February At MUBI Will Be An International Oscar Celebration

We’re days away from February and a few weeks from The Oscars. Next month at MUBI, there will be an international Oscar celebration. An showcase for those films that have either won or been nominated for the Academy’s Best International Feature Film. The month includes Pan’s Labyrinth, Son of Saul, All About my Mother, and Another Round.

Also on offer this month is a chance to revisit Krzysztof Kieślowski’s The Three Colors Trilogy, for the romantics, there’s the aptly-titled Will They? Won’t They? Valentine’s Collection, and the latest addition to the Brief Encounters strand is Djiby Kebe‘s L’Avance (2024).

The Latest & Greatest strand features Matt and Mara from indie heavyweight Kazik Radwanski and About Dry Grasses from Turkish auteur Nuri Bilge Ceylan, while Tsui Hark’s ‘80s romance Shanghai Blues (1984) has been Rediscovered with a breathtaking 4K restoration for its 40th anniversary.

AROUND THE WORLD: THE INTERNATIONAL OSCAR

‘Once you overcome the one-inch tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films’, noted Bong Joon-ho as he collected the Foreign Language Film Golden Globe in 2019. At the Academy Awards® one month later, he won the same prize. Around the World: The International Oscar collection is a true celebration of the amazing films that Bong speaks of and showcases those that have either won or been nominated for the Academy’s Best International Feature Film.

All About My Mother (Almodóvar, 1999) – 15th February
Pan’s Labyrinth (del Toro, 2006) – 15th February
Son of Saul (Nemes, 2015) – 15th February
Another Round (Vinterberg, 2020) – 15th February | [review]
The Man Without a Past (Kaurismäki, 2002) – Now Streaming
The Worst Person in the World (Trier, 2021) – Now Streaming
Close (Dhont, 2022) – Now Streaming
Io capitano (Garrone, 2023) – Now Streaming
Perfect Days (Wenders, 2023) – Now Streaming

KRZYSZTOF KIEŚLOWSKI: THREE COLORS TRILOGY

Krzysztof Kieślowski delivered an astonishing affirmation of life and art with his Three Colors Trilogy. These transcendental and existentialist films decipher the mysteries of the human condition, by closely and attentively investigating the behaviours and actions of everyday characters in , Poland, and Switzerland. Named after the three colours of the French flag, and inspired by its colours for the rich cinematography of each film—this interconnected trilogy led by Juliette Binoche in Three Colors: Blue (1993), Julie Delpy in Three Colors: White (1994), and co-starring French new wave legend, Jean-Louis Trintignant and icon of 90s’ European cinema Irène Jacob in Three Colors: Red (1994) picked up three Oscar® nominations with its stories exploring death and rebirth, fate, chance, and love.

Three Colors: Blue (Kieślowski, 1993) – 7th February
Three Colors: White (Kieślowski, 1994) – 7th February
Three Colors: Red (Kieślowski, 1994) – 7th February

WILL THEY? WON’T THEY?

Romantic tension, unresolved chemistry, and the thrill of the chase – Will They? Won’t They? explores the delicate balance between desire and doubt. With films ranging from the achingly intimate to the beautifully absurd, this selection captures the suspense and sweetness of love in limbo with a quiet, simmering intensity, just in time for Valentine’s Day.

Matt and Mara (Radwanski, 2024) – 1st February
Shanghai Blues (Hark, 1984) – 5th February
The Lunchbox (Batra, 2013) – 14th February
Me and You and Everyone We Know (July, 2005) – Now Streaming
Medicine for Melancholy (Jenkins, 2008) – Now Streaming
Carol (Haynes, 2015) – Now Streaming | [review]
The Beast (Bonello, 2023) – Now Streaming

LATEST & GREATEST: MATT AND MARA

In Matt and Mara (2024), indie heavyweight Kazik Radwanski explores the delicate space between two people reconnecting after years apart. Premiering at Berlinale and featuring standout performances by Deragh Campbell and Matt Johnson, Matt and Mara is both funny and poignant, delving into the messy questions of love, ambition, and the paths we choose.

Mara, a married creative writing professor, reconnects with free-spirited author Matt, an old flame and what begins as a rekindled friendship soon blurs into something more undefined and complicated.

Matt and Mara (Radwanski, 2024) – 1st February

LATEST & GREATEST: ABOUT DRY GRASSES

Turkish auteur Nuri Bilge Ceylan examines the complicated intricacies of human relations in About Dry Grasses (2023). This nuanced take on becoming middle-aged details the life of disillusioned art teacher, Samet, who desires to leave his tranquil Anatolian village due to unfulfilled aspirations and the villager’s allegations against him acting improperly with a student. Temporary relief from despondency comes to Samet via a budding friendship with charismatic fellow teacher, Nuray, but jealousy arises when her affection is not directed to him solely.

Recognised for Merve Dizdar’s performance as Nuray, which earned her the Best Actress Award at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, the film holds no punches while exploring the intricate dynamics of power within the current educational hierarchies of Turkey. Ceylan invites viewers to reflect on the broader implications of these structures and how they can often stifle individuality and empathy.

About Dry Grasses (Ceylan, 2023) – 28th February

REDISCOVERED: SHANGHAI BLUES

A dazzling fusion of genres, Tsui Hark’s ‘80s romance Shanghai Blues (1984) returns in a breathtaking 4K restoration for its 40th anniversary. Laced with charming old-school special effects, slapstick comedy, and Cantonese pop, Shanghai Blues is a lesser-known gem from Hark, showcasing his ability to blend light-hearted comedy with biting social realism.

In Shanghai, 1937, two strangers fall in love under a bridge during an air raid, only to be reconnected years later with no recollection of each other. What follows is a classic romance that is at times funny, tender, and full of twists.

Shanghai Blues (Hark, 1984) – 5th February

BRIEF ENCOUNTERS: L’AVANCE

The debut film from Djiby Kebe, L’Avance (2024), is an intimate, melancholic short examining the complexities of identity, expectation, and the fine line between personal ambition and cultural pressure. Kebe’s dramatic score and fluid camerawork blend personal and collective histories with an effortless emotional depth.

A young artist sells a painting of his late mother to a famous art collector, discounting his previous commitment to another gallery, only to find himself overwhelmed by the weight of the money he has earned.

L’Avance (Djiby Kebe, 2024) – 1st February

LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP

Acerbic yet romantic, Walt Stillman’s Love & Friendship (2016) is an adaptation of the adolescent Jane Austen’s work of the same name. The film follows the alluring Lady Susan Vernon (Kate Beckinsale), a widower who is hiding out at her in-law’s estate while she waits for gossip about her personal life to subside. While in attendance at the estate, she decides to seek out a new husband for herself, and one for her hesitant daughter too, with the help of her old friend, Alicia Johnson (Chloë Sevigny).

While Stillman usually concerns himself with the lives of the modern cosmopolitan elite, his refocus to Georgian England under the influence of Jane Austen only amplifies his sharp wit and deliciously awkward mastering of the comedy of manners.

Love & Friendship (Stillman, 2016) – 25th February