SFFS Screen Presents: The Window July 17, 2009

The Window (Argentina/Spain 2008, SFIFF 2009), Carlos Sorínʼs poetic, humanist contemplation on a manʼs hopes, fears and wishes at the end of his life, will open on SFFS Screen at the Sundance Kabuki Cinemas Friday, July 17.
“I try to hold on to it, for fear of losing it forever,” reflects 80-year-old Antonio, recalling the image of his childhood of time—the inescapable path that consistently delivers the present to the past. The significance of this is not lost on the bedridden Antonio (played by Uruguayan writer Antonio Laretta), determined to prepare a perfect homecoming for his long-estranged son, who left the old Patagonian hacienda for Europe years earlier. As he waits for his sonʼs visit, confined to his room by doctorʼs orders, a look out the window stirs within him the desire for one last walk through his fields, the need to relish the loveliness of the landscape and experience the vibrancy of life. What
results is not simply a moving meditation on aging and death, but an elegantly lyrical and humanistic film. Sorín tells one of his “minimal” stories here, as he did with his earlier masterpiece Historias Mínimas (SFIFF 2003), in which seemingly inconsequential moments and details come together in a synthesis of life-affirming beauty. The Window demonstrates the capacity of cinema to reveal hidden truths imperceptible to the naked eye yet perceived by human hearts. Sorín has called the film “an involuntary remake” of Ingmar Bergmanʼs Wild Strawberries, the pivotal film that redirected his taste as a young film watcher from adventure films to cinema for adults.
Written by Pedro Maizal, Carlos Sorín. Photographed by Julián Apezteguia. With Antonio Laretta, María del Carmen Giménez, Emilse Roldán. 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
June 5-18: Fados This beautiful film is Carlos Sauraʼs tribute to the art of fado, a style of mournful singing which
originated in Portugal in the 1820s.
June 12-18: Munyurangabo A Tutsi and a Hutu set off on a startling journey of reconciliation through the
haunted countryside of modern Rwanda in Lee Isaac Chungʼs debut feature.

Coming soon to SFFS Screen
June 19: Katyn Acclaimed Polish director Andrzej Wajda has created an epic and personal tale about one of
WWII's notorious cover-ups.
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 24: Lake Tahoe 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 the latest film by Mexican director Fernando Eimbcke.
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.