Released 13, 2005

Hattiesburg– THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY IS OFFERING TWO FILM SERIES DURING THE FALL 2005 SEMESTER, INCLUDING ITS REGULAR WORLD CIVILIZATION FILM SERIES AND ANOTHER FOCUSING ON THEMES AND ISSUES ABOUT GERMANY, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE DEPARTMENT’S FALL 2005 COURSE “GERMAN LANDS SINCE 1815.”

HISTORY PROFESSOR DR. ELIZABETH DRUMMOND IS THE COORDINATOR OF THE FILM SERIES. ALL FILMS WILL BE SHOWN ON WEDNESDAYS AT 6:30 P.M. IN ROOM 108 OF THE SOUTHERN MISS LIBERAL ARTS BUILDING. ADMISSION IS FREE.

FILM SERIES SELECTIONS, DESCRIPTIONS AND PRESENTATION DATES ARE AS FOLLOWS:

WORLD CIVILIZATION FILM SERIES

Sept. 2: A Very Long Engagement (France 2004; dir. Jean–Pierre Jeunet)

The story of a young man’s experiences in the deadly trenches of World War I and his fiancée’s search for him when he mysteriously disappears.

Oct. 5: Hero (China 2002; dir. Zhang Yimou)

Set in ancient China, during the “Era of the Warring States,” the story of warring factions who plot to assassinate the most powerful ruler, Qin. When a minor official (Jet Li) defeat’s Qin’s principal enemies, he is summoned before the king to tell the story of his victory.

Oct. 19: Blackboards (Iran 2000; dir. Samira Makhmalbaf)

The story of a group of young teachers as they travel through Kurdistan in search of students. Along the way the teachers meet refugees fleeing Saddam Hussein’s chemical warfare and encounter the hardships of mountain life.

Nov. 2: The Motorcycle Diaries

(USA/Germany/UK/Argentina/Chile/Peru/France 2004; dir. Walter Salles)

The story of a young Ernesto “Che” Guevara, later a leader of the Cuban Revolution, and his best friend, Alberto Granado, as they travel through South America by motorcycle in the early 1950s.

Nov. 16: Alexander Nevsky (USSR 1938; dir. Sergei Eisenstein)

The great Russian director Sergei Eisenstein tells the story of how a Russian prince led a ragtag army to battle and defeat the invading Teutonic Knights in the late Middle Ages.

Dec. 7: Mandabi [The Money Order] (Senegal 1968; dir. Ousmane Sembene)

The story of a poor Senegalese Muslim who finds himself pitted against overwhelming bureaucratic and societal forces. A window into the culture of post–colonial Senegal, caught between tradition and modernity.

Dec. 14: Black Robe (Canada 1999; dir. Bruce Beresford)

The story of a Jesuit missionary in Quebec in the 17th century and his interactions with the indigenous Huron Indians.

GERMAN HISTORY FILM SERIES

Sept. 14: The Kaiser’s Lackey [Der Untertan] (East Germany 1951; dir. Wolfgang Staudte)

Based on Heinrich Mann’s famous novel, the film is a biting critique of the political culture of Imperial Germany.

Sept. 28: M—A Town Is Looking for a Murderer [M—Eine Stadt sucht einen Moerder) (Weimar Germany, 1931; dir. Fritz Lang)

Considered by many to be the best German film of all time, the film offers a window into Berlin’s underworld in the interwar period, a time of political and economic instability.

Oct.12: Conspiracy (UK/USA 2001; dir. Frank Pierson)

A dramatic recreation of the Wannsee Conference (January 1942), where members of the Nazi leadership devised the “Final Solution to the Jewish Question.”

Oct. 26: Downfall [Der Untergang] (Germany 2004; dir. Oliver Hirschbeigel)

The story of Adolf Hitler’s final days in his Berlin bunker at the end of World War II, the film sparked considerable controversy in Germany for humanizing the Nazi dictator.

Nov. 9: One, Two, Three (USA, 1961; dir. Billy Wilder)

A comedy about Coca–Cola’s man in West Berlin, who must prevent his American boss’s daughter from marrying a Communist East Berliner. A humorous look at life in a divided Berlin before the Berlin Wall, as well as at the Americanization and de–Nazification of West German society.

Nov. 30: Goodbye Lenin! (Germany 2003; dir. Wolfgang Becker)

A young man, in an effort to protect his mother after awakening from a long coma, must keep her from learning that her beloved East Germany has disappeared.

For more information on the film series, contact Dr. Drummond at (601) 266-5398.

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