Movies for July 2017: I, Daniel Blake and I Am Not Your Negro

Bill T is hosting in July and the movies to see are:

I, Daniel Blake (2016)

After having suffered a heart-attack, a 59-year-old carpenter must fight the bureaucratic forces of the system in order to receive Employment and Support Allowance.

Director: Ken Loach

Writer: Paul Laverty (screenplay)

Stars: Dave Johns, Hayley Squires, Sharon Percy 

I Am Not Your Negro (2016)

Writer James Baldwin tells the story of race in modern America with his unfinished novel, Remember This House.

Director: Raoul Peck

Writers: James Baldwin (writings), Raoul Peck (scenario)

Stars: Samuel L. Jackson, James Baldwin, Harry Belafonte 

Films of Merit 

• I Love Dick (TV series)
• Master of None (TV series)
• My Cousin Rachel (2017)
• Moby Dick (1956)
• Queen of the Desert (2015)
• Silicon Valley (TV series)
• The Zookeeper's Wife (2017)

• Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right by Jane Mayer 

Movies for June 14th: Being There (1979) and Going in Style (1979)

Hugh is hosting in June.

IMPORTANT:  Note that we are moving the meeting back one week to Wednesday, June 14th.

The movies to see are:

Being There (1979)

A simple, sheltered gardener becomes an unlikely trusted advisor to a powerful businessman and an insider in Washington politics.

Director: Hal Ashby
Writers: Jerzy Kosinski (novel), Jerzy Kosinski (screenplay)
Stars: Peter Sellers, Shirley MacLaine, Melvyn Douglas

Being There is showing on the big screen at the Hollywood Theater on Thursday, May 25th. Click here for details.

Going in Style (1979)

Three friends who are living on the dole decide to organize a bank robbery.

Director: Martin Brest
Writers: Martin Brest (screenplay), Edward Cannon (story by)
Stars: George Burns, Art Carney, Lee Strasberg

Films of Merit

• Black Mirror (TV series)
• Bosch (TV series)
• Fargo (TV series)
• Louis C.K. 2017 (2017)
• Outlander (TV series)
• Oregon Shakespeare Festival (TV documentary)
• The Invitation (2015)
• The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
• The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1965)
• Woman in Gold (2015)

Movies for May: Winter on Fire and The Overnighters

Joe is hosting in May and the movies to see are:

Winter on Fire: Ukraine's Fight for Freedom (2015)

A documentary on the unrest in Ukraine during 2013 and 2014, as student demonstrations supporting European integration grew into a violent revolution calling for the resignation of President Viktor F. Yanukovich.

Director: Evgeny Afineevsky
Writer: Den Tolmor
Stars: Bishop Agapit, Catherine Ashton, Serhii Averchenko 

The Overnighters (2014)

Broken, desperate men chase their dreams and run from their demons in the North Dakota oil fields. A local Pastor risks everything to help them.

Director: Jesse Moss
Writer: Jesse Moss
Stars: Jay Reinke, Keegan Edwards

Films of Merit

• A Life in Pictures (? - no link available)
• A Man of No Importance (1994)
• Ally Long (? - no link available)
• Crossing the Bridge: The Sound of Istanbul (2005)
• Elle (2016)
• Finding Vivian Maier (2013)
• Going in Style (1979)
• I Am Not Your Negro (2016)
• Kedi (2016)
• Leap Year (2010)
• Running on Empty (1988)
• Tangerine (2015)
• The Last of Sheila (1973)
• Where to Invade Next (2015)

For those visiting LA:  Felix in Hollywood Walking Tour

Moves for April 2017: The Whistleblower and A United Kingdom

Dean is hosting in April and the movies to see are:

The Whistleblower (2010)

A drama based on the experiences of Kathryn Bolkovac, a Nebraska cop who served as a peacekeeper in post-war Bosnia and outed the U.N. for covering up a sex scandal.

Director: Larysa Kondracki
Writers: Larysa Kondracki, Eilis Kirwan
Stars: Rachel Weisz, Monica Bellucci, Vanessa Redgrave

A United Kingdom (2016)

 The story of King Seretse Khama of Botswana and how his loving but controversial marriage to a British white woman, Ruth Williams, put his kingdom into political and diplomatic turmoil.

Director: Amma Asante
Writers: Guy Hibbert (screenplay), Susan Williams (book)
Stars: David Oyelowo, Rosamund Pike, Tom Felton

Films of Merit

20th Century Women (2016)
Arrival (2016)
Hacksaw Ridge (2016)
Lion (2016)
Papillon (1973)
The Eagle Huntress (2016)
The King's Choice (2016)
The Saboteurs (The Heavy Water War) mini-series
Victoria (mini-series)

The History and Culture of Africa (PBS)

Movies for March 2017: Fences and Hidden Figures

Bill G is hosting in March and the movies to see are:

Fences (2016)

A working-class African-American father tries to raise his family in the 1950s, while coming to terms with the events of his life.

Director: Denzel Washington
Writers: August Wilson (screenplay), August Wilson (based upon his play "Fences")
Stars: Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Stephen Henderson

Hidden Figures (2016)

The story of a team of African-American women mathematicians who served a vital role in NASA during the early years of the US space program.

Director: Theodore Melfi

Writers: Allison Schroeder (screenplay), Theodore Melfi (screenplay), Margot Lee Shetterly (book)

Stars: Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monáe

Films of Merit from our February 2017 meeting

• Arrival (2016)
• Chef’s Table (TV series)
• Command and Control (2016)
• Genius (2016)
• Papa Hemingway in Cuba (2015)
• Remembrance (2011)
• Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
• The Crown (TV series)
• The Good Girls Revolt (TV series)
• The Young Pope (TV series)
• You Can Count on Me (2000)

Mock's Crest Productions Theater Company produces excellent Gilbert & Sullivan operettas at the University of Portland. Cheap tickets:  https://college.up.edu/pfa/mocks-crest.html

CHANGE!! Movies for February 2017: Manchester By The Sea and Lion

Nic hosting for February. There is a change to what was previously announced.

The movies to see are:

Manchester by the Sea (2016)

An uncle is asked to take care of his teenage nephew after the boy's father dies.

Director: Kenneth Lonergan

Writer: Kenneth Lonergan

Stars: Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams, Kyle Chandler

Lion (2016)

A five-year-old Indian boy gets lost on the streets of Calcutta, thousands of kilometers from home. He survives many challenges before being adopted by a couple in Australia; 25 years later, he sets out to find his lost family.

Director: Garth Davis
Writers: Saroo Brierley (adapted from the book "A Long Way Home" by), Luke Davies (screenplay)
Stars: Dev Patel, Nicole Kidman, Rooney Mara

Movies for January 2017: La La Land and Loving

Please note that we will start at 7PM (instead of 7:30PM) starting in January 2017.

Steve is hosting in January and the movies to see are:

La La Land (2016)

A jazz pianist falls for an aspiring actress in Los Angeles.

Director: Damien Chazelle
Writer: Damien Chazelle
Stars: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Rosemarie DeWitt

Loving (2016)

The story of Richard and Mildred Loving, an interracial couple, whose challenge of their anti-miscegenation arrest for their marriage in Virginia led to a legal battle that would end at the US Supreme Court.

Director: Jeff Nichols

Writer: Jeff Nichols

Stars: Ruth Negga, Joel Edgerton, Will Dalton