Some recommendations for the upcoming week at the Seattle International Film Festival:
“Katalin Varga.” A grim journey is traced in this Hungarian-Romanian drama: a woman searches for the man who raped her years earlier — but the final sequences are not necessarily the ending you might expect. Shot in the moody Carpathian Mountains. 2 p.m. today, Pacific Place; 9 p.m. Monday, Admiral; 7 p.m. Wednesday, Uptown.
“Air Doll.” A life-size blow-up doll comes to life and is curious about the world around her. Given the excellent track record of director Hirokazu Kore-eda (“After Life,” “Nobody Knows”), this one’s a disappointment. 4 p.m. today, Neptune; 9:30 p.m. Monday, Neptune.
“Soul Kitchen.” Achtung, people: This German comedy might be the feel-good movie of the year. A ragtag collection of down-and-outers gathers around a rundown restaurant in Hamburg, warmly imagined by director Fatih Akin (“The Edge of Heaven”). Except for a few conventional jokes in the second half, the movie earns its laughter, and even the end credits are a gas. 7 p.m. today, Uptown; 1 p.m. Sunday, Uptown.
“Bass Ackwards.” Seattle filmmaker Linas Phillips, creator of the offbeat documentaries “Walking to Werner” and “Great Speeches From a Dying World,” goes fictional in this cross-country road trip. At least it seems to be fictional, even though he plays a character named Linas in it — a slight, breezy wisp of a movie. 9:45 p.m. today, Harvard Exit; 3:45 p.m. Sunday, Harvard Exit.
“City of Life and Death.” Director Lu Chuan’s unblinking dramatic account of the Japanese invasion of Nanking (now Nanjing) in the 1930s. Be warned: This is an excellent film, but it is unsparing in its depiction of the barbarism of the occupying army, and the plain black-and-white photography offers no solace. 11 a.m. Saturday, Egyptian; 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Neptune; 9:30 p.m. May 30, Everett Performing Arts Center.
“Shadows.” As a tie-in with the Martin Scorsese-sponsored Film Foundation, here’s a reportedly restored print of the first film directed by John Cassavetes, then a young actor restless to create a new kind of film. In many ways the movie’s a mess, but it sure captures a moment in culture: 1959 Manhattan. 1:45 p.m. Saturday, Harvard Exit.
“I Am Love.” A wildly arty (yet somehow irresistible) creation that combines luscious Italian images, the music of John Adams, and a big-scaled performance by Oscar-winning actress Tilda Swinton. She plays a middle-age wife and mother who becomes infatuated with a much younger man. 7 p.m. Saturday, Egyptian; 4:15 p.m. Sunday, Egyptian; 9:30 p.m. May 28, Everett.
“The Concert.” This deeply silly crowd-pleaser is a cinch to become one of the most popular movies in the festival, despite its unbelievable premise, which involves a Moscow janitor (and former symphony conductor) pulling together a massive orchestral concert in Paris. 7 p.m. today, Egyptian; 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Egyptian; 7 p.m. May 28, Everett.
“On the Town.” Part of a mini-Leonard Bernstein tribute, here’s the 1949 musical about sailors out on a New York spree that showcases some delightful Bernstein numbers. Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra lead the cast — not a bad start on a fun troupe. 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Harvard Exit.
“Like You Know it All.” An extremely droll offering from one of South Korea’s best filmmakers, Hong Sang-soo, about a movie director visiting a film festival (and later a school), and the various problems he endures—or causes. Maybe not a laughfest, but a very amusing film. 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, Pacific Place; 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Pacific Place.
“Skeletons.” British humor in an absurdist vein, about a pair of traveling—well, I’m not sure what to call them, except that they visit homes and exorcise dark secrets from the inhabitants (metaphysical chimney sweeps?). The two lead performers are quite funny, but I wish the movie had more zip, and maybe explained itself just a bit more. 9:15 p.m. Wednesday, Harvard Exit.
“Visionaries: Jonas Mekas and the (Mostly) American Avant-Garde Cinema.” Informative account of the history of experimental films, with an emphasis on Mekas, whose career is not just as a filmmaker but also a critic and archivist of the avant-garde in the U.S. Directed by old pro Chuck Workman, who has a great eye for telling excerpts. 7 p.m. Thursday, SIFF Cinema.
Robert Horton, Herald Movie Critic
SIFF info
The SIFF schedule is online at the festival’s website, siff.net.
The “sifter” allows you to search for movies by date, date, time venue, genre and country of origin.
Tickets are sold in a variety of ways, including The Cinematic 6-pack and the Film Buff 20-pack, both of which provide a savings on the $11 general admission price.
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