Last year at the Toronto Film Festival, we fell in love with Gerardo Naranjo’s I’M GONNA EXPLODE. It is the perfect summer movie - cool, sexy and totally in love with the movies. We’re thrilled to present the NYC Theatrical premiere at the Walter Reade Theater starting today. Also, don’t miss DRAMA/MEX, a film we released a few years ago that Gerardo made also.

I’m Gonna Explode



U.S. Theatrical Premiere
of the 2008 New York Film Festival Selection
One Week Only – Aug 12-18
Director Gerardo Naranjo to Appear in Person!



The Film Society of Lincoln Center is proud to present the U.S. Theatrical Premiere of Gerardo Naranjo’s I’m Gonna Explode showing at the Walter Reade Theater from Wednesday, August 12 through Tuesday, August 18 (one week). Director Naranjo will appear in person on Wednesday, August 12 and Friday, August 14 for both of the 6:15pm and 9:00pm screenings on each day.



Up-and-coming director Gerardo Naranjo (Drama/Mex, Malachance) brings the 2008 New York Film Festival favorite back to The Film Society for a weeklong run. I’m Gonna Explode, an epic youth film which channels Bonnie and Clyde and the French New Wave (complete with Georges Delerue music), tells the story of Roman (Juan Pablo de Santiago), the son of a sleazy right-wing congressman, and Maru (Maria Deschamps). Roman and Maru meet at the high school talent show, where Roman does a performance called “I’ll Meet You in Hell,” then ineptly hangs himself on stage (with Maru the only one who applauds). The duo bonds in detention, and then it’s off into the night in a stolen Volkswagen with daddy’s gun.



Absurdist and ultimately heartbreaking, reminiscent of the rawness of his Mexican predecessors Alfonso Cuarón (Y tu mamá también, Children of Men) and Alejandro González Iñárritu (Amores Perros, Babel), complete with two wonderfully fresh performances by de Santiago and Deschamps, I’m Gonna Explode is further proof of Mexican cinema’s ongoing vitality.



Also screening is Naranjo’s vibrant second feature, Drama/Mex set in the dangerous back alleys of Acapulco. Drama/Mex weaves together three stories, deftly united by Naranjo through shifting timeframes and unexpected turns. Produced by Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna, the film was selected for Critics’ Week at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival.



IFC Films | 2008 | 106m | Mexico | In Spanish with English subtitles | Color | 2.35:1



The Film Society of Lincoln Center was founded in 1969 to celebrate American and international cinema, to recognize and support new directors, and to enhance the awareness, accessibility and understanding of film. Advancing this mandate today, under the leadership of Executive Director Mara Manus and Program Director Richard Peña, The Film Society hosts two distinguished festivals—The New York Film Festival and New Directors/New Films—as well as the annual Gala Tribute, and a year-round calendar of programming at its Walter Reade Theater. It also offers definitive examinations of essential films and artists to a worldwide audience through Film Comment magazine.



The Film Society of Lincoln Center’s Walter Reade Theater is located at 165 West 65th St. between Amsterdam Avenue and Broadway.



Film Descriptions



I’m Gonna Explode / Voy a explotar
Gerardo Naranjo, Mexico, 2008; 106m



Roman, the son of a sleazy right-wing congressman, contributes to his high school talent show by attempting to hang himself on stage. Maru, from the other side of the tracks, is the only one who claps. They bond in detention, and after staging a mock abduction it’s off in a stolen Volkswagen with daddy’s gun to the end of the night. Two wonderfully fresh performances by Maria Deschamps and Juan Pablo de Santiago grace this engaging and often funny youth film, a 2008 New York Film Festival selection.



Wed Aug 12: 2:00pm, 4:10pm, *6:15pm, and *9:00pm
Thu Aug 13: 4:15pm
Fri Aug 14: 4:10pm, *6:15pm, and *9:00pm
Sat Aug 15: 7:20pm and 9:30pm
Sun Aug 16: 2:00pm, 4:10pm, and 8:45pm
Mon Aug 17: 2:00pm, 4:10pm, and 6:15pm
Tue Aug 18: 1:00pm

Drama/Mex
Gerardo Naranjo, Mexico, 2006; 105m



Produced by Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna and selected for Critics’ Week at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival, Drama/Mex weaves together three stories set in decidedly non-tourist sections of Acapulco. Chano won’t accept that his ex-girlfriend Fernanda doesn’t want him anymore. Her current beau Gonzalo wants to fight for what he now thinks is his. And having helped himself to his company’s payroll, Jaime plans to end it all in a cozy cottage on the beach. Naranjo deftly unites these three perspectives through shifting timeframes and unexpected turns.



Thu Aug 13: 2:00pm
Fri Aug 14: 2:00pm
Sat Aug 15: 5:15pm
Sun Aug 16: 6:20pm

* filmmaker in attendance



What’s playing when:



Wednesday, Aug. 12
2:00 I’m Gonna Explode
4:10 I’m Gonna Explode
*6:15 I’m Gonna Explode
*9:00 I’m Gonna Explode

Thursday, Aug. 13
2:00 Drama/Mex
4:15 I’m Gonna Explode

Friday, Aug. 14
2:00 Drama/Mex
4:10 I’m Gonna Explode
*6:15 I’m Gonna Explode
*9:00 I’m Gonna Explode

Saturday, Aug. 15
5:15 Drama/Mex
7:20 I’m Gonna Explode
9:30 I’m Gonna Explode

Sunday, Aug. 16
2:00 I’m Gonna Explode
4:10 I’m Gonna Explode
6:20 Drama/Mex
8:45 I’m Gonna Explode

Monday, Aug. 17
2:00 I’m Gonna Explode
4:10 I’m Gonna Explode
6:15 I’m Gonna Explode

Tuesday, Aug. 18
1:00 I’m Gonna Explode

All times p.m.
* filmmaker in attendance