Reel Monday 2012, now in its eighth year, is back with a fresh roster of highly acclaimed independent Canadian and international movies screened at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Operated by Friends of the St. Albert Public Library, Reel Monday is a fundraiser designed to subsidize author visits. The Friends hope to raise about $3,500 by screening five top notch films: The Way; Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy; Iron Lady; Albert Nobbs, and The Deep Blue Sea.
"The storylines are very strong and they are well acted. I think it's important that when people go to the movies, they get into the story and stay there. We hope people will be entertained with these selections," says Friends organizer Kathie Konarzewski.
The films make up a five-part subscription series held at Grandin Theatre on the last Monday of every month from January to May.
"This year, the theatre has been renovated with the old seats from the Arden Theatre. The new seats give it a theatre hall feel. It's quite satisfying."
The Way premieres the season's subscription series on Jan. 30. Martin Sheen stars as Tom, a father whose son is killed on a pilgrimage along the Camino de Santiago or The Way of St. James. Shortly after Tom arrives in France to pick up his son's possessions, he decides to walk the 800-kilometre road to honour his son's memory.
"We like Martin Sheen and there have been a lot of people here who have been on the walk, or at least the Spanish part. It'll be a good memory for them."
From the sunny slopes of France and Spain, the series follows up with Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, a Cold War look at the disenchanting world of espionage and treachery. In this John LeCarrÄ‚Ĺ»¿½ adaptation, George Smiley is brought back to MI6 to ferret out a mole. The cast is stellar with Gary Oldman, Colin Firth, Tom Hardy and John Hurt.
"It's a bit of a different spy movie. It's not glamorous. It's not James Bond with gadgets and girls. It's more real."
Although not yet confirmed, Friends hope to host Iron Lady on March 26. Meryl Streep, the chameleon of stars, offers an intimate portrait of Margaret Thatcher, Britain's first and only female prime minister, one of the 20th century's most influential women.
"She was the daughter of a shop owner. She worked hard to become a barrister and upgraded her accent and softened her voice to get elected. She really did work hard when women were striving for success. She was always firm, very stern. She didn't have a lot of charm, but she performed in a way she thought women had to perform to succeed."
On April 30, Glenn Close unwraps Albert Nobbs, a story of a woman's struggle with personal identity in 19th century Ireland. A woman masquerading as a man, Nobbs is a butler at a well-to-do Dublin Hotel. He/she leads a solitary life until one day an overbearing painter is hired to paint the hotel lobby and must share Nobbs' quarters. Terrified of exposure, Nobbs is shocked to discover the painter is also a woman.
"Glenn does some very good work and it's in Dublin, a completely different era."
The closing film is The Deep Blue Sea on May 2. Starring Rachel Weisz, it is a sad story of a love affair gone awry in post-war England.
"It's not jaunty, but it's not quite as bleak as it sounds."
Movies are at 7 p.m. The season subscription is $40 per person and can be purchased at St. Albert Public Library. Tickets at the door are $10.
