june/july/august 2002 Heddy Honigmann

Few filmmakers working today have Heddy Honigmann’s gift for getting to the heart of our humanity. Through her protagonists she skillfully finds the chords of the universal—the dreams, suffering, pain and laughter that know no particular culture or language. Born in Lima, Peru in 1951, she moved to Italy in 1973 and to Amsterdam in 1978, where she embarked on a career that has included dramatic features (MINDSHADOWS, 1988 and GOOD-BYE, 1995) as well as shorts. We have screened some of these films before, but seeing them collectively adds new dimentions to their individual power.

AUG 1 2 THU 7 P.M., FRI 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
O AMOR NATURAL
THE NETHERLANDS 1996
DIRECTOR: HEDDY HONIGMANN
As Pablo Neruda is to Chile and Rainer Maria Rilke to Germany, Carlos Drummond De Andrade (1902-1987) is to Brazil-a poet who spoke to the soul of the people, to their measure of loneliness and their potential for joy. In the posthumous publication of O Amour Natural De Arande also proved his exceptional talent for erotic poetry. With that book in hand, Honigmann went to the streets, beaches, bars and marketplaces of Rio de Janiero and asked senior citizens to read the voluptuous verses aloud. What transpires is, by turns, arousing, sensual, intimate and funny as the poems provoke memories of love and sex, passion and creation—delving into matters of the flesh in ways more puritanical societies would quickly shy away from. “An ode to the erotic…this warm, simple film uncovers a rich vein of ageless, grassroots sensuality and joie de vivre”—VARIETY. (76 mins.)
WITH
METAL AND MELANCHOLY
NETHERLANDS 1994
DIRECTOR: HEDDY HONIGMANN
Honigmann’s road movie takes you on a series of taxi rides you are not likely to forget. A portrait of Peruvians in hard times, this journey redefines the notion of survival as we enter the world of cab drivers in Lima. Due to the chronic economic crisis, car owners from all walks of life—teachers, actors, secret service agents, government workers—moonlight as taxi drivers to make ends meet. Climbing into the front seat with one driver after another, we are treated to a cumulatively startling perspective on the lifeblood of a metropolis of seven million richly storied people. Much more than a sobering portrait of an expiring economy, METAL AND MELANCHOLY is full of comic anecdotes and poignant experiences that speak to the ingenuity of the human spirit and a zest for life that overcomes all trials. (80 mins.)

AUG 3 4 SAT 7:30 P.M., SUN 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
THE UNDERGROUND ORCHESTRA
NETHERLANDS 1997
DIRECTOR: HEDDY HONIGMANN
Once again finding deep revelation in the humblest of circumstances, Honigmann explores the melancholy world of street musicians in Paris—the accordionists, the violinists, harp players, Malian singers, tribal singers and others whose music is a strong echo of their lives. She encounters people who have come from all parts of the globe. Each time, she wants to know where they came from, what forced them to leave and why they are driven to play music. Their tales are a survey of the troubles of Contemporary history-civil war in Algeria, social dislocation in Romania, genocide in Yugoslavia, concentration camps in Zaire. In each case, music has been key to their survival. It is not just a way to wrangle loose change from fellow Parisians; it is a way to mourn and to heal, to maintain a connection, however tenuous, with a world that is otherwise lost to them. “It's intensely moving, the music they create--it tells of their deepest longings, and also speaks to ours."
—SAN FRANCISCO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL (108 mins.)

AUG 8 THU 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
PRIVE
NETHERLANDS 2000
DIRECTOR: HEDDY HONIGMANN
In this personal meditation on the commandment “thou shall not steal,” Honigmann weaves stories of stealing and being robbed with thieves and their victims. Moving freely from petty theft by street kids—shoplifting, shell games and fare-dodging on the bus—to professional pickpockets and scam artists, to violent abductions and street muggers in Argentina, Honigmann’s victims and perpetrators know that no one is safe and some things, most of all the immaterial, once taken, can never be replaced. (50 mins.)
WITH
GOOD HUSBAND, DEAR SON
NETHERLANDS 2001
DIRECTOR: HEDDY HONIGMANN
In the hills surrounding Sarajevo, which fell into Serbian hands during the war in Yugoslavia, lies the village of Ahatovici. In 1992, about 80% of the men were brutally killed, creating a void in many families and communities where they worked and lived. They were good husbands and dear sons—everyday men who made up the fabric of the community. Commemorating these men through the memories of their wives, mothers and daughters, Honigmann’s moving film is testament to the cruelties of war, intolerance and political madness. (50 mins.)

AUG 11 SUN 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
CRAZY
NETHERLANDS 1999
DIRECTOR: HEDDY HONIGMANN
Each of us have our own special collection of songs forever tied to the memories of special moments in our lives. In this remarkable, potent documentary about how we deal with violence and the power of music, Honigmann interviews soldiers of varying age, rank and musical taste. Most have served in recent United Nations "security zones"—Cambodia, Lebanon, Rwanda, Bosnia—but also included are soldiers who served in Vietnam and Korea in 1950. Witnesses to and victims of the unspeakable horrors of war, each soldier recalls a song intimately connected to their memories, one that helped get them through their plight: music as varied as Puccini’s "Turandt," Guns and Roses "Knocking on Heaven’s Door," U2’s "Bloody Sunday," Seal’s "Crazy,” and Elvis’ "Always on My Mind." As soldiers talk to Honigmann of their deepest feelings about responsibility, love, powerlessness, fear and death, it is the soundtrack of their experience, played in the background, that allows them to surface the deepest of unspoken emotions. "We turned up the music and the fear was gone. Maybe somebody else thinks: that song sucks. But it’s very important to me. I want to take it to my grave. That song."—Dutch soldier. (86 mins.)

AUG 15 THU 7 P.M.
GUILD THEATRE
2 MINUTES SILENCE PLEASE
NETHERLANDS 1998
DIRECTOR: HEDDY HONIGMANN Every year on May 4, the Dutch commemorate their World War II victims as well as those who have fallen in international conflicts or peace missions since 1945. On the following day, the liberation of the country is celebrated nationwide. Honigmann captures the different experiences, motives, and emotions among various groups of Dutch residents, all of whom have strong memories of the war years.
(88 mins.)