Northwest Film Forum

Chac: The Rain God

Seattle Premiere!

Feb 03 - Feb 09

(Rolando Klein, 1974, Mexico/USA, 35mm 95 min)

In his first film, Chilean filmmaker Rolando Klein did something remarkable. Working with non-professional actors in the Mexican state of Chiapas, he created a mystical adventure about a drought-stricken village that seeks a diviner (or witch doctor) to conjure rain. Their faith in his abilities is increasingly tested as their journey takes them deeper into the mountains. With each step leading farther away from home, the villagers doubt that this bizarre diviner can truly summon Chac: The Rain God. Long thought lost since the 1970s, we’re pleased to unearth a beautifully restored print of this classic.

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The Nine Muses

Seattle Premiere!

Feb 03 - Feb 09

(John Akomfrah, 2011, USA, Blu-ray, 94 min)

Twenty-five years after the end of the Trojan War, Odysseus still has not returned home. His son, Telemachus, sets off on a journey in search of his lost father. So begins Homer's revered epic poem, The Odyssey, the primary narrative reference point for The Nine Muses, John Akomfrah's remarkable meditation about chance, fate and redemption.

Structured as an allegorical fable set between 1949 and 1970, The Nine Muses is comprised of nine overlapping musical chapters that mix archival material with original scenes. Together they form a stylized, idiosyncratic retelling of the history of mass migration to post-war Britain through the suggestive lens of the Homeric epic.

"As a structuring device to the montage, the nine Greek muses—of dance, tragedy, music, history, etc.—chiefly allow director John Akomfrahto punctuate this very personal meditation on England's changing social fabric." —Seattle Weekly

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The Last Command

At the Paramount Theatre

Feb 06

(Josef von Sternberg, 1928, USA, 35mm, 88 min)

The Last Command is a silent film from1928.  The film starts in 1928 Hollywood director Leo Andreyev (William Powell) looks through photographs for actors for his next movie. When he comes to the picture of an aged Sergius Alexander (Emil Jannings), he pauses, and then tells his assistant to cast the man. Sergius shows up at the Eureka Studio and is issued a general's uniform. 

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A Good Man

Northwest Premiere!
Special introduction by former Bill T. Jones dancer Catherine Cabeen

Feb 09

(Gordon Quinn, Bob Hercules, 2011, USA, 86 min)

Commissioned by the Ravinia Festival, renowned choreographer Bill T. Jones sets out to create a contemporary dance piece in honor of Abraham Lincoln’s bicentennial. In a documentary that covers two years of artistic process, A Good Man portrays Jones grappling to express the legacies of Abraham Lincoln, the Civil War and slavery. In a film both personal and political, the viewer is privileged to watch Jones create movement out of the contradictions of a “post-race” society.

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Framing Pictures

Free!

Jan 13 - May 05

Join us for the first three film discussions in what will be a monthly talk with three longtime Seattle film critics (and occasional guest commentators) who have much to say on the subject of cinephilia past, present and future. Topics include a revival of The Last Picture Show, trilogies, The Interview and the movies of the moment. The critics include former Stranger film critic Bruce Reid, Film Comment writers Richard Jameson and Kathleen Murphy, and Everett Herald/KUOW critic Robert Horton. Beer and wine are available and encouraged.

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We Can't Go Home Again

Seattle premiere!

Friday show free for members
Special introduction by author David Spaner on Saturday (beginning at 6:30)

Feb 10 - Feb 16

(Nicolas Ray, 1973-1979, USA, Blu-ray, 90 min)

On the occasion of Ray’s centenary, we are proud to present the most complete version of this one-of-a-kind film in a stunning digital restoration undertaken by Ray’s widow, Susan Ray. Made by the one-eyed legendary director and his students during his stint as a film professor at State University of New York, Binghamton, under abysmal financial conditions, the film records Ray’s groundbreaking use of multiple images as a way of telling more than one story simultaneously, and of colorization as a way to heighten emotional expression. 

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Don't Expect Too Much

Seattle premiere!
Friday show free for members

Feb 10 - Feb 16

(Susan Ray, 2011, USA, Blu-ray, 70 min)

Using film, video, and stills from Nicholas Ray’s archive, along with interviews with original crew members and directors Jim Jarmusch and Victor Erice, Susan Ray reconstructs the making of Nick’s last, long-unseen work We Can’t Go Home Again.

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