“A THOUSAND AND ONE is a love letter to mothers, sons, daughters, the poor, displaced and the hustlers of NYC. ” —@ValerieComplex @deadline

Opening this Fri, Mar 31 at the Belcourt, A THOUSAND AND ONE is an exquisitely crafted melodrama lovingly conceived by writer/director A.V. Rockwell is an authentic chronicle of one family’s endurance in the face of Giuliani-era gentrifying New York City. The feature took this year’s Sundance Film Festival by storm and won the festival’s grand jury prize in the U.S. dramatic competition. (Tickets now on sale at link in bio, or bit.ly/A-THOUSAND-ONE) ...

At the Belcourt Mon, Mar 27 through Thu, Mar 30, #AlainGomis’ REWIND & PLAY (tickets at link in bio, or bit.ly/REWIND-PLAY <http://bit.ly/REWIND-PLAY>). With a pre-recorded introduction from keyboardist Paul Horton (with Brittany Howard, Concurrence).

In December 1969, legendary pianist and composer Thelonious Monk was invited to appear on a French television program to perform and answer questions in an intimate setting. Through the examination and reconstruction of (primarily) the unused footage, this new film reveals the disconnect between Monk and his interviewer’s trivialized approach.

“This 65-minute, freighted documentary creates a portrait — or two — out of rushes and outtakes Gomis received from the National Audiovisual Institute while researching a fiction film about [Thelonoius] Monk. One is a study of an interview turned wincing for reasons of glib arrogance — racial but perhaps personal, too. The other is a more gleaming portrait of Monk at work…. REWIND & PLAY dazzles because it is and will remain a wonder to witness Monk seemingly discovering his compositions again and again, his fingers conjuring, his right foot etching rhythms.” —Lisa Kennedy @nytimes ...

“‘Nobody’s perfect’ is the last line. Wilder, Lemmon, Curtis and Monroe come pretty close.” —The Guardian

Now playing thru Mon, Mar 27, 1959’s SOME LIKE IT HOT —One of the most beloved films of all time, this sizzling masterpiece by Billy Wilder set a new standard for Hollywood comedy. After witnessing a mob hit, Chicago musicians Joe and Jerry (Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon, in landmark performances) skip town by donning drag and joining an all-female band en route to Miami. The charm of the group’s singer, Sugar Kane (Marilyn Monroe, at the height of her bombshell powers) leads them ever further into extravagant lies…. With a whip-smart script by Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond, and sparking chemistry among its finely tuned cast, SOME LIKE IT HOT is as deliriously funny and fresh today as it was when it first knocked audiences out six decades ago. (Synopsis courtesy of the Criterion Collection).

And before Sat’s 1pm screening, join us at 12pm for Nashville’s Great Pretenders: A Seminar on the History of Drag Performance in Music City — presented by Sarah Calise, public historian, librarian and founder/director of Nashville Queer History. ...

“The world’s greatest working filmmaker.” —Barry Jenkins

Claire Denis’ debut film, 1989’s CHOCOLAT, this Fri-Mon, Mar 24-26 and next Thu, Mar 30 (tickets at link in bio, or bit.ly/Belcourt-CHOCOLAT). ...

⭐️ “[Jacquelyn] Mills contructs true art.” —POV Magazine
⭐️ “Arresting visual and aural storytelling.” —The Globe and Mail
⭐️ “Nature is embedded deep in the very form of the film.” —Film Quarterly

At the Belcourt THIS COMING Wed-Sun, Mar 22-26, Jacquelyn Mills’ documentary GEOGRAPHIES OF SOLITUDE is an immersion into the rich ecosystem of Sable Island, a remote sliver of land in the Northwest Atlantic. At Wed, Mar 22’s 8pm screening, an introduction from Jonathan Rattner, associate professor of cinema and media arts at @vanderbiltu. Tickets at link in bio, or bit.ly/GEOGRAPHIES).

The film follows Zoe Lucas, a naturalist and environmentalist who has lived there for over 40 years collecting, cleaning and documenting marine litter that persistently washes up on the island’s shores. Shot on 16mm and created using eco-friendly filmmaking techniques, GEOGRAPHIES OF SOLITUDE is a playful and reverent collaboration with the natural world filled with arresting images and made with an activist spirit. ...

“In prison, dinner was always a big thing…. Paulie did the prep work – he was doing a year for contempt – and he had this wonderful system for doing the garlic.”

#MartinScorsese’s GOODFELLAS this Fri-Tue, Mar 17-21 (ticket link in bio, or bit.ly/Belcourt-GOODFELLAS). ...

“A slow-boiling knockout….” —Manohla Dargis @nytimes.

Opening this Fri, Mar 17, #DavyChou’s RETURN TO SEOUL — starring first-time actor Ji-min Park (tickets at link in bio, or bit.ly/RETURN-TO-SEOUL <http://bit.ly/RETURN-TO-SEOUL). ...

⭐️ “Masterful… A story of natural wonder, elemental beauty, and human folly.” —LA Times
⭐️ “A film of sturdy and stunning beauty.” —Sight & Sound
⭐️ “A cinematic original.” —Variety

Opening this Fri, Mar 17, Hlynur Pálmason’s GODLAND. In the late 19th century, a Danish priest makes the perilous trek to Iceland’s southeastern coast with the intention of establishing a church, but when he arrives, the reality of being an intruder in an unforgiving land tests the arrogant man of God’s resolve. (Tickets at link in bio, or bit.ly/GODLAND) ...

⭐️ “Expertly crafted with stirring grace and sensitivity.” —Hollywood Reporter
⭐️ “A jewel… Already feels like a classic.” —The Guardian
⭐️ A heartfelt, beautifully homespun tale… Remarkably moving.” —Variety

Colm Bairéad’s THE QUIET GIRL playing Fri-Thu, Mar 10-16 — with an Academy Award nomination for Best International Feature (ticket link in bio, or bit.ly/THE-QUIET-GIRL). ...

This Sun at at 3pm, 9pm (and Wed, Mar 8 at 3:15pm, 9pm) in our OscaRRR Picks, TO LESLIE with Andrea Riseborough, nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role. (Tickets at link in bio, or bit.ly/TO-LESLIE)

Riseborough plays Leslie Rowland, a single mother and alcoholic who’s used up all of her lottery money and finds the chance to redeem herself when a motel owner (Marc Maron) offers her a job. “TO LESLIE recalls the grit of 1970s American indie cinema at its most indelible” writes #SheriLinden in #TheHollywoodReporter. ...

This weekend, we conclude Beloved: A Spotlight Series on Black Female Directors with Kasi Lemmon’s 1997 EVE’S BAYOU — screening Sat, Mar 4 at 12pm* + Sun, Mar 5 at 5:30pm — with a cast that included Jurnee Smollett, Lynn Whitfield, Samuel L. Jackson, Debbi Morgan, Meagan Good and Diahann Carroll. *After Sat’s screening, a discussion with Claudine Taaffe, Senior Lecturer and Associate Chair & Director of Undergraduate Studies, Department of African American and Diaspora Studies at @VanderbiltU.

Here’s how #RogerEbert reviewed EVE’S BAYOU in 1997:

“A film of astonishing maturity and confidence — EVE’S BAYOU, one of the very best films of the year, is the debut of its writer and director, Kasi Lemmons…. That Lemmons can make a film this good on the first try is like a rebuke to established filmmakers…. EVES BAYOU resonates in the memory. It called me back for a second and third viewing. If it is not nominated for Academy Awards, then the academy is not paying attention. For the viewer, it is a reminder that sometimes films can venture into the realms of poetry and dreams.” (Nov 7, 1997)

#evesbayou @kasi_lemmons @jurneesmollett @mslynnwhitfield @samuelljackson @therealdebbimorgan @meagangood @ctinpeace #diahanncarroll ...

“TURNING RED is original, funny and tender, an affectionate reminder that adolescence is a time of life not easily tamed, and sometimes the animal inside us demands release.” —David Rooney @hollywoodreporter

Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, TURNING RED screens this Sat, Mar 4 at 2:50pm + Sun, Mar 5 at 12pm (ticket link in bio, or bit.ly/TURNING-RED). ...