Sun Apr 23
7.30pm , 4.30pm
7.30pm , 4.30pm
The Dark Crystal [In-Person Only]
film
The City of Lost Children (La cité des enfants perdus) [In-Person Only]
This event took place May 17 - May 21, 2023
$14 General Admission
$10 Student/Child/Senior
$7 NWFF/AF Members
Jean-Pierre Jeunet & Marc Caro
France
1995
1h 52m
About
(Jean-Pierre Jeunet & Marc Caro, France, 1995, 112 min, in French with English subtitles)
Before changing film style and hairstyles forever with the release of Amélie, Jean-Pierre Jeunet directed a suite of stunningly inventive surrealist films with his collaborator Marc Caro. Delicatessen, The City of Lost Children and Alien: Resurrection (yes, we stand by this) are all positively overflowing with a perversely weird creative energy and visual imagination that make for very rewarding rewatches. The three films share a willingness to find tender glimpses of compassion, curiosity, and sincerity amid the grotesque onslaught of petty opportunism and casual cruelty that defines the character of our species – not to mention the environments that we create.
With a complete toolkit of trick photography, physical effects, unforgettable production design, and CGI, The City of Lost Children weaves a spellbinding, dark fairy tale about a surreal city where innocent children are routinely abducted for nefarious purposes. A mad scientist-esque character named Krank (himself created by a mad scientist), chafing under the bitter knowledge that his body and mind are aging abnormally rapidly, is determined to extract the essence of youth from the dreams of dozens of confused, pajama-clad kids who are imprisoned in his floating laboratory.
When Krank steals the little brother of a circus strongman named One (Ron Perlman), however, he bites off more than he can chew. With the help of a young thief named Miette, dubious help from an organ grinder with improbably trained fleas, and even more dubious help from other creations of Krank’s creator (a talking brain in a fish tank, bungling comic-relief hench-clones), One sets out to steal his brother back. Nearly every character is cartoonishly suggestible, which riddles the entire narrative with baffling monologues, plot twists, and a magnificent pedigree of nonsense that keeps you enthralled like the best improvised bedtime story you’ve ever been told.
Description courtesy of Paul Siple. Images on this page © 1995 Sony Pictures Classics.
Click for Accessibility Info
Ticketing, concessions, cinemas, restrooms, and our public edit lab are located on Northwest Film Forum’s ground floor, which is wheelchair accessible. All doors in Northwest Film Forum are non-motorized, and may require staff assistance to open. Our upstairs workshop room is not wheelchair accessible.
The majority of seats in our main cinema are 21″ wide from armrest to armrest; some seats are 19″ wide. We are working on creating the option of removable armrests!
We have a limited number of assistive listening devices available for programs hosted in our larger theater, Cinema 1. These devices are maintained by the Technical Director, and can be requested at the ticketing and concessions counter. Also available at the front desk is a Sensory Kit you can borrow, which includes a Communication Card, noise-reducing headphones, and fidget toys.
The Forum does NOT have assistive devices for the visually impaired, and is not (yet) a scent-free venue. Our commitment to increasing access for our audiences is ongoing, and we welcome all public input on the subject!
If you have additional specific questions about accessibility at our venue, please contact our Patron Services Manager at maria@nwfilmforum.org. Our phone number (206-329-2629) is voicemail-only, but we check it often.
Made possible due to a grant from Seattle Office of Arts & Culture, in partnership with Sensory Access, our Sensory Access document presents a visual and descriptive walk-through of the NWFF space. View it in advance of attending an in-person event at bit.ly/nwffsocialnarrativepdf, in order to prepare yourself for the experience.
⚠️ Covid-19 Policies ⚠️
NWFF patrons will be required to wear masks that cover both nose and mouth while in the building. Disposable masks are available at the door for those who need them. We are not currently checking vaccination cards. Recent variants of COVID-19 readily infect and spread between individuals regardless of vaccination status.
Read more about NWFF’s policies regarding cleaning, masks, and capacity limitations here.
** Co-presented with Alliance Française Seattle **
http://www.afseattle.org
AF Seattle members receive the NWFF member discount on tickets for this series: $7 each!
ABOUT AF SEATTLE:
AFSeattle is a dynamic educational and cultural nonprofit organization which has been promoting the French language and Francophone cultures through diverse programs in the Puget Sound area since 1987. It is part of an international network of over 800 Alliances Françaises around the globe. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit incorporated in the state of Washington, it operates in collaboration with many local, regional, and international partners in the cultural, artistic, and educational fields.
With over 700 members and over 1700 enrollments every year, we are one of the leading French language and culture centers in the PNW. Join our community! afseattle.org