Just as IFFBoston has kicked off around the city, another film festival is headed our way — thanks to one Natalie Portman.
Boston Calling has announced its first-ever Boston Calling Film Festival, curated by Portman, and it goes down in the days leading up to Memorial Day weekend, May 22 to 24, at The Brattle Theatre in Cambridge. Titled “The Female Gaze,” the films selected by Portman include 1962’s Lolita, 1967 French drama Belle de Jour, 1973 horror classic The Exorcist, and 2015 coming-of-age drama Diary of a Teenage Girl.
“I’m so excited to show films that I love that explore the female gaze,” says Portman. “I don’t think there is anything inherently different between male and female artists, but these are examples of great works of art in which similar storylines have female tropes that play out quite differently depending on who is telling the story. I’m looking forward to sharing these with an audience and hearing their reactions. It makes it an even more special opportunity to watch these incredible films on the big screen at one of my favorite movie theaters.”
Tickets to Portman’s film fest go on sale Friday (April 27) at 10 a.m. via brattlefilm.org. General admission tickets are priced at $11 per screening. Check out the full lineup below.
Once this film fest wraps up, Boston Calling shifts its focus to its main festival, which takes place May 25 to 27 at the Harvard Athletic Complex in Allston, headlined by The Killers, Jack White, and Eminem. Portman is also curating and hosting a series of programming at the music festival’s indoor arena throughout the weekend, which includes comedians, live podcasts, and more. Get that full lineup here.
Boston Calling Film Festival, “The Female Gaze”
Tuesday, May 22
4:15 p.m.: Lolita, the 1962 British-American drama directed by Stanley Kubrick and starring Sue Lyon and James Mason.
7:15 p.m.: The Holy Girl, directed by Lucretia Martel and starring Mercedes Morán, María Alche, and Carlos Belloso.
9:30 p.m.: Diary of a Teenage Girl, the bold, coming-of-age film directed by Marielle Heller and starring Bel Powley, Alexander Skarsgård, and Kristen Wiig.
Wednesday, May 23
4:30 p.m.: Jeanne Dielman, Chantal Akerman’s cult classic starring Delphine Seyrig.
8:30 p.m.: Belle de Jour, a new restoration of the 1967 French drama directed by Luis Buñue and starring Catherine Deneuve.
Thursday, May 24
7:30 p.m.: I Am Not A Witch, Rungano Nyoni’s feature debut film starring newcomer.
Maggie Mulubwa
9:30 p.m.: The Exorcist, the extended director’s cut of the legendary 1973 film directed by William Friedkin and starring Linda Blair, Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, and Lee J. Cobb.
Featured Natalie Portman image via Boston Calling.