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January 25, 2007 issue

Genocide And Peace Studies Film Series To Begin February 4

The Center for Judaic, Holocaust and Peace Studies is presenting a series of documentary and feature films this semester in Plemmons Student Union. The films will be shown on Sunday afternoons at 2:00 p.m. in the Greenbriar Movie Theater and are free and open to the public. Amy Hudnall of ASU’s Department of History will introduce each film and will be available to answer questions afterward.

 

Killing Fields

The first film in the Genocide and Peace Studies Film Series, The Killing Fields (139 min., 1984), will be shown Sunday, February 4. This winner of three Academy Awards is a faithful adaptation of an article by Pulitzer Prize winning war correspondent Sydney H. Schanberg. The film relates an intensely personal story of friendship, separation, survival and reunion set against the atrocities of the genocidal revolution in Cambodia. An unconventional, intense, and truly political film, it realistically examines the anguish  of one of the very few survivors of the killing fields.

 

No Man’s Land

The Sunday, February 11 feature is No Man’s Land (98 min., 2001). Set during the 1993 Bosnian Conflict, this is the story of a Bosnian (Branko Djuric) and a Serbian soldier (Rene Bitorajac) who find themselves trapped in a trench between warring factions in the heaviest time of fighting. They are each within a hundred yards of an army that wants to kill the one on the opposing side. The area, which in this case also has them lying next to an injured Bosnian lying on a mine that could kill them, is called ‘No Man’s Land.’ The soldiers, Ciki and Nino, are desperately trying to find a way out of this horrific predicament. When a U.N. peacekeeper tries to help, the international press gets involved and complicates the entire situation. Ciki and Nino are then forced to negotiate their escape amidst the insanity of war made even more tense by an overeager media.

 

Sometimes In April

On Sunday, February 18, Sometimes in April (140 min., 2004) will be presented. This gripping docudrama takes viewers through the genocide that took place in Rwanda in April of 1994. A million Africans were being slaughtered while the rest of the world turned its head. This film is shown from the perspective of Augustin, a captain among the subjugated Hutu tribe. The movie was filmed in Rwanda, including many of the sites where the actual events took place.

 

Rabbit-Proof Fence

The film series presents Rabbit-Proof Fence (94 min., 2002) on Sunday, February 25. The basis for the title of this true story is the path that three girls from Aboriginal and white parents follow when they flee Western Australia. They leave their lives as domestic servants where they are not allowed to recognize their Aboriginal roots and set off on an incredible 1,500-mile journey across the Outback. This film shows both sides of the race debate in Australia, presenting the rationale behind each decision that is made.

 

Smoke Signals

Smoke Signals (88 min., 1998) comes to Greenbriar on Sunday, March 4. Thomas is a skinny, toothy kid wearing oversized glasses and plaid shirts under three-piece suits. Victor is a brooding loner. These Coeur d’Alene Indians trek from their Idaho reservation to Phoenix to retire the ashes of Victor’s estranged father. Based on Sherman Alexie’s The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven, this is the first film written, directed and acted completely by American Indians.

 

Lord of War (122 min., 2005) will be shown March 25. Dodging bullets and betrayal, a wily arms dealer schemes his way to the top of his profession only to face an enemy that he can’t outrun – his conscience. Confronting the mortality of his work, Yuri (Nicolas Cage) finds that it is hard to leave behind a life of girls, guns and glamour when no one, not even your enemies, wants you to stop.

 

 

Genocide And Peace Studies Film Series Quick Reference Schedule

All films will be shown on Sundays at 2:00 p.m. in the Greenbriar Movie Theater in Plemmons Student Union at ASU. Admission is free and open to the public.

February 4 The Killing Fields

February 11 No Man’s Land

February 18 Sometimes In April

February 25 Rabbit-Proof Fence

March 4 Smoke Signals

March 25 Lord Of War