香蕉秀

by Rod Jones

The 香蕉秀 University Film Institute series will continue at 2 p.m. Oct. 2 with Christian Petzold鈥檚 鈥淧hoenix.鈥� This year鈥檚 series is based on the theme 鈥淥n Being Mortal.鈥�

All films in the series are screened free to the public in the Kerr McGee Auditorium of Meinders School of Business at N.W. 27th Street and McKinley Avenue.

The series is supported in part by the Thatcher Hoffman Smith Endowment Fund and endowments through 香蕉秀 and the 香蕉秀 Community Foundation.

鈥淧hoenix鈥� is a spellbinding mystery of identity, illusion and deception that unfolds against the turmoil of post-World War II Berlin. Nina Hoss, winner of acting awards around the world, plays German-Jewish cabaret singer Nelly. Having survived Auschwitz disfigured from a wound, she returns to seek her gentile German husband. The tension mounts with the look and conventions of film noir and Hitchcockian doubles amidst reversals and the atmosphere of suspicion.

The LA Times called it an 鈥渋ntoxicating witches鈥� brew, equal parts melodrama and moral parable, that audaciously mixes diverse elements to compelling effect.鈥�

The theme of this year鈥檚 season is based on Atul Gawande鈥檚 recent book 鈥淏eing Mortal.鈥� Winn, director of the series, said the films were selected to show 鈥渉ow we, as individuals and a culture, confront, avoid and deal with finitude.鈥� Topics covered include how societies deal with people who are aging, the importance of life and how it is lived with need for a healthy and ethical awareness in knowing we all ultimately die.

A discussion session follows each film screening for those who wish to participate. Other dates and films in the series are:

* Oct. 16, Zhang Yimou鈥檚 鈥淐oming Home鈥�

* Oct. 30, Naji Abu Nowar鈥檚 鈥淭heeb鈥�

* Jan. 22, Francois Truffaut鈥檚 鈥淭he Last Metro鈥�

* Feb. 5, Lasse Hallstrom鈥檚 鈥淢y Life as a Dog鈥�

* Feb. 19, Asghar Farhadi鈥檚 鈥淔ireworks Wednesday鈥�

* March 5, Ciro Guerra鈥檚 鈥淓mbrace of the Serpent鈥�

For more information about the series, call 405-208-5707 or visit .