Buffalo '66

Billy Brown (Vincent Gallo) got into trouble due to a foolish bet and was forced to accept a deal that sent him to prison for an act he didn't actually commit. A free man again, he faces an embarrassing visit to his parents (Ben Gazzara and Anjelica Huston), who are completely unaware of his son's life and activities. Who knows if they even knew that his son was in prison. But Billy has an obsession to prove his parents, that he is doing brilliant. To make it happen, he also wants to present them a lovely wife of his. And voilà, a complete stranger named Layla (Christina Ricci) gets the part! She is a young woman, whom Billy literally kidnaps in the middle of her tap dance lesson. But even more surprisingly, Layla quickly settles into her role as Billy’s wife and even seems to enjoy it 😉

Post-release, film critic Andrew Johnston (Time Out New York) wrote: "Ricci and Huston give poignant depth to characters that could have been cartoons, and Gallo makes Billy both annoying and sympathetic with seeming effortlessness. But the film's most potent ingredient is its visual style. The film's washed-out colors and the flashbacks that explode from Billy's head like comic-book thought balloons make Buffalo feel less like a movie than a dream given form."

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"Buffalo ’66" is Vincent Gallo’s feature film debut, where he wrote the screenplay, directed the movie, starred in the lead role, and composed the soundtrack, making him a true example of cinéma d'auteur. With the release of “Buffalo ‘66”, he secured himself a passionate fan base and is now considered a cult auteur of independent cinema. The film is introverted and emotionally raw, and with its melancholic minimalist aesthetic and narcissistic antihero, it was an influential role model for many indie films to come.

With this screening, we celebrate Gallo’s 65th birthday!