Institute History
Description
In 1961 two young American filmmakers, Robert Young (The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez) and Michael Roemer (The Plot against Harry), went to Sicily to document for NBC the severe social conditions in Cortile Cascino, a Palermo slum, Shooting in striking black and white, they focused their cameras on one family, at the heart of which was Angela, a mother of enormous courage struggling to help her family survive amidst poverty, Violence and crime_ The resultant documentary, called Cortile Cascino, was deemed "too powerful" for American television audiences. Curious about what had become of Angela and her family since their slum was torn down in the sixties, Young returned to Sicily in 1988 with his son Andrew, and daughter-in-law Susan Todd. Finding Angela and the remaining members of her family still in Palermo, they decided to make anew film, interweaving the 1961 footage with new color sections shot in 1991.
Children of Fate, encompassing three generations in one family, is a heart-wrenching depiction of the difficulty of escaping the fate dictated by one's origins. Although Angela eventually left her abusive husband, most of her children have been in prison, and are uneducated and unemployed. A litany of tragedies is revealed; yet Angela, her children, and now her grandchildren continue to make their way in the world, not only surviving, but occasionally succeeding in changing their fortunes, if only modestly. Searing and unforgettable, the thirty-year arc of Children of Fate leaves an indelible imprint on the viewer.
—Robert Hawk
Preceded by
Suspended Abbey
Friday Jan 22 1:00 pm
Holiday Village Cinema I
Saturday Jan 24 4:00 pm
Holiday Village Cinema I
Wednesday Jan 27 10:00 pm
Holiday Village Cinema I
Friday Jan 29 10:00 am
Egyptian Theatre
$6.00