THE RED CHAPEL
"Comedy is the soft spot of all dictatorships."
- Mads Brügger, director.
A subversive comedy tour through North Korea takes a turn for the absurd in this gonzo doco from Denmark.
Fighting propaganda with propaganda, filmmaker Mads Brügger takes two Danish–Korean comedians – the rotund Simon and the self-professed ‘spastic’ Jacob – on a tour of North Korea in an attempt to expose the tyrannical regime for what it is.
They are allowed into the country under the pretext of being a small Danish theatre group named The Red Chapel, but unbeknownst to the North Koreans, cultural exchange is not really what they have in mind.
Employing guerilla filmmaking tactics, the trio attempts to covertly critique the totalitarian policies of the state – a prank that starts to spin out of control as the tour’s state-appointed minders step in to rewrite the comedians’ show as a celebration of Kim Jong-il.
As Brügger falls victim to the very scheme he is trying to expose, he offers an unwittingly brilliant study of documentary ethics.
You want laugh-out-loud? This film is hilarious, acerbic and pointedly brave.
Winner of the World Cinema Jury Prize at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival.
“While Chapel is at times a riotous exercise in comedic performance art, the overall film is as serious as a missile attack…[It] has been compared to The Yes Men, but that does not do Brügger justice. Unlike the play-it-safe leftist pranksters, Brügger was punking a target that exercises absolute, unchecked power on its own turf.”
- The Epoch Times
“Danish journalist Bruegger (sic) lays the groundwork for a "Borat"-style ambush.”
- Variety
Also screening: some equally riotous Soviet propaganda
Please note new screening venue and dates.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, The Red Chapel will now screen at Long Play in North Fitzroy. The good news for everyone is that they make killer cocktails and a mean plate of food too. As capacity is super small we really do recommend getting in early. People who've already bought tickets through Moshtix to previously advertised sessions please contact hello@speakeasycinema.com.au as we have a special plan in place for you.
SCREENING
FRIDAY 25 FEBRUARY
SUNDAY 27 FEBRUARY
MONDAY 28 FEBRUARY
TUESDAY 1 MARCH
WEDNESDAY 2 MARCH
THURSDAY 3 MARCH - Two sessions - 8pm & 10pm
Friday 4 March session is now Cancelled, sorry.
Speakeasy Cinema at Long Play
318 St Georges Road, Fitzroy North
map
The 112 Tram goes right there.
Tickets go on sale at 7:30pm. Shorts start at eight, feature at eight-thirty.
Long Play opens at 6pm. They have a licensed bar and serve yummy dinner and bar snacks.
Tickets $15 at the door.
- Mads Brügger, director.
A subversive comedy tour through North Korea takes a turn for the absurd in this gonzo doco from Denmark.
Fighting propaganda with propaganda, filmmaker Mads Brügger takes two Danish–Korean comedians – the rotund Simon and the self-professed ‘spastic’ Jacob – on a tour of North Korea in an attempt to expose the tyrannical regime for what it is.
They are allowed into the country under the pretext of being a small Danish theatre group named The Red Chapel, but unbeknownst to the North Koreans, cultural exchange is not really what they have in mind.
Employing guerilla filmmaking tactics, the trio attempts to covertly critique the totalitarian policies of the state – a prank that starts to spin out of control as the tour’s state-appointed minders step in to rewrite the comedians’ show as a celebration of Kim Jong-il.
As Brügger falls victim to the very scheme he is trying to expose, he offers an unwittingly brilliant study of documentary ethics.
You want laugh-out-loud? This film is hilarious, acerbic and pointedly brave.
Winner of the World Cinema Jury Prize at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival.
“While Chapel is at times a riotous exercise in comedic performance art, the overall film is as serious as a missile attack…[It] has been compared to The Yes Men, but that does not do Brügger justice. Unlike the play-it-safe leftist pranksters, Brügger was punking a target that exercises absolute, unchecked power on its own turf.”
- The Epoch Times
“Danish journalist Bruegger (sic) lays the groundwork for a "Borat"-style ambush.”
- Variety
Also screening: some equally riotous Soviet propaganda
Please note new screening venue and dates.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, The Red Chapel will now screen at Long Play in North Fitzroy. The good news for everyone is that they make killer cocktails and a mean plate of food too. As capacity is super small we really do recommend getting in early. People who've already bought tickets through Moshtix to previously advertised sessions please contact hello@speakeasycinema.com.au as we have a special plan in place for you.
SCREENING
FRIDAY 25 FEBRUARY
SUNDAY 27 FEBRUARY
MONDAY 28 FEBRUARY
TUESDAY 1 MARCH
WEDNESDAY 2 MARCH
THURSDAY 3 MARCH - Two sessions - 8pm & 10pm
Friday 4 March session is now Cancelled, sorry.
Speakeasy Cinema at Long Play
318 St Georges Road, Fitzroy North
map
The 112 Tram goes right there.
Tickets go on sale at 7:30pm. Shorts start at eight, feature at eight-thirty.
Long Play opens at 6pm. They have a licensed bar and serve yummy dinner and bar snacks.
Tickets $15 at the door.