"Amigo," directed by John Sayles to be screened on February 24, 2012

Related Media

Director John Sayles on set of "Amigo" Photo credit: Mary Cybulski

ALBANY, NY (02/03/2012)(readMedia)-- "Amigo" (United States, 2010, 128 minutes, color, in English, Tagalog, Spanish, and Chinese with English subtitles, directed by John Sayles, starring Joel Torre, Chris Cooper, Ronnie Lazaro) will be shown on Friday, February 24, 2012 at 7:30 p.m. in the Recital Hall, Performing Arts Center, on the University at Albany's uptown campus. Sponsored by the New York State Writers Institute, the screening is free and open to the public.

Set during the nearly-forgotten Philippine-American War, "Amigo" examines the predicament of a Filipino village mayor caught between the demands of U.S. occupying forces and the guerrilla insurgency. Writing in Rolling Stone, Peter Travers said, "'Amigo' is combustible filmmaking....In an entertainment universe of escapism and short attention spans, 'Amigo' is a rousing antidote and a cause for celebration." Schenectady native John Sayles both directed and wrote the screenplay for the film.

The screening is in conjunction with John Sayles's appearance at the Writers Institute on Monday, February 27. Sayles will discuss his film career and read from his new novel, A Moment in the Sun (2011) at 8 p.m. in the Recital Hall, Performing Arts Center on UAlbany's uptown campus. He will also hold an informal seminar at 4:15 p.m. in the Assembly Hall, Campus Center on the uptown campus.

For additional information contact the Writers Institute at 518-442-5620 or online at http://www.albany.edu/writers-inst.

-30-