Green Border is directed by the multi-Oscar-nominated Agnieszka Holland (Europa, Europa; Secret Garden), a filmmaker who has worked with such master filmmakers as Krzysztof Kieślowski on his Three Colors trilogy but who is also an auteur in her own right, bringing a uniquely distinct vision to whatever she touches, even including her TV directing (The Wire, Treme, The Killing). 

Green Border, tells the story of the so-called “green border,” a space between Belarus and Poland, where refugees from Africa and the Middle East seek passage, trying desperately to reach the European Union, but where they are, inevitably, trapped, in part by the political machinations of Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko. It’s a film that is unwaveringly powerful, not pulling any punches while also never losing sight of its humane endeavor, that is, to bring us the stories of the most vulnerable and to elicit a humanizing empathy where it is most needed. As Mick LaSalle noted in his review, it “has the directness and truth of a documentary and the emotional immediacy of a narrative feature.”  

I was sure Green Border, which picked up multiple awards at national festivals, including Venice, Chicago, and SIFF, would be chosen as Poland's entry into last year's Oscars, but perhaps its humane politics were a bit too-much for the right-leaning government.  And indeed, Holland has even received death threats for her film, demonstrating that truth-telling cinema is often perceived as a rebuke to those in power: “[I]n her native Poland, Holland and her film have been denounced by the country's right-wing government; Justice minister Zbigniew Ziobro compared the movie to Nazi propaganda, while President Andrzej Duda quoted the WWII slogan, ‘Only pigs sit in the cinema.’”  

Holland, however, has received the threats with equilibrium, noting, “‘Actually, it was great promotion for the movie, even if I received the threats of death and had to hire bodyguards for a few weeks.’” For Holland, it was worth it to get the movie seen: “‘The reaction from the audience [has been] so emotional and liberating.’"

As anti-immigrant sentiment in our own country is on the rise and refugees seek desperately-needed asylum, Green Border is a film that is all-too relevant to us today. It's likely to stick around for just a week, so I encourage you to take this opportunity to see it on the big screen.

We’ve also got three special events lined up this week: 

First up is the next entry in our Kid Pickford classic Pixar series, WALL-E, which plays Saturday afternoon, Sunday morning, and Wednesday morning. WALL-E is another of those films that demonstrates Pixar not only makes great kids movies but also flabbergastingly good Cinema, with a capital “C.” The nearly wordless opening of the film is both an explicit and implicit ode to the great silent films of the past, including Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights, and much like Chaplin’s work, manages to make us laugh as much as to elicit heartrending sentiment. By the end of that wordless opening, which serves as an introduction to the titular WALL-E, we are deeply wrapped up in the plight of the adorable, funny, and lonely robot, and so the story is personal and emotional even in the midst of its larger, urgent and prescient ecological message. It’s a truly beautiful film, potent and humane in all the right ways.  

Second, our beloved Andrew Scott is back after we saw him in the brilliant Vanya, this time with our newest National Theatre Live selection, Present Laughter, a “provocative comedy,” a multi-award winning production from Noël Coward, and a “modern reflection on fame, desire and loneliness.” Scott plays Garry Essendine, a star actor, who, “as he prepares to embark on an overseas tour” finds his “colourful life is in danger of spiralling out of control. Engulfed by an escalating identity crisis as his many and various relationships compete for his attention, Garry’s few remaining days at home are a chaotic whirlwind of love, sex, panic and soul-searching.” 

Present Laughter was filmed live at The Old Vic in London during a sold out run in 2019, and we’ll have it here for two showings: Tuesday, Aug. 20 at 7:15 pm, and then an encore on Sunday, Aug. 25 at 10:30 am. 

Finally, Nine from the 90’s, our weekly summer series, also continues, this week bringing us the iconic Fight Club, starring Edward Norton (who was in last week’s Primal Fear) and Brad Pitt  (who will be in the upcoming Interview with the Vampire). Based on the book by Chuck Palahniuk and directed by David Fincher, Fight Club is one of those quintessential 90’s films, a bit like Pulp Fiction in that respect, a film that produced a whole generation of fans. But it also has its detractors and has become something of a lightning rod among film lovers. Those who love it argue it is a brilliant satire of toxic masculinity and consumerism while those who don’t love it find its politics hit too close to the bone to be satire, perhaps (inadvertently) endorsing the thing(s) it is satirizing. Whatever the case and however thorny its themes, it is unquestionably a part now of pop culture, and it is also a cinematic achievement, one of Fincher’s best and both Norton and Pitt reaching something of a pinnacle in their acting.  Come decide for yourself how the film holds up and join us Thursday at 8:15 pm! 

See you at the movies, friends! 

Melissa