Night Across the Street

This lyrical but also practically impenetrable cinematic farewell from Chilean-born filmmaker Raoul Ruiz—who died at the age of 70 in 2011 from a lung infection—is purportedly based on the writings of Hernán del Solar. Shot in autumnal hues, the story concerns an elderly Santiago intellectual, Don Celso (Sergio Hernández), who is being forced into retirement. Considered somewhat dotty by his co-workers, Don Celso plays free-association word games, holds imaginary conversations with great authors, and flashes back nostalgically upon a boyhood in which his younger self—known as Rhododendron (Santiago Figueroa)—could conjure up Beethoven and Long John Silver as imaginary friends. When Celso becomes involved in a murder intrigue at a boardinghouse, events may or may not be actually happening. Surreal juxtapositions and set transitions, coupled with Ruiz in-jokes, make this art-house baffler most well suited for larger foreign film collections. A strong optional purchase. (C. Cassady)