FILMS BOOKINGS: 5446 2025 JOKER (MA 15+) 122min Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller. Dir: Todd Phillips. Country: USA / Canada. With a tour de force performance from Joaquin Phoenix, Todd Phillips’ Joker is a postmodern reflection on comic-book origin stories and villains. A homage to the great character-study films of the 1970s. Arthur Fleck (Phoenix) is a man struggling to find his way in Gotham’s fractured society. A clown-for-hire by day, he aspires to be a stand-up comic at night… but finds the joke always seems to be on him. November 2, 3, 4, 6 GOOD BYE LENIN! (2003, M) 121min Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance. Dir: Wolfgang Becker. Country: Germany. English subtitles. Suffering a heart attack and falling into a coma after seeing her son arrested during a protest, Alex’s socialist mother, Christiane, remains comatose through the fall of the Berlin wall and the German Democratic Republic. Knowing that the slightest shock could prove fatal upon his mother’s awakening, Alex strives to keep the fall of the GDR a secret for as long as possible. A funny and poignant social critique of German reunification. November 5 APOCALYPSE NOW: FINAL CUT (1979, MA15+) 182min Genre: Drama, Mystery, War. Dir: Francis Ford Coppola. Country: USA. » 40th Anniversary. Celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Coppola’s visionary Vietnam War epic, newly restored from the original negative for the first time ever. In Coppola’s words it “looks better than it has ever looked, and sounds better than it has ever sounded,” and he is “thrilled beyond measure to present the best version of the film to the world.” Also features a four minute filmed intro by Francis Ford Coppola. A big screen must-see. November 12 DR. STRANGELOVE OR: HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE BOMB (1964, PG) 95min Genre: Comedy. Dir: Stanley Kubrick. Country: UK | USA. Kubrick’s classic black comedy about a group of war-eager military men who plan a nuclear apocalypse. Two psychotic generals trigger an ingenious scheme to attack Russia’s strategic targets with nuclear bombs. The brains behind the scheme belong to Dr. Strangelove (Peter Sellers); a bizarre wheelchair-bound nuclear scientist. November 19 CLERKS (1994, R18+) 92min Genre: Comedy. Dir: Kevin Smith. Country: USA. » 25th Anniversary. Kevin Smith’s iconic indie comedy that has achieved cult status. Dante is called in to cover a shift at his New Jersey convenience store on his day off. His friend Randal helps him pass the time, neglecting his video-store customers next door to hang out in the Quick Stop. The uneventful day is disrupted by news that one of Dante’s ex-girlfriends has died. An ingenious snapshot of 90s Americana and Generation Xers. November 26 MAIDEN (M) 97min Genre: Documentary, Sport. Dir: Alex Holmes. Country: UK. The story of how Tracy Edwards, a 24-year-old cook in charter boats, became the skipper of the first ever all-female crew to enter the Whitbread Round the World Race in 1989. Tracy’s inspirational dream was opposed on all sides, but she refused to give up and put everything on the line to ensure the team made it to the start line. With her remarkable crew’s help she went on to shock the sport world and prove that women are very much the equal of men. November 8, 9, 10, 11 HUSTLERS (MA15+) 110min Genre: Comedy, Crime, Drama. Dir: Lorene Scafaria. Country: USA. A hugely entertaining heist-caper starring Jennifer Lopez in the performance of her career. Destiny (Constance Wu) is a stripper working to make ends meet. Her life changes forever when she befriends Ramona (Lopez) – the club’s top money earner – who shows her how to cheat her way around the wealthy Wall Street clientele. When the 2008 economic collapse cuts into their profits, the dancers devise a daring scheme to take their lives back. November 8, 9, 10 THE GOLDFINCH (M) 149min Genre: Drama. Dir: John Crowley. Country: USA. Adapted from Donna Tartt’s acclaimed novel. Theodore “Theo” Decker was 13 years old when his mother was killed in a bombing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The tragedy changes the course of his life, sending him on an odyssey of grief and guilt, reinvention and redemption, and even love. Through it all, he holds on to one tangible piece of hope from that terrible day... a painting of a tiny bird chained to its perch; The Goldfinch. November 1, 2, 3, 7, 9, 10 BUOYANCY (M) 92min Genre: Drama. Dir: Rodd Rathjen. Country: Australia / Cambodia. English subtitles. Inspired by the real-life plight of workers sold into Southeast Asia’s fishing industry, this gripping high seas drama is Australia’s Oscar contender for Best International Feature in 2020. Tired of toiling in the rice fields, 14-year-old Chakra leaves Cambodia in search of a Bangkok factory job. After paying smugglers to ferry him over the border, the boy is instead traded to a seafood trawler. A terse minimalist thriller. November 15, 17, 18, 20 NOVEMBER 2019 Eaglehawk Town Hall 2 Peg Leg Rd Eaglehawk Victoria Bookings: 03 5446 2025 Office: 03 5446 2526 E: [email protected] www.starcinema.org.au BOOKINGS: 5446 2025 BALLOON (M) 125min Genre: Drama, History, Thriller. Dir: Michael Herbig. Country: Germany. English subtitles. 1979, East Germany at the height of the Cold War. Two friends can no longer bear the oppressive regime and decide to secretly build a hot air balloon that will carry their families over the border fence to freedom. Over the next 18 months they sew 1,000 square metres of cloth and gather weather reports from West German radio with the Stasi hot on their heels. A nerve-racking battle against the clock begins… November 23, 24, 25, 27 AFTER THE WEDDING (M) 112min Genre: Drama. Dir: Bart Freundlich. Country: USA. Isabel (Michelle Williams) has dedicated her life to working with the children in an orphanage in Calcutta. Theresa (Julianne Moore) is the multimillionaire head of a media company who lives with her artist husband (Billy Crudup) and their twin boys in New York. When word comes to Isabel of a mysterious and generous grant for the financially struggling orphanage, she must travel to New York to meet the benefactor — Theresa — in person. November 15, 16, 17, 22, 24, 28 HAPPY SAD MAN (M) 93min Genre: Documentary. Dir: Genevieve Bailey. Country: Australia. A charming and uplifting insight into the lives of five different Australian men. From Bondi Beach to the outback, we laugh and cry alongside a war photographer traversing global conflict zones, we visit a farmer and outreach worker from rural Victoria, a musical nomad and a sensitive dog-loving artist. Each portrait is an intimate look into vulnerability, friendship and compassion, challenging the way we think about masculinity today. November 24 (Q&A), 30 RIDE LIKE A GIRL (PG) 98min Genre: Biog., Drama, Sport. Dir: Rachel Griffiths. Country: Australia. As a little girl, Michelle Payne dreams of the impossible: winning the Melbourne Cup — horse-racing’s toughest two-mile race. The youngest of 10 children raised by a single father, she leaves school at 15 to become a jockey. But a family tragedy, and her own near fatal horse fall, all but end the dream. But with the love of her family, Michelle will not give up. She meets the Prince of Penzance and together they overcome impossible odds. November 1, 2, 3 BLINDED BY THE LIGHT (PG) 117min Genre: Comedy, Drama, Music. Dir: Gurinder Chadha. Country: UK | USA. Javed is a British teen of Pakistani descent growing up in Luton, England, in 1987. Amidst racial and economic turmoil he writes poetry as a means to escape the intolerance of his hometown and the rigour of his traditional father. When a classmate introduces him to the music of “the Boss,” Javed sees parallels to his working-class life in Springsteen’s lyrics. Like a life-affirming rock anthem it builds to a conclusion that leaves audiences cheering. November 29, 30 BRITTANY RUNS A MARATHON (M) 104min Genre: Comedy, Drama. Dir: Paul Downs Colaizzo. Country: USA. Hilarious, outgoing New Yorker Brittany Forgler (Jillian Bell) is everybody’s best friend ― except maybe her own. At 27, her hard-partying ways are catching up with her and she is faced with her doctor’s orders to get healthy. Soon she sets an almost unthinkable goal: running in the New York City Marathon. The inspirational story of a party girl who finally finds real friends — and dignity — by taking control of her future, one city block at a time. November 16, 17, 21, 23 Starts November 1 JUDY (M) 118min Genre: Biog., Drama, History. Dir: Rupert Goold. Country: UK. In the Winter of 1968, showbiz legend Judy Garland (an extraordinary performance by Renée Zellweger) arrives in London to perform in a sell-out run at The Talk of the Town. It is 30 years since she shot to global stardom in The Wizard of Oz and her voice may have weakened but its dramatic intensity has only grown. After working for 45 of her 47 years, Judy is exhausted and fragile. It captures the waning days of a beloved performer with clear-eyed compassion. November 29, 30 SUZI Q (M) 100min Genre: Documentary, Music. Dir: Liam Firmager. Country: Australia. When Suzi Quatro burst on the music world in 1973 she reached millions of people around the world, re-writing the rule book for the expected image of women in rock & roll. Singer, songwriter, bass player, bandleader, actress, radio- presenter, poet – there is only one Suzi Q; the pint-sized, leather-clad rocker who has sold more than 50 million records and in 2019 released a new album, celebrating 53 years as a working musician. November 16 (Q&A), 22, 23 Starts December 13