Close Your Eyes
61st New York Film Festival
September 29 - October 15, 2023
Spanish director Víctor Erice’s fourth film in 50 years, Close Your Eyes is the culmination of one of the most legendary careers in modern cinema, an elegiac personal epic about time, memory, and the movies, in which an aging filmmaker (Manolo Solo) tries to unlock the mystery of an actor who disappeared and left an unfinished film in his wake.
Spanish director Víctor Erice’s fourth film in 50 years, Close Your Eyes is the culmination of one of the most legendary careers in modern cinema, following the masterpieces The Spirit of the Beehive, El Sur, and The Quince Tree Sun (NYFF30). In this elegiac personal epic about time, memory, and, of course, the movies, an aging filmmaker named Miguel (Manolo Solo) is reluctantly pulled back into a decades-old mystery connected to his final, unfinished work, titled The Farewell Gaze. During production, his leading actor and close friend, Julio (Jose Coronado), vanished and was never heard from again; in the process of trying to track him down so many years later, Miguel must come to terms with his own past, his present life, and the irrevocably changed processes of his art form. Featuring captivating performances from a cast that also includes Ana Torrent (Beehive’s unforgettable child star) in a moving role as Julio’s grown daughter, Close Your Eyes is a poignant, summative work that finds original ways to remind viewers of the moving image’s ability to reach across time.
Recommended Film Comment reading:
Sign up to the Film Comment Letter for NYFF61 coverage and more original film criticism year-round.
Read More
World Premiere of Ava DuVernay’s 14th Will Close the 64th New York Film Festival
Film at Lincoln Center announces Ava DuVernay’s 14th as the Closing Night selection of the 64th New York Film Festival, making its world premiere at Alice Tully Hall on Friday, October 9, with DuVernay and film participants in attendance.
Miroirs No. 3 Director Christian Petzold on His Haunting New Film
On the latest episode of FLC Luminaries, our video series that spotlights talent at all levels of the filmmaking process who uplift the art and craft of cinema, Miroirs No. 3 director discusses his haunting, beautifully crafted new film.
Film at Lincoln Center Launches Fundraiser Auction in Celebration of Marilyn Monroe Centennial
FLC is partnering with Piper-Heidsieck Champagne for a one-night-only special event featuring an archival 35mm print of Howard Hawks’s classic, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Click here to read more about the event. This special fundraiser auction features Marilyn Monroe-themed art, memorabilia, and an exclusive trip to Champagne, France, featuring a behind-the-scenes Piper-Heidsieck experience.