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Click on a movie title for more information and trailers!
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USA / Doc.
RATED PG - 105 Min
Appropriate for all ages.
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Best Film, Chicago Film Festival. It's the most acclaimed documentary of the year -- and it will send you out on Front St. dancing a tango with a rose in your teeth! Inner-city kids from New York take up ballroom dancing and enter the big city-wide competition against children of all backgrounds. You will root and cheer, laugh and cry, in this uplifting, remarkable opening night movie for our first Traverse City Film Festival. Director and stars will be in attendance!
Through the generosity of: Kathleen Glynn
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France / Comedy
NOT RATED - 122 Min
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Oscar-winning director Costa Gavras (Z, Missing) gives us this brilliant, dark satire about corporate downsizing, based on the best-selling novel by Donald Westlake. Bruno has been laid-off for two years and still has not found a job. When the one job he is qualified for finally opens up, he decides to eliminate the competition, one by one. A brutally funny film from one of the world's best directors, presented here in Traverse City before its American release.
Through the generosity of: Sheila Bailey and Terri Beia; James and Kirsten Pappas
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Czech Rep. / Doc.
NOT RATED - 90 Min
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The film that is all the rage this year in Europe, Czech Dream is a hilarious, subversive documentary about two guys who decide to see just how desperate their fellow countrymen are to embrace capitalism. They announce the opening of the “Czech Dream Hypermarket.” Find out what happens when 4,000 compulsive Czech consumers are lured to an empty field.
Through the generosity of: Dr. Patrick and Susan Tobin; Scott Craig and Carol Bawden
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USA - UK/ Drama
RATED R - 90 Min
Sexual Content & Language
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A prize winner from this year's Sundance and Cannes Film Festivals, this remarkable first film from director/actress Miranda July feels a bit like Todd Solondz’s Happiness and Palindromes with its offbeat look at love, acceptance and the weird people who cross your path. One of the finest American independent films of the year.
Through the generosity of: Orchard Creek Health Care; Andrew and Leisa Hankins, My Favorite Things and
Tiny Toes
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USA - Germany / Drama
NOT RATED - 123 Min
Some language, appropriate for teens and up.
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Acclaimed director Wim Wenders (Wings of Desire, Paris, Texas) has created one of the most moving films of the year. Paul (John Diehl) is a one-man homeland security force, driving around L.A. looking for terrorists. His niece, Lana (Michelle Williams of Dawson's Creek), tries to bring him the peace he is looking for. A powerful film of redemption in post-9/11 America.
Through the generosity of: The Talon Group and Cindy Anderson/Realtor, Coldwell Banker Schmidt
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International / Doc.
RATED PG-13 - 135 Min
Nothing objectionable.
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Only the third documentary in 50 years to be made an Official Selection at the Cannes Film Festival, Mondovino is a brash, funny and damning journey through the world of wine. It's the small vineyards vs. the corporate wineries who want all the wine in the world to taste the same. This is the kind of bold filmmaking we rarely see, and though you may know little about wine, you will know much about what our world is turning into by the end of this movie.
Through the generosity of: Barbara and William Alldredge
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USA / Doc.
NOT RATED - 75 Min
Appropriate for all ages.
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The year was 1965 and Viola Luizzo, a white housewife and mother of five from Detroit, decided she could not sit idly by while black Americans were denied the right to vote. So she went down to Selma, Alabama, to join with Martin Luther King, Jr. – and, for doing that, she was brutally murdered by the Klan. A stunning documentary about an average American who became one of the greatest heroes this state has produced.
Through the generosity of: The Dean Robb Law Firm; Parsons Ringsmuth Law Firm
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UK / Drama
RATED R - 86 Min
Sexual content and language.
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Winner of the Best New British Film at the Edinburgh Film Festival, and already a hit in New York and L.A., My Summer of Love tells the story of a working class girl in Yorkshire who becomes friends with a rich girl who's been suspended from school and sent to the countryside for the summer. The two become fast friends and fall in love. This does not sit well with the Yorkshire girl's overly-protective “born-again” brother.
Through the generosity of: Beyond the Bay Film Series; Dr. Kenneth and Dr. Terrie Taylor - Happy Birthday Vianca!
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USA / Doc.
RATED R - 103 Min
Language.
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Timothy Treadwell spent 13 summers living amongst the grizzly bears of Alaska. He made hundreds of hours of tapes doing things that no human should attempt. Then one day the bears ate him. The great German director, Werner Herzog, took Treadwell's tapes, added his own narration, and created what may be the most riveting, crazy, mind-blowing film of the year. You won't stop talking about it for weeks. Presented here in Traverse City through the generosity of Werner Herzog before its nationwide release.
Through the generosity of: David Hanawalt, Michael Belitsos and Anderson Construction & Real Estate, Inc.; Grand Traverse Resort & Casinos
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Germany - Italy / Drama
RATED R - 156 Min
Language, some violence.
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Nominated for Best Foreign Language Film / 2005 Academy Awards. An extraordinary film about the final days in Hitler’s Bunker. Bruno Ganz is riveting as Adolf Hitler in this unflinching story as told by stenographer Traudi Junge (Alexandra Maria Lara). With defeat an almost certainty, this Gottërdämmerung of the Third Reich reveals its gods to be totally self-centered to the point of insanity.
Through the generosity of: Rhonda L. Estes; Epstein, Levin, Bodine & Hurwitz
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France - China / Drama
NOT RATED - 110 Min
Nothing objectionable.
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A best foreign film nominee at the Golden Globes, this lush, exotic love story from China is set during the Cultural Revolution of the early ‘70s. Two bright city boys must be “re-educated” and broken of their western ways, so they are sent to a remote mountainous village where no one can read or write. They stumble upon some hidden books and begin to read the stories of Balzac and Madame Bovary to the beautiful seamstress girl who becomes liberated by the literature.
Through the generosity of: Barbara Dennos; Miner's North Jewelers
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USA / Drama
RATED R - 87 Min
Consensual sex between adults, language.
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One of the best -- and most overlooked -- films of 2004, Kevin Bacon turns in the performance of his career in role few actors would have the courage to take on. Walter is a pedophile who has just been released from prison. He has paid his dues and is determined to lead a normal life. There are those who loathe and hate him and those who try to befriend him. Every day is a struggle as he tries to come to grips with what he did – and the knowledge that he may do it again.
Through the generosity of: Rainbow Rehabilitation Centers
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France / Drama
NOT RATED - 100 Min
Some language.
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One of two films by French director Laurent Cantet in this festival, and winner of the French academy award for Best First Film. Human Resources is a contemporary tale about a working class son turned college graduate who comes home to the factory town where he grew up. Equipped with his MBA and hired in as part of management, young Frank must now execute the company's orders – which may result in the laying off of his own father who has worked in the plant for over 30 years.
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USA / Drama
RATED PG - 124 Min
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A police chief, a scientist, and a grizzled sailor set out to kill a shark that is menacing the seaside community of Amity Island.
Through the generosity of: Critter Control
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NO ALCOHOL IS ALLOWED AT ANY OF THE OUTDOOR MOVIES.
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USA / Doc.
NOT RATED - 88 Min
Strong sexual content, language, parental abuse.
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Winner of the Los Angeles IFP/West Film Festival, Tarnation is the edgiest film in our line-up. Director Jonathan Caouette began making this film when he was 11, videotaping his harrowing up-bringing by a schizophrenic mother. Some 20 years later, he has created this brilliant film on his iMac, using his own footage, home movies, interviews and audio tapes, coupled with fast moving imagery and a score that has no rival in theaters today. This film speaks to the power of what movies can convey, yet you will never see anything like it at your local multiplex.
Through the generosity of: Rainbow Rehabilitation Centers
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Denmark-Sweden / Comedy
RATED R - 118 Min
Mild language, mild sexual content.
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The San Francisco Chronicle said this film “makes the heart soar” and they couldn't be more right. It's a rare day when an adult romantic film like this comes along -- and when it does, it reminds you why you love going to the movies. Six strangers, three men and three women, sign up for an Italian class in a Denmark town. When the teacher unexpectedly quits, the adult students decide to continue the class and plan their first trip to Italy. Funny, poignant and bittersweet, this winner of the jury prize at the Berlin Festival is one movie not to be missed.
Through the generosity of: Cali's Boutique, Mary Fisher and Cindy Robb; Traverse City Eye Consultants
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USA / Doc.
NOT RATED - 110 Min
Appropriate for all ages.
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Described by the L.A. Weekly as “fiercely intelligent, terrifying, and absurdly funny,” Enron is the largest-grossing documentary so far this year. It tells the Enron story in such a way that you can't believe what you are seeing - and yet every inch of this sordid tale is true. Compelling characters, scary villains, and a plot line that will have you laughing one minute and gasping the next. Enron finally tells it all about a company run on greed with friends in high places. The director, Alex Gibney, will appear in person at the screening.
Through the generosity of: Shag, Venus and Ella's Vintage & Retro; Wednesday Lunch Bunch: Sondra Hardy, Nancy Hayward, Jean Howard, Lynn Larson, Judith Lindenau, Marcy Manseau and Jan Warren, and Uppity Women: Ann Krantz, Maureen Riley, Judith Ramsdell and June Thaden
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Germany / Drama
RATED R - 127 Min
Language, mild sexual content.
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Presented here in Traverse City before its American release, the best German film of the year (and official selection of the Cannes Film Festival), follows a group of twenty-somethings who have had enough of demonstrations and believe it's time to send a different kind of message. They form a clandestine gang called “The Edukators.” Their mission: break in to the homes of the rich, rearrange their furniture, and leave them a message about their greedy ways. But things go awry as sexual attraction intrudes, and a kidnapped CEO upsets their master plan.
Through the generosity of: Belstone Gallery and McMillen's Instant Framer; Mary's Kitchen Port
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USA / Doc.
RATED PG-13 - 85 Min
Strong language.
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Director Michael Tucker spent two months in Iraq living with the U.S. Army's 2/3 Field Artillery unit, a.k.a. “The Gunners.” Their barracks? Uday Hussein's pleasure palace -- complete with swimming pool and putting green. In between dangerous missions around Baghdad and dealing with a war that seems to have no end, these young troops try to maintain some semblance of their life back home. Strangers in a strange land, Gunner Palace takes you inside the war in a way you've never been.
Through the generosity of Michigan Citizens for Water Conservation and Olson, Bzdok & Howard, P.C.
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International / Comedy
RATED PG - 93 Min
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Looking for a great date movie? Here it is! A brand new film starring Scarlett Johansson, Helen Hunt and Tom Wilkinson, set on the Italian coast in the 1930s. Two American women on vacation find themselves intertwined in a web of love, betrayal, intrigue and reconciliation. Based on the Oscar Wilde play, “Mrs. Windermere's Fan,” A Good Woman will play here at the Traverse City Film Festival before its national release.
Through the generosity of: Ward, Mary, Katie & Alexandra Gillett; Hanna Bistro Bar and Federico's Design Jewelers
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USA / Comedy
RATED PG-13 - 91 Min
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Prospective husbands come in two basic groups: the exciting, creative types whom you can't always depend on, and the “Baxters”– dependable, reliable, solid and boring. This new American comedy stars writer/director Michael Showalter as the Baxter, a man who continually loses his girlfriend or fiancé to the fun-loving ex-boyfriend who always seems to show up to sweep her away. Brilliant performances by Justin Theroux and Michelle Williams, this is that rare comedy for adults that
deserves to be seen.
Through the generosity of: The Cherry Republic; American Spoon Foods and DeYoung's Wallpaper and Paint Inc.
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USA-Mexico /Drama
RATED R - 95 Min
Language, some violence.
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Again, one of the most overlooked films from last year (it didn't play within 200 miles of here). This brilliant film stars Sean Penn in a tour de force performance that surpasses his Oscar-winning role in Mystic River. It's a chilling drama that has little to do with Richard Nixon but everything to do with a man named Sam. His wife has left him and he realizes all his hopes and wishes may never come true. A masterful exploration of the dark side of the American Dream. With an excellent supporting cast including Naomi Watts and Don Cheadle.
Through the generosity of: Ed and Karen Walker
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USA / Comedy
RATED PG - 98 Min
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A classic fairy tale, with swordplay, giants, an evil prince, a beautiful princess, and yes, some kissing (as read by a kindly grandfather).
Through the generosity of: Anna Christina Wege
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NO ALCOHOL IS ALLOWED AT ANY OF THE OUTDOOR MOVIES.
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France / Drama
RATED R - 175 Min
Some language and violence.
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Finally, a film version of the Victor Hugo novel, and it's a masterpiece. Winner of the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film, director Claude Lelouch takes this classic story and transports it to Nazi-occupied France. A Jewish family on the run is picked up by an illiterate ex-boxer named Fortin (played by the great French actor Jean-Paul Belmondo). Fortin searches for the strength to be the hero he never thought he could be in this rich, powerful and ageless story.
Through the generosity of: UBS Financial Services
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France / Drama
RATED PG-13 - 128 Min
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A prize-winning film from the Venice Film Festival, this is our second film from French director Laurent Cantet. It tells the story of Vincent, a man who gets up every morning and goes to work. The only problem is, Vincent was laid off months ago. Too embarrassed to tell his wife and friends he no longer has a job, Vincent creates a series of lies which dig him in only deeper – with growing consequences and dangerous results.
Through the generosity of: Chris Dennos and Anne Shuyler; Ask the Real Estate Guy
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USA / Comedy-Drama
NOT RATED - 98 Min
Some language, appropriate for teens and up.
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Made for $30,000 with a two-person crew, this hilarious, biting comedy about a dysfunctional family is already the most talked about film of the year. Roger Ebert calls it “brave” and Newsday says it's “breathtaking.” Director Andrew Wagner has cast his parents and his siblings in this story about a 70-year old couple from New York's upper west side who decide to drive to L.A. to see their loner son who's trying to make it as a filmmaker. Is it fact or fiction? Are they playing themselves? Who knows? It's real, it's painful, it's a riot. The director will attend the screening.
Through the generosity of: Michael and Christine Zenn; Le Cuisine Amical and Grand Traverse Pie
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USA / Comedy
RATED PG-13 - 102 Min
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A high school wise-guy is determined to have a day off from school, and no meddling High School Principal is going to stop him.
Through the generosity of Espresso Bay & Juice Island
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NO ALCOHOL IS ALLOWED AT ANY OF THE OUTDOOR MOVIES.
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International / Compilation
NOT RATED - 134 Min
Strong thematic content, appropriate for teens and up.
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Eleven of the world's top directors were commissioned to make an 11-minute film, fiction or nonfiction, with a storyline that reflected their own vision of the world after the tragedy of September 11, 2001. The shorts were then compiled into this one movie and the results are profound, moving, controversial, and sublime. Simply put, there is nothing like this anywhere, and we have these fine directors – Ken Loach, Mira Nair, Sean Penn and others – to thank for this most compelling and urgent piece of art and commentary.
Through the generosity of: The Endeavor Agency
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USA / Comedy
NOT RATED - 105 Min
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The Grand Prize Winner at this year's Cannes Film Festival, Broken Flowers stars Bill Murray as a man who receives an anonymous note from one of his ex-girlfriends telling him he has a son. He thus embarks on a journey to find him. This intelligent comedy also stars Sharon Stone, Jessica Lange and Tilda Swinton. Broken Flowers is being made available by its director, Jim Jarmusch, before its American release, to the Traverse City Film Festival as our closing night film.
Through the generosity of: Le Fetiche and Bynum & Bang
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USA / Drama
RATED PG - 102 Min
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Classic film set in occupied Africa during the early days of World War II: An American ex-patriate meets a former lover, with unforeseen complications.
Through the generosity of: Fifth Third Bank
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NO ALCOHOL IS ALLOWED AT ANY OF THE OUTDOOR MOVIES.
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