MUBI HIGHLIGHTS: DECEMBER 2020

MUBI WORLD

This December, MUBI is set to present a number of independent, international films, including its exclusive and Sundance-winning co-production, FAREWELL AMOR (2020), from the BAFTA Breakthrough 2020 honoree Ekwa Msangi.

FAREWELL AMOR

A Sundance prize-winning family drama from Ekwa Msangi, that follows the uncomfortable reunion between an Angolan man and his wife and daughter, who move from their home to join him in New York after 17 years apart. Press kit and assets available here.

TRIPPING WITH NILS FRAHM

MUBI is proud to present the world premiere of TRIPPING WITH NILS FRAHM (2020), an extraordinary musical journey featuring the legendary artist at a legendary location. The concert film captures a series of mesmerizing live performances at the iconic Funkhaus Berlin on the pianist, composer and producer’s sold-out, worldwide All Melody tour. The exclusive presentation will coincide with the release of Nils Frahm’s live album of the same name from Erased Tapes Records. Assets here.

COLD WAR '64 DOUBLE BILL

This month we present a classic Cold War double bill. Directed by Sidney Lumet and dropped on a jittery public, FAIL-SAFE (1964) is the ticking Doomsday Clock as a straight-up thriller, stretched taut on the edge of Armageddon. Today, it’s a classic of claustrophobic suspense. Part two of the double bill is the gold standard for black comedy: Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece, DR. STRANGELOVE OR: HOW I LEARNED TO STOP WORRYING AND LOVE THE BOMB (1964), mixes all the paranoia of the day (plus 3 iconic Peter Sellers performances!) into a hilarious, deadly cocktail and watches it go boom.

BRIAN DE PALMA: A DOUBLE BILL

December sees a Double De Palma Bill show on MUBI. As one of the most divisive auteurs out there, we will show BODY DOUBLE (1984), which is pure De Palma: both irreverent and reverential, a stylish, twisted ode to Hitchcock. CASUALTIES OF WAR (1989) will also feature, and is a film based during the Vietnam War, telling the story of a soldier who finds himself the outsider of his own squad when they unnecessarily kidnap a female villager.

MUBI INDIA

BOMBAY

MANI RATNAM FOCUS

With his earthy and observational visual style, Mani Ratnam initiated a significant new chapter in the history of Indian mainstream cinema. Making his debut in 1983 with the Kannada film PALLAVI ANU PALLAVI, Ratnam was a breath of fresh air in the Tamil film industry. His films explore the varied cultural milieus of Tamil Nadu and stand out for their simple yet insightful stories and highly relatable characters. The hallmarks of Ratnam’s films include ordinary characters, beautifully-etched interpersonal relationships, and an omnipresent socio-political subtext. Refreshingly, these works also manage to retain the quintessentially larger-than-life quality of popular cinema. Indian mainstream cinema is known for its song and dance tradition. Among his contemporaries and predecessors, Ratnam’s direction of musical sequences stands out for a magical ability to transform words into palpable emotions and rich, rhythmic images. This December, MUBI is delighted to present a focus on a filmmaker who persistently pushes the boundaries of his style to explore new vistas in mainstream cinema. We will show BOMBAY (1995) and THIRUDA THIRUDA (1994).

AKALER SHANDHANE

MRINAL SEN RETROSPECTIVE

Another focus for the month will be a Mrinal Sen Retrospective featuring the films AKALER SHANDHANE (1980), PADATIK (1973) and ANTAREEN (1993). One of the pioneers of India’s Parallel Cinema movement, Mrinal Sen’s films have captured the political essence of India like few other filmmakers have. His work has been recognised and awarded at internationally renowned film festivals including Cannes, Venice and Berlin.

UGLY

UGLY (2013) from Anurag Kashyap premiered at Cannes Director’s Fortnight 2013 and tells the story of a child Kali who comes from a broken home. Kali lives with her mother and her step-father Shoumik, who heads the police detection squad in the city of Mumbai. One particular Saturday, when Kali is out with her father Rahul, she disappears.

DAAYEN YA BAAYEN

Directed by Bela Negi, DAAYEN YABAAYEN (2010) will be part of the Women of Indian Cinema focus. Set in a small village in Uttarakhand, the film revolves around the life of Ramesh Majila (Deepak Dobriyal), a schoolteacher in a remote hilly village, who happens to win a luxury car that takes him on an unexpected journey.

The full schedules for December 2020 are below:

MUBI WORLD
Date	Film		Director
12/1/2020	Fail-Safe		Sidney Lumet
12/2/2020	Faith		Valentina Pedicini
12/3/2020	Tripping With Nils Frahm		Benoit Toulemonde
12/4/2020	The Passenger		Michelangelo Antonioni
12/5/2020	Punch-Drunk Love		Paul Thomas Anderson
12/6/2020	Suddenly, Last Summer		Joseph L. Mankiewicz
12/7/2020	Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb		Stanley Kubrick
12/8/2020	Barbs, Wasteland		Marta Mateus
12/9/2020	Casualties of War		Brian De Palma
12/10/2020	Body Double		Brian De Palma
12/11/2020	Cold Meridian		Peter Strickland
12/12/2020	Curse of the Golden Flower		Zhang Yimou
12/13/2020	Fando and Lis		Alejandro Jodorowsky
12/14/2020	Anatomy of a Murder		Otto Preminger
12/15/2020	Bunny Lake Is Missing		Otto Preminger
12/16/2020	The People vs. Larry Flynt		Miloš Forman
12/17/2020	Inside Job		Charles Ferguson
12/18/2020	Farewell Amor		Ekwa Msangi
12/19/2020	El Topo		Alejandro Jodorowsky
12/20/2020	Taxi Driver		Martin Scorsese
12/21/2020	20th Century Women		Mike Mills
12/22/2020	Daayen Ya Baayen		Bela Negi
12/23/2020	The Last Picture Show		Peter Bogdanovich
12/24/2020	So Long, My Son		Wang Xiaoshuai
12/25/2020	The Adventures of Tintin		Steven Spielberg
12/26/2020	The Holy Mountain		Alejandro Jodorowsky
12/27/2020	All That Jazz		Bob Fosse
12/28/2020	All the Vermeers in New York		Jon Jost
12/29/2020	California Split		Robert Altman
12/30/2020	The Squid and the Whale		Noah Baumbach
12/31/2020	Boyz n the Hood		John Singleton
MUBI INDIA
Date	Film	Director	Language
12/1/2020	Womaniya	Aakash Arun	Hindi
12/2/2020	Harjeet	Manu Sen	Bengali
12/3/2020	Lekhayude Maranam Oru Flashback	K. G. George	Malayalam
12/4/2020	Bombay	Mani Ratnam	Tamil
12/5/2020	Bow Bow	Pradeep Kilikar	Tamil
12/6/2020	Shreelancer	Sandeep Mohan	Hindi, English
12/7/2020	Zubaan	Mozez Singh	Hindi, Punjabi
12/8/2020	Saraswati Chandra	Govind Saraiya	Hindi
12/9/2020	Midnight's Children	Deepa Mehta	Hindi
12/10/2020	My Name is Salt	Farida Pacha	Hindi
12/11/2020	Thiruda Thiruda	Mani Ratnam	Tamil
12/12/2020	Mullum Malarum	Mahendran	Tamil
12/13/2020	Akaler Sandhane	Mrinal Sen	Bengali
12/14/2020	Namak Halal	Prakash Mehra	Hindi
12/15/2020	Ghuma	Mahesh Kale	Marathi
12/16/2020	Sadayam	Sibi Malayil	Malayalam
12/17/2020	Sanghat	Pinaki Chaudhuri	Bengali
12/18/2020	Albert Pinto ko Gussa Kyon Aata Hai	Soumitra Ranade