Presented on 35mm
In the directorial debut of Academy Award winning screenwriter Charlie Kaufman (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Being John Malkovich), frustrated theater director Caden Cotard (Philip Seymour Hoffman, in one of his finest roles) finds that his fortunes seem to have changed when he is awarded the MacArthur “Genius Grant,” allowing him to mount his magnum opus. However, the piece, intended to be a work of brutal honesty and a celebration of the mundanity of life, soon consumes him; and as the years rapidly fold into each other, the differences between performance and reality become increasingly indistinguishable.
Kaufman’s existential masterpiece is gorgeously shot by Frederick Elmes, and features memorable supporting performances from Samantha Morton, Michelle Williams, Catherine Keener, Emily Watson, Dianne Wiest, and Jennifer Jason Leigh.
In celebration of Frederick Elmes’ work on Father Mother Sister Brother, we are pleased to highlight four classic films shot by him and directed by such luminaries as Jim Jarmusch (Night on Earth—35mm), Ang Lee (The Ice Storm—35mm), Charlie Kaufman (Synecdoche, New York—35mm), and David Lynch (Eraserhead).
