Its been a couple weeks since I posted the last Coming Soon list, and I think I will stick to this bi-weekly format for the short term. Not enough changes happen on a week-to-week basis to merit weekly posts, so this should help keep things a bit more interesting.

I don’t have much time to delve into it, but their are a host of films coming out in spring that look incredibly promising. Expect plenty of One to Watch entries as I track down trailers and more info. Other than that, see you at the movies.

*** – Denotes recommended viewing
All dates subject to change

12/11 Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans Lagoon ***
12/11 The Strip Lagoon
12/11 Me and Orson Welles Lagoon

12/18 William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe Lagoon
12/18 The Maid Lagoon/Edina
12/18 Young Victoria Edina

12/25 Broken Embraces Uptown
12/25 Nine Lagoon
12/25 A Single Man Lagoon

1/08 Crazy Heart Uptown (NEW) ***
1/08 The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus Lagoon ***

1/22 White Ribbon Uptown/Lagoon ***

2/12 Rashomon (Restored Print) Lagoon ***
2/12 The Last Station Edina
2/12 Saint John of Las Vegas Lagoon (NEW) ***

2/19 Oscar Nominated Shorts Lagoon ***

2/26 44 Inch Chest Lagoon ***

3/05 North Face Lagoon (NEW) ***

3/12 A Prophet Uptown
3/12 A Town Called Panic Lagoon ***
3/12 The Art of the Steal Edina (NEW)

3/19 Fish Tank Lagoon (NEW)

4/12 Police, Adjective Lagoon

4/23 The Square Lagoon (NEW) ***

4/30 Warlords Lagoon (NEW) ***

Tags: 44 Inch Chest, A Prophet, A Single Man, A Town Called Panic, Broken Embraces, Coming Soon, Crazy Heart, edina, film, films, Fish Tank, lagoon, Me and Orson Welles, movie, Movies, Nine, North Face, One to Watch, Oscar Nominated Shorts, Police Adjective, Rashomon, Saint John of Las Vegas, The Art of the Steal, The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus, The Maid, The Square, The Strip, Uptown, warlords, White Ribbon, William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe, Young Victoria

Michael Haneke isn’t all that well know to American audiences, and its a shame as I would argue that he is the best director currently working in film. He manipulates the screen in a way few directors can, not by bending audiences to his will but by actually engaging them. That he uses themes and genres that are often considered mindless entertainment is even more impressive, and has lead to many people not really understanding his actual purpose.

When Haneke remade his film Funny Games, about a family whose house is overrun and terrorized by two sociopathic teens it was assumed that Haneke made the film because he hates violence and was preaching against violence in film. But Haneke has no issue with violence in films, for most of his films as disturbingly violent, but rather how violence is fetishized. He uses violence to engage the audience, or if need be, shake them out of their stupor. Which is why the true victim in Funny Games is the audience, as Haneke slowly shifts the events of the film from the screen directly into the auditorium. He didn’t want to make yet another slasher film where the audience giggles with glee at the fool onscreen, but rather drags the audience unwittingly into the terror they would typically dismiss and scoff at.

Which brings us to his latest film, The White Ribbon, which won the Golden Palm at the Cannes Film Festival this year, and has been receiving huge acclaim as being yet another masterpiece from a director who seems to churn them out with relative ease. It is a film about a small town in Germany in 1913. An authoritarian town, where the children are subjected to rigid rules and even harsher punishments. But something even more sinister might be occurring. And could the children possibly be behind it?

Official Site

Film: The White Ribbon

Director: Michael Haneke

Starring: Christian Friedel, Leonie Benesch, Ulrich Tukur, Burghart Klaußner

Release Date: December 30, 2009 (limited)

Tags: cannes film festival, film, films, Funny Games, golden palm, masterpiece, Michael Haneke, movie, One to Watch, The White Ribbon, trailer, ulrich tukur, White Ribbon

A huge amount of new additions this week, with the headliner clearly being Michael Haneke’s newest film, and the most recent Golden Palm winner, White Ribbon. And while that is my most anticipated, I am also eagerly awaiting Men Who Stare at Goats, Ong Bak 2 (I don’t care what you say Joe), Up in the Air and The Fantastic Mr Fox.

In other news, I have left Landmark for Kerasotes. Thursday was my final day with Landmark, and I made sure to have a nice break in between the two jobs by having Friday be my first day with Kerasotes. I had a blast working at Landmark, but Kerasotes offered me an opportunity that I simply couldn’t let pass by. I’ll still be doing the Coming Soon announcements for Landmark, as several of the managers have been nice enough to keep sending me the lists so I can post them, but don’t be surprised if more Kerasotes information starts to creep in the occassional post.

*** – Denotes recommended viewing
All dates subject to change

11/06 Antichrist Uptown ***
11/06 Men Who Stare At Goats Lagoon (NEW) ***
11/06 Flame & Citron Edina (NEW DATE)

11/13 Ong Bak 2: The Beginning Uptown (NEW)***
11/13 Crude Lagoon
11/13 Gentlemen Broncos Lagoon ***
11/13 Skin Edina (tentative)

11/20 (Untitled) Uptown/Lagoon (NEW DATE)
11/20 We Live in Public Lagoon
11/20 Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire Lagoon
11/20 The Messenger Edina

11/25 Red Cliff Uptown (NEW DATE)
11/25 The Road Edina ***
11/25 The Fantastic Mr Fox Lagoon (NEW) ***

11/27 Oh My God? Lagoon

12/04 Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans Uptown ***

12/11 Up in the Air Lagoon (NEW) ***
12/11 The Strip Lagoon
12/11 Me and Orson Welles Edina (NEW)

12/18 William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe Lagoon (NEW DATE)
12/18 The Maid Lagoon/Edina
12/18 Young Victoria Edina

12/25 Broken Embraces Uptown
12/25 Nine Lagoon
12/25 A Single Man Lagoon/Edina

1/08 The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus Lagoon ***

1/22 White Ribbon Uptown/Lagoon (NEW) ***

2/12 Rashomon Lagoon ***
2/12 The Station Edina (NEW)

2/19 Oscar Nominated Shorts Lagoon (NEW) ***

2/26 44 Inch Chest Lagoon

3/12 A Prophet Uptown (NEW)
3/12 A Town Called Panic Lagoon (NEW)

Tags: (Untitled), 44 Inch Chest, A Prophet, A Single Man, A Town Called Panic, Antichrist, bad lieutenant, Broken Embraces, Coming Soon, Crude, edina, fantastic mr fox, Gentlemen Broncos, golden palm, kerasotes, lagoon, landmark, Me and Orson Welles, men who stare at goats, Michael Haneke, Nine, Oh My God?, Ong Bak 2, Oscar Nominated Shorts, port of call new orleans, Precious: Based on the Novel, Rashomon, Red Cliff, Skin, The Fantastic Mr Fox, The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus, The Maid, The Messenger, The Road, The Station, The Strip, Up in the Air, Uptown, We Live in Public, White Ribbon, William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe, Young Victoria