Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair
June 1 – June 7
Presented in partnership with the American Cinematheque, ‘Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair’ is an annual film festival showcasing some of the greatest works of cinema from across the globe that venture into the darkest sides of humanity and the bleakest points in human history.
For the festival’s fifth annual edition in June 2026, The Hi-Pointe Theatre is presenting its own original curated lineup of films defined by unpleasant truths and raw empathy.
Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (35MM)
- Mon, Jun 1
Director: Pier Paolo Pasolini Run Time: 117 min. Format: 35mm Film Release Year: 1976 Language: Italian
Starring: Aldo Valletti, Caterina Boratto, Giorgio Cataldi, Paolo Bonacelli, Uberto Paolo Quintavalle
Bleak Week begins with Pasolini’s harrowing descent into the depths of power, cruelty, and moral collapse.
Melancholia
- Tue, Jun 2
Director: Lars von Trier Run Time: 130 min. Format: 4K DCP Release Year: 2011
Starring: Alexander Skarsgård, Cameron Spurr, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Kiefer Sutherland, Kirsten Dunst
Lars von Trier’s apocalyptic vision finds eerie beauty in despair as the world quietly edges toward extinction.
No Country for Old Men
- Wed, Jun 3
Director: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen Run Time: 122 min. Format: 4K DCP Release Year: 2007
Starring: Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Kelly Macdonald, Tommy Lee Jones, Woody Harrelson
Bleak Week day three — The Coen Brothers deliver a cold, unrelenting meditation on fate, violence, and a world slipping beyond comprehension.
Days of Wine and Roses
- Thu, Jun 4
Director: Blake Edwards Run Time: 117 min. Format: DCP Release Year: 1963
Starring: Alan Hewitt, Charles Bickford, Jack Klugman, Jack Lemmon, Lee Remick
A devastating portrait of love undone by addiction.
The Turin Horse
- Thu, Jun 4
Director: Béla Tarr Run Time: 155 min. Format: DCP Release Year: 2011 Language: Hungarian
Starring: Erika Bók, János Derzsi, Lajos Kovács, Mihály Kormos, Mihály Ráday
A stark, hypnotic descent into existential collapse from the late Béla Tarr.
The Vanishing
- Fri, Jun 5
Director: George Sluizer Run Time: 106 min. Format: DCP Release Year: 1988 Language: Dutch
Starring: Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu, Gene Bervoets, Gwen Eckhaus, Johanna ter Steege, Pierre Forget
Bleak Week day five — A chilling psychological abyss.
The Devil’s Backbone (4K Restoration)
- Fri, Jun 5
Director: Guillermo del Toro Run Time: 108 min. Format: 4K DCP Release Year: 2001 Language: Spanish
Starring: Eduardo Noriega, Federico Luppi, Fernando Tielve, Íñigo Garcés, Marisa Paredes
Guillermo del Toro blends a ghost story and wartime trauma into a sorrowful tale of innocence lost.
Persona
- Sat, Jun 6
Director: Ingmar Bergman Run Time: 84 min. Release Year: 1966 Language: Swedish
Starring: Bibi Andersson, Gunnar Björnstrand, Jörgen Lindström, Liv Ullmann, Margaretha Krook
Ingmar Bergman’s fractured masterpiece of identity and performance.
Come and See
- Sat, Jun 6
Director: Elem Klimov Run Time: 142 min. Format: DCP Release Year: 1985 Language: Russian
Starring: Aleksei Kravchenko, Jüri Lumiste, Liubomiras Laucevičius, Olga Mironova, Vladas Bagdonas
Elem Klimov’s unflinching war film is one of the most harrowing cinematic experiences ever made.
Unforgiven (35MM)
- Sat, Jun 6
Director: Clint Eastwood Run Time: 130 min. Format: 35mm Film Release Year: 1992
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Gene Hackman, Jaimz Woolvett, Morgan Freeman, Richard Harris
Clint Eastwood’s masterpiece of the Western form—haunting, somber, and devastating.
The Mist
- Sat, Jun 6
Director: Frank Darabont Run Time: 126 min. Format: 4K DCP Release Year: 2007
Starring: Andre Braugher, Laurie Holden, Marcia Gay Harden, Thomas Jane, Toby Jones
A claustrophobic nightmare culminating in a gut-wrenching finale.
Scarlet Street
- Sun, Jun 7
Director: Fritz Lang Run Time: 103 min. Format: DCP Release Year: 1945
Starring: Dan Duryea, Edward G. Robinson, Jess Barker, Joan Bennett, Margaret Lindsay
Fritz Lang’s noir tragedy spirals into obsession, humiliation, and irreversible downfall.
Grave of the Fireflies
- Sun, Jun 7
Director: Isao Takahata Run Time: 89 min. Format: DCP Release Year: 1988 Language: Japanese
Starring: Akemi Yamaguchi, Ayano Shiraishi, Masayo Sakai, Tsutomu Tatsumi, Yoshiko Shinohara
Isao Takahata’s heartbreaking masterpiece.
Naked
- Sun, Jun 7
Director: Mike Leigh Run Time: 131 min. Format: DCP Release Year: 1993
Starring: Claire Skinner, David Thewlis, Greg Cruttwell, Katrin Cartlidge, Lesley Sharp
Bleak Week ends with Mike Leigh’s raw, unfiltered odyssey through urban alienation and existential despair.