Australia/USA/2020 — directed by Jeff Daniels | 90 min.

In the fall of 1983, the cover of Newsweek featured the words “TV’s NUCLEAR NIGHTMARE!” as millions of American viewers awaited the long-publicized premiere of a made-for-TV movie on the ABC network depicting the actual effects of an all-out nuclear exchange with the Soviet Union. 

The threat of nuclear annihilation loomed large at the time, and The Day After played directly on these fears, ultimately attracting a staggering viewership of 100 million Americans — the largest audience in history for any TV movie up to that point. Television Event documents the story behind this audacious project after it was greenlit by ABC. 

The Day After’s director, Nicholas Meyer (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan), details — often hilariously — the clashes with network executives and censors to finish and broadcast the film that so disturbed President Reagan it reportedly influenced his nuclear weapons policy. 

“Absolutely riveting and highly entertaining… a remarkable, often oddly funny look at a game-changing show business event. It is a wild ride to be sure.” — Pete Hammond, Deadline

Austria/Germany/2025 — directed by Alexander Horwath | 185 min.

The feature film debut of Austrian film historian and curator Alexander Horwath — former Director of the Austrian Film Museum — Henry Fonda for President is a brilliantly conceived and remarkably entertaining panorama of the history, politics, and culture of the United States as seen through the life and screen performances of the great American actor. 

Though structured chronologically, this transfixing documentary transcends the conventions of traditional film biographies by using Fonda’s own words and experiences, alongside moments from his countless screen characters, to create a luminous prism through which the film ingeniously explores and meditates upon the changing face of the country and of cinema itself. Much more than a clever cinematic stunt, Henry Fonda for President is a revelatory historical vision, packed with insights and observations — and, of course, a must for movie lovers. 

“This transfixing gem is a sheer delight from start to finish.” — Kieron Corless, Sight & Sound

USA/2024 — directed by Constance Tsang | 116 min.

Within the confines of a massage parlor in Flushing, Queens, Amy (Ke-Xi Wu) and Didi (Haipeng Xu) navigate romance, the search for happiness, and the obligations of family while thousands of miles from home. Despite the physical and emotional toll their work demands, the two women have forged an impenetrable sisterhood, which is unexpectedly imperiled when events take a dramatic turn on Lunar New Year. 

Co-starring the extraordinary Taiwanese actor Lee Kang-sheng, who won the Best Actor Prize at the 2024 Cairo Film Festival for his performance here, Blue Sun Palace is at once a stirring immigrant’s tale, a dark workplace comedy, and a deeply modern New York story. Special Jury Prize, Cannes Film Festival; dual Best Actress Prize, Hong Kong International Film Festival. In Mandarin, English, and Min Nan with English subtitles.

“NYT Critic’s Pick! A gorgeously intimate debut feature that creates a whole world.” — Alissa Wilkinson, The New York Times

USA/2024 — directed by Sarah Friedland | 90 min.

Ruth (Kathleen Chalfant), a retired cook living in California, prepares breakfast—a dish she seems to have made many times before, though small, puzzling errors now punctuate her familiar routine. When her son (H. Jon Benjamin) arrives to dine with her, she mistakes him for a suitor. Their “date” leads them to an assisted living facility, which Ruth does not remember having chosen for herself. There, she begins to accept the warmth and support of two care workers (Carolyn Michelle and Andy McQueen) and discovers new ways to ground herself in her body, even as her mind begins a journey of its own.

Writer-director Sarah Friedland’s coming-of-old-age feature compassionately follows the winding path of octogenarian Ruth’s memories and desires while remaining rooted in her sage perspective.

Special event! The showing on Sunday, June 29th will be followed by an in-person Q&A with cast member Carolyn Michelle and producer Matthew Thurm, hosted by DIA Film Curator Elliot Wilhelm.

Winner: Best Debut Film, Best Director, and Best Actress, 2024 Venice Film Festival.

“The delicacy of what acclaimed theater actor Chalfant does in this role is astounding. This is a finely wrought, infinitely tender movie.” —Allison Willmore, New York Magazine

(Vietnam/France/2024 — directed by Trương Minh Quý)

Two young men work deep beneath the earth as coal miners—yet Việt and Nam are also lovers, sharing secret moments of physical pleasure before one embarks on a perilous journey to emigrate to another land. From this intimate story, captured with sensual detail and unflinching eroticism, Vietnamese filmmaker Trương Minh Quý delves even deeper to unearth the memories and legacies of a nation. Set at the turn of the 21st century, the film resonates with echoes of the country’s war decades earlier, as Nam’s mother leads them on a pilgrimage to discover where his father was killed as a soldier. Shot in a graceful and mesmerizing style on 16mm—and banned in its home country—Việt and Nam is a quietly expressive, mind-bending work about two men with unsettled pasts and uncertain futures. In Vietnamese with English subtitles. (129 min.)

“Ravishing… a sad and sublimely beautiful movie.” —Justin Chang, The New Yorker

France/2024—directed by Louise Courvoisier | 90 min.

Winner of a special prize at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, the enchanting Holy Cow tells the story of 18-year-old Totone (Clément Faveau) who’s thrust into the unexpected and very adult role of looking after his younger sister and their family farm in the Jura section of France. 

Totone assumes even more responsibility – and anxiety – when he enters a cash competition for creating the best Comte cheese made in this part of the French Alps. An engaging and immersive glimpse into the hardscrabble life of French agriculture, this assured debut from director Louise Courvoisier is a beguiling coming of age story and, above all, an ode to the mystery and magic of cheese. In French with English subtitles.

“A charming, moving and humorous coming-of-age story told with brio. Delicious!” –John Bleasdale, Time Out

Winner of an Honorary Academy Award® for lifetime achievement, Charles Burnett remains one of the nation’s most celebrated independent filmmakers. In his charming The Annihilation of Fish, Lynn Redgrave stars as Poinsettia, a former housewife with an imagined — and celebrated — lover. 

After moving into a Los Angeles boarding house run by an energetic landlady (Margot Kidder), Poinsettia meets a Jamaican widower named Fish, brilliantly portrayed by the great James Earl Jones, who valiantly and imaginatively wages daily battles against unseen demons. With empathy and gently comic grace, the pair begin to discover unexpected joys in their world, as well as the nuances of love and happiness.

Presented in a new 4K restoration by UCLA Film & Television Archive and The Film Foundation. (108 min.)

2024—directed by Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor | 96 minutes

A collective of Palestinian and Israeli filmmakers chronicle the Israeli military’s incremental expulsion of the West Bank community of Masafer Yatta — home to 20 ancient Palestinian villages — in this powerful documentary, winner of the 2025 Oscar® for Best Documentary Feature. 

Between 2019 and 2023, Masafer Yatta resident and Palestinian journalist Basel Adra recorded video of home, school and road demolitions (legalized by the area’s conversion to an IDF training zone) and the consequent protests by displaced residents. Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham — free to move about while Adra’s movements were constricted — brings the images and emotions of these confrontations to a wider platform. 

Working together, Adra and Abraham began a friendship in their hopeful efforts to resist a mass eviction. Winner, Best Documentary, New York Film Critics’ Circle, National Society of Film Critics. In Arabic, English and Hebrew with English subtitles. 

“The most powerful nonfiction film I saw this year. As an example of Palestinian-Israeli collaboration, Basel and Yuval and the vital movie they've made give us reason to hope.”

– Justin Chang, National Public Radio

The Italian Film Festival USA returns to the DFT with a selection of contemporary Italian films. Discover new filmmakers, and the variety of films they produce for Italian audiences. Films are in Italian with English subtitles. Screenings are free, visit italianfilmfests.org in March for a complete schedule.

UK/1955—directed by Alexander Mackendrick | 91 min.

In The Ladykillers, Alec Guinness plays the buck-toothed mastermind of a gang of criminals – including Herbert Lom and Peter Sellers – who plan to kill the sweet, innocent landlady, Katie Johnson, in order to silence her and secure their hideout. However, they quickly find that her unyielding British fortitude and stamina make their task far more complicated than expected. 

One of the most inventive and hilarious of the Ealing Studio comedies, The Ladykillers(remade by the Coen Brothers in 2004) has been lovingly restored to its original vibrant color design. This classic comedy was nominated for an Academy Award® for Best Original Screenplay.

"A superbly elegant comedy! Even after 65 years, it still kills... subversive and hilarious." – Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

As part of a newly restored 4K Ealing Studios collection, this darkly comic masterpiece showcases the brilliant talents of Alec Guinness, widely recognized for his portrayal of Obi-Wan Kenobi.

Screening Schedule:

• Kind Hearts and Coronets – May 23 @ 7:00 pm
• The Lavender Hill Mob – May 24 @ 3:00 pm
• The Man in the White Suit – May 24 @ 7:00 pm
• The Ladykillers – May 25 @ 2:00 pm