THU JUNE 30, 2022 7:30 PM THE VIRGIN SUICIDES / PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK $8.00 (member) ; $13.00 (general admission) Aero Theatre | Introduction by author Hannah Strong. 6:30pm book signing of Hannah Strong’s SOFIA COPPOLA: FOREVER YOUNG, courtesy of the Larry Edmunds Bookshop. Tickets are no longer on sale for this event.
ABOUT THE FILMS: THE VIRGIN SUICIDES, 1999, Paramount, 97 min, USA, Dir: Sofia Coppola. Sofia Coppola’s directorial debut launched her to the global film stage after it premiered in Cannes, and confirmed the transition of Kirsten Dunst from child star to screen icon. Adapted from Jeffrey Eugenides’ novel about a group of sisters who turn to suicide in a bid to escape the oppressive environment of their suburban upbringing, this cult classic features a stand-out score from French electro masters Air, superb supporting actors in the form of James Woods and Kathleen Turner, and dreamy photography that evokes the dying days of summer and high school growing pains. -Hannah Strong FORMAT: DCP PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK, 1975, Janus Films, 107 min, Australia, Dir: Peter Weir. A leading film of the Australian New Wave, Peter Weir’s adaptation of Joan Lindsay’s novel was a key inspiration for Sofia Coppola in realizing her vision of THE VIRGIN SUICIDES. The film follows the disappearance of a group of schoolgirls during a Valentine’s Day picnic at Hanging Rock, Victoria, and the subsequent fall-out from their unexplained absence. A young Jacki Weaver stars alongside Rachel Roberts, Dominic Guard and Helen Morse in this ethereal mystery, grappling with themes of femininity, death, and adolescent understandings of romance and freedom. -Hannah Strong FORMAT: 35mm