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Consumerism Docs at the MFA

Jockumentaries

The sweat, the sinew, the roaring crowds. Considering the imagery the sports world has to offer, there’s little wonder why filmmakers have been training their lenses on athletes since the dawn of cinema. For their “Sports on Film” series, the Museum of Fine Arts (465 Huntington Avenue, Boston, 617.267.9300) eschews the typical schmaltz and bottom-of-the- ninth-bases-loaded suspense that normally plague the genre, opting for style instead. Here’s the starting line-up.

Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait (2006) | APRIL 8–18
Bend It Like Beckham this ain’t. Few films are as conceptually stripped-down as Zidane: using 17 cameras, filmmakers Douglas Gordon and Philippe Parreno track every movement of now-retired soccer star Zinedine Zidane throughout a
2005 Madrid stadium match. No narrative or offthe-field biographical backstory distracts from the footballer’s elegant footwork in this intense study of solitude.

The Great Ecstasy of Sculptor Steiner (1974) | APRIL 9–12
In this profile of Walter Steiner and his quest to break the world’s ski-jumping record, director Werner Herzog follows Steiner behind the scenes and off the slopes while also exploring the eccentric Swiss skier’s other obsession — carving odd wooden sculptures, which he leaves on mountainsides for hikers to find. Awkward and gangly on terra firma, Steiner’s “great ecstasy” comes in his graceful, jaw-dropping leaps.

Yeah Right! (2003) | APRIL 10–23
After unleashing such reality-blurring pictures as Being John Malkovich and Adaptation, Spike Jonze released a skateboarding film like none other. No mere documentary, Yeah Right! offers a fisheyed look at skater luminaries, combined with digitally aided, physics-defying stunts (invisible boards, impossible jumps, and a dreamlike zombie-board sequence), plus a peek at an affable Owen Wilson talking a little trash and showing off his rail-sliding steez.

On Any Sunday (1971) | APRIL 18
The Jane Goodall of adrenaline junkies, Bruce Brown explored the world of motorcycle racing — including ice racing, off-roading, and rough-and-tumble dirt-track racing — for this Oscarnominated feature. Overlook the dorky narration and twangy country-western soundtrack, and you’ll reap a bounty of breathtaking action shots, courtesy of a pack of daredevils unfazed by broken noses, limbs, and even spines.

All films screen in the Remis Auditorium at the MFA. For times and ticket information, call 617.369.3306 or visit www.mfa.org.

Virtual vacations on the small screen

Tight budgets mean you’re probably not jetting off to Europe anytime soon, but you can still indulge your world-travel aspirations with these upcoming films.

BOSTON TURKISH FILM FESTIVAL
Who knows wanderlust better than carnies? In the Boston Turkish Film Festival’s A Fairground Attraction, two star-crossed lovers — a bewitching carnival performer and a construction worker — try to make romance bloom amid the popcorn-strewn dust of the midway. Other festival highlights include the taut thriller Three Monkeys and the historical drama LIsten to the Ney. The fest runs from March 27 to April 5 at the Museum of Fine Arts (465 Huntington Avenue, Boston, 17.267.9300); get tickets and a full lineup at 617.369.3907 or www.mfa.org.

L’ELISIR D’AMORE
No outing is more cultured than a trip to the opera, and no trip to the opera is more affordable than a Divas in the Dark showing at the Coolidge Corner Theatre (290 Harvard Street, Brookline, 617.734.2500). The upcoming installment of the opera-inspired film series will feature L’Elisir d’Amore (1996), a tale in which a peasant woos the woman of his dreams with a special “love potion.” It’s actually just wine, but his drunken antics turn out to be the kickstart this romance needs. Travel across the ocean and back in time to 1920s rural Italy for this commedia classic. It screens on April 5 at 11 a.m.; tickets are $9.75. For more info, call the theatre or visit www.coolidge.org.

SIN NOMBRE
“A psychic once told me you’ll make it to the USA — not in God’s hands, but in the hands of the devil,” the young Honduran protagonist of Sin Nombre tells her her friend, a Mexican teen trying to shed his violent gangland past, as they risk their lives to cross the border. A film that will doubtless renew your appreciation for being grounded in los Estados Unidos, Sin Nombre made a splash at Sundance 2009. Catch it at the Kendall Square Cinema (1 Kendall Square, Cambridge, 617.499.1996), starting March 27. Call or visit www.landmarktheatres.com for details.

TOKYO!
Many movies are love letters to filmmakers’ favorite cities, but few are as gleefully unhinged as Tokyo! In the spirit of Paris, je t’aime or New York Stories, Tokyo! is a triptych of short films from directors Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind), Leos Carax (The Lovers on the Bridge), and Bong Joonho (The Host). Together, these three vignettes — a surreal study of starving artists, a tale of a mutant sewer-dweller gone rogue, and a love story between a recluse and a pizza-delivery girl — hit the Kendall Square Cinema on April 10.

Man In The Mirrorball

Outtake: On the rights track

Okay, so maybe your employers just slashed a skrillion jobs — including yours. No use wallowing in despair. On the bright side, while you’re waiting for that dodgy temp agency to throw you some work, you’ll have plenty of time to catch up on movies. And any aspiring film buff in need of some perspective should head straight to the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival, running January 14 through 18 at the Museum of Fine Arts (465 Huntington Ave, Boston, 617.267.9300). Not only does the fest offer a staggering selection of global cinema (culled from such exotic locales as Lebanon, Chile, and Nepal), it’ll remind you that no matter how dire your job search, at least you’re not dodging land mines. Get program details at 617.369.3907 or www.mfa.org.