Third Thursdays!

Hey there fellow film enthusiasts! This Thursday is the BAMPFA student committee’s second installment in our new THIRD THURSDAY program, where we drink coffee, watch a great movie at the PFA, and then migrate over to I-House to discuss our recent cinematic experience. It’s a great chance to voice your thoughts about film (you don’t have to be a film major, we (well most of us) student committee members aren’t!), meet the super cool student committee, and get free coffee. The film for this month is entitled The Other Half, and is playing this Thursday evening at 7 pm (though show up for free coffee at 6:30!). It’s the second film from Chinese director Ying Liang, who gained international recognition for his 2006 debut film Taking Father Home. With China gaining a reputation as a powerhouse economic tiger, Liang’s film offers another perspective, from a member of “the other half” of society. The character in question is Xiaofen, a pretty clerk in a law office who spends her days enduring the complaints of women with marital troubles and unscrupulous factory owners. Her life outside of work isn’t much better; her deadbeat boyfriend spends his time gambling and evading the police, while her mother tries to marry her off to a series of boring businessmen. This sounds like pretty depressing fare, but actress Zeng Xiaofei lightens the tone with her hilarious deadpan reactions to her tribulations. See it because it’s a rare example of mixing clever comedy with a more somber statement about social classes in China. Don’t forget: coffee starts at 6:30 at the entrance to the film archive, tickets are $5.50 for UCB students (way cheaper than the multiplex!), and join in our conversation afterwards at I-House.

Here’s a link to the trailer for The Other Half:
http://fest07.sffs.org/media/Other_Half.html

Zoni Rockoff