Issue:
. . . at 19:00 on Thursday, July 27 for a sneak preview of the internationally acclaimed Out of My Hand, a searing drama set in Liberia and New York City, directed by Takeshi Fukunaga. His award winning debut marks just the second time a foreign crew has shot a film in Liberia, and features powerful performances from several first time actors. Cisco (Bishop Blay, in a raw, commanding debut) is a rubber plantation worker in the Liberian countryside with a loving wife, two small daughters, and a group of friends who stick up for each other. But he’s smart enough to know they’re all expendable. When his union calls a strike that proves disastrous, he seizes the chance to escape his crippling poverty and follows his cousin to New York City. There, he finds a job as a taxi driver, a welcoming community of fellow Liberians, and a life that’s not so different from back home. For a time, he avoids interactions, fearing any hint of trouble. But then a ghost from the past rises up to haunt him. Jacob (David Roberts), a former child soldier with a burning rage, is the one person who can unleash Cisco’s own demons. Writer director Fukunaga will join us for a Q&A session following the screening. (USA/Liberia, 2015; 88 minutes; English with English/Japanese subtitles.)
– Karen Severns
