Cinema buffs are in for a real treat starting Oct. 3, when the Reichhold Center for the Arts celebrates the grand opening of its Cinema Sundays with the award-winning Brazilian film, "Central Station."
David Edgecombe, Reichhold director, is enthusiastic about the project.
"The Reichhold started with movies in the late '80s, but Hurricane Hugo and the subsequent storms put a stop to that," he said, adding that "the coming season is an innovation whose time has come."
Tony Caparelli, Reichhold technical director, was instrumental in setting up Cinema Sundays, and his enthusiasm matches Edgecombe's.
"Projects abound right now trying to create public festivals," he said in reference to the Virgin Islands Film and Video Festival which will take place at the Reichhold Feb. 6-12 as a special part of the film series.
There will be something for a broad expanse of cinema tastes.
Edgecombe noted that "more and more, we recognize that we have a really diverse community, and we want to try to offer something for everyone."
He said that the first season's offerings include foreign films, some old standards and some great music pictures, notably "Straight, No Chaser," the story of legendary jazz pianist Thelonius Monk.
"Central Station," in Portugese with English subtitles, is the story of a young boy in present day Brazil (the real one, not the Rio Carnival) looking for a father he never had, and a woman looking for a second chance. As one person who's already seen the picture puts it, "Be ready to weep and be happy."
The movie has garnered top awards in England, Germany and Spain and made off with the top 1999 Golden Globe Award for a foreign film.
All movies at the Cinema Sundays series start at 7 p.m. and admission is $5. For a complete listing of the coming season's films click on the movies section of St. Thomas Source.
