This Week in Film: March 28th 2008

Spring has finally sprung at the Cinematheque Ontario. Last night was the opening film of their spring season, The Blue Angel starring Marlene Dietrich, part of the Josef von Sternberg's Underworld program. If you missed it, the program continues tonight with more Dietrich in the decadent Morocco and Dietrich again in the unmissable The Devil is a Woman (pictured above) on Saturday. For more film this week, read on!

Two films with the theme of abandoned children are being screened this week, one of a child abandoned due to poverty and the other due to social unrest and sports fanaticism. The former is a Chinese film entitled Little Moth, about a girl who is unable to walk who is sold to be of use to beggars. Little Moth can be seen tonight at 7pm or Sunday at 2:45pm at the Cinematheque. The latter, The Year My Parents Went on Vacation, is a film set in Brazil in the 1970's about a couple who leave their son on his grandfather's doorstep, without realizing the old man had died earlier that day. Slightly more uplifting than Little Moth, The Year My Parents Went on Vacation will begin it's run at the Cumberland Cinema tonight.

As you should already know, this is a busy film festival weekend. I had the opportunity to spend yesterday at the opening night of the Female Eye Film Festival which I previewed earlier this week. But that isn't all; the Canadian Film Festival still has screenings today and will wrap up tomorrow, while the Cinefranco film festival will be opening tonight with the film Toi at the Royal Cinema.

CINSSU is hosting a special event this evening entitled Hong Kong Films about Films which will feature a Hong Kong double bill, panel discussion and a reception. Because it is a special event, there is an early start time of 5:30pm for the first film Mr. Cinema, a film which traces 40 years of Hong Kong history and cinema seen through the eyes of a projectionist. The next film will begin at 7:40 and is entitled The Extras or Ka la Fei. The film follows the trials and tribulations of HK film extras, including one who is sick of the low pay but convinced he's just about to make it in the business. The event is free but you might want to RSVP.

Image: The Devil is a Woman from DVDBeaver.