Theatr Mwldan Film Society / Cymdeithas Ffilm Theatr Mwldan

Cert 15

Matteo Garrone | Italy | 2008 | 135′

Power, money and blood: these are the ‘values’ that the residents of the province of Naples and Caserta confront every day. They have practically no choice, and are forced to obey the rules of the ‘System’, the Gomorra. Only a lucky few can even think of leading a ‘normal’ life.  Five stories are woven together in this violent scenario, set in a cruel and ostensibly invented world, but one that is deeply rooted in reality. Winner of the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival 2008. 

Awdurdod, arian a gwaed: dyma’r ‘gwerthoedd’ y gorfodir i drigolion ardal Naples a  Caserta eu hwynebu’n ddyddiol. ‘Does dim dewis, mae’n rhaid iddynt ufuddhau rheolau’r system, sef y ‘Gomorra’. Caiff pum stori eu cydblethu yma yn erbyn cefndir treisiol a chreulon, ond un real, serch hynny.

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Cert 15

Dennis Gansel | Germany | 2008 |107′

An unorthodox social experiment takes on a life of its own when Rainer Wenger decides to start to demonstrate the meaning of the word ‘autocracy’ in language that his students will understand.  He must make them live it, and so The Wave, the name given to their new movement, is systematically created in the classroom from where it spreads with dangerous speed.  This intense, gripping drama cuts through superficial ideoligies and goes straight to the human psychologies that contribute to Fascist movements.  The terrifying irony is that these students may welcome the very things they denounce.

Drama afaelgar am arbrawf cymdeithasol anarferol sy’n cymryd arno fywyd ei hun tu allan i’r ystafell ddosbarth wrth i athro geisio arddangos ystyr y gair ‘awtocratiaeth’ i’w fyfyrwyr mewn iaith byddant yn ei deall.

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Cert 15

Baltasar Kormakur | Iceland | Germany | Denmark | 2006 | 95′

An outstanding Scandinavian crime thriller which uncovers secrets that are much larger than the murder of one elderly man, found murdered in his basement flat. Inspector Erlendur and his crew don’t have much to go on, but discover that many years ago the victim was accused, though not convicted, of horrible crimes. As Erlendur reopens this very cold case, he follows a trail of unusual forensic evidence, with clues knit into the genetic bloodline of an entire country.

Ffilm gyffro penigamp am drosedd, wedi ei lleoli yng Ngwlad yr Iâ, sy’n datgelu cyfrinachau sy’n mynd ymhell tu hwnt i lofruddiaeth un hen ŵr. Ymhen hir, mae’r heddlu’n ymchwilio i orffennol atgas yr hen ŵr, a daw gwybodaeth a themâu dyfnach a thywyllach o lawer i’r wyneb.

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Cert 15

Reha Erdem | Turkey | 2006 |112′

A staggeringly beautiful story about three children on the cusp of adulthood, set in a small, poor Turkish village isolated by high mountains, facing the immense sea and flanked by olive yards.  The villagers are simple but diligent people who struggle to cope with life’s harsh nature, living according to the rhythm of the earth, the air and water, the day and night and all the seasons. Erdem’s unsentimental compassion towards his characters gives this film its wondrous power and depth.

Stori brydferth tu hwnt am dri phlentyn ar drothwy oedolaeth, sydd wedi ei gosod mewn pentref tlawd yn Nhwrci lle mae’r trigolion yn arwain bywydau syml sydd mewn cytgord â rhythmau’r Byd.

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Come and help celebrate 20 years of Theatr Mwldan Film Society!

Andrew Grieve, the Director of On the Black Hill will be joining us for a special evening during which he will introduce and discuss the film, and answer your questions after the screening. A free buffet will also be provided during the evening for all those attending the film.
Dewch i’n helpu i ddathlu 20 mlynedd o Gymdeithas Ffilm Theatr Mwldan! Bydd Andrew Grieve, cyfarwyddwr On the Black Hill yn ymuno â ni am noson arbennig, a bydd yn cyflwyno a thrafod y ffilm, ac yn ateb eich cwestiynau ar ôl ei gwylio. Bydd bwffe am ddim ar gael yn ystod y noson i bawb sy’n gwylio’r ffilm.

5.45 - 6.30 Buffet

6.30 Talk by Andrew Grieve, Director of On The Black Hill

7.00 On The Black Hill

Cert 15

Andrew Grieve | UK | 1988 | 117′

The film adaptation of Bruce Chatwin’s novel covers eighty years in the lives of a pair of Welsh identical twins with an unusual bond, as they go through war, love affairs, and land disputes. The incidents along the twins’ long life are a backdrop to the drama of the land; its famously changeable weather and long winters.  Thaddeus O’Sullivan’s photography impressively captures the bleak (’Black’) higher land and the harshness of living on it and from it, but also highlights its beauty. Director Andrew Grieve’s own screenplay and Bob Peck’s often frightening performance convey the explosive, brutal temper of tenant farmer Amos - a man literally worked to death by the land - but also his tenderness, despair, and the conflicts between his Chapel belief and family experiences. On the Black Hill celebrates the people and land of the Black Mountains and as a project that enjoyed the active support and involvement of the community it depicted, the film is unrivalled. We originally showed this film back in the eighties after it was released, as part of our programme , but no record of the actual date exists.

Mae’r ffilm yn addasiad o nofel Bruce Chatwin sy’n rhychwantu pedwar ugain mlynedd ym mywydau gefeilliaid unfath Cymreig a chanddynt rwymyn arbennig. Mae’r ffilm yn dilyn hynt a helynt eu bywydau, y ffotograffiaeth yn dangos y tir llwm, y tywydd newidiol a’r gaeafoedd hir sy’n gyfeiliant iddynt. Mae On the Black Hill yn ddathliad o drigolion a thirwedd y Mynydd Du, prosiect y bu’r gymuned yn rhan ohono ac yn ei gefnogi.

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Cert 15

César Charlone, Enrique Fernández | Uruguay | Brazil | France | 2007 | 98’

It is 1988, and the Pope´s impending visit to the small town of Melo, on the Uruguay-Brazilian border, stimulates a flurry of activity among the poorest residents, who hope to strike it rich by catering to the needs of the 50,000 expected pilgrims. Brimming with enthusiasm, the villagers not only hope for divine blessing, but above all for a small share of material happiness. Petty smuggler Beto is certain that he´s found the best business idea of all: “The Pope’s Toilet”, where the thousands of pilgrims can find relief… An alternatingly touching, humorous and poignant story of human dignity and solidarity from director-scriptwriters Enrique Fernández and noted cinematographer César Charlone (Oscar-nominated “City of God”), co-produced by Oscar-nominee Fernando Meirelles (“City of God”, “The Constant Gardener”).

Mae ymweliad y Pab â thref fach Melo yn achosi cyffro mawr ymhlith y trigolion tlotaf, sy’n gobeithio elwa o’r 50,000 o bererinion sy’n siŵr o’i ddilyn. Yn llawn brwdfrydedd, maent yn gobeithio am fendith, ond yn anad dim, maent yn gobeithio cael rhannu yn yr hapusrwydd materol. Stori ddoniol a theimladwy am urddas ac undod dynol.

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Cert 12A

Shane Meadows | UK | 2008 | 71′ | DIGIDOL / DIGITAL

Despite its rough and ready charm, this tale of the friendship between Marek, a Polish immigrant teen, and Tommo (Thomas Turgoose of This is England), a Midlands runaway, is arguably Shane Meadows’s most moving film yet. Underneath the teenage banter and bravura, Meadows has crafted a poignant story in which both boys lean on each other in lieu of emotionally or physically absent parents. Shot in black-and-white and partly in Polish, Meadows doesn’t shirk from showing the seedier side of Somers Town, yet he paints the city with a stark beauty and portrays London’s immigrant and indigenous communities with good humour as well as the requisite grit. Winner of the prestigious Michael Powell award at the 2008 Edinburgh Film Festival, Somers Town has been hailed as the best British film this year.

Stori am gyfeillgarwch rhwng Marek, mewnfudwr o Wlad Pwyl, a Tommo, crwt o Ganolbarth Lloegr sydd wedi rhedeg i ffwrdd o gartref. Mae’n hanes ingol, wedi ei ffilmio mewn du a gwyn, gyda darnau ym Mhwyleg, sy’n dangos y ddau grwt yn dibynnu y naill ar y llall mewn absenoldeb rhieni. Enillydd Gwobr Michael Powell yn 2008, dyma o bosib ffilm Brydeinig orau’r flwyddyn.

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Cert 12A

James Marsh | UK | 2007 | 90′

In 1974, Philippe Petit committed one of the world’s greatest “art crimes”: walking across a tightrope strung between the then unfinished World Trade Centre towers. James Marsh’s inspiring documentary Man on Wire tells artist Philippe Petit’s story from his early days as an aspiring performer of circus arts, through his wire walks between the towers of Notre Dame and across the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and up through the lengthy planning and execution of his famous World Trade Centre high-wire stunt. Filled with jaw-dropping footage of NYC and paced like a ’70s-era heist film, this is both thrilling and profound, a movie that reaches great heights.
Ym 1974, cerddodd Philipe Petit ar draws rhaff dynn rhwng tyrau Canolfan Masnach y Byd. Mae’r ffilm hon yn adrodd hanes Petit o’i ddyddiau cynnar fel perfformiwr mewn syrcas, i gerdded rhaffau rhwng tyrrau Notre Dame, ac ar hyd Pont Harbwr Sydney. Gyda golygfeydd anghredadwy o gyffrous, peidiwch ag edrych i lawr!

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Cert 15

Thomas McCarthy | USA | 2007 | 106′

In this gem of film from Tom McCarthy (The Station Agent), Richard Jenkins gives a brilliantly sustained performance that gives depth, resonance and spiritual transcendence. Jenkins plays a mid-50ish Connecticut professor, a widower who goes through the paces of academic life without enthusiasm or joy, and has pretty much withdrawn from life. When he finds two illegal aliens - a Syrian musician and his Senegalese girlfriend - in his Manhattan condo, he slowly becomes involved in their lives and takes us with him on a splendid emotional odyssey. The film works on several levels, and stands out as a wistful meditation on the psychological cost of 9/11. It’s also not afraid to show us, in a subtle, skillful and totally original way, an America that’s been increasingly dehumanized and vastly diminished by its new fear of the outside world.

Yn y ffilm arbennig hon, mae Richard Jenkins yn rhoi perfformiad penigamp fel athro a gweddw yn ei 50au o Gonneticut, sydd wedi colli blas ar waith ac ar fywyd. Mae’n darganfod dau fewnfudwr anghyfreithlon - cerddor o Syria a’i gariad o Senegal - yn ei fflat yn Manhattan, ac yn raddol mae’n dechrau ymwneud â’u bywydau. Ffilm fedrus sy’n dangos gwedd newydd ar America wedi 9/11.

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Cert 15

Sergei Bodrov | Germany | Kazakhstan | Russia | 2007 | 125’

Sergei Bodrov’s expansive and enthralling period biopic serves up sweeping action, drama and emotion like a Mongolian Braveheart as it chronicles the early years of the great Genghis Khan. As young tribal warrior Temudgin - the boy who would be Khan - grows to manhood on the remote plains of Central Asia, he fends off enemies, avenges his father’s death and finds true love (and family) with pugnacious bride Borte, before being kidnapped by slave-trading adversaries and unleashing the world-conquering warlord within. The movie paints a vividly accurate portrait of life in this unforgiving region: you can smell the yurts and yaks, and surrender to the exotic sounds of throat singing. The widescreen landscape photography is often ravishing, grey sky and green grass blurring in soft washes of misty morning pallor as sunlight creeps across the steppes.

Mae’r ffilm afaelgar hon yn croniclo blynyddoedd cynnar yr enwog Gengis Khan. Mae Temudgin - sef y Khan ifanc, yn cael ei fagu ar wastadoedd anghysbell Canol Asia, ardal anfaddeugar caiff ei phortreadu’n gelfydd yn y ffilm. Yn llawn emosiwn a drama, rhyfela, cariad a thalu’r pwyll yn ôl, cofiwch ddod i weld y Braveheart o Fongolia.

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