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"Cauleen Smith’s overlooked DIY classic from 1998 is a potent examination of the power of art and love in the midst of social upheaval." (Slant Magazine) The Essentials @ Moxie Cinema
Drylongso (1998) - Wednesday, June 19th @ 7p - Free for Members
Visit moxiecinema.com the week of the screening for tickets.
"Brought back to screens in a beautifully textured restoration, Drylongso stands today as fresh and bold a film as it was in 1998, confidently juggling contagious charm and potent political awareness. The vibrant debut of acclaimed artist Cauleen Smith navigated the blurry lines of the private and public, harnessing its protagonist’s endless charisma to comment on racial politics, the strictures of the art world, and the importance of community." (EIFF)
Synopsis: A lost treasure of 1990s DIY filmmaking, Cauleen Smith’s Drylongso embeds an incisive look at racial injustice within a lovingly handmade buddy movie/murder mystery/ romance. Alarmed by the rate at which the young Black men around her are dying—indeed, “becoming extinct,” as she sees it—brash Oakland art student Pica (Toby Smith) attempts to preserve their existence in Polaroid snapshots, along the way forging a friendship with a woman in an abusive relationship (April Barnett), experiencing love and loss, and being drawn into the search for a serial killer who is terrorizing the city. Capturing the vibrant community spirit of Oakland in the nineties, Smith crafts both a rare cinematic celebration of Black female creativity and a moving elegy for a generation of lost African American men. [Janus] (R, 81 min.)
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
305 S Campbell, Suite 101, Springfield, MO, United States, Missouri 65806