Cinematheque's Classic Comeback

The films being screened cover 60 years of world cinema spanning multiple genres, and are represented in cult classics, hidden gems and the avant-garde.

Differentiating itself from atypical blockbuster-laden cinemas, Mercury Cinema’s Cinematheque is a film society that necessitates membership. Memberships, ranging from a four-session pass to an annual membership, allow viewers the freedom to drop in on any film that piques their interest during the season.

The Cinematheque season is comprised of distinctive themes, with each of these filled out by carefully selected films. The following are a selection of upcoming themes being presented by Cinematheque this year.

Murder Ink: Literary Crime

25 May — 1 June

Crime fiction writers have produced some of the most mesmerising fiction adapted for the screen. The offerings provided by Cinematheque span 35 years, bookended by Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood and Patricia Highsmith’s Ripley’s Game, reveling in the consistent fascination of film audiences with crime and murder.

Films showing: Devil in a Blue Dress, Ripley’s Game, In Cold Blood.

Wim Wenders: Fact and Fiction

5 June — 19 June

A career that has alternated between documentary and narrative filmmaking has ensured the recognition of New German Cinema representative Wim Wenders. Cannes Festival favourites Paris, Texas and Wings of Desire are just two films of Wenders’ extensive oeuvre screening for Cinematheque this season.

Films showing: Kings of the Road, Tokyo-Ga, Paris, Texas, Wings of Desire.

Women’s Visions

22 June — 3 July

Women with strong visions are to be emphasised during this June/July showing at Cinematheque with the exhibition of work from some of the world’s finest female directors. Featuring an international line up of auteurs hailing from Spain, France and the UK, audiences are set to realise the underappreciated perspective of female directors.

Films showing: The Gleaners and I, Beau Travail, Bright Star, My Life Without Me.

Lars!: The Enfant Terrible of Scandinavian Cinema

6 July — 17 July

Lars Von Trier has consistently produced intriguing and polarising films, whether due to his avant-garde aesthetics or extreme themes. The director’s natural drive to stimulate ensures that his audience is inevitably confronted by something abhorrent, be it political, sexual or death itself.

Films showing: The Five Obstructions, Dogville, Manderlay, Melancholia.

Crazy! Sexy! The Cinema of Russ Meyer

20 July — 31 July

Russ Meyer is revered in cult circles for his juxtaposition of sexploitation and deep satire during a socially reserved period of US history. Extreme plotlines depicting sex, murder and general depravity underpin his works and seek to contrast a contemporaneous conservatism, ensuring Meyer’s films attain status as cult classics.

Films showing: Vixen!, Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!, Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, Beneath the Valley of the Ultravixens.

Cinematheque’s season will be screening at Mercury Cinema until July 31. For the full programme, screening times and memberships visit mercurycinema.org.au