DOC HOLIDAY: ARENA CINEMA HOLLYWOOD'S CHRISTMAS PRESENT TO YOU; STARTS DECEMBER 26
- Arena Cinema Hollywood presents a four-day festival of documentaries beginning the day after Christmas.
The Look of Silence.Directed by Joshua Oppenheimer. Produced by Signe Byrge Serensen. From Drafthouse Films. Color, 2015,Denmark/Indonesia/Finland, 103 minutes, rated PG-13. Through Oppenheimers footage of perpetrators of the 1965 Indonesian genocide, a family of survivors discovers how their son was murdered, as well as the identities of the killers. The documentary focuses on the youngest son, an optometrist named Adi, who decides to break the suffocating spell of submission and terror by doing something unimaginable in a society where the murderers remain in power: he confronts the men who killed his brother and, while testing their eyesight, asks them to accept responsibility for their actions. December 26-29, 2015. Sat. and Sun. at 6:45; Mon. at 7:30; Tues. at 8:45.
Winner- Angers European First Film Festival; Berlin International Film Festival; Bodil Awards; Boston Society of Film Critics Award; CPH: Dox Award; Denver International Film Festival; DocsBarcelona; Gotham Awards; Goteborg Film Festival; International Cinephile Society Awards; Milwaukee Film Festival; National Board of Review; Nuremberg International Human Rights Film Festival; Pusan International Film Festival; RiverRun International Film Festival; Robert Festival; SXSW Film Festival; Sheffield International Documentary Festival; Sofia International Film Festival; Venice Film Festival; Zurich Film Festival.
"Satisfying, engrossing, essential."---Film-Forward
Heart of a Dog
. Written and directed by Laurie Anderson. Produced by Anderson and Dan Janvey. From Abramorama. Color, 2015, France/USA, 75 minutes, not rated. An impressionistic and musical meditation on a pet's death created by the artist Laurie Anderson, who enjoyed a very deep relationship with her dog. December 26-29, 2015. Sat. and Sun. at 3:30 and 8:30; Mon. at 9:15; Tues. at 7:30.
Winner- Venice Film Festival
"Gripping, hypnotic and warm."---Toronto Film Scene
Best of Enemies
. Directed and produced by Robert Gordon and Morgan Neville. From Magnolia Pictures. Color, 2015, USA, 87 minutes, rated R. A documentary about the legendary series of nationally televised debates in 1968 between two great public intellectuals, the liberal Gore Vidal and the conservative William F. Buckley Jr. Intended as commentary on the issues of their day, these vitriolic and explosive encounters came to define the modern era of public discourse in the media, marking the big bang moment of our contemporary media landscape when spectacle trumped content and argument replaced substance. Best of Enemies delves into the entangled biographies of these two great thinkers and luxuriates in the language and the theater of their debates, begging the question, 'What has television done to the way we discuss politics in our democracy today?' Also featuring Dick Cavett, Christopher Hitchens and Noam Chomsky. December 26-29, 2015. Sat. & Sun. at 5:15; Mon. & Tues. at 6:00.
Winner- dead CENTER Film Festival; Camden International Film Festival; National Board of Review
"Outstanding footage....a juicy look back."---The Guardian
Welcome to Leith
. Written and directed by Michael Beach Nichols and Christopher K. Walker. Executive producers: Julia Willoughby Nason and Stefan Nowicki. From First Run Features. Color, 2015, USA, 85 minutes, not rated. A feature documentary chronicling the attempted takeover of a small town in North Dakota by notorious white supremacist Craig Cobb. Filmed in the days leading up to Cobb's arrest for terrorizing the townspeople on an armed patrol and his subsequent release from jail six months later, the film is an eerie document of American DIY ideals. December 26 & 27, 2015. Sat. and Sun. at 2:00 p.m.
Winner- East End Film Festival; Florida Film Festival; Hot Docs Canadian International Film Festival; International Film Festival of Boston; RiverRun International Film Festival
"Unsettling, probing and smart."---Eye For Film
Admission: $12 each feature.
Information:
(323) 306-0676
. Online ticketing:
http://arenascreen.com
At Arena Cinema Hollywood, 1625 N. Las Palmas Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028. Discounted parking is available with validation at lots adjacent to the venue and across the street. Arena Cinema is Hollywood's new home for independent films, powered by Voltaire Media. Ranked among Top 5 Indie Movie Theatres in Los Angeles by CBS2