Fri, May 16 – Tue, May 20
Fri at 6:00pm; Sat at 3:15, 7:30; Sun at 8:30pm; Tue at 6:00pm
1999 • Zeinabu irene Davis • 92 min • 4K DCP • Presented with open captions
A landmark of independent cinema, COMPENSATION is Zeinabu irene Davis’s moving, ambitious portrait of the struggles of Deaf African Americans and the complexities of loving relationships at the bookends of the twentieth century. In extraordinary dual performances, Michelle A. Banks and John Earl Jelks play Malindy and Arthur, a couple in 1910 Chicago, as well as Malaika and Nico, a couple living in the same city almost eighty years later. Their stories are deftly interwoven through the creative use of archival photography, an original score featuring ragtime and African percussion, and an editing style both lyrical and tender. Malindy, an industrious, intelligent dressmaker, falls for Arthur, an illiterate migrant from Mississippi, along the shore of Lake Michigan. On the same beach in the present, Malaika, an inspired and resilient graphic artist, softens before a brash yet endearing children’s librarian, Nico. Each pair faces the obstacles of their time as Black Americans, including structural racism and emerging pandemics. COMPENSATION remains a groundbreaking story of inclusion and visibility that bears witness to the social forces and prejudices that stand in the way of love. – Janus Films
Trailer:
Please note: COMPENSATION screens in a double feature with KILLER OF SHEEP when there are two consecutive showtimes.
“Beautiful and poignant… Compensation is an important achievement, illuminating and captivating, and it deserves the chance to reach the widest audience possible.” – Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-feb-24-ca-1905-story.html
“The great power of the movie, beyond the passionate specifics of its romantic dramas, is in the distillation of an enormous vision of historical unity.” – Richard Brody, New Yorker
https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-front-row/the-theatrical-release-of-compensation-is-cause-for-celebration
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