Celebrating International Women’s Day, which is March 8, this weekend, The Southampton Playhouse will offer “Women in Film Screening Series.”
On Friday, March 7, at 7 p.m., the theater offers a 25th anniversary screening of “Erin Brokovich.” Julia Roberts’s fiery, Oscar-winning turn as the real-life environmental activist who exposed the groundwater contamination in Hinkley, California, solidified the actress as one of the greatest performers of her generation. “There are no holes in my research,” she says in the film.
Director Steven Soderbergh created a lively crowd-pleaser out of Brokovich’s relentless efforts to get at the truth behind the ominous forces responsible for poisoning an entire community. However, it’s Roberts who gives the movie its constant ammunition.
On Saturday, March 8, at 7:30 p.m., the Playhouse will screen writer-director Karyn Kusama’s quintessential boxing drama “Girlfight,” followed by a conversation and book signing event with film critic and author Marya E. Gates.
Before she was one of the central faces of “The Fast and the Furious” franchise, Michelle Rodriguez had her “star is born” moment as the breakout of “Girlfight.” Rodriguez stars as ostracized Brooklyn teen Diana Guzman, who finds an outlet for her troubled personal life at the gym. While learning to navigate the male-dominated ring, Diana battles her way through a series of amateur fights and personal conflicts as she takes control of her life.
Kusama’s award-winning directorial debut is a riveting coming-of-age thriller and a first-rate sports movie. Saturday’s screening will be followed by a conversation with “The Future of Film Is Female” founder Caryn Coleman and Marya E. Gates, who will sign copies of her new book “Cinema Her Way: Visionary Filmmakers in Their Own Words.”
On Saturday, March 8, at 2 p.m. the Playhouse will screen Agnes Varda’s “The Gleaners and I.” The film will be preceded by a special conversation on the green-friendly future of the Hamptons from the Sustainable Southampton Green Advisory Committee.
By the year 2000, 72-year-old Agnes Varda was one of the most acclaimed filmmakers of her generation, with films such as “Cleo From 5 to 7” and “Le Bonheur” among the major achievements of the French New Wave. It was no small miracle, then, that she managed to reinvent her appeal and introduce herself to new audiences with this intimate and informative essay film, shot on a small digital camera and imbued with her infectious personality.
Varda sets out to explore the subculture of gleaners in rural France, mining inspiring stories from people living on the margins of society and gathering the leftover materials from the surrounding farmland. In the process, she uncovers a poignant metaphor for her desire to glean meaning from the world around her.
Varda’s endearing DIY approach to her story established “The Gleaners and I” as a groundbreaking achievement in digital video, but it was also the first significant environmental documentary of the 21st century. Touching on timely issues around sustainability and food waste, the movie explores subjects essential to society through a deeply personal lens.
The Southampton Playhouse is at 43 Hill Street in Southampton Village. For tickets, visit southamptonplayhouse.com.
Staff Writer on Mar 3, 2025