settima

bookadaptation

姿三四郎 [Sugata Sanshirō / Judo Saga] (Akira Kurosawa, 1943)

Dec

26

8 p.m.

姿三四郎 (1943)

A letter beckoning to come to Ukyō-ku, on December 26, at 8 o'clock. DP: Akira Mimura.

“On the night of December 26, at 8:00 on Ukyō-ku.”

Nowhere to Go (Seth Holt + Basil Dearden, 1958)

Dec

22

Tue

Nowhere to Go (1958)

A man checks into a hotel. A wall calendar reads December 22, a Tuesday. DP: Paul Beeson .

“Sloane! Be lucky!”

– Paul Gregory

Die Blechtrommel [The Tin Drum] (Volker Schlöndorff, 1979)

Dec

21

winter solstice

Die Blechtrommel (1979)

Little Oskar with his tin drum. DP: Igor Luther.

Something short for winter solstice.

“He's growing! Look! See how he's growing! I have seen the Lord! The Lord! The Lord!”

– Schugger-Leo

On the eve of World War 2, little Oskar – just three years old – decides he doesn't want to grow anymore.

Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny (Richard Winer + Barry Mahon, 1972)

Dec

20

Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny (1972)

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.

“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 Claus

Le voyage dans la lune [A Trip to the Moon] (Georges Méliès, 1902)

Dec

19

Apollo 17

Le voyage dans la lune (1902)

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.

“Laugh, my friends. Laugh with me, laugh for me, because I dream for you.”

– Georges Méliès, 1937

In true Méliès style, a wild menagerie of showgirls and scientists meet on the Moon in this groundbreaking sci-fi spectacle.

Le pacha [Pasha / Showdown] (Georges Lautner, 1968)

Dec

19

Le pacha (1968)

Jean Gabin and Dany Carrel in a still on the cover of Serge Gainsbourg's Requiem pour un con 7” (via). DP: Maurice Fellous.

“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”

– Serge Gainsbourg, Requiem pour un con (1968)

Wojna Światów – Następne Stulecie [The War of the Worlds: Next Century] (Piotr Szulkin, 1981)

Dec

18

1999

Wojna Światów - Następne Stulecie (1981)

Reporter Iron Idem (Roman Wilhelmi) bringing the news. DP: Zygmunt Samosiuk.

祇園囃子 [Gion bayashi / Gion Festival Music] (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1953)

Dec

15

Gion bayashi (1953)

Studying the tea ceremony, accompanied by director Mizoguchi (via). DP: Kazuo Miyagawa.

Having tea*

“A geisha’s lie is not a real lie. It’s a cornerstone of our profession.”

– Miyoharu

 

* the Bales 2025 Film Challenge for December has a few dateless themes. This is one of them.

দেবী [Devi / The Goddess] (Satyajit Ray, 1960)

Dec

13

Saint Lucy's Day

Devi (1960)

Doyamoyee, Kali incarnate (via). DP: Subrata Mitra.

Saint Lucy's Day: wearing a garland. Today's and yesterday's theme are virtually interchangeable.

“Kneel before her son. I've had a dream. She's the incarnation of the Goddess, Kali.”

– 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

Balada o trobenti in oblaku (1961)

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.