The Penguin Lessons

TIC movie night – The Penguin Lessons

Date: Friday, October 24, 2025
Review: by Anne van Oorschot

It was at the end of a windy and rainy Friday that 6 TIC members met at Cinecitta to watch a new film, The Penguin Lessons. The film was set in Argentina in 1976 at an elite boys school, where Tom Michell arrives as the new English teacher. On the cusp of a government coup, the situation is tense so Mr Michell takes a trip to nearby Uraguay on the weekend and – surprisingly – returns with an adorable small penguin.

Downton Abbey – the Grand Finale

Downton Abbey – the Grand Finale

Date: Friday, September 19, 2025
Reviewed by: Anne van Oorschot 

Our first movie night of the club year was a very intimate affair with only myself and a potential member attending. We went to the final Downton Abbey film, and while I enjoyed the film, maybe the film was part of the problem. Downton Abbey, a long running Netflix series, has 6 seasons and The Grand Finale is the 3rd film made which focuses on both the well-to-do Crawley family as well as their group of house & personal servants.

A Complete Unknown

A Complete Unknown

Date: March 28, 2025
Reviewed by: Anne van Oorschot 

Since I grew up in the 60’s and 70’s – yup, I’m that old 😉 – I heard a lot of Bob Dylan’s music as a kid. Add to that the fact that he comes from the state of Minnesota, just like me, and you can understand why I wanted to see the movie, A Complete Unknown. The movie follows the start of Dylan’s musical career in the 60’s in New York city.

The Brutalist

The Brutalist

Date: February 28, 2025
Reviewed by: Hein van Oorschot

On February 28, 9 TIC members & guests visited the movie The Brutalist in Cinecitta. The movie tells the story of an architect who belongs to the so called Brutalism style school (massive, intimidating, mostly raw concrete), that was popular during 3-4 decades after World War 2. (see an exemplary picture)

The Hungarian Jewish architect, Lásló Tóth, flees from Nazism to the USA (environment Philadelphia) without his wife, who follows him later.

Sing sing

Sing Sing

Date: January 31, 2025
Reviewed by: Natalie Harms

Sing Sing is not your typical American prison drama! For one, it’s not about violence and corruption in prison systems or inmates trying to break out. It is a story of hope. It’s about rehabilitation and the journey of the film’s incarcerated men to make sense of their actions, loss of freedom, and path to redemption.

The film is based on the real-life Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA) program at Sing Sing Maximum Security Prison in New York, which aims to use theatre as a way to rehabilitate inmates.

Here

Here

Date: November 29, 2024
Reviewed by: Anne van Oorschot

On the last Friday evening in November 4 TIC members met at Pathe to see the new and innovative movie, Here. The movie by director Robert Zemeckis, stars Tom Hanks and Robin Wright (reunited from Forrest Gump). The film’s unique aspect is that it is all about ONE PLACE (=Here) with the camera sitting in one spot, with 1 angle the entire time. While the bulk of the movie was about the lives of Richard and Margaret in the living room of a house built in the early 19th century, there were some flashbacks to previous owners of the house, as well as what was on that spot of land before the house was built, including a Native American tribe.

Girls will be Girls

Girls will be Girls

Date: October 22, 2024
Reviewed by: Sagnik Dutta

On Friday 22nd October, some members of TIC met at Cinecitta theater in the Willem II straat to watch Girls will be Girls. This Indian film was part of the theater’s 6th annual Cinecitta International Film Festival – CIFF. The movie, directed by Shuchi Talati, depicts the story of an Indian girl’s coming of age in a strict boarding school. It is a sensitive portrayal of how women negotiate with their sexual desires in a conservative society that polices women’s bodies.

Firebrand

Firebrand

Date: September 27, 2024
Reviewed by: Anne van Oorschot

On Friday evening, 6 TIC members braved the rainy and damp weather to gather at Cinecitta to see Firebrand. The film, the first English film by Brazilian film-maker Karim Aïnouz, was a period drama inspired by the lives of King Henry VIII and his last wife, Katherine Parr.  Alicia Vikander stars as Katherine, and an almost unrecognizable Jude Law plays Henry VIII. The story follows the Queen and dove deep into the life of a woman married to a tyrant.

Wicked Little Letters

Wicked Little Letters

Date: May 24, 2024
Reviewed by: Masako Kato

Anne and I enjoyed this little jewel a lot on the last Friday of May, and yes, there were only two of us representing TIC. It was bit of disappointment in the beginning, but we enjoyed our movie night and each other’s company nevertheless. I had never heard about this movie before and did not have any idea what the movie was about. This lack of foreknowledge can be a good ingredient for a great movie experience.

Dream Scenario

Dream Scenario

Date: March 22, 2024
Reviewed by: Marc Jonkers

On Friday March 22 a group of TIC members and a couple of invitees went to see Dream Scenario at Cinecitta. Dream Scenario is a quirky black comedy about Paul Matthews (played by Nicolas Cage), a biology professor who begins appearing in the dreams of random people. In the dreams, Paul is passive and does not intervene. Paul becomes famous, which he enjoys, but when the dreams turn dark and violent he encounters the flipside of fame when he gets vilified and loses his job.