TheMetaphysical
Film Festival 

Classics and documentary film festival at the Movie Room 

HimalayanPilgrimage
and Kumbha Mela

ORPHEE

Cocteau transposes the legend of Orpheus to a modern Parisian setting complete with a mystical trip through the looking glass into the underworld.

"Jean Cocteau's Orpheus is the masterpiece of magical filmaking. Through a narrative treatment of the legend of Orpheus in a modern Parisian setting, it is as inventive and enigmatic as a dream. Orpheus wants to get beyond the limits of human experience, he wants to reach the unknowable -- the mystery beyond mortality. Jean Marais is ideally cast as the successful, popular poet who is envied by the younger poets; his conflicts, his desire to renew himself, his feverish listening for signals from the source of mystery, are the substance of the film. Dark, troubled passionate Maria Casares is his Death; attended by her oaring motorcyclists -- the hooded messengers of death -- she is mystery incarnate." --Pauline Kael

“Probably Cocteau's finest film, this is a perfect marriage between Greek legend and his own personal mythology...effectively elaborating the theme of the poet caught between the worlds of the real and the imaginary. This witty and haunting film can be considered the centrepiece of Cocteau's entire oeuvre, and of his Orphic trilogy (it comes between The Blood Of The Poet and The Testament Of Orpheus), in particular.” —Holt’s Foreign Film Guide

Directed by Jean Cocteau. Script; Jean Cocteau. 

Cast; Jean Marais, Francois Pirier, Maria Casaris, Marie Dia, Edouard Dermithe, Juliette Greco

FRANCE 1949. 96 minutes. Subtitled..

Official Site:http://www.netcomuk.co.uk/~lenin/jean_cocteau_orp.html

Screens: Monday June 30th at 8:55pm

The Seventh Seal

Antonius Block (Max Von Sydow), a knight, returns from a 10-year crusade with his squire, Jöns (Gunnar Björnstrand), to find his homeland ravaged by the plague. When the black-cloaked figure of Death (Bengt Ekerot) appears to claim them, Block, whose war experiences have left him cynical about the existence of God and the afterlife, challenges Death to a game of chess to stall for time and gain some insight into the meaning of life before passing on. The game is intermittently paused and resumed during the journey home while Block and Jöns meet several traveling companions, including a mute girl (Gunnel Lindblom) whom they save from a bandit, and a family of poor traveling players--Jof, a gentle visionary (Nils Poppe); his wife, Mia (Bibi Andersson); and their infant daughter. Block witnesses much suffering and anguish along the way (an encounter with a woman accused of witchcraft who is about to be burned at the stake is especially jarring) but also finds evidence of human kindness and love, prompting him to realize that even a single gesture of goodwill might make the long struggle of his existence worthwhile. The title of Ingmar Bergman's highly acclaimed allegorical film stems from the Book of Revelation. 

Cast: Gunnar Bjornstrand, Max Von Sydow, Bibi Andersson, Bengt Ekerot, Nils Poppe

Director: Ingmar Bergman

Running time: 1 hr 36 mins 

Screens: Monday July 7th at 8:55pm

Wild Strawberries

WILD STRAWBERRIES is among Ingmar Bergman's most rich and contemplative films, a lyrical reflection on guilt and disappointment in the form of a spiritual journey. The movie stars Victor Sjöström as Professor Isak Borg, an elderly academic who takes a trip by car from Stockholm to Lund to receive an honorary university degree, accompanied by his daughter-in-law (Ingrid Thulin). Along the way, they meet various passengers who seem to be weighed down by unresolved ethical dilemmas. Meanwhile, Borg's own existential crisis is triggered by dreams and memories in which he is confronted with past disappointments, missed opportunities, and troubled personal relationships with those close to him--his son (Gunnar Björnstrand), his mother (Naima Wifstrand), and his late wife (Gertrud Fridh). The film features stunning imagery, most notably in the flashback, dream, and nightmare sequences, as well as an outstanding final film performance by Sjöström (who is also a famed Swedish director of the silent era). 

Cast: Victor Sjostrom, Bibi Andersson, Ingrid Thulin, Max Von Sydow, Gunnar Bjornstrand

Director: Ingmar Bergman

Running time: 1 hr 35 mins 

Screens: Monday July 21st at 8:55pm

SOLARIS

Director Andrei Tarkovsky's science fiction cult classic, presents an uncompromisingly unique and poetic meditation on space travel and its physical and existential ramifications. When a long-standing Russian space station hovering above the planet Solaris begins to report strange phenomena, Kris Kelvin (Donatas Banionis), an eager and intrepid cosmonaut, departs for the station in order to investigate. Warned by former Solaris specialists that the planet presents incomprehensible obstacles, Kelvin is nevertheless secure in his mission. However, the minute he steps foot onto the haunted and desolate space station, everything changes. Kelvin learns that of the three members left on board, one has killed himself and the remaining two have seemingly become schizophrenic recluses. When Kelvin's dead ex-wife appears out of the shadows, the reports that Solaris is a thinking being capable of reading human minds and materializing their desires and memories are proven true. As Kelvin joins the rest of the crew in a seemingly life-or-death struggle to understand this phenomena, Tarkovsky crafts a mind-altering earthbound space odyssey. Filled with visions of humanity versus itself, SOLARIS takes the philosophical investigations of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY to extravagant lengths and offers no answers except this: The only frontier humanity has yet to conquer is that of its own existence.

Director: Andre Tarkovsky

Running time: 1 hr 35 mins 

Screens: Sunday July 20th at 8:55pm

Yogis of Tibet

A fascinating new film focusing on the great yogis of Tibet, and their lives in retreat practicing secret self-transforming physical and mental exercises. Through these techniques they have developed extraordinary control over both mind and body. Normally these yogis are vowed to extreme secrecy to maintain the purity of their practices, but agreed to be interviewed, including one rare demonstration of yogic exercice and ability, to help preserve their fast vanishing culture.

This film includes an interview with the Dalai Lama and scenes from a meditation retreat by two yogis in caves at Lapchi, a place made famous by Milarepa. There are also interviews with many yogis, especially from the Drikung Kagyu lineage. These include the great master Drubwang Konchok Norbu Rinpoche, Chetsang Rinpoche, Chenga Rinpoche, Choje Togden Rinpoche, and Garchen Rinpoche.

"Remarkable!...A moving experience to watch these hermits speak so openly. The first film to explore this unique subject matter in depth." Jeff Cox, Snow Lion Publications.

"Spectacular yogic exercise footage never seen before and not likely to be seen elsewhere again. As close a peek as anyone can get to the ways of the mystical Tibetan yogis." Pema Thinley, Editor, Tibetan Review.

"Superb!...the best film we've seen on Tibet." Light of Consciousness Magazine.

Screens: Sunday July 20th at 7:00pm

Meetings with Remarkable Men

Based on the autobiographical book of the same name, Peter Brooks' Meetings With Remarkable Men is the story of the early years of Russian philosopher and magician George Gurdjieff and the people that led him to become a spiritual seeker and an inspiration to devoted followers around the world. Filmed in the mountains and deserts of Afghanistan, a Russian Prince (Terrence Stamp) directs Gurdjieff (Dragan Maksimovic) and a group of seekers to search for the teachings of an ancient Russian brotherhood called the Sarmound. The adventure leads them through the Gobi Desert and the Himalayas to a monastery where Gurdjieff learns self-expression through dancing and body movement, a technique he taught his followers many years later. 

Directed by Peter Brook 

Cast:  Dragan Maksimovic, Terence Stamp, Gerry Sundquist, Bruce Myers, Natasha Parry

Running time: 108 minutes

Screens: Monday July 14th at 8:55pm

Double feature

Himalayan Pilgrimage

Asia is home to the Himalayas, the highest mountain range on earth. Covering a distance of 2,700 kilometers, the Himalayas overlook the landscapes of six Countries: India, Nepal, Pakistan, China, Bhutan and Tibet. For thousands of years the people of these regions have considered the Himalayas to be a manifestation of divinity. Towering above all else on earth, the Himalayas reach out to touch the heavens. Himalayan Pilgrimage takes us through the Gandaki Valley - a place frozen in time. The Pilgrimage begins in Kathman du the capital city of Nepal, then moves on to Pokhara, then Jomsom and finally to the sacred shrine of Muktinatha. 

Kumbha Mela  The Worlds Largest Act of Faith

On the occasion of Kumbha Mela, pilgrims from every nook and corner of India - speaking different languages and dialects, wearing distinctive markings on their foreheads, donning various types of dress and observing different manners and customs - meet together for a holy bath in the sacred waters. Wave after wave, the pilgrims formed a veritable river of humanity that flowed unto the banks of the Ganges at Allahabad to celebrate the greatest spiritual festival ever held - Kumbha Mela, the worlds largest act of faith.

Running time: 85 minutes