Free Films at New Haven Public Library

New Haven Free Public Library and the 50+ Transition Center present
Summer 2007 Health, Aging and Activism
Thursday Film Series

Thursday, July 12 at 6:30 pm: Salud!
Spanish w/English Subtitles. On location in Cuba, Gambia, South Africa, Venezuela, Honduras, USA. Directed by Connie Field. 93 min.; 2006.

¡Salud! takes a look at Cuba , a cash-strapped country that ironically enjoys what the BBC calls "one of the world's best health systems." The film tells the stories of some of the 28,000 Cuban health professionals currently serving in 68 countries, as well as some 30,000 international medical students in Cuba, including nearly 100 from the USA . ¡Salud! highlights some of the complex realities that confront the movement toward universal healthcare. A timely adjunct to Michael Moore's new film, Sicko.
Michele Barry, MD, FACP, will introduce the film. Professor of Medicine and Global Public Health at Yale University, she is the Director of Yale's Office of International Health .


July 19 at 6:30 pm: Autumn Summer (Babi Leto)


In Czech with English subtitles. Directed by
Vladimir Michalek. 95 min.; 2002.

A wry, bittersweet comedy starring the great Vlastimil Brodsky ( Closely Watched trains, Jacob the Liar ) as Fanda, an old man who refuses to grow up. Despite pleas from his exasperated wife, Emilie, and son who want him to make some serious decisions about the future, he ignores their nagging and spends his days seeking amusement and adventure.

July 26 at 6:30 pm: Forever Activists! Stories from the Veterans of Abraham Lincoln Brigade

Spain/USA. Directed by Judith Montell. 60 min.; 1991. Academy Award Best Feature Documentary Nomination.

In the late 1930s, Spain was embroiled in a civil war which prefigured the conflicts of World War II. Many idealistic young Americans rushed to join the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, to fight with the Republican side against the fascists and Nazis. While many Americans across the political spectrum supported these efforts at the time, during the McCarthy era of the late 1940s and early 1950s, the brigade was condemned because it had contained communists, and those who fought in it were blacklisted and even imprisoned.
This film explores the subsequent careers of some who fought in the Brigade. Spanish Civil War buffs will enjoy footage of La Passionaria, a prominent Republican figure in the conflict.
Jacinto Lirola will lead a discussion after the film. This will be the 3rd Year the NHFPL has screened a film regarding the Spanish Civil War.

No charge for this film series - 133 Elm Street - Details 946-7431