Revolution in the Revolution. Webster University presents a series showcasing Soviet cinema from 1959-1970. This week features Mikhail Kalatozov's The Letter Never Sent (1959), one of the most beautiful and frightening presentations of nature on film. So stunning are the deep focus compositions and so ethereal is the gorgeous light that experiencing it is akin to a surreal trip through an Ansel Adams photograph. Based on actual events, four geologists carry out a state-sponsored expedition to Siberia to hunt for diamond deposits scientists believe exist. A liberated camera energetically captures the characters at work, races with them in elation and prowls with them in despair as things go tragically wrong. Hallucinatory in its images and its storytelling, Letter is a mythic tale of the physical and emotional struggle to survive in extreme conditions. In Russian with subtitles. Plays at 7 p.m. Nov. 8 at Webster University. (DC)
St. Louis International Film Festival. The 10th annual festival is St. Louis' biggest and best, and showcases international, national and local films. Screenings are held the Hi Pointe, Tivoli, Plaza Frontenac and Webster University. For a complete schedule of featured films, see p. 44. For a listing of special events, sidebars, forums and last minute changes, check www.sliff.org.
