September 18, 2020

WIFF’s Weekend Watch List — 09/18

THE PAINTER AND THE THIEF (If you want to discover a new title) Vincent Georgie: Mike Nichols creates one of the best romantic comedies,…

THE PAINTER AND THE THIEF

(If you want to discover a new title)

Vincent Georgie: Mike Nichols creates one of the best romantic comedies, well, ever in this film. Melanie Griffith gives a career-best performance, ably supported by an endlessly appealing cast: Harrison Ford, Sigourney Weaver and the scene-stealing marvel that is Joan Cusack. The memorable Carly Simon song “Let The River Run” will warm your heart.

Synopsis: Desperate for answers about the theft of her 2 paintings, a Czech artist seeks out and befriends the career criminal who stole them. After inviting her thief to sit for a portrait, the two form an improbable relationship and an inextricable bond that will forever link these lonely souls.

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PAVAROTTI

(If you want to party!)

Vincent Georgie: Not just Opera fans, but all music fans will be entertained and frequently moved by this very popular doc. The film came in 3rd place, overall, for the LiUNA! 625 People’s Choice Award at WIFF 2019.

Synopsis: From Academy Award-winning director Ron Howard comes this wonderfully intimate portrait of Luciano Pavarotti, the most beloved opera singer of all time. Interweaving Pavarotti’s genre-defining performances with revealing, never-before-seen footage, Pavarotti is a movie experience as singularly entertaining as its legendary subject.

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Watch on Crave

Watch on YouTube

STUDIO 54

(If you want to party!)

Vincent Georgie: A fave from WIFF 2018, this entertaining and exuberant doc does a great job of putting you in the middle of all of the fun of the infamous night club. If you’ve been missing out on wild nights as late, this one’s for you.

Synopsis: For 33 months, from 1977 to 1980, the nightclub Studio 54 was the place to be seen in Manhattan. A haven of hedonism, tolerance, glitz and glamor, Studio was very hard to gain entrance to and impossible to ignore, with news of who was there filling the gossip columns daily. Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager, two college friends from Brooklyn, succeeded in creating the ultimate escapist fantasy in the heart of the theater district. Studio 54 was an instant success and a cash cow, but the drug-and-sex-fueled dream soon imploded in financial scandal and the club’s demise. With unprecedented access to Schrager, who tells the whole unvarnished story for the first time, and a treasure-trove of rare footage, director Matt Tyrnauer constructs a vivid, glorious portrait of a disco-era phenomenon, and tells the story of two friends who stuck together through an incredible series of highs and lows.

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Watch on Netflix

WORKING GIRL

(If you want to smile and cheer)

Synopsis: Savvy New York City receptionist Tess McGill (Melanie Griffith) gives her conniving boss, Katharine Parker (Sigourney Weaver), an excellent business tip, but Katharine simply steals the idea without giving due credit to her secretary. After Katharine winds up in the hospital with an injured leg, Tess decides to exact revenge. Pretending to be her boss, Tess initiates a major deal with an investment broker (Harrison Ford) — but things turn ugly after Katharine finds out what Tess has been up to.