Weekend fests and events.

"Regarded as a modern master in Europe, on a par with Buñuel, Dreyer and Bresson (filmmakers to whom he is sometimes compared), [Manoel de] Oliveira is a more marginal figure in the United States," writes Dennis Lim. "BAMcinématek's centennial retrospective... is an opportunity to take stock of a singular career and to catch some rarely screened films." Through March 30.

Related: "Like Jia Zhang-ke's recent Still Life, Manoel de Oliveira's new Christopher Columbus - The Enigma parallels a foreground story of personal changes and losses with a background one: how all has been lost to history," writes David Pratt-Robson.

Back in the New York Times: "Jean-Luc Godard's radiant, ambiguous, serenely perverse Contempt, 45 this year, is being revived again, in startling color and elegant, ribbony CinemaScope, for the second time in just over a decade, and it's beginning to look like one of those movies we can't do without for very long: a classic," writes Terrence Rafferty. "Film Forum, which in 1997 gave New Yorkers their first opportunity in many years to see the film on the large screen it practically requires, starts another run (two weeks, minimum) on Friday."

"Throughout March, the Northwest Film Center affords a chance to take a hearty gulp of the Altmanesque," notes the Oregonian's Shawn Levy. "It Don't Worry Me: A Tribute to Robert Altman consists of a dozen films drawn from more than 30 years, from Brewster McCloud and MASH (both 1970) to Gosford Park (2001)."

"Playful and eclectic though he may be, Brazilian filmmaker Jorge Furtado, whose work gets a rare screening in a brief retrospective this weekend at the Harvard Film Archive, has pursued the same preoccupations through his entire 25-year career, beginning with his arch, masterfully constructed and jolting shorts." A preview from Peter Keough in the Boston Phoenix.

Rob Nelson files from the Miami International Film Festival, on through tomorrow, for Filmmaker.

Dennis Cozzalio rounds up goings on in the Los Angeles area.

French Film Festival UK runs through March 20. At european-films.net, Boyd van Hoeij previews Emmanuel Mouret's Changement d'adresse (Change of Address), Philippe Lioret's Je vais bien ne t'en fais pas (Don't Worry I'm Fine) and Emmanuel Bourdieu's Les amitiés maléfiques (Poison Friends).

Acquarello has the lineup for the 2008 New York African Film Festival, running April 9 through 15.

Michael Guillén has extensive notes on Pedro Costa's comments made during a Q&A following the Pacific Film Archive's screening of O Sangue.

Filmbrain springs to the defense of Erick Zonca's Julia, which took a critical drubbing at the Berlinale.

Online viewing tip. "This year, the spots for the True/False Film Festival were some of the best I've ever seen." Joel Heller's got 'em.

Posted by dwhudson at March 8, 2008 2:55 PM