Kiss of the Spider Woman

press release: USA | 1985 | 35mm | 119 min.

Director: Hector Babenco

Cast: William Hurt, Raul Julia, Sonia Braga

In an Academy Award winning performance, Hurt plays Luis Molina, a flamboyant homosexual thrown into a South American jail cell with the macho revolutionary Valentin (Julia). As Luis regales his cellmate with recollections of schlocky Hollywood entertainment, the two men transcend their dire situation and reach a deeper understanding of each other. Brazilian director Babenco and screenwriter Leonard Schrader adapted Manuel Puig’s novel into "one of those rare and entrancing stories where one thing seems to happen while another thing is really happening” (Roger Ebert). 35mm print courtesy of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts Moving Image Archive. Presented in conjunction with the UW’s Center for the Humanities and their Great World Texts program. Viewers will be provided a free copy of Manuel Puig’s novel while supplies last.