FILM at the Erie Art Museum has returned with a fresh mix of new and old independent, documentary and foreign films.
The series, which kicked off Jan. 30, features a different film at the museum every Wednesday through the end of April. It is presented by the Film Society of Northwestern Pennsylvania.
John C. Lyons, director of the film society and curator for the FILM series, said he carefully selected what to include in the spring 2013 lineup.
“I spend a long, long time thinking of which movies to show and how they’ll work together,” he said. “This season I definitely have a theme of romance, relationships and connections between one another and our environment.”
The romantic side includes Oscar contender “Anna Karenina,” starring Keira Knightley and Jude Law, and nostalgic favorite “Annie Hall.” Meanwhile, “Chasing Ice” and “The Imposter” document subjects such as global warming and kidnapping.
A self-proclaimed film fanatic, Lyons said he hopes to expose the community to little-known cinematic gems. He also said he would like to renew the social aspect of movie watching by offering dinner beforehand – sponsored by Outback Steakhouse and U Pick 6 Taphouse – and discussion afterward.
Admission is $5, and dinner is available for an additional price. Film and food tickets can be purchased in advance at filmsocietynwpa.org. Doors open at 6 p.m. and films begin at 7 p.m.
Feb. 6: “Laurence Anyways” (2012). The 10-year relationship of a male-to-female transsexual with her lover. The film competed in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival.
Feb. 13: “Before Sunrise” (1995). Jesse and Celine meet on a train in Europe, and wind up spending one romantic evening together in Vienna.
Feb. 20: “Annie Hall” (1977). Two mismatched neurotic New Yorkers fall in love. Filled with poignant performances and devastating humor, the film represented a quantum leap for Woody Allen and remains an American classic.
Feb. 27: “Anna Karenina” (2012). Set in late 19th-century Russia high society, the aristocrat Anna Karenina enters into a life-changing affair with the affluent Count Vronsky. Joe Wright’s energetic adaptation of Tolstoy’s classic romance is a bold, visually stylized work.
March 6: “In the Mood for Love” (2001). A man and a woman move in to neighboring Hong Kong apartments and form a bond when they both suspect their spouses of extramarital activities.
March 13: “Before Sunset” (2004). It’s nine years after Jesse and Celine first met; now, they encounter one another on the French leg of Jesse’s book tour.
March 20: “Smashed” (2012). A married couple whose bond is built on a mutual love of alcohol sees their relationship put to the test when the wife decides to get sober. Sponsored by Edinboro University.
March 27: “A Royal Affair” (2012). A young queen, who is married to an insane king, falls secretly in love with her physician — and together they start a revolution that changes a nation forever. A Royal Affair is a lavish and sumptuous costume drama with a juicy story to back it up.
April 3: “The Imposter” (2012). In this documentary a 13-year-old boy disappears without a trace from Texas. Three and a half years later he is found alive, thousands of miles away in a village in Spain with a story of kidnap and torture. His family is overjoyed to bring him home. But all is not quite as it seems.
April 10: “Chasing Ice” (2012). Follow National Geographic photographer James Balog across the Arctic as he deploys time-lapse cameras designed for one purpose: to capture a multi-year record of the world’s changing glaciers. Sponsored by the Erie Reader.
April 17: “City Lights” (1931). The Tramp struggles to help a blind flower girl he has fallen in love with. One of the most beloved and highest-rated films in the history of cinema.
April 24: TBA at the Film Society of Northwestern Pennsylvania’s Oscar party Feb. 24.
