Films coming soon to the Knickerbocker

NIGHTS AT THE KNICK — “The Trip to Spain,” top, and “The Unknown Girl,” bottom, are the last two films to be shown at the Knickerbocker before the Fall Film Series’ end Nov. 11. (Google)

Are you getting tired of mainstream, major box office movies? Not too far away from campus on 8th Street is Hope College’s Knickerbocker Theatre, where not only dance and music performances are held but also Hope’s very own Knickerbocker Film Series.

Each week, the Knick puts a different independent film in the spotlight. These films often have certain themes or various backgrounds that give awareness to uncommon perspectives. The first, “Maudie,” focused on an elderly woman who escapes her ongoing battle with arthritis by painting. The second, “Past Life,” follows two sisters in 1977 who unravel family history surrounding the Holocaust, previously unbeknownst to them. The Knickerbocker has two more films for the remainder of the fall series: “The Trip to Spain” and “The Unknown Girl.”

Beginning Oct. 9, “The Trip to Spain” will show Mon.- Sat. at 7:30 p.m. Released in August 2017, the movie is the third installment of the film adaptation of the TV series “The Trip,” starring British duo Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon as fictional versions of themselves.

Throughout each trip, Coogan and Brydon contemplate history, love and their roles as middle- aged fathers, among other topics while seeing the world and consuming its mouth-watering food. Rotten Tomatoes has credited the film with an 83% approval rating and applauds the film for maintaining consistency with the two installments that preceded “The Trip to Spain.” If you’re searching for the next best traveler’s film, look no further. Be cautious, though; you may leave the Knickerbocker itching to buy tickets for the next flight overseas.

Following “The Trip to Spain” is the Belgian-French drama “The Unknown Girl,” starring Adele Haenel. A French film with English subtitles, “The Unknown Girl” follows a young doctor overcome by guilt because of a girl’s tragic death outside her clinic. This moral drama, directed by the Dardenne brothers, famously known for “Two Days, One Night” and “The Kid With a Bike,” flips the notion that stories have a “good versus bad” plotline on its head. Because the lead character is a compassionate individual with whom viewers can agree and identify with, the film feels all the more unnerving once guilt enters the scene. This is the message the Dardennes really drive home, for guilt plagues all people. “The Unknown Girl” will run from Nov. 6-11 at 7:30 p.m.

This fall, Hope has been continuing its legacy of premiering independent motion pictures with strong cultural themes that began in 1988. Tickets are free for Hope students, $6 for faculty/seniors and $7 for adults.

For more information on the Film Series and other events at the Knickerbocker Theatre, go to www.hope.edu, click on “Arts,” “Knickerbocker Film Series.”