2022 AFI European Union Film Showcase to Open with Cannes Award Winner "Corsage"

2022 AFI EUROPEAN UNION FILM SHOWCASE
December 1–20

Austria

Opening Night
2023 Oscar® Selection, Austria
CORSAGE

Thurs, Dec. 1, 7:15 p.m.* ;Sun, Dec. 4, 5:45 p.m.

*Post-screening dessert reception sponsored by the Delegation of the European Union to the United States on Dec. 1
PHANTOM THREAD's Vicky Krieps — Un Certain Regard Best Performance award winner at Cannes — gives legendary 19th-century monarch Empress Elizabeth "Sisi" of Austria her rightful place in the rock-and-roll royalty hall of fame in Marie Kreutzer's stylishly iconoclastic take on a year in the life of one of history's most talked-about women. DIR Marie Kreutzer. Austria/Luxembourg/Germany/France, 2022, 112 min. In English, German, French and Hungarian with English subtitles.


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RIMINI

Fri, Dec. 16, 7:00 p.m.; Mon, Dec. 19, 7:00 p.m.
Director Ulrich Seidl crafts a darkly comic character study about Ritchie Bravo (Michael Thomas, in an astounding performance), a washed-up, sleazy lounge lizard living on the northern Italian coast who must scrounge up 30,000 euros for his estranged adult daughter as compensation for having abandoned her 12 years earlier. DIR Ulrich Seidl. Austria/France/Germany, 2022, 114 min. In German and Italian with English subtitles.

Belgium

Special Presentation

2023 Oscar® Selection, Belgium
CLOSE (2022)

Fri, Dec. 9, 7:00 p.m.; Sat, Dec. 10, 3:00 p.m.

This sensitive and moving drama from Lukas Dhont (GIRL) follows two 13-year-old boys who spend the long summer days and nights together, playing in the woods and sleeping over at each other's houses. But once the school year begins, other children notice how attached the two seem to be, and uncomfortable questions get asked. DIR Lukas Dhont. Belgium/Netherlands/France, 2022, 105 min. In Dutch and French with English subtitles.


REBEL (2022)

Fri, Dec. 16, 3:00 p.m.; Sat, Dec. 17, 9:15 p.m.; Sun, Dec. 18, 7:00 p.m.

Kamal leaves his home in Brussels to support the Syrian rebels' efforts as a cameraman. Soon, he is fighting in a war zone with ISIS calling the shots, while radical recruiters attempt to enlist his little brother back home. Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah's stylish cautionary tale rails against the exploiters who peddle radicalization. DIR Adil El Arbi, Bilall Fallah. Belgium/Luxembourg/France, 2022, 135 min. In Dutch, French and Arabic with English


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Bulgaria

2023 Oscar® Selection, Bulgaria 
IN THE HEART OF THE MACHINE [V SŬRTSETO NA MASHINATA] [В СЪРЦЕТО НА МАШИНАТА] 

Mon, Dec. 12, 4:30 p.m.; Thurs, Dec. 15, 9:20 p.m.

Set in 1978 inside Kremikovtsi Steel Plant, where a ragtag group of maximum-security inmates has been recruited to help double production, Martin Makariev's gritty prison drama becomes a thought-provoking meditation on humanity and survival when a trapped bird becomes the catalyst for a tense hostage situation and possible escape. DIR Martin Makariev. Bulgaria, 2021, 115 min. In Bulgarian with English subtitles.

Croatia

U.S. Premiere 
2023 Oscar® Selection, Croatia 
SAFE PLACE (2022) [SIGURNO MJESTO] 

Tue, Dec. 13, 4:45 p.m.; Wed, Dec. 14, 6:45 p.m.
Writer-director Juraj Lerotić's potent and highly personal debut feature — in which he also stars — is a tense psychological drama following two brothers, as one (Lerotić) races against time and the bureaucracy of the social service and healthcare systems to prevent the other (Goran Marković) from repeating a suicide attempt. DIR Juraj Lerotić. Croatia/Slovenia, 2022, 102 min. In Croatian with English subtitles. 

Cyprus

.DOG

Wed, Dec. 14, 9:20 p.m.; Tue, Dec. 20, 9:00 p.m.
Dimitris can't wait to make up for lost time when his father is released from prison. But his dad has a hard time kicking old habits, constantly scheming and hoping to drag Dimitris into the "family business." Cypriot filmmaker Yianna Americanou's thriller-tinged drama asks whether blood really is thicker than water. DIR Yianna Americanou. Cyprus/Greece, 2021, 97 min. In Greek with English subtitles.

Czech Republic 

North American Premiere
ORDINARY FAILURES [BĚŽNÁ SELHÁNÍ]

Sun, Dec. 4, 5:30 p.m.; Thurs, Dec. 8, 4:45 p.m.
On the verge of the apocalypse, a lonely widow, a misfit teen and a frustrated young mother cross paths, each struggling to find her place in the world even as it seemingly comes to an end. Hungarian-Romanian filmmaker Cristina Groşan won Best Director Under 40 at the 2022 Venice Film Festival for this intimate sci-fi tale. DIR Cristina Groşan. Czech Republic/Italy/Hungary/Slovakia, 2022, 85 min. In Czech with English subtitles.

Denmark

2023 Oscar® Selection, Denmark
HOLY SPIDER

Fri, Dec. 2, 2:00 p.m.; Sat, Dec. 3, 9:45 p.m.; Wed, Dec. 7, 9:15 p.m.
Devout family man-turned-serial killer Saeed is on a quest to "cleanse" the holy Iranian city of Mashhad of sex workers. As the bodies pile up, a journalist grows obsessed with finding the murderer. Danish-based Iranian filmmaker Ali Abbasi's cat-and-mouse thriller raises thought-provoking questions about justice in contemporary Iran. DIR Ali Abbasi. Denmark/Germany/Sweden/France, 2022, 118 min. In Persian with English subtitles.


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Special Presentation

GODLAND [VANSKABTE LAND] [VOLAÐA LAND]

Sat, Dec. 3, 4:15 p.m.; Sun, Dec. 4, 8:00 p.m.
Icelandic director Hlynur Pálmason (A WHITE, WHITE DAY) crafts an anti-colonial fable with this 19th-century-set tale of a Danish priest sent to establish a church in a remote community in Iceland (then a Danish colony). The distrust between the priest and his Icelandic guide devolves into a deadly battle of wills between colonizer and colonized. DIR Hlynur Pálmason. Denmark/Iceland/France/Sweden, 2022, 143 min. In Danish and Icelandic with English subtitles.

Estonia

2023 Oscar® Selection, Estonia
North American Premiere
KALEV

Sun, Dec. 11, 8:30 p.m.; Mon, Dec. 12, 4:45 p.m.
Summer, 1990. The collapse of the Soviet Union is imminent, but the USSR Premiere Basketball League is starting a new season. With independence within reach and societal support for the USSR waning, the Estonian team must decide whether to participate. Ove Musting's feature debut is a rousing and timely sports drama based on a true story. DIR Ove Musting. Estonia, 2022, 91 min. In Estonian and Russian with English subtitles.

Finland
 

THE WOODCUTTER STORY [METSURIN TARINA]

Fri, Dec. 2, 4:45 p.m.; Tue, Dec. 6, 7:10 p.m.
When the sawmill where he works suddenly closes, Pepe is cursed by increasingly bizarre bad luck, but maintains an unfaltering positive attitude. Imagine TWIN PEAKS by way of Aki Kaurismäki and you might get close to the delightfully deadpan surrealism at the core of Mikko Myllylahti's 35mm-shot directorial debut. DIR Mikko Myllylahti. Finland/Netherlands/Denmark/Germany, 2022, 99 min. In Finnish with English subtitles.


2023 Oscar® Selection, Finland

GIRL PICTURE [TYTÖT TYTÖT TYTÖT] 

Fri, Dec. 9, 2:45 p.m.; Sat, Dec. 10, 9:45 p.m.; Tue, Dec. 13, 4:30 p.m.

Alli Haapasalo's fresh and frank snapshot of young womanhood follows three teenaged girls in Helsinki. Best friends Rönkkö and Mimmi work in a smoothie shop, sharing their personal woes and triumphs. When strait-laced figure skater Emma enters the picture, she strikes up a whirlwind romance with Mimmi that sends sparks flying. DIR Alli Haapasalo. Finland, 2022, 101 min. In Finnish with English subtitles. 
 

France

MOTHER AND SON (2022) [UN PETIT FRÈRE]

Fri, Dec. 2, 2:15 p.m.; Sat, Dec. 3, 4:00 p.m.; Mon, Dec. 5, 6:45 p.m.

The latest film from writer-director Léonor Serraille (MONTPARNASSE BIENVENÜE) follows the ups and downs in the adventurous life of Rose (Annabelle Lengronne), who emigrates from Abidjan to Paris in the '90s with her two young sons, who grow to manhood over the ensuing years in the company of their headstrong mother. DIR Léonor Serraille. France, 2022, 116 min. In French with English subtitles.

Special Presentation
ONE FINE MORNING (2022) [UN BEAU MATIN]

Fri, Dec. 2, 6:45 p.m.; Sun, Dec. 4, 3:15 p.m.
The many facets of one woman's identity are expertly explored in Mia Hansen-Løve's (BERGMAN ISLAND, THINGS TO COME) deeply personal drama about a mother, daughter, sister and lover (Léa Seydoux) at a crossroads. Mourning the loss of her relationship with her ailing father, she finds hope in her young daughter and a new beau. DIR Mia Hansen-Løve. France, 2022, 112 min. In French with English subtitles.


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Special Presentation
U.S. Premiere
THE ORIGIN OF EVIL [L'ORIGINE DU MAL]

Sat, Dec. 3, 7:15 p.m.; Thurs, Dec. 8, 7:00 p.m.
Laure Calamy gives a brilliant performance as working-class woman who seeks out the wealthy father she never knew and discovers a vipers' nest of family drama, with everyone angling for the old man's inheritance and suspicious of this interloper. Sébastien Marnier's twisty thriller recalls the work of Agatha Christie and Patricia Highsmith, with a stylish air of intrigue and sensual visuals that bear comparison to screen masters Claude Chabrol and Pedro Almodóvar. DIR Sébastien Marnier. France/Canada, 2022, 125 min. In French with English subtitles.

THE FIVE DEVILS [LES CINQ DIABLES]

Sun, Dec. 4, 7:20 p.m.; Mon, Dec. 5, 4:45 p.m.; Thurs, Dec. 8, 9:30 p.m.

A young girl discovers she has a superpower, leading to a perilous journey into the past and the discovery of long-held secrets about her parents' tangled love lives. Léa Mysius' twisty, supernatural drama examines small-town racism, homophobia and the ways in which we manage to contain — for a time — our memories. DIR Léa Mysius. France, 2022, 95 min. In French with English subtitles.


RODEO (2022)

Sun, Dec. 4, 9:20 p.m.; Wed, Dec. 7, 9:20 p.m.

A fiery, feminist take on the tale of a woman trying to make it a man's world, French filmmaker Lola Quivoron's narrative feature debut is an action-infused genre mashup about a young woman who joins the city's male-dominated "rodeos" — illegal gatherings where dirt bike riders show off their death-defying speed and stunts. DIR Lola Quivoron. France, 2022, 102 min. In French with English subtitles.


HAWA

Fri, Dec. 9, 4:45 p.m.; Sun, Dec. 11, 12:50 p.m.; Thurs, Dec. 15, 4:45 p.m.

In her Capra-esque tale about a soon-to-be-orphaned adolescent seeking an audience with the icon she's chosen to be her adoptive mother — Michelle Obama — writer/director Maïmouna Doucouré's (CUTIES) sophomore feature dismantles boundaries of status and decorum and celebrates the power of self-determination. DIR Maïmouna Doucouré. France, 2022, 104 min. In French and Bambara with English subtitles.

Special Presentation

2023 Oscar® Selection, France 

SAINT OMER 

Sat, Dec. 10, 7:15 p.m.; Thurs, Dec. 15, 6:45 p.m.

Documentarian Alice Diop's narrative debut is a tense courtroom drama based on the real-life case of a Senegalese woman accused of infanticide. Following a pregnant novelist observing the trial, the film blurs the line between observer and subject to explore the limits of empathy and the double-edged sword of motherhood. DIR Alice Diop. France, 2022, 122 min. In French with English subtitles.

THE NIGHT OF THE 12TH [LA NUIT DU 12]

Sat, Dec. 10, 9:30 p.m.; Mon, Dec. 12, 7:00 p.m.; Wed, Dec. 14, 9:00 p.m.

A young woman walking home at night is set aflame. While several of the victim's exes fit the profile as suspects, none can be implicated in her murder. The latest from writer/director Dominik Moll is a gripping police procedural and a searing indictment of a society plagued by callousness and violence against women. DIR Dominik Moll. France/Belgium, 2022, 114 min. In French with English subtitles.

Special Presentation
U.S. Premiere
REVOIR PARIS aka PARIS MEMORIES

Sun, Dec. 11, 8:15 p.m.; Thurs, Dec. 15, 7:00 p.m.

Virginie Efira gives a powerful performance as a survivor of a mass shooting in a Paris restaurant. She has an imperfect recollection of the event, made worse by an accusation that she committed an unforgiveable act of cowardice. Alice Winocour's film examines the fault lines where memory, trauma and emotion collide for survivors. DIR Alice Winocour. France, 2022, 105 min. In French with English subtitles.

Closing Night
U.S. Premiere

Haute Tease