Directed by Saim Sadiq • Drama • With Alina Khan, Ali Junejo • 2023 • 127 minutes
The debut feature from writer-director Saim Sadiq, JOYLAND explores the many sides of love and desire in a patriarchal society. Gentle and timid, Haider (Ali Junejo) lives with his wife Mumtaz (Rasti Farooq), his father, and his elder brother’s family in Lahore, Pakistan. Following a long spell of unemployment, Haider finally lands a job at a Bollywood-style burlesque, telling his family he is a theater manager, when in actuality, he is a backup dancer. The unusual position shakes up the steadfast traditional dynamics of his household and enables Haider to break out of his shell. As he acclimates to the new job, Haider becomes infatuated with the strong-willed trans woman Biba (Alina Khan) who runs the show—an unforeseen partnership that opens his eyes and ultimately his worldview, in ways both unexpected and intimate.
Up Next in Oscilloscope Laboratories
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Kedi
Directed by Ceyda Torun • Documentary • With Sari, Bengü, Aslan Parçasi • 2016 • 80 minutes
Hundreds of thousands of cats roam the metropolis of Istanbul freely. For thousands of years they’ve wandered in and out of people’s lives, becoming an essential part of the communities that make the city...
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Alumination
Directed by Eric Bricker • Documentary • With Patrick Dempsey, Kate Pierson • 2021 • 86 minutes
For nearly a century, the image of the Airstream travel trailer, with sunlight gleaming off the aluminum of its sleek silver-bullet body, has evoked the romance of escape and the mystique of a world w...
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12 O'Clock Boys
Directed by Lofty Nathan • Documentary • 2013 • 76 minutes
The 12 O'CLOCK BOYS are a notorious urban dirt bike pack in Baltimore -- popping wheelies and weaving at excessive speeds through traffic, the group impressively evades the hamstrung police. In Lotfy Nathan's wild, dynamic documentary (t...
