Canadian Premiere
Councilwoman Sandy James (Karen Pittman) aspires to a more compassionate New York. But when a woman from her past, Elsa (Michelle Veintimilla), is released from prison, Sandy worries her detractors will uncover her involvement in Elsa’s crime. Sixteen years ago, Sandy and her then-fling, corporate lawyer Paul (Corey Stoll), loaned $500 to a teenage Elsa who sought protection from her abusive father—not realizing they were buying her a gun with which to kill him.
To protect Sandy’s career, she and Paul ask Elsa to lie to a journalist about the source of the funds. But one lie opens the door to blackmail, and when Elsa’s parole is violated, she asks Sandy and Paul to corroborate another lie—forcing them to walk the razor’s edge between their morals and the standard judicial process. Writer/director Stephen Belber’s heart-wrenching dramatic three-hander provides incisive commentary on gun control, racial and class biases, the nature of trauma, and the failures of the U.S. justice system to protect the most vulnerable.
Q&A Sept 30 & Oct 2
Corey Stoll, Karen Pittman, Michelle Veintimilla
USA
2022
English
Domestic Violence, Sexual Violence, Child Abuse, Self Harm, Incest
At International Village
At The Rio
Book Tickets
Missing VIFF? Check Out What's Playing at the VIFF Centre
Possible Love
Lee Chang-dong’s first film since Burning (2018) is a sardonic, slow-burning satire about two couples: a documentary filmmaker married to a wealthy businessman, and a working-class family struggling to make ends meet after the husband has been laid off.
A. Rimbaud
Patrick Wang (The Bread Factory) presents the life of French poet Arthur Rimbaud in this staggeringly adventurous and deeply considered movie, a three-hour, one-man show quite unlike anything we have seen before. "Poetic, audacious and singular."
Once Upon a Time in Harlem
Once Upon a Time in Harlem splices together footage shot by William Greaves in 1972 of a group of Harlem Renaissance luminaries in conversation at Duke Ellington’s townhouse. The film is a living archive of memory, disagreement, style, and Black genius.
The Secret in Their Eyes
This month's Talking Pictures screening is a multi-layered, poignant thriller interweaving the personal lives of a prosecution investigator (Ricardo Darin) and a judge, with a manhunt spanning twenty-five years. Stay for cookies, coffee and a chat after!
The Haunting
Directed by Robert Wise in 1963, The Haunting is a classic exercise in the suggestive power of cinema, adapted from Shirley Jackson's 1959 best-seller, The Haunting of Hill House, a provocative blend of supernatural and psychological horror.
Credits
Executive Producer
Brian Tanke, Stephen Belber, Matt Bronson
Producer
Chris Mangano, Merry-Kay Poe, Max Neace
Screenwriter
Stephen Belber
Cinematography
Garrette Rose
Editor
Justin Chan
Production Design
Christelle Matou
Original Music
Paul Brill
Director
Stephen Belber
Stephen Belber’s plays have been produced on Broadway and in over 25 countries. They include Tape (2000), Match (2004), The Power of Duff (2012), and The Muscles In Our Toes (2014). He was an associate writer for Tape (2001) and a writer for The Laramie Project (2002). He also wrote and directed Management (2008), and Match (2014), which starred Jennifer Aniston and Patrick Stewart, respectively. His television credits include Rescue Me, Law & Order SVU, and pilots for F/X, FTVS, and HBO.
Filmography: Management (2008); Match (2014)