Spring maybe here, it’s getting darker later now, however it’s very rainy too. Over at MUBI in April they will release a host of films that promise to be ‘poetic and personal’.
Next month the boutique streaming channel and distributor will premiere Oscar hopeful Lukas Dhont‘s Close. There will be films from Christophe Honoré’, Steven Soderbergh and much more…
MUBI RELEASES: CLOSE
Following its theatrical release in March, writer-director Lukas Dhont‘s critically acclaimed and award-winning Close (2022) will be available to stream exclusively on MUBI from 21st April . Winner of the Grand Prix award at Cannes 2022 and nominated for Best International Feature Film at the 2023 Academy Awards, Close is an elegant, poetic and empathetic study of youth.
Thirteen-year-olds Léo (Eden Dambrine) and Rémi (Gustav De Waele) are inseparable; they spend every waking moment together, racing each other on their bikes, playing in the fields that surround their homes, and sleeping at each other’s houses. They are best friends, as close as brothers. However as they start a new school year, the pressures of burgeoning adolescence challenge their bond with unexpected and far-reaching consequences.
With incredibly authentic and emotional performances from newcomers Dambrine and De Waele, Dhont’s latest film is as evocative as it is visually stunning, set against the rich landscape of the Belgian countryside. A powerful coming-of-age story, this profoundly moving portrait of male friendship offers a depiction of intimacy and masculinity that is sure to have an enduring impact.
Close (Lukas Dhont, 2022) – 21st April
CHRISTOPHE HONORÉ TRIPLE BILL
With French writer-director Christophe Honoré’s latest film Winter Boy (2022) – which tells the story of Lucas, a 17-year-old student, who escapes to Paris in search of himself following the sudden death of his father – soon arriving exclusively to the platform, our Triple Bill pays homage to Honoré’s films. Known for his work in contemporary French cinema, his films often explore themes of love, desire, and loss, and feature complex characters and emotional relationships.
Arriving first to the platform this season is Sorry Angel (2018): Jacques is a writer living in Paris. He hasn’t turned 40 but already mistrusts that the best in life is yet to come. Arthur is a student living in Brittany. He reads and smiles a lot and refuses to think that everything in life might not be possible. Following this, we bring On a Magical Night (2019) which follows Maria, a middle-aged professor, who leaves her husband after he discovers her infidelity with a younger man. Seeking refuge in a hotel across the street from their apartment, Maria reflects on her past relationships and sexual experiences through a series of magical and surreal encounters with her younger self and former lover.
Sorry Angel (Christophe Honoré, 2018) – 8th April
On A Magical Night (Christophe Honoré, 2019) – 16th April
Winter Boy (Christophe Honoré, 2022) – Coming Soon
ONCE UPON A TIME: A NURI BILGE CEYLAN DOUBLE BILL
Turkish director Nuri Bilge Ceylan has established himself as a masterful filmmaker, celebrated both for his intimate, poetic cinema of human frailty and stylistic hallmarks, like stunningly composed, contemplative long takes and hypnotic pacing. Drawing as much from the cinema—his early work is indebted to Italian neorealism—as from literature (particularly the Russian masters), Ceylan’s sublime visuals and stunning landscapes combine a realist worldview with a lyrical, literary soul. The two films in our Nuri Bilge Ceylan double bill this month: the epic story of a retired actor, Winter Sleep (2014), and the evocative and bittersweet drama The Wild Pear Tree (2018), both declare their literary spirits, featuring multi-layered characters that grapple with existential angst and intense self-scrutiny.
Winter Sleep (Nuri Bilge Ceylan, 2014) – 1st April
The Wild Pear Tree (Nuri Bilge Ceylan, 2018) – 15th April
THE FILMS OF STEVEN SODERBERGH
Renowned American filmmaker, screenwriter, producer, and actor Steven Soderbergh first gained recognition in the film industry with his directorial debut, Sex, Lies, and Videotape in 1989 which won the Palme d’Or at Cannes and earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay. Since then, Soderbergh has amassed a remarkable body of work that has earned him numerous awards and nominations, including three Academy Award nominations for Best Director. This April, we are proud to bring four of his titles to MUBI including The Limey (1999), Magic Mike (2012), Traffic (2000) and Unsane (2018).
Known for his experimentation with form and style, Soderbergh’s films span an impressive range of genres, from crime thrillers to romantic dramas, to comedies. His films have been widely celebrated for their artistic vision and technical excellence and he has long been considered one of the most versatile and innovative filmmakers of his generation.
The Limey (Steven Soderbergh, 1999) – 9th April
Magic Mike (Steven Soderbergh, 2012) – 14th April
Traffic (Steven Soderbergh, 2000) – 30th April
Unsane (Steven Soderbergh, 2018) – Coming Soon
THE BILL DOUGLAS TRILOGY
Renowned for his poignant and deeply personal depictions of working-class existence in Scotland, MUBI proudly presents The Bill Douglas Trilogy to the platform this month. This compelling series of three semi-autobiographical films, comprising My Childhood (1972), My Ain Folk (1973), and My Way Home (1978), draws from Douglas’s own experiences of growing up in a poverty-stricken Scottish mining village during the mid-twentieth century. The trilogy presents an unfiltered and authentic portrayal of the unforgiving realities of life for the working-class, and has earned widespread acclaim as a trio of masterpieces in British cinema. Featuring a distinct aesthetic characterized by stark black-and-white cinematography, a haunting musical score, and powerful performances, the three short films from Douglas make for a compelling watch.
My Childhood (Bill Douglas, 1972) – Now Showing
My Ain Folk (Bill, Douglas, 1973) – 10th April
My Way Home (Bill Douglas, 1973) – 17th April
DIRECTOR FOCUS: JOAN MICKLIN SILVER
The pioneering American director Joan Micklin Silver was one of the few women to sustain a career as a director in Hollywood in the 1970s and ‘80s. Replete with her signature wit and loving lensing, these charming, idiosyncratic films are fascinated by cultural shifts in American society. These trailblazing films are hailed today as bona fide classics and feature new faces that later became stars.
Our dedicated season spotlights three exceptionally entertaining works including: Hester Street (1975), her debut described among the great cinematic portraits of Jewish-American life with an Oscar-nominated performance by Carol Kane, Between the Lines (1977) – an ensemble dramedy about an alternative newspaper in Boston starring Jeff Goldblum, John Heard and Lindsay Crouse – and A Fish in the Bathtub (1999) starring legendary comedy duo Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara, and a young Mark Ruffalo.
Hester Street (Joan Micklin Silver, 1975) – 6th April
Between the Lines (Joan Micklin Silver, 1977) – 13th April
A Fish in the Bathtub (Joan Micklin Silver, 1999) – 20th April
MUBI RELEASES
Exclusive streaming premieres from the most prestigious international film festivals and rediscovered classics selected by MUBI’s curators
[Brief Encounters] Jaime Saldaña is schizophrenic, and has lived for almost half his life in a psychiatric facility. Surrounded by his collection of figurines, this gentle Chilean man talks about his youth, God, his mother, his superpowers and whatever else he has on his mind.
Equally riveting and tender, Jamie (2022) is an unexpectedly powerful character portrait that pulls you into its spell fast and deep. Blurring the boundaries between truth and fiction, director Francisco Javier RodrÃguez interrogates what reality really means.
Jamie (Francisco Javier RodrÃguez, 2022) – 5th April
[Debuts] Humane and surprisingly compelling, David Easteal’s minimalist debut The Plains (2022) is an existential road film reflecting on the passage of time shot entirely from the backseat of a car.
Every day at 5pm Andrew, a middle-aged man working in a community legal centre, drives home through Melbourne’s suburbs in peak-hour traffic occasionally offering a lift home to his younger colleague David. Over a year, their tentative small talk gives way to a friendship and open conversation within the confines of the vehicle.
The Plains (David Easteal, 2022) – 12th April
MUBI UK APRIL 2023
1 April | Winter Sleep | Nuri Bilge Ceylan | Once Upon a Time: A Nuri Bilge Ceylan Double Bill
2 April | Teorema | Pier Paolo Pasolini
3 April | The All-Round Reduced Personality – Redupers | Helke Sander | What Sets Us Free? German Feminist Cinema
4 April | The Mad Fox | Tomu Uchida
5 April | Jaime | Francisco Javier RodrÃguez | Brief Encounters
6 April | Hester Street | Joan Micklin Silver | Joan Micklin Silver [TBD]
7 April | Varda by Agnès | Agnès Varda
8 April | Sorry Angel | Christophe Honoré | Christophe Honoré Triple-Bill
9 April | The Limey | Steven Soderbergh | Steven Soderbergh
10 April | Boom for Real: The Late Teenage Years of Jean-Michel Basquiat | Sara Driver | Portrait of the Artist
11 April | My Ain Folk | Bill Douglas | The Bill Douglas Trilogy
12 April | The Plains | David Easteal | MUBI Release
13 April | Between The Lines | Joan Micklin Silver | Joan Micklin Silver [TBD]
14 April | Magic Mike | Steven Soderbergh | Steven Soderbergh | ReviewÂ
15 April | The Wild Pear Tree | Nuri Bilge Ceylan | Once Upon a Time: A Nuri Bilge Ceylan Double Bill
16 April | On a Magical Night | Christophe Honoré | Christophe Honoré Triple-Bill
17 April | My Way Home | Bill Douglas | The Bill Douglas Trilogy
18 April | Nina | Olga Chajdas
19 April | The Death of Louis XIV | Albert Serra
20 April | A Fish in the Bathtub | Joan Micklin Silver | Joan Micklin Silver [TBD]
21 April | Close | Lukas Dhont
22 April | The Pervert’s Guide to Ideology | Sophie Fiennes
23 April | Zama | Lucrecia Martel | Zama Double-Bill
24 April | Light Years | Manuel Abramovich | Zama Double-Bill
25 April | Of Human Bondage | John Cromwell
26 April | Tehran: City of Love | Ali Jaberansari
27 April | Quartet | James Ivory | Gilded Passions: Films by Merchant Ivory
28 April | Coming soon
29 April | The Warrior | Asif Kapadia
30 April | Traffic | Steven Soderbergh | Steven Soderbergh
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