0459 – Murder on the Orient Express (2017)

spacetime coordinates: the Orient Express,  winter of 1934

Murder on the Orient Express is a 2017 American mystery drama film directed by Kenneth Branagh with a screenplay by Michael Green, based on the 1934 novel of the same name by Agatha Christie. The film stars Branagh as Hercule Poirot, with Penélope Cruz, Willem Dafoe, Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, Josh Gad, Derek Jacobi, Leslie Odom Jr., Michelle Pfeiffer, and Daisy Ridley in supporting roles.

The film is the fourth adaptation of Christie’s novel, following the 1974 film, a 2001 TV film version, and a 2010 episode of the television series Agatha Christie’s Poirot.  The plot follows Poirot, a world-renowned detective, as he seeks to solve a murder on the famous trans-European train in the 1930s.

Sequel

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3402236/

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0457 – The Square (2017)

spacetime coordinates: 2010’s  Stockholm

“The Square is a sanctuary of trust and caring. Within it we all share equal rights and obligations.”

The Square is a 2017 Swedish satirical drama film written and directed by Ruben Östlund, and starring Claes Bang, Elisabeth Moss, Dominic West and Terry Notary. The film is about publicity surrounding an art installation, and was partly inspired by an installation Östlund and producer Kalle Boman had made.

(development) Originally with the performance artist who entertains the affluent patrons, Östlund was considering modelling the character after G.G. Allin, but deciding that that would be too “extreme”, he fell back on his interest in animal imitations. In crafting the scene, his concept was: “this internationally recognized artist is pretending to be a wild beast. What happens when he enters a room full of people in tuxedos?” The scene was inspired by a real incident with the artist Oleg Kulik, who performs as a dog and had attacked people at a notorious event in Stockholm. Other artists parodied in the film include Julian Schnabel, Robert Smithson and Carl Hammoud.

Oleg Kulik “Reservoir Dog”  Zurich 1995

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4995790/

456 – Marwencol (2010)

Marwencol (also known as Village of the Dolls in the UK) is a 2010 American documentary film that explores the life and work of outsider artist and photographer Mark Hogancamp. It is the debut feature of director-editor Jeff Malmberg.

in popular culture

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1391092/

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Welcome to Marwen –2018 drama film directed by Robert Zemeckis, based on the experiences of Mark Hogancamp

0451 – Ma vie de Courgette (2016)

My Life as a Courgette (French: Ma vie de Courgette) is a 2016 Swiss-French stop motion adult animated comedy-drama film directed by Claude Barras. This is the second adaptation of Gilles Paris‘ 2002 novel Autobiographie d’une Courgette, as there was a French live-action television film adaptation called C’est mieux la vie quand on est grand which aired in 2007.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2321405/

0450 – Titan A.E. (2000)

spacetime coordinates: 3028 AD – Pierce, Colorado //  3044 AD (16 AE) salvage station TAU 14,  planet Sesharrim, drifter colony New Bangkok, Andali Nebula Ice Rings Of Tigrin

Titan A.E. is a 2000 American animated science fiction film directed by Don Bluth and Gary Goldman. Its title refers to the spacecraft central to the plot, with A.E. meaning “After Earth”. It stars Matt Damon, Bill Pullman, John Leguizamo, Nathan Lane, Janeane Garofalo and Drew Barrymore. The film’s animation technique combines traditional hand-drawn animation and extensive use of computer generated imagery.

Film critic Roger Ebert gave it 3.5/4 stars for its “rousing story”, “largeness of spirit”, and “lush galactic visuals [which] are beautiful in the same way photos by the Hubble Space Telescope are beautiful”. He cited the Ice Rings sequence as “a perfect examine [sic] of what animation can do and live action cannot”.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120913/

0446 – Child 44 (2015)

spacetime coordinates: 1953 > Moscow > Volsk > Rostov-on-Don >

Child 44 is a 2015 mystery drama film directed by Daniel Espinosa, written by Richard Price, and based on Tom Rob Smith‘s 2008 novel of the same name. The film stars an ensemble cast featuring Tom Hardy, Gary Oldman, Noomi Rapace, Joel Kinnaman, Paddy Considine, Jason Clarke, and Vincent Cassel. Both the novel and the film are very loosely based on the case of Soviet serial killer Andrei Chikatilo, who had been portrayed in the earlier film Citizen X.

Ban of the film in Russia

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1014763/

0445 – The Promise (2016)

spacetime coordinates:  1915  small Armenian village of Sirun in the southeast part of the Ottoman Empire >  Constantinople / Istanbul,  Taurus mountains

The Promise is a 2016 American historical drama film directed by Terry George and starring Oscar Isaac, Charlotte Le Bon and Christian Bale, set in the final years of the Ottoman Empire. The entire budget  for the film was donated by American businessman of Armenian origin Kirk Kerkorian.

Ara Sarafian, director of the Gomidas Institute in London and a leading historian of the Armenian Genocide, praised the film for its historical accuracy. “The key themes were historically accurate,” he said. “The producers did not take license to go beyond the historical material at hand yet they managed to capture much of the enormity of the Armenian genocide.” Sarafian also commended director Terry George for his “well balanced and creditworthy” sense of history.

IMDb pre-release voting controversy

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4776998/