Monday Night Film Series-FR

Event date(s): March 24, 2025
Time(s): 07:30 PM - 09:30 PM
Category: Fredericton
Location: Fredericton

The Monday Night Film Series presents “UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE” on Monday March 24 at 7:30 p.m. in Tilley 102, UNB.

Universal Language, directed by Matthew Rankin, is an absurdist comedy set between Tehran and Winnipeg. The film follows three seemingly unconnected stories that intersect in mysterious ways. Negin and Nazgol discover a sum of money frozen in winter ice and try to retrieve it. Massoud leads increasingly-confused tourists through Winnipeg's historic sites. Matthew, a government worker, quits his job and embarks on a journey to visit his estranged mother.

Rankin introduces a charmingly impossible Canada where Persian and French are the official languages, and loneliness is universal. Set in a reimagined Winnipeg, the film follows children's eccentric quests and Matthew's rediscovery of his family. Time, geography, and identities interweave into a surreal comedy of misdirection.

Structured like a Venn diagram, Universal Language is a diary film, city symphony, and exploration of home and solitude, blending deadpan humor reminiscent of Wes Anderson and Aki Kaurismaki. Canada’s official entry to 2025 Academy Awards.

“Universal Language is whimsical, both visually and thematically, but the movie takes its ideas of the value people bring to communities, and how humanity burns bright, even in chilly Winnipeg winters very seriously.” Richard Crouse

“Universal Language is a magnificent film, one that feels warm and familiar even as we realize just how startlingly original it is” Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine

For further info, contact 455-1632 info@nbfilmcoop.com or visit our website.

Building: Tilley Hall

Room Number: Room 102