“Sloane! Be lucky!”
Nowhere to Go (Seth Holt + Basil Dearden, 1958)
Dec
22
Tue
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A man checks into a hotel. A wall calendar reads December 22, a Tuesday. DP: Paul Beeson .
– Paul Gregory
“He's growing! Look! See how he's growing! I have seen the Lord! The Lord! The Lord!”
Die Blechtrommel [The Tin Drum] (Volker Schlöndorff, 1979)
Dec
21
winter solstice
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Little Oskar with his tin drum. DP: Igor Luther.
Something short for winter solstice.
– Schugger-Leo
On the eve of World War 2, little Oskar – just three years old – decides he doesn't want to grow anymore.
“What is that? What is that I hear? Where's it coming from? I hear a siren, but I don't see any fire, I don't see any smoke. Whenever there's a siren, it means there's a fire, but I don't see any smoke. That siren. Where is it coming from? Where's that sound coming from?”
Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny (Richard Winer + Barry Mahon, 1972)
Dec
20
A bunch of screaming children on top of a red firetruck stand right behind the driver, a stoic person in a pink bunny costume. DPs: William Tobin & Richard Winer.
– Santa Claus
“Laugh, my friends. Laugh with me, laugh for me, because I dream for you.”
Le voyage dans la lune [A Trip to the Moon] (Georges Méliès, 1902)
Dec
19
Apollo 17
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A gif from the hand-coloured edition that is now in the Filmoteca de Catalunya. Poor Mister Moon has the adventures' rocket stuck in his eye. DPs: Théophile Michault & Lucien Tainguy.
The Moon (any moon) to commemorate the end of the final man-manned moon landing.
– Georges Méliès, 1937
In true Méliès style, a wild menagerie of showgirls and scientists meet on the Moon in this groundbreaking sci-fi spectacle.
“Écoute les orgues
Elles jouent pour toi
Il est terrible, cet air-là
J'espère que tu aimes
C'est assez beau, non ?
C'est le requiem pour un con”
Le pacha [Pasha / Showdown] (Georges Lautner, 1968)
Dec
19
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Jean Gabin and Dany Carrel in a still on the cover of Serge Gainsbourg's Requiem pour un con 7” (via). DP: Maurice Fellous.
– Serge Gainsbourg, Requiem pour un con (1968)
Wojna Światów – Następne Stulecie [The War of the Worlds: Next Century] (Piotr Szulkin, 1981)
Dec
18
1999
Reporter Iron Idem (Roman Wilhelmi) bringing the news. DP: Zygmunt Samosiuk.
“A geisha’s lie is not a real lie. It’s a cornerstone of our profession.”
祇園囃子 [Gion bayashi / Gion Festival Music] (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1953)
Dec
15
茶
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Studying the tea ceremony, accompanied by director Mizoguchi (via). DP: Kazuo Miyagawa.
Having tea*
– Miyoharu
* the Bales 2025 Film Challenge for December has a few dateless themes. This is one of them.
“Kneel before her son. I've had a dream. She's the incarnation of the Goddess, Kali.”
দেবী [Devi / The Goddess] (Satyajit Ray, 1960)
Dec
13
Saint Lucy's Day
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Doyamoyee, Kali incarnate (via). DP: Subrata Mitra.
Saint Lucy's Day: wearing a garland. Today's and yesterday's theme are virtually interchangeable.
– Kalikinkar Roy
Doyamoyee's father-in-law, and worshipper of Kali, has a dream. The young woman is the goddess' avatar. Locals come to visit the house, and Doyamoyee too starts believing in her divinity.
Balada o trobenti in oblaku [Ballad About a Trumpet and a Cloud] (France Štiglic, 1961)
Dec
11
International Mountain Day
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A young couple dances among the mountains (via). DP: Rudi Vaupotič.
Set in the mountains for International Mountain Day
1943. With the family preparing for Christmas, old man Temnikar hears the sound of a trumpet. The patriarch sees it as his calling to follow – and kill – the White Guardists who visited his mountain farm looking for wounded Partisans.
“The mattress is soft and there're hangers in the closet and stationary with “Bates' Motel” printed on it in case you want to make your friends back home envious.”
Psycho (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960)
Dec
11
Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) in front of the family motel. DP: John L. Russell.
– Norman Bates