As winter swings into full force in Cambridge, there are few greater pleasures than ducking into a warm movie theater and watching a movie that is both long and very good. To that end, The Brattle Theatre has you covered this week with a 25th anniversary 4K restoration of Edward Yang’s “Yi Yi” (2000), an easy critical consensus pick for one of the very best movies of the 21st century, running daily from Friday through Wednesday. Sometimes subtitled “A One and a Two,” “Yi Yi” presents a sprawling, painterly portrait of a middle-class family in contemporary Taiwan, exploring each member’s struggles with a deeply humane eye. At nearly three hours, “Yi Yi” is a commitment, but Yang more than earns its running time; when presented with a masterpiece, it is foolish to wish there was less of it.
If brevity is more your speed, The Brattle has you covered this week as well, with no fewer than three very different programs of cutting-edge shorts. On Thursday, Cambridge’s own Grrl Haus Cinema returns to its birthplace with another batch of shorts from female, nonbinary and genderqueer filmmakers, this time with the hard-to-resist theme “Suspense, Horror and Camp!” Saturday and Sunday bring “Don Hertzfeldt’s Animation Mixtape,” a program of quickie cartoons new and old curated by the legendary animator himself. Finally, on Sunday, the good people at RPM Fest look back on a year’s programming with their “Best of RPM 2025” program, collecting seven of the most exciting shorts showcased by the group over the past 12 months as well as presenting RPM’s annual awards. Each program present an opportunity to discover a new favorite film – or five.
In anticipation of the American Repertory Theater’s upcoming production of “Wonder: The Musical” (which opens Tuesday), The Brattle has lined up a brief series of films that share that play’s sense of the joys and heartaches of youth. Friday’s Film Matinee (presented, as always, by ScreenBoston) is “Parenthood” (1989), Ron Howard’s megahit dramedy starring Steve Martin as the hub of a harried extended family. Saturday brings “Little Miss Sunshine” (2006), the warmhearted, Oscar-winning comedy about a family’s cross-country journey to enter their youngest member in the beauty pageant of her dreams. The series rounds out Sunday with Bo Burnham’s “Eighth Grade” (2018), in which Elsie Fisher embodies the unique tribulations of teendom in the 21st century. There’s something in each of these films to touch all but the most jaded of souls – or at least hit harrowingly close to home.
For better and for worse, we are officially in the holiday season, which brings with it an always-welcome opportunity to revisit some old seasonal favorites. On Monday, the Somerville Cine-Club returns to the Somerville Public Library Central Branch for a free screening of Ernst Lubitsch’s beloved romantic comedy “The Shop Around the Corner” (1940), starring Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullavan as a pair of rival shop clerks who, unbeknownst to them, are also pen-pal sweethearts; as usual for Cine-Club screenings, the feature will be preceded by an 8 mm preshow, this time of vintage Disney Christmas cartoons. Also on Monday, The Brattle presents two showings of Tim Burton and Henry Selick’s animated classic “The Nightmare Before Christmas” (1993), the earlier of which is a lights-up, craft-friendly screening sponsored by the craft shop gather here. Finally, the Landmark Kendall Square Cinema continues its “Holiday Essentials” series Tuesday with “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” (1989), perhaps the most eminently relatable holiday comedy of its era. No matter where your tastes lie, any of these would make a perfect kickoff to the season’s viewing.
On Wednesday, The Brattle, in association with the Cambridge Museum of History and Culture, presents the premiere of a series that should be of interest to anyone reading this paper. “Cambridge Mosaic” is a series of short documentaries chronicling the lives and achievements of Cambridge residents. The free screening will provide viewers with popcorn and drinks along with a look into our own community; Cantabrigians featured in this first installment include Denise Jillson, Evelyn Riley, Mary Leno, Peter Johnson, Red Mitchell and Robert Skenderian. The screening is followed by a fundraising reception (at a second location to be announced) to ensure the proposed museum’s ability to continue its vital work.
Oscar Goff is a writer and film critic based in Somerville. He is film editor and senior critic for the Boston Hassle and his work has appeared in the monthly Boston Compass newspaper and publications such as WBUR’s The ARTery and iHeartNoise. He is a member of the Boston Society of Film Critics, the Boston Online Film Critics Association, and the Online Film Critics Society.
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