Friday, November 20 – 7pm

Chronovisor

Narrative • USA • 2026
99 Minutes

Synopsis: While writing a monograph on historical theories of memory, Béatrice, a respected academic, becomes beguiled by the allegedly true story of the Chronovisor, an occult device said to reproduce visuals from any point in history on a TV screen. Her obsession with the mysterious machine drags her from her Upper East Side apartment through the depths of New York City’s hidden libraries, to the edge of a breakthrough.

Film is an artform, obviously, and not all art is for all people, but after as many screenings and successes as the Film Society has had. I felt it was the right time to swing at a wild pitch and see what happens. If you’re the type of person that wants to see a film unlike anything they’ve ever seen before, you’ve come to the right place. 

The first thing you should know is that the Chronovisor is a purportedly real invention, which a 20th century monk claims to have invented. It’s a time viewer that can show you any point in history. 

The main character in Chronovisor, Béatrice becomes obsessed with researching the Chronovisor, and finding out if it’s true. We follow her from place to place, experiencing her research and discoveries as she does. Unfolding like no film I’ve ever seen, adversaries are spoken to on the phone. Major discoveries are made by reading text (whose English is superimposed over foreign languages), and the denouement is shown through a dusty old VHS tape, in a scene reminiscent of the end of 2001: A Space Odyssey. I have no idea how much of this film is real, and how much is fabricated. 

“Not to be missed, this special film builds a bridge between what is old and what can be new in cinema in a revelatory way.”
– Film-Forward

I can’t tell you that you will love Chronovisor, but I can tell you it’s unlikely you’ll ever have another experience like it. 

96% on Rotten Tomatoes. 3.8 on Letterboxd.