SFFS Screen Presents: Lake Tahoe July 24, 2009

A teenager in small town Mexico struggles to fix the family car in the aftermath of a minor
accident and amid deeper emotional undercurrents in Lake Tahoe (Mexico 2008, SFIFF 2009), the latest film by Mexican director Fernando Eimbcke, opening Friday, July 24 on SFFS Screen at the Sundance Kabuki Cinemas.
Itʼs morning in a small seaside town on Mexicoʼs Yucatan peninsula, and teenager Juan (Diego Cataño) has just driven his familyʼs humble tomato-red sedan into a light pole on an empty street. As he sets off on foot to seek help, the immobilized car becomes a vehicle for delivering Juan into the hands of a cast of local characters and their small but significant routines. His interactions with a paranoid old mechanic devoted to his almost-human pet dog, a young mother with dreams of punk rock stardom and a teenage mechanic obsessed with kung fu glow with a droll observational humor reminiscent of Eimbckeʼs much-lauded first feature, Duck Season (SFIFF 2005). As Juan is drawn into their lives and more information about a loss at the center of his family is revealed, the filmʼs emotional undercurrent deepens considerably. Cinematographer Alexis Zabéʼs (Silent Light 2007, Duck Season) minimal camera setups and eloquently held shots create a rich field for exploring the charactersʼ interior states and the filmʼs insistence on the here-and-now ground its meditation on escape, hope and connection. The castʼs natural interplay is utterly convincing, the filmʼs quiet humor earned and its sweet, compassionate humanity is deeply moving.

Written by Paula Markovitch, Fernando Eimbcke. Photographed by Alexis Zabé. With Diego Cataño, Héctor Herrera, Daniela Valentine. In Spanish with English subtitles. 80 min. Distributed by Film Movement.

At the Sundance Kabuki all seats are reserved and an amenities fee is in effect for most shows. Tickets are available through the Sundance Kabuki Cinemas box office, at kiosks in the lobby and online at sundancecinemas.com/kabuki with print-at-home capability. San Francisco Film Society members receive discounted admission only to SFFS Screen programs and only at the box office, not online or at the lobby kiosks.
Now playing on SFFS Screen
Katyn Acclaimed Polish director Andrzej Wajda has created an epic and personal tale about one of WWII's notorious cover-ups.

Coming soon to SFFS Screen
June 26: Three Monkeys A manʼs agreement to take the fall for his employerʼs crime drives his family apart in this sensual, quietly heartbreaking film from Turkish master Nuri Bilge Ceylan.
July 3: Eldorado A pair of outsiders share an absurdist journey through the surreal backwoods of Belgium in Bouli Lannersʼ eccentric, melancholy road movie.
July 10: Julia Tilda Swinton gives a riveting performance as an alcoholic turned kidnapper in Erick Zoncaʼs film, a take on John Cassavetesʼ Gloria.
July 17: The Window A bedridden, 80-year-old man takes one last stroll through the beautiful Patagonian landscape in this elegant, lyrical and humanistic film directed by Carlos Sorín.
July 31: Lionʼs Den A young pregnant woman tries to survive in an Argentinean prison in Pablo Traperoʼs story of redemption.
For full, complete and up-to-date information on all SFFS Screen programming, including buying tickets, visit sffs.org. Information and tickets are also available at sundancecinemas.com.

Official Website: http://www.sffs.org