The Department of Modern Languages is pleased to present the sixth Roanoke College International Film Series, co-presented by Hollins University. This year's theme is Nature. Each film will be followed by a post-screening, panel-led discussion.

Schedule Of Events:

Wednesday, February 7, 2024

7:00pm - Princess Mononoke (1997, Hayao Miyazaki, PG-13) at Grandin Theatre
Run time: 134 min      
Language: Japanese
Panelist: Dr. Marwood Larson-Harris

Princess Mononoke: From Studio Ghibli, the creators of Spirited Away, and Academy Award-winning director Hayao Miyazaki comes an "epic masterpiece that has dazzled audiences worldwide with breathing imagination, exhilarating battles, and deep humanity." Ashitaka, a young prince of the exiled Emishi people, attempts to find a cure for the deadly curse he received while protecting his village from a demon. He seeks the aid of the spirit of the forest far to the West, bringing him into the conflict between Lady Eboshi of Iron Town and Princess Mononoke, a young girl raised by wolf gods. Ashitaka desires peace and offers to "see with eyes unclouded."

Monday, February 12, 2024

7:00pm - I am Love (2009, Luca Guadagnino, R)
Run time: 120 min       
Language: Italian
Panelist: Professor Giuliana Chapman

I Am Love: This romantic drama follows Emma, who left Russia to live with her husband Tancredi Recchi twenty years ago. They went on to have three children: Edoardo, Gianluca, and Elisabetta. Now a member of the powerful industrial Milanese family, Emma is unhappy and unfulfilled. When Edoardo becomes partners in a restaurant with his friend and talented chef Antonio, it does not take long for Emma and Antonio to kindle a passionate affair. However, when Edoardo learns about the affair, a tragedy strikes and affects the powerful Recchi family.

Location: In Antrim (Roanoke College)

Wednesday, February 14, 2024

7:00pm - The Hole (1998, Tsai Ming-Liang, PG-13)
Run time: 95 min       
Language: Chinese
Panelists: Dr. Nathan Lee

The Hole: Just before the year 2000, a strange disease spread by cockroaches begins to affect the people of Taiwan. Even with orders to evacuate, tenants of an apartment building decide to stay, including a single shop owner. When a plumber visits the shop owner's apartment to check the pipes, he accidentally drills a small hole into the floor of the apartment. This hole leads to the ceiling of another apartment, causing tension and unique interactions enacted in musical numbers with the woman living below him.

Location: At Visual Arts Center auditorium, room 200 (Hollins)

Friday, February 16, 2024

7:00pm - Stalker (1979, Andrei Tarkovsky, TV14)
Run time: 161 min       
Language: Russian
Panelist: Dr. Tatyana Munsey

Stalker: Tarkovsky's final Soviet feature leads viewers through a post-apocalyptic landscape to provide "a cinematic experience like no other." The Stalker, a hired guide, leads a professor and writer into the forbidden territory of a long-ago disaster entitled "The Zone." Once in the Zone, the three men zero in on the Room, a place that is rumored to fulfill one's deepest desires and wishes. As the group gets closer to the Room, the rules begin to change, leading the Stalker to face a crisis.

Location: In Wortmann Ballroom (Roanoke College)

Wednesday, February 21, 2024

7:00pm - La Ciénaga (2001, Lucrecia Martel, Not Rated)
Run time: 101 min
Language: Spanish
Panelist: Dr. Juan Manuel Portillo and Dr. José Bañuelos-Montes

La Ciénaga: In an "astonishingly vital and original voice in Argentine cinema," Martel uses a radical take on narrative, cinematography, and sophisticated sounds to follow a bourgeois extended family during a sweaty and sticky Argentinian summer. As the summer heats up, Martel reveals how class, nature, political turmoil, social stagnation, and sexuality manifest in human relationships.

Location: At Visual Arts Center auditorium, room 200 (Hollins)

Thursday, February 22, 2024

7:00pm - Pather Panchali (1955, Satyajit Ray, Not Rated)
Run time: 125 minutes  
Language: Bengali
Panelists: Dr. Meeta Mehrotra and Dr. Srikanth Mallavarapu

Pather Panchali: Ray's debut film tells the story of Apu, a young boy living in a rural and impoverished Bengali village. When his father, Harihar Ray, leaves the rural village in search of work and money, his mother Sarbojaya, his sister Durga, and his old aunt are left to raise Apu and eventually, shape him into the person he will become. The family is left to sell personal possessions and steal from the neighbor's orchards to put food on the table. Once Harihar returns home and Durga falls ill, the family is left with few options. Ray's debut film won an award for Best Human Document at the Cannes Film Festival.

Location: In Wortmann Ballroom (Roanoke College)

Friday, February 23, 2024

7:00pm - Aguirre Wrath of God (1972, Werner Herzog, PG)
Run time: 93 min  
Language: German
Panelist: Dr. Nathan Lee

Aguirre Wrath of God: After destroying the Incan empire in the mid-16th century, Don Lope de Aguirre leads his army of conquistadors on a new quest: the search of the fabled City of Gold, El Dorado. Traveling over the Andes and what is known as the "most savage environment on Earth," the soldiers battle starvation, Indians, the forces of nature, and even each other. As Aguirre's desire to conquer all of South America intensifies, he must face off against his superior, Don Pedro de Ursua. After seizing control of his group, Don Lope de Aguirre does not stop and leads his own army deeper into the Amazon jungle to fulfill his desire for control and power. Herzog's film was nominated for the Best Foreign Film at the Cesar Awards and won the Best of Cinematography award at the German Film Awards.

Location: In Antrim Chapel (Roanoke College)

Sunday, February 25, 2024

2:00pm - Winged Migration (2009, Jacques Perrin, Jacques Clauzad, and Michel Debats, G)
Run time: 89 min
Language: French
Panelists: Dr. Jeanne?Jégousso and Dr. Matthew Trumbo-Tual

Winged Migration: Perrin, Clauzaud, and Debats's documentary follows several species of migratory birds. During migration, these birds fly hundreds of thousands of miles away toward the equator in the fall and return home in the spring and summer. However, these long treks are a test of survival, due to limited food, unique climates, predators, illness, and injury. Once the birds reach their new land, viewers are able to learn how these species survive in a new home after a long journey.  

Location: At the Taubman Museum of Art

All films are free and open to the public

All films subtitled in English

All films followed by a post-screening panel-led discussion

Date: February 7-25, 2024

Location: Various Venue in Virginia

Cost: Free

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