Movie buffs like me who wish to catch international
films for free should not miss the Cine Europa 17 that is happening from
September 11-21, 2014 at Shangri-La Plaza’s Shang Cineplex at Edsa, Mandaluyong.
Kindly check the image
to view the movie schedule.
Based from experience, it is Free Admission but tickets
are limited so one should be there at least an hour before the sched to get a movie
pass to get ticket. They do not allow reservations or give out tickets hours before the screening
time.
This
year’s Cine Europa will feature 23 brilliant films from 17 countries. The synopses
of the movies to be featured in this film festival are provided below.
Die
andere Heimat is an exquisitely-shot black and white
film chronicling the life of a young man and his dream of immigrating to South
America. A poor but knowledge-hungry son of a blacksmith, the young man is
joined in the film by his family, friends, and neighbors and offers a closer
look at the societal dynamics in rural Germany.
Loss
is
the theme of two films, starting with A
Second Childhood (Italy) which shows how a couple deals when one of them is
discovered to have memory loss.
Bon
Voyage (The Netherlands), meanwhile, examines the impending sense of loss
experienced by a family whose patriarch is diagnosed to be seriously ill.
A
different kind of family is at the core of Vegas (Norway), as
three friends who find common ground take refuge in their friendship as they go
through their respective journeys.
In Child’s Pose
(Romania), an affluent woman uses her power to keep her son, who is charged
with manslaughter, out of prison.
A kid’s occasional small-time hustles from a ski resort
take a dangerous turn in Sister
(Switzerland), when the kid partners with a British crook in an effort to
provide for himself and his unreliable older sister.
Sean
Ellis’ Metro Manila (United
Kingdom) returns to Filipino screens as it features the story of Oscar
Ramirez and his family, who leave their impoverished but simple life in the
rice field regions north of the Philippines in search of fortune in the cruel
streets of the city. The official British entry to the 2014 Academy Awards for
Best Foreign Language Film, Metro Manila stars Jake Ramirez, John Arcilla, and
Althea Vega.
Everybody Famous (Belgium),
an amusing account of how a father devises a plan so his daughter, who lacks
musical talent, can become the next big star.
There is also Czech
Republic’s Identity Card, which tells of the adventures of four students
growing up in communist Czechoslovakia and how their creative and independent
souls make them a counterpoint to their country’s totalitarian conventions.
Hungary’s
Thorn Castle, about the friendship of two boys who bond
over the beauty of nature as they learn how to camp, hunt, and live off the
land in the countryside.
Chinese
Puzzle (France) offers a stark contrast as it takes place
in New York where a man decides to move after his ex-wife brings their children
there, following their divorce.
The film, which stars acclaimed French stars Romain
Duris and Audrey Tautou, is the third film in director Cédric Klapisch’s Spanish Apartment trilogy.
Audiences will roar with laughter with Scialla! (Italy) when a melancholy
professor discovers that the rebellious teenager he’s tutoring is actually his
son.
The
Netherlands’ Mister Twister – Class of Fun, about a young
substitute teacher’s unique teaching antics. His style earns him the affection
of his students but will a rule-obsessed principal keep him from being the cool
one?
The
Godmother (Romania) takes off when an American mother and
wife, who has a brilliant teaching career in Bucharest, finds herself in the
middle of a real gangster story after her husband is found out to be laundering
money for a local mobster. The heroine forms her own family mafia to fight off her
family’s enemies and gets help from unusual characters along the way.
In Ice Dragon
(Sweden), an 11-year-old boy sets off on an adventure as he flees his
alcoholic father and brother. A lovable tale that includes whales, fishing,
friends, and first love, Ice Dragon was a well-received children’s film in its
home country.
Also in the line-up is Denmark’s The Hunt, which is a stirring account of how one small
lie changed a man’s life. The film was nominated in the 2014 Academy Awards for
Best Foreign Language Film.
Lóve
(Slovakia) promises to be a gripping action drama, as it reveals
the tale of a man who is keen on shedding his criminal past in order to live a
normal life with the woman he loves.
A gathering of Spain’s most stellar male actors, A Gun in Each Hand is a musical film
that shows eight confused and perplexed men in their forties who have to deal
with identity crisis.
Another Spanish film is the delightful animated feature
The Missing Lynx, which follows a
bunch of animals as they set off to save their fellows from being kidnapped and
used in experiments.
Something sweet awaits film buffs in Two-Seater Rocket (Austria), which tells of Manuel’s great
efforts to build best friend Mia’s childhood dream to win her heart.
The work of the
world’s best researchers, oceanographers, and biologists commences with Planet Ocean (Switzerland), which
vividly transports viewers to the deepest, most wondrous parts of the Earth,
all in a call to respect The Blue Planet in which we live.
For inquiries, call 370-2500 loc. 597. Visit the
Shang’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/shangrilaplazaofficialfanpage. Follow
Shang on Instagram: @shangrilaplazaofficial.
