There are a ton of cool screenings happening around town, with a month dedicated to Coen Brothers’ films, a documentary festival and even an Italian Film Festival.
A Single Man (Mar 24 & 26, The Projector)
Designer Tom Ford’s directorial debut depicts Colin Firth as a British professor who struggles to cope with the death of his long-time lover. Set in the ’60s, this film has all the great Mad Men-esque fashion combined with tensions arising from the Cuban Missile Crisis. Based on the novel by Christopher Isherwood.
Metropolis (Mar 27, The Projector)
Fritz Lang’s 1927 sci-fi epic was way ahead of its time. Set in a futuristic city divided between the working class and city planners, the son of the city’s mastermind falls in love with a working glass prophetess who predicts the bridging of the class divide.
Johnny Guitar (Mar 28, National Museum)
This vintage 1954 movie stars Joan Crawford as Vienna, the stubborn owner of a salon and gambling den in the outskirts of Arizona. This classic Western film centers around the struggle between Vienna and her nemesis, Emma, when a rail line provides potential for handsome profits to Vienna’s property.
Poetry (Mar 29, The Projector)
This Korean film is the Cannes Best Screenplay winner and depicts a stylish grandmother, Mija, struggling to find poetic inspiration when she enrolls in a poetry class. This opens the doors to inspiration in everyday life, until she finds out reality is not as beautiful as she had imagined.
Coen Brothers Film Series (through Mar 31, The Projector)
The famed duo’s retrospective shows all month long with films like Fargo, True Grit and No Country for Old Men. Just in case you missed The Big Lebowski, there are repeat screenings on Mar 25 and 28. We went to the first one, and people dressed up in bathrobes. and there were White Russians for sale.
Incendies (Mar 31, Alliance Francaise)
Twins Jeanne and Simon journey to the Middle East as part of their mother’s last wish. While searching for their roots, they experience deep-rooted hatred, never-ending wars and ultimately, love and understanding.
White God (Apr 1, Golden Village)
The Singapore Film Society shows a Hungarian film about a thirteen-year old fighting to protect her dog Hagen, before she finds out her father has set it free. Believing that love conquers, she sets out to find her dog. The film aptly won the Palm Dog at Cannes Film Festival last year.
Italian Film Festival (Apr 8-15, Italian Cultural Institute)
The Italian Institute has a new selection of new movies, classics and Asian feature films from the Venice Film Festival. Movies include Leopardi, Hungry Hearts, Tales, China is Near (1967) and A Special Day (1977). See our top picks here.
Emily (& Dream) of Emerald Hill (Apr 11-12, The Arts House)
Following the life of Kheng Lim, who was one of Singapore’s first English speaking stage actresses, this film follows the pioneering multi-hyphenate actress-teacher-wife-mother and nation-builder. Her daughter, Stella Kon, also became one of Singapore’s most acclaimed authors in the process.
Unlucky Plaza (Apr 16, Shaw Lido)
Set in Singapore, local director Ken Kwek’s second movie sheds light on the more unsavory side of our glamorous city. We follow an immigrant restaurant owner, Onassis, and his descent into chaos as he holds a bankrupt motivational speaker, a loanshark and a pastor all hostage. Read our review here.
Jodorowsky’s Dune (Apr 23, SCUM Cinema & The Projector)
This American-French documentary by Frank Pavich explores a film that was never made: cult filmmaker Alejandro Jodrowsky set out to adapt Frank Herbert’s sci-fi classic Dune with a crazy cast including Mick Jagger, Orson Welles and Salvatore Dali, but production stalled due to financial reasons.
Rubbers (Apr 30, Golden Village)
Touted as Singapore’s first sex comedy, this Mandarin-language film stars local actors Marcus Chin, Lee Chau Min, Oon Shu An and Alaric Tay and involves three intertwining stories about, you guessed it, sex and condoms.
