Arts Montco is a proud sponsor of the 28th Annual Philadelphia Film Festival – an 11 day-long celebration of the phenomenal film and cinema scene that thrives in our own backyard. The Philadelphia Film Festival showcases up-and-coming directors, writers, producers, and actors alongside household names to celebrate the history of Philadelphia and the world through film. Here are the films to see this week:
Monday, October 21st, 2019
SWALLOW
CARLO MIRABELLA-DAVIS | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 94 MIN
Category: Spotlights
Much to the concern of her upper-crust husband and in-laws, a young housewife develops a taste for inanimate objects in this dark, clever feminist comedy.
Mon Oct 21 12:45pm at Ritz Five
BEANPOLE
KANTEMIR BALAGOV | RUSSIA | RUSSIAN | 2019 | 137 MIN
Category: World View
After the end of World War II, a shy woman with an unusual nickname is confronted with an ultimatum when her female comrade returns home to Leningrad demanding answers.
Mon Oct 21 3:15pm at Ritz Five
LUCKY GRANDMA
SASIE SEALY | USA | CANTONESE, ENGLISH, MANDARIN | 2019 | 87 MIN
Category: Made in USA, PFS on Us
After winning a large sum of money, a grouchy, chain-smoking grandmother finds herself mixed up with a seedy Chinatown gang in this wry, quirky comedy.
Mon Oct 21 6:15pm at Ritz Five
MAYBE NEXT YEAR
KYLE THRASH | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 83 MIN
Category: Filmadelphia
This insightful documentary captures the lead-up to the Eagles’ historic Super Bowl victory, following the devoted fans who cheered for them every step of the way.
Mon Oct 21 6:00pm at Philadelphia Film Center
THE REPORT
SCOTT Z. BURNS | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 120 MIN
Category: State of the Union
Adam Driver stars in this scathing political drama as the Senate staffer charged with investigating the CIA’s use of “enhanced interrogation” in the wake of 9/11.
Mon Oct 21 8:45pm at Ritz East B
Tuesday, October 22nd, 2019
THE UNKNOWN SAINT
ALAA EDDINE ALJEM | FRANCE, MOROCCO, QATAR | ARABIC | 2019 | 100 MIN
Category: World View
In this delightfully droll comedy, a thief gets out of jail only to find that the fortune he buried years before has been covered up by a bizarre pilgrimage site.
Tue Oct 22 1:15pm at Ritz East A
LITIGANTE
FRANCO LOLLI | COLOMBIA, FRANCE | SPANISH | 2019 | 95 MIN
Category: World View
A lawyer in the midst of a corruption scandal navigates single motherhood, the pitfalls of the dating world, and her most challenging case yet: her mother.
Tue Oct 22 3:30pm at Ritz East A
ADAM (US)
RHYS ERNST | USA | ENGLISH | 2018 | 95 MIN
Category: Made in USA, PFS on Us
High schooler Adam navigates an unfamiliar world of gender and sexual difference when he spends the summer in NYC with his proudly queer sister in this coming-of-age comedy.
Tue Oct 22 6:00pm at Ritz Five
THE IRISHMAN
MARTIN SCORSESE | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 210 MIN
Category: Galas
Martin Scorsese brings together the dream team of Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci to tell an amazing saga of crime and friendship across several decades.
Tue Oct 22 8:15pm at Philadelphia Film Center
WALDO ON WEED
TOMMY AVALLONE | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 87 MIN
Category: Filmadelphia
An intimate video diary about the man behind Fishtown’s Pizza Brain, his young son’s fight against cancer, and the controversial treatment that changed everything.
Tue Oct 22 8:30 pm at Ritz East B
Wednesday, October 23rd, 2019
THE TRUTH
HIROKAZU KORE-EDA | FRANCE, JAPAN | ENGLISH, FRENCH | 2019 | 106 MIN
Category: Masters of Cinema
In his follow to last-year’s award-winning Shoplifters, celebrated director Hirokazu Kore-eda journeys to France for this tale of an uneasy reunion between a mother and daughter, played by Catherine Deneuve and Juliette Binoche.
Wed Oct 23 12:45pm at Ritz East B
FLATLAND
JENNA BASS | SOUTH AFRICA | AFRIKAANS, ENGLISH | 2019 | 117 MIN
Category: World View
Two young women try to escape their pasts with a dogged detective hot on their trail in this rollicking, feminist neo-Western set in the wide-open deserts of South Africa.
Wed Oct 23 4:00pm at Ritz East A
I LOST MY BODY
JÉRÉMY CLAPIN | FRANCE | FRENCH | 2019 | 81 MIN
Category: Cinema De France
In this offbeat, award-winning feature debut from celebrated animation director Jérémy Clapin, a severed hand makes its way through a treacherous cityscape in search of its lost owner.
Wed Oct 23 6:30pm at Ritz East A
A WHITE, WHITE DAY
HLYNUR PÁLMASON | DENMARK, ICELAND, SWEDEN | ICELANDIC | 2019 | 109 MIN
Category: World View
A grieving widower becomes dangerously preoccupied with uncovering his late wife’s secrets in this powerful and hauntingly beautiful drama set in remote, rural Iceland.
Wed Oct 23 8:00pm at Ritz Five
Thursday, October 24th, 2019
THE HUMAN FACTOR
DROR MOREH | ISRAEL, UK | ENGLISH | 2019 | 108 MIN
Category: State of the Union
Highlighting a history of tragic missed opportunities, The Human Factor examines America’s complicated role in 20 years of failed Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
Thu Oct 24 3:30pm at Ritz East B
YOU DESERVE A LOVER
HAFSIA HERZI | FRANCE | FRENCH | 2019 | 104 MIN
Category: Cinema De France
In this intimate, empathetic showcase for director and star Hafsia Herzi, a young Parisian navigates her newly single status and explores her sexual freedom.
Thu Oct 24 3:45pm at Ritz Five
BLOW THE MAN DOWN
BRIDGET SAVAGE COLE, DANIELLE KRUDY | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 90 MIN
Category: Made in USA, PFS on Us
A night out quickly spins out of control for two sisters in a seaside town where long-buried secrets bubble to the surface in this taut and refreshing crime thriller.
Thu Oct 24 6:00pm at Ritz Five
IDOL
LEE SU-JIN | SOUTH KOREA | KOREAN | 2019 | 144 MIN
Category: World View
From South Korea, this deliciously twisty neo-noir tracks the bloody fallout that ensues when a politician’s teenage son kills a man in a hit-and-run.
Thu Oct 24 8:30pm at Ritz East B
THE VAST OF NIGHT
ANDREW PATTERSON | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 91 MIN
Category: Made in USA, PFS on Us
Set over the course of one uncanny night in 1950s New Mexico, this intelligent, entertaining sci-fi thriller follows two teens investigating a strange, supernatural frequency.
Thu Oct 24 8:15pm at Ritz Five
Friday, October 25th, 2019
ATLANTICS
MATI DIOP | BELGIUM, FRANCE, SENEGAL | WOLOF | 2019 | 104 MIN
Category: Cinema De France
After a group of disenfranchised laborers leave Senegal in search of work, those left behind are plagued by mysterious fires, fevers, and nightly visits from restless souls.
Fri Oct 25 12:00pm at Ritz Five
INVISIBLE LIFE
KARIM AÏNOUZ | BRAZIL, GERMANY | PORTUGUESE | 2019 | 139 MIN
Category: World View
Two inseparable sisters in 1950s Brazil are forced to live apart in this lush, tropical melodrama that won Un Certain Regard at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
Fri Oct 25 2:00pm at Ritz East B
CITIZEN K
ALEX GIBNEY | UK, USA | RUSSIAN | 2019 | 128 MIN
Category: Non/Fiction, PFS on Us
In his propulsive and shockingly candid new film, Oscar-winning documentarian Alex Gibney traces the path of Russian billionaire-turned-prisoner Mikhail Khodorkovsky from oligarch to activist.
Fri Oct 25 4:15pm at Ritz Five
HEARTS AND BONES
BEN LAWRENCE | AUSTRALIA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 111 MIN
Category: World View
An Australian photographer who has documented some of the world’s worst conflicts must reckon with his demons when one of his former subjects re-enters his life.
Fri Oct 25 5:15pm at Ritz East A
KNIVES OUT
RIAN JOHNSON | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 130 MIN
Category: Galas
When a renowned mystery writer winds up dead, an eccentric investigator suspects foul play from amongst his many heirs in this star-studded whodunit from Rian Johnson (Looper, Star Wars: The Last Jedi).
Fri Oct 25 6:45pm at Philadelphia Film Center
Saturday, October 26th, 2019
STALLONE: FRANK, THAT IS
DEREK WAYNE JOHNSON | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 73 MIN
Category: Special Events
Equal parts compelling and entertaining, Stallone: Frank, That Is, depicts the fascinating life and career of an unknown entertainer with one of the most famous names in Hollywood.
Sat Oct 26 11:30am at Philadelphia Film Center
COLEWELL
TOM QUINN | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 79 MIN
Category: Filmadelphia
In this nuanced drama featuring a moving performance from Karen Allen, a sleepy, rural Pennsylvania town is shaken by the closure of the de facto community center: the local post office.
Sat Oct 26 1:45pm at Philadelphia Film Center
PORTRAIT OF A LADY ON FIRE
CÉLINE SCIAMMA | FRANCE | FRENCH | 2019 | 120 MIN
Category: Masters of Cinema
Unbridled passion is ablaze in Céline Sciamma’s triumphant period drama capturing the smoldering romance between a grieving young aristocrat and the woman hired to paint her portrait.
Sat Oct 26 3:00pm at Ritz East B
SEBERG
BENEDICT ANDREWS | UK, USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 102 MIN
Category: Spotlights
In an acclaimed performance, Kristen Stewart stars as French New Wave icon Jean Seberg, whose life and career were derailed by the explosive political climate of the 1960s.
Sat Oct 26 6:30pm at Philadelphia Film Center
HONEY BOY
ALMA HAR'EL | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 94 MIN
Category: Spotlights
Loosely based on the life of writer and star Shia LaBeouf, this drama follows the relationship between a 12-year-old actor and his erratic, ex-rodeo-clown dad.
Sat Oct 26 8:45pm at Philadelphia Film Center
Sunday, October 27th, 2019
QUEEN OF HEARTS
MAY EL-TOUKHY | DENMARK | DANISH | 2019 | 127 MIN
Category: World View
Exquisitely composed, Queen of Hearts explores the taboo as a successful lawyer seduces her teenage stepson while stopping at nothing to protect her own reputation.
Sun Oct 27 12:15pm at Ritz East A
FILMADELPHIA SHORTS
93 MIN
Category: Shorts Programs
Sun Oct 27 3:00pm at Philadelphia Film Center
CLEMENCY
CHINONYE CHUKWU | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 113 MIN
Category: Filmadelphia
Alfre Woodard delivers a powerhouse performance as a conflicted death row warden in this searing drama, which won the U.S. Grand Jury Prize at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.
Sun Oct 27 5:30pm at Philadelphia Film Center
SO LONG, MY SON
WANG XIAOSHUAI | CHINA | MANDARIN | 2019 | 185 MIN
Category: Visions of China
In this sprawling yet intimate epic from director Wang Xiaoshuai, the paths of two families affected by China’s one-child family policy intersect over three decades.
Sun Oct 27 7:30pm at Ritz East B
THE NOMADS
BRANDON ERIC KAMIN | USA | ENGLISH | 2019 | 93 MIN
Category: Filmadelphia
When school closures force a teacher to relocate to a North Philly high school, she uses rugby as a way to empower her disaffected students in this powerful drama based on a true story.
Sun Oct 27 8:15pm at Philadelphia Film Center
