Film Movement released the official trailer and the U.S. theatrical dates for ‘Close Your Eyes’, a drama film from celebrated Spanish director Victor Erice (The Spirit of Beehive). The film is Erice’s first feature length film since 1992’s ‘The Quince Tree Sun’. The semi-autobiographical film of director Victor Erice follows an aging filmmaker as he recalls his final and unfinished film following the mysterious disappearance of the lead actor.
‘Close Your Eyes’ had its world premiere at the 2023 76th Cannes Film Festival and was screened at other festivals including the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival, 28th Busan International Film Festival, 2023 BFI London Film Festival, and 2023 New York Film Festival.
Starring the in film are Manolo Solo, José Coronado, Ana Torrent, Petra Martínez, María León, Mario Pardo, Helena Miquel, and Antonio Dechent.
Release Date
Directed by Victor Erice, ‘Close Your Eyes’ opens in select US theaters on August 23, 2024.
Synopsis
Set in contemporary Madrid, an aging filmmaker named Miguel Garay is called upon to recount his memories of working on his final and still unfinished film, ‘The Farewell Gaze.’ During its production, the lead actor and Miguel’s close friend, Julio Arenas, disappeared without a trace, leaving in his wake a mystery that would haunt the lives of everyone associated with the film. Miguel never directed another project, instead living a quiet life as a writer by the coast. He remained reluctant to unravel the mystery surrounding Julio until approached by an investigative television program reviving the case decades later. With careful reflection, he reconnects with the film’s crew, former lovers, and Julio’s daughter, seeking closure for the disappearance and what it meant for all of their lives.
Over three decades after the release of his previous film, revered Spanish auteur Víctor Erice (The Spirit of the Beehive, El Sur, and Dream of Light) returns with a “poignant cinematic swan song” (The Hollywood Reporter). A reflective culmination of Erice’s career in film, ‘Close Your Eyes’ is a haunting meditation on memory, absence, and the enduring resonance of the moving image.
Reviews
Guy Lodge in a Variety review gave the film a positive review, writing, “A shimmery, nourishing culmination of ideas and ellipses in a career so elusive as to have taken on a mythic quality, to the point that his latest feels almost dreamed into being.“
Alexandra Heller-Nicholas in an AWFJ.org review also praised the film, writing, “A haunting yet simultaneously vibrant film about time, memory, and the myth-making capacity of cinema itself, Close Your Eyes is a dazzling return to fictional feature filmmaking by one of cinema’s greatest giants”
Official Trailer
Watch the official trailer for ‘Close Your Eyes’.
Theater Listings
TIFF Bell Lightbox | Toronto | August 23, 2024
Gene Siskel Film Center | Chicago | August 23, 2024
Film Forum | New York | August 23, 2024
Jacob Burns Film Center | Pleasantville, NY | August 30, 2024
Nuart Theatre | Los Angeles | August 30, 2024
Wilmette Theatre | Wilmette, IL | August 30, 2024
VIFF Centre | Vancouver, BC | August 30, 2024
Upstate Films Starr Cinema | Rhinebeck, NY | September 6, 2024
SBIFF Riviera Theatre | Santa Barbara. CA| September 6, 2024
Harris Theater | Pittsburgh | September 6, 2024
CCA Cinematheque | Santa Fe | September 6, 2024
SIFF Film Center | Seattle | September 6, 2024
ByTowne Cinemas | Ottawa | September 6, 2024
The Brattle | Cambridge, MA | September 6, 2024
Laemmle Glendale | Glendale, CA | September 6, 2024
Portland Museum of Art | Portland, ME | September 6, 2024
Cinema du Parc | Montreal | September 6, 2024
Cinéma du Musée | Montreal | September 6, 2024
Belcourt Theatre | Nashville | September 6, 2024
Digital Gym Cinema | San Diego | September 13, 2024
Gateway Film Center 8 | Columbus, OH | September 13, 2024
Webster Univ. Film Series | St. Louis | September 13, 2024
The Hyland Cinema | London, ON | September 13, 2024
Grand Cinema | Tacoma, WA | September 13, 2024
Oklahoma City Museum of Art | Oklahoma City | September 13, 2024
Tropic Cinema | Key West | September 13, 2024
Roxie Theater | San Francisco | September 13, 2024
Orinda Theater | Orinda, CA | September 13, 2024
Imagine Cinemas – Carlton Cinema | Toronto | September 13, 2024
Tallahassee Film Society | Tallahassee | September 14, 2024
Jarvis Conservatory | Napa | September 14, 2024
Metro Cinema | Edmonton | September 15, 2024
Sudbury Indie Cinema | Sudbury, ON | September 19, 2024
Cinema Arts Centre | Huntington, NY | September 19, 2024
Cleveland Cinematheque | Cleveland | September 19, 2024
MFA Houston | Houston | September 20, 2024
Detroit Institute of Arts | Detroit | September 20, 2024
Austin Film Society | Austin, TX | September 23, 2024
Boedecker Theatre |Boulder, CO | September 25, 2024
Speed Art Museum | Louisville, KY | September 27, 2024
UWM Union Theatre | Milwaukee | October 18, 2024