents a special focus on the
films that put Sorrentino on the world stage:
The Consequences of Love (2004), Il Divo (2008)
and The Great Beauty (2013). From existential minimalism, to
the riveting flamboyance of political corruption and the opulent exuberance
of the city of Rome, his award-winning films have often been compared to the
great works of Fellini and Antonioni and have hailed the auteur as one of
the most brilliant directors of our time.
Los Huesos (The Bones)
Executive produced by Ari Aster, directing duo
Cristóbal León and Joaquín Cociña (The Wolf House) bring a ghostly, fictitious account of the world’s first stop-motion film
in Los Huesos (The Bones) (2021). This myth on the origin of
animation channels the transformative political energy of today’s Chile and
earned the Orizzonti Award for Best Short Film at this year’s Venice Film
Festival.
Project Space 13
After his coveted show is shut down for COVID-19, artist Nate continues his
performance piece for an audience of none—until tensions flare outside and
the gallery hires private security to watch over him and his art. The
pandemic-inspired dark comedy Project Space 13 (2021) –
directed by Michael M. Bilandic and shot in punk spirit by
cinematographer Sean Price Williams – hits the platform one
week after its theatrical opening (and world premiere) in New York.
Ali in Wonderland
Shown first in alternative circles and not seen in 45 years, MUBI showcases
the radical and newly restored Arabic-French language experimental
documentary Ali in Wonderland (1975) from filmmakers
Djouhra Abouda and Alain Bonnamy. Originally shot in 16mm, the
film combines an inventive form and style with activist politics exposing
the conditions of immigrant workers in and around Paris in the 1970s and
acts as a political plea against exploitation and racism.
Gritt
Gritt (2021) is an audacious and affecting feature debut from
Norwegian writer-director Søimer Guttormsen. The film offers a deep
character study of struggling actress Gritt, who has returned to Oslo to
intern at an underground theater company, when she secretly moves into their
performance space embarking on a mission to bury capitalism and the
patriarchy. Birgitte Larsen delivers a terrific performance as the
eponymous polarizing and troubled artist.
