A variety of subjects – animal rights, environmental concerns, discrimination, among others – are addressed in the six films scheduled for the coming months by First Tuesday Social Justice Films. These films are presented free to the public at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Oak Cliff, 3839 W. Kiest Blvd., Dallas. Following each film is a discussion by the audience, with all opinions and suggestions welcomed and respected. All films begin at 7:00 pm. Refreshments are provided.
These films are co-sponsored by the Unitarian Universalist Church of Oak Cliff’s Social Justice Ministry and the Dallas Peace Center http://dallaspeacecenter.org and paid for through donations. For more information about the film series, visit http://www.firsttuesdayfilms.org/index.shtml or http://www.facebook.com/firsttuesdayfilms.
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
April 1, Wall-E: An indictment of rampant consumerism? A dire look at the impact we are having on our plant? An homage to nostaligia? A love story? Yes.
Wall-E, an animated romantic science fiction film, tackles such issues as consumerism, nostalgia, environmental problems, and waste management. A robot designed to clean up a waste-covered earth, Wall-E falls in love with Eve, another robot with a programmed task. The two go into outer space and experience an adventure that changes their destiny and the destiny of those who created them.
The film is seen as a critique and an examination of the impact humans have on this planet and the risk to our civilization and Earth.
Produced by Pixar Animation Studios and directed by Andrew Stanton, the film was released by Walt Disney Pictures on June 27, 2008. (G, 98 min.) http://movies.disney.com/wall-e
ANIMAL RIGHTS
May 6: Blackfish: Tilikum was a hugh 12,000-pound orca - a killer whale involved in several deaths while in captivity. Through actual footage the films shows what these animals are capable of. Interviews with those knowledgeable about orcas provide insights into their extraordinary nature, their various cultures, social structures, and their close family relations – all of which are disrupted and ignored when in captivity.
Because of the film, according to the Chicago Tribune, January 21, 2014, “SeaWorld (the owner of Tilikum when the last trainer was killed) was fined by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration and ordered to end the practice of allowing trainers to enter tanks with killer whales during performances (after the last trainer was killed.)” On March 1, the Tribune reported the company is challenging OSHA's restrictions in federal court.
This film, directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite, premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and was picked up by Magnolia Pictures. (PG- 130 min.) http://blackfishmovie.com
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
June 3, Blockadia Rising: Voices of the Tar Sands Blockade: The story takes place in the backwoods of East Texas where the pipeline, being built by a Canadian corporation to bring tar sands oil from Alberta Canada to refineries near the Gulf of Mexico, crosses farmlands and homesteads as well as aquifers and old growth forests.
In 2012, Texas landowners and environmental activists came together to organize non-violent resistance to this hazardous project which continues despite unprecedented opposition from communities, farmers and global environmental movements. The film explains the dangers of tar sands extraction and the risks to public health posed by the pipeline.
In conjunction with the Tar Sands Blockade, was written, edited and narrated by Garrett Graham, an active participant of the Tar Sands Blockade and features exclusive video footage shot by the blockaders themselves during the course of over six months of resistance. (60 min) http://www.tarsandsblockade.org
DISCRIMINATION
July 1, Hairspray: Although most films presented by First Tuesday are documentaries, occasionally a fictional piece addresses a serious issue in an entertaining and fun manner. Hairspray is a “bubbly, campy and basically just good family fun” even as it deals with rasicm and sizeism.
Central to this 2007 movie is Tracy (Nikki Blonsky) a teen a bit on the plump side who wants to appear on a local dance show populated by her more slender – and, like Tracy, all white contemporaries. The horrid station manager Velma Von Tussle Michelle (Pfeiffer), her equally self-absorbed daughter, Amber (Brittany Snow), and even Tracy’s mother Edna (John Travolta – yes, the mother) don’t believe she has a chance, but father (Christopher Walken) supports her.
Motormouth Maybelle (Queen Latifah) who substitutes for the show’s MC Corny Collins (James Marsden) has been unable to integrate the show but Tracey joins Motormouth to work on ending discrimination at least on that TV show. The film runs (PG 117 min.) http://www.hairspraymovie2007.webs.com/movienews.htm
POVERTY
Aug. 5, Skid Row: Successful hip-hop artist Pras Michel of Fugees and skid row seem to be worlds apart but in 2007, Pras Michel left his world and took up residence as a homeless person in skid row for nine straight days taking with him only undercover surveillance cameras.
On any given night, in a 50 square block are of downtown Los Angeles, there is an average of 90,000 homeless and transient people live ing. Skid row for them is not just a place. It has become a way of life, a mind set. It is, in fact the last resort, a destitute place for those who have given up.
Just as his neighbors there, Pras contended with hunger, the elements, criminals, drugs, and the other dangers facing the homeless. He learned how to fend for himself and discovers the dark, sometimes humorous, but very human underbelly of Los Angeles. (R 80 min.) https://www.facebook.com/SkidRowMovie
PHILOSOPHY AND CURRENT AFFAIRS
Sept. 2, 10 Questions for the Dalai Lama: How do you reconcile a commitment to non-violence when faced with violence? Why do the poor often seem happier than the rich? Must a society lose its traditions in order to move into the future? These are some of the questions Rick Ray asked Tenzin Gyatso, the Dalai Lama, during an interview in the monastery in Dharamsala, India
The film chronicles Rick Ray’s journey through India and switches between the present and recent past. Included are sections on the personal history of Tenzin Gyatso, the process of selecting a Dalai Lama, and Gyatso’s journey into exile, his present daily life, his international peace efforts, and his work with Tibetan refugees. (Unrated 85 min) http://10questionsforthedalailama.com/