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The Dalhousie Art Gallery and the Atlantic Film Festival have combined to put on a retrospective of feature films by multi-Cannes Film Festival award winner Wim Wenders.
Originally a film critic who grew up in the cinema, Wenders (pronounced āVendersā) was chosen to be showcased at pilipiliĀž» due to his āabundant humanism,ā says Ron Foley Macdonald, Dalhousie film curator and senior programmer of the Atlantic Film Festival.
āHis collaborations with some of his mentors, Nicholas Ray (director of Rebel Without A Cause), Ozu, and Antonioni show a level of respect for the cinema unmatched in the art form,ā says Mr. Macdonald.
Dalhousie Film Professor David Nicol also encourages students to go see the Wenders showcase: āHis films are like dreams,ā says Dr. Nicol. āTheyāre intimate, quiet, and restrained.ā
Dr. Nicol explains Wendersā films allow the viewer to draw upon their own emotions. āThereās a slow and beautiful poetic feeling; his work is thought provoking.ā
The retrospective will feature two of Wendersā most influential films:Ā Paris, Texas and Wings of Desire.
Paris, Texas starring Harry Dean Stanton as Travis and Natassja Kinski as his wife Jane tells the tale of Travis and his estranged son Hunterās journey to find Jane. It's a journey whichĀ Dr. Nicol describes as āhypnotic.ā
Wings of Desire stars Bruno Ganz , as Damiel,Ā Solveig DommartinĀ as Marrion, and Peter Falk (any Columbo fans out there?) as himself. This film is a tortured love tale about angels who want to be human. Peter Falk helps expose Damiel, an angel, to the joys of humanity.
Together, these films have won eight awards, including the Cannes Palm DāOr for Best Film (Paris, Texas) in 1984. Wenders has also been awarded Best Director for both these films at the Cannes Film Festival.
Wendersā work has not been in the spotlight recently and, according toĀ Mr. Macdonald, this yearās retrospective will aim to give the German director well deserved recognition in Canada.
Wenders is the director of 22 feature films, five of which will be screening at the Dalhousie Art Gallery this week.
All screenings will be at 5 p.m., the shows are free but space is limited! For more information visit: