Cinema

(de voertaal van deze avond is Engels).

Jeffrey's Underground Cinema has been showing neglected and forgotten films for the last decade. This night:  

AMPHIBIAN MAN 1962
(Chelovek-Amfibiya)
Directed by Vladimir Chebotaryov
82 minutes
In Russian with English subtitles

A 1920’s science-fiction/fairy-tale, dear to generations in the Soviet Union, was brought with loving care to their cinemas in 1961 and attracted lines of adoring fans, which spanned blocks at the box offices. In fact it sold more than 65 million tickets. All of a sudden, the supernatural “Sea Devil” theme music from the movie was being whistled on every Russian’s lips throughout the country.

This film is very different from what most expect from Soviet cinema. It’s fast-paced, obviously crowd-pleasing, but is still suffused with the intensely melancholic introspection that seems to be characteristic of most Russian culture. And it’s a winning combination. The story concerns a sea devil that is haunting a small fishing village.. but things turn out to be very different than what they seem.

This flick is absolutely dazzling… And how is it possible that the crystal-blue eyes of both the central male and female characters glow with such intensity? Just looking at them sparkle and shine is enough to make you swoon. Amphibian Man is a real dream of a film, with a mystical fairy-tale mood, glittery costumes worthy of Diaghilev and wild organ music. Although it’s a masterpiece of cinema, and was a smash hit in Russia when it came out, it has still has rarely ever been shown outside its homeland… so I hope you can come to this very rare screening of this precious gem!

With a short introduction by Jeffrey Babcock

20:30 (doors and bar open at 20:00)
Free entrance / no reservations
We advise you to come early: max. 70 people /
no admittance after 20.30