20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA (1954)
Richard Fleischer’s Academy Award®-winning spectacle is an effects extravaganza featuring Kirk Douglas, Paul Lukas and Peter Lorre as shipwrecked survivors taken captive by the mysterious Captain Nemo (James Mason). Nemo wavers between genius and madman, willing to stop at nothing to complete his deadly crusade across the seven seas. The film’s epic giant-squid fight scene is not to be missed on the big screen, nor is Douglas’ rendition of “A Whale of a Tale,” a rare on-screen singing performance. DIR Richard Fleischer; SCR Earl Felton, from the novel by Jules Verne; PROD Walt Disney. U.S., 1954, color, 127 min. RATED... read more
Richard Fleischer’s Academy Award®-winning spectacle is an effects extravaganza featuring Kirk Douglas, Paul Lukas and Peter Lorre as shipwrecked survivors... read more
42
42 tells the inspiring story of Jackie Robinson (Chadwick Boseman), the man who broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball when he debuted for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, achieving stardom, opening the doors for others and marking a key victory in the Civil Rights movement. Boseman’s performance as Robinson marked his breakthrough, years before he was cast as Marvel’s Black Panther. The innately charismatic performer’s dedication to his craft is on full display; in fact, Boseman mimicked Robinson’s mannerisms so well — down to how he ran the bases — that Robinson’s widow, Rachel, remarked on the similarities... read more
42 tells the inspiring story of Jackie Robinson (Chadwick Boseman), the man who broke the color barrier in Major League... read more
48 HRS.
Walter Hill’s raucous odd-couple/buddy cop movie was a massive hit, a genre-defining template-setter that launched comedian Eddie Murphy to superstardom. Nick Nolte is Inspector Jack Cates, a grizzled cop looking for revenge against two escaped cop killers. Murphy is Reggie Hammond, a convicted hustler currently serving time, who may hold a valuable lead on where to find the criminals. In order to catch the perps, Cates has Hammond released into his custody for 48 hours, beginning a race against time — and a clash of personalities and prejudices for the cop-con team — in a plan that is so crazy... read more
Walter Hill’s raucous odd-couple/buddy cop movie was a massive hit, a genre-defining template-setter that launched comedian Eddie Murphy to superstardom.... read more
AFTERIMAGE
[POWIDOKI] Legendary director Andrzej Wajda’s final film is a passionate portrait of renowned avant-garde painter Władysław Strzemiński, who challenged Stalinist orthodoxy. In postwar Poland, Strzemiński works as a professor at the National School of Fine Arts in Łódź. His students treat him like the “messiah of modern painting,” but university authorities and the Ministry of Culture have a differing opinion. Refusing to comply with Party regulations, he is eventually expelled from the university and the artists’ union. As the Communist authorities continue their efforts to ruin him, Strzemiński remains steadfast in his political and artistic convictions. (Note courtesy of Film... read more
[POWIDOKI] Legendary director Andrzej Wajda’s final film is a passionate portrait of renowned avant-garde painter Władysław Strzemiński, who challenged Stalinist... read more
AGRIDULCE
[BITTERSWEET] In the Dominican town of Cabarete, bachata is a way of life far from the discos where it is danced the world over. With five years of filming, director Frank Pavich (JODOROWSKY’S DUNE) intimately captures the coming-of-age of a group of child musicians, showing how music guides their journey to self-discovery. Generations collide, and the children struggle for balance. Along the way, they are mentored by Martires de Leon, a world-famous guitarist and teacher at a school devoted to the music that has become the Dominican Republic’s primary export. (Note courtesy of filmmakers.) DIR Frank Pavich; PROD Benjamin de... read more
[BITTERSWEET] In the Dominican town of Cabarete, bachata is a way of life far from the discos where it is... read more
ALBERT BROOKS: DEFENDING MY LIFE
Rob Reiner profiles Albert Brooks — comedic legend, acclaimed filmmaker, talented character actor and a lifelong friend, who Reiner first met in their high school drama club. Brooks began his comedy career while still a teenager and was soon booking spots on THE TONIGHT SHOW and virtually every other variety program on the air in the early- to mid-1970s. Brooks’ unique blend of the brainy and the absurd, and his penchant for inventive sketches that slyly subverted expectations, earned him praise as a comedy genius — even funnier considering he was born Albert Einstein in 1947 to singer/actress Thelma Leeds... read more
Rob Reiner profiles Albert Brooks — comedic legend, acclaimed filmmaker, talented character actor and a lifelong friend, who Reiner first... read more
THE AMERICAN PRESIDENT
Returning to romantic comedy for the first time since the genre-defining WHEN HARRY MET SALLY…, Rob Reiner directed THE AMERICAN PRESIDENT, a rom-com with a whip-smart political bite courtesy of a screenplay by Aaron Sorkin. Widowed U.S. president Andrew Shepherd (Michael Douglas) is on the campaign trail for a second term, which he should win with ease. He just needs to pass a moderate crime-control bill to seal the deal. But when Shepherd meets and falls in love with the up-and-coming Washington lobbyist Sydney Ellen Wade (Annette Bening), he must risk everything as his opponents start questioning their burgeoning relationship.... read more
Returning to romantic comedy for the first time since the genre-defining WHEN HARRY MET SALLY…, Rob Reiner directed THE AMERICAN... read more
AMORES PERROS
Sending shock waves through the Mexican film industry and the world, this blistering feature debut from Alejandro G. Iñárritu brought the director’s electrifying visual style and bravura multistrand storytelling to the screen with the heart-stopping impact of a primal scream. In Mexico City, the lives of three strangers — a young man mixed up in the gritty underworld of dogfighting, a glamorous woman who seems to have it all and a mysterious assassin who is desperate to reconnect with his estranged daughter — collide in a tragic twist of fate that forever alters their personal journeys. A tour de force... read more
Sending shock waves through the Mexican film industry and the world, this blistering feature debut from Alejandro G. Iñárritu brought... read more
Art House Theater Day: CAR WASH
Presented in recognition of Art House Theater Day It is Friday at the Dee-Luxe Car Wash in Los Angeles, where the disco and funk tunes flow as freely as the suds. A cast of memorable characters rolls through, including George Carlin as a taxi driver, “Professor” Irwin Corey as the Mad Bomber and Richard Pryor as prosperity gospel preacher Daddy Rich, accompanied by a bevy of singing beauties played by the Pointer Sisters. With a chart-topping soundtrack by funk band Rose Royce, including “Car Wash,” “I Wanna Get Next to You” and “I'm Going Down,” CAR WASH is an infectiously... read more
Presented in recognition of Art House Theater Day It is Friday at the Dee-Luxe Car Wash in Los Angeles, where... read more
ARTISTS AND MODELS (1955)
ARTISTS AND MODELS is the first Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis film to be directed by animator-turned-director Frank Tashlin, whose dynamic visual flair, pop-cultural smarts and spoofy sensibility made him one of the duo’s best collaborators. Down on their luck, two roommates — comic book addict Eugene (Lewis) and painter Rick (Martin) — try their hand in the comic book industry, inspired by their new neighbor Abigail’s (Dorothy Malone) success with the “Bat Lady” comic, a character her best friend Bessie (Shirley MacLaine) models for her. Rick falls for Abigail and Bessie falls for Eugene, who is really in love... read more
ARTISTS AND MODELS is the first Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis film to be directed by animator-turned-director Frank Tashlin, whose... read more
AU HASARD BALTHAZAR
When mining the annals of cinema for bleakness, Robert Bresson’s original donkey-starring spiritual allegory AU HASARD BALTHAZAR is top of mind. Born in the French Pyrenees and dubbed “Balthazar” by three children, a young donkey is thrown into a life of successive labors and abuses at the hands of different owners, periodically enjoying moments of love and tenderness in the hands of Marie (Anne Wiazemsky), a young woman whose path crisscrosses several times with Balthazar’s, and whose own troubles in life parallel those of this soulful spirit animal. Writing for the New York Times, critic Manohla Dargis called AU HASARD... read more
When mining the annals of cinema for bleakness, Robert Bresson’s original donkey-starring spiritual allegory AU HASARD BALTHAZAR is top of... read more
AN AUTUMN AFTERNOON
[秋刀魚の味] [SANMA NO AJI] The last film by Yasujirō Ozu was also his final masterpiece, a gently heartbreaking story about a man’s dignified resignation to life’s shifting currents and society’s modernization. Though the widower Shūhei (frequent Ozu leading man Chishū Ryū) has been living comfortably for years with his grown daughter, a series of events leads him to accept and encourage her marriage and departure from their home. As elegantly composed and achingly tender as any of the Japanese master’s films, AN AUTUMN AFTERNOON is one of cinema’s fondest farewells. (Note courtesy of Janus Films.) DIR/SCR Yasujirō Ozu; SCR Kogo... read more
[秋刀魚の味] [SANMA NO AJI] The last film by Yasujirō Ozu was also his final masterpiece, a gently heartbreaking story about... read more
BACK TO THE FUTURE
“Hello, McFly?!” Anything is possible when a plutonium-powered DeLorean hits 88 mph. High-schooler Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) is transported from the Twin Pines mall parking lot in 1985 to 1955, where he manages to catch the attention of his then-teenaged mother, Lorraine (Lea Thompson). Warned by the future inventor of the time machine, Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd), not to alter the present to preserve his future, Marty must convince his nerdy teenage father, George (Crispin Glover), to woo Lorraine instead. BACK TO THE FUTURE is a richly entertaining sci-fi comedy with a brilliant, Oscar®-nominated script. DIR/SCR Robert Zemeckis; SCR/PROD... read more
“Hello, McFly?!” Anything is possible when a plutonium-powered DeLorean hits 88 mph. High-schooler Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) is transported... read more
THE BAD NEWS BEARS (1976)
Walter Matthau is Morris Buttermaker, a drunken pool cleaner and onetime minor-league prospect recruited to coach a Los Angeles Little League team of hapless misfits. Buttermaker adds two ringers: his ex-girlfriend’s baseball-loving daughter, Amanda Whurlitzer (Tatum O’Neal), and the athletically gifted but precociously criminal Kelly Leak (Jackie Earle Haley). The players learn to set their differences aside, pool their talents and rally around an us-against-the-world mentality to challenge the league’s top team, the Yankees. Gloriously un-PC but surprisingly progressive beneath its crude exterior, THE BAD NEWS BEARS is an only-in-the-1970s version of a kids’ movie, described by Roger Ebert as... read more
Walter Matthau is Morris Buttermaker, a drunken pool cleaner and onetime minor-league prospect recruited to coach a Los Angeles Little... read more
BANKIE BANX: KING OF THE DUNE
Growing up on an undeveloped island where necessity often dictated life choices, young Clement Banks dared to dream of becoming a professional musician. He honed his skills playing in dance bands, voraciously soaking up everything from British Top 40 and reggae to Rastafarianism and the anti-colonial Pan-Africanism of Walter Rodney. In 1978, he released his genre-defying first album “Bankie Banx and His Roots & Herbs,” and his breakout hit “Prince of Darkness” put both Bankie and Anguilla on the map. But the islands were too limited for Bankie’s musical ambitions, and in 1984 he set off for new horizons. (Note... read more
Growing up on an undeveloped island where necessity often dictated life choices, young Clement Banks dared to dream of becoming... read more
BEVERLY HILLS COP
Maverick cop Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) leaves frigid Detroit for balmy Beverly Hills to investigate the mysterious death of a childhood friend. Foley’s nosing around, plus his rusting Chevy Nova and wild style, do not endear him to the citizens of the tony suburb. But Foley’s charm, guile and crime-solving street smarts inspire bored detectives Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and Taggart (John Ashton) to join forces with him and crack the case. The soundtrack’s synth instrumental “Axel F,” by Giorgio Moroder protégé Harold Faltermeyer, became a chart-topping, decade-defining hit DIR Martin Brest; SCR Daniel Petrie Jr.; PROD Jerry Bruckheimer, Don Simpson.... read more
Maverick cop Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) leaves frigid Detroit for balmy Beverly Hills to investigate the mysterious death of a... read more
BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA
Years before Quentin Tarantino’s KILL BILL, John Carpenter directed this East-meets-West action-adventure mishmash. Kurt Russell stars as Jack Burton, a truck driver who becomes embroiled in an ancient supernatural battle in Chinatown. Arguably one of Carpenter’s greatest films, the hugely entertaining movie flopped on release but became a cult hit on cable and video. DIR John Carpenter; SCR Gary Goldman, David Z. Weinstein; PROD Larry J. Franco. U.S., 1986, color, 99 min. RATED PG-13 read more
Years before Quentin Tarantino’s KILL BILL, John Carpenter directed this East-meets-West action-adventure mishmash. Kurt Russell stars as Jack Burton, a... read more
BIGGER THAN LIFE
Suburban schoolteacher Ed Avery (James Mason) moonlights as a cab dispatcher to make ends meet, a fact he hides from his wife, Lou (Barbara Rush), and son, Richie (Christopher Olsen). But his secret comes out after he collapses and is diagnosed with a rare, potentially fatal disease. Treated with the new “miracle” drug cortisone, Ed recovers — but also develops a manic personality and delusions of grandeur, becoming increasingly unhinged as he doubles and triples his dosages. Part medical melodrama, part psychological thriller, this film packs multilayered allegorical implications about American life in the 1950s. DIR Nicholas Ray; SCR Cyril... read more
Suburban schoolteacher Ed Avery (James Mason) moonlights as a cab dispatcher to make ends meet, a fact he hides from... read more
BILLY LIAR
Billy Fisher (Tom Courtenay) works in a dead-end job as a clerk in an undertaker’s office, but in his vivid — and overactive — imagination, he is the president of the country of Ambrosia, or a famous novelist, or an insurgent revolutionary. But Billy’s Walter Mitty–esque fantasies are not as innocent as they seem. They compensate for some dark and troubling realities, like the money he pocketed from work, or the 200 Christmas calendars he stashed instead of delivering, or his inability to make a real change in his life, or the fact that he has two fiancées — make... read more
Billy Fisher (Tom Courtenay) works in a dead-end job as a clerk in an undertaker’s office, but in his vivid... read more
BLACK GIRL (1966) with BOROM SARRET
60th Anniversary BLACK GIRL [LA NOIRE DE…] Ousmane Sembène, one of the greatest and most groundbreaking filmmakers ever and the most internationally renowned African director of the 20th century, made his feature debut in 1966 with the brilliant and stirring BLACK GIRL. Sembène, who was also an acclaimed novelist in his native Senegal, transforms a deceptively simple plot — about a young Senegalese woman who moves to France to work for a wealthy white couple and finds that life in their small apartment becomes a figurative and literal prison — into a complex, layered critique on the lingering colonialist mindset... read more
60th Anniversary BLACK GIRL [LA NOIRE DE…] Ousmane Sembène, one of the greatest and most groundbreaking filmmakers ever and the... read more
BLADE RUNNER - THE FINAL CUT
Los Angeles, 2019, is a squalid, sprawling metropolis, overdeveloped and overpopulated. Harrison Ford is Rick Deckard, a detective on the “blade runner” unit, charged with hunting down and “retiring” replicants — humanlike androids created to toil on off-world colonies. His latest assignment: six Nexus 6 models who have mutinied and returned to Earth to take action against their creators at the Tyrell Corporation. Ford is superb as the existentially weary Deckard, as is Rutger Hauer as the charismatic leader of the replicants, Daryl Hannah as tempestuous replicant Pris and Sean Young as a Tyrell Corporation secretary who is both more... read more
Los Angeles, 2019, is a squalid, sprawling metropolis, overdeveloped and overpopulated. Harrison Ford is Rick Deckard, a detective on the... read more
BLUE VELVET
David Lynch's unsettling masterpiece blends disparate elements — a coming-of-age drama, a detective story, an ambiguous 1980s setting with 1950s trappings and midnight movie-style madness — into a uniquely Lynchian whole: equal parts seductive and nightmarish. After discovering a severed ear, Jeffrey Beaumont (Kyle MacLachlan) begins an investigation, perhaps to impress his police detective neighbor's daughter (Laura Dern). Beaumont's amateur sleuthing plunges him into a dangerous underworld populated by sad-eyed nightclub singer Dorothy Vallens (Isabella Rossellini) and her psychotic tormentor, Frank Booth (Dennis Hopper), a lover of PBR, nitrous oxide, kinky sex and Roy Orbison. DIR/SCR David Lynch; PROD Fred... read more
David Lynch's unsettling masterpiece blends disparate elements — a coming-of-age drama, a detective story, an ambiguous 1980s setting with 1950s... read more
BONJOUR TRISTESSE (1958)
A major inspiration to the French New Wave (François Truffaut loved this movie), this controversial Arthur Laurents adaptation of teenager Françoise Sagan’s explosive first novel stars Jean Seberg, Deborah Kerr and David Niven in a sordid, incestuous love triangle. DIR/PROD Otto Preminger; SCR Arthur Laurents, from the novel by Françoise Sagan. U.S., 1958, b&w/color, 94 min. NOT RATED read more
A major inspiration to the French New Wave (François Truffaut loved this movie), this controversial Arthur Laurents adaptation of teenager... read more
BOWFINGER
Steve Martin and Eddie Murphy combine their singular comedic talents in this hilarious Hollywood satire. Z-grade movie producer Bobby Bowfinger (Martin) is desperate to break into the big time. Clinging to a derisive promise from studio exec Jerry Renfro (Robert Downey Jr.) to distribute Bowfinger’s movie CHUBBY RAIN if he can get A-list action star Kit Ramsey (Murphy) to star in it, Bowfinger hits upon an ingenious plan: Do not give the high-maintenance star a chance to say no, and just start filming the low-budget sci-fi thriller around Kit gonzo/guerrilla style. The stellar cast includes Terence Stamp, Heather Graham, Christine... read more
Steve Martin and Eddie Murphy combine their singular comedic talents in this hilarious Hollywood satire. Z-grade movie producer Bobby Bowfinger... read more
BREAKING THE WAVES
“God, it’s me, Bess.” For her big-screen debut, Emily Watson gives a gutsy, Oscar®-nominated performance in this stunning, emotionally draining work that cemented Lars von Trier’s reputation as international cinema’s bad-boy provocateur. Born into a remote and devout Scottish village, Watson is Bess, the loyal wife to oil-rig worker Jan (Stellan Skarsgård), who suffers a debilitating injury. Bedridden and paralyzed, he sends Bess on increasingly debasing sexual escapades and demands that she return to report the details. The film won the Grand Prix at the 1996 Cannes Film Festival. DIR/SCR Lars von Trier; SCR Peter Asmussen; PROD Peter Aalbæk Jensen,... read more
“God, it’s me, Bess.” For her big-screen debut, Emily Watson gives a gutsy, Oscar®-nominated performance in this stunning, emotionally draining... read more
THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI
“Madness...madness.” Burma, 1943. Ordered by Japanese prison camp commandant Saito (Sessue Hayakawa) to construct a bridge, British POW Colonel Nicholson (Alec Guinness) at first refuses but then acquiesces, reasoning that the undertaking will provide a morale boost for his men. But in his obsession with detail and pride in his work, Nicholson loses sight of the fact that the bridge will serve a deadly purpose — the transport of Japanese munitions. It falls to American escapee Shears (William Holden) and British Major Warden (Jack Hawkins) to lead a mission back to the camp to destroy Nicholson’s folly. A powerful portrait... read more
“Madness...madness.” Burma, 1943. Ordered by Japanese prison camp commandant Saito (Sessue Hayakawa) to construct a bridge, British POW Colonel Nicholson... read more
CARMEN JONES
Dorothy Dandridge and Harry Belafonte lead an all-Black cast in Oscar Hammerstein’s adaptation of Bizet’s classic opera “Carmen.” Set during World War II, the story focuses on Carmen Jones (Dandridge), a young woman who works in a parachute factory in North Carolina. When she is arrested for fighting with a coworker who reported her for arriving late for work, foreman Sergeant Brown assigns young soldier Joe (Belafonte) to deliver her to the authorities, much to the dismay of Joe’s fiancée, Cindy Lou, who had agreed to marry him during his leave. Interestingly, director Otto Preminger opted to dub the singing... read more
Dorothy Dandridge and Harry Belafonte lead an all-Black cast in Oscar Hammerstein’s adaptation of Bizet’s classic opera “Carmen.” Set during... read more
CARNIVAL: THEY CAN'T STEAL OUR JOY
Afro-Canadian filmmaker Ian Mark Kimanje has long wondered why so many Caribbean and African diasporas find joy celebrating Carnival year after year — an event that is truly for all ages. This electrifying documentary follows his personal journey to learn about a festival rooted in traditional rituals that were kept alive by enslaved Africans throughout the 18th century. These Africans chose to fight for liberation not with deadly weapons but with their bodies, dance, drums and music. Filmed in five countries and told through the voices and perspectives of those who keep the tradition alive, CARNIVAL: THEY CAN’T STEAL OUR... read more
Afro-Canadian filmmaker Ian Mark Kimanje has long wondered why so many Caribbean and African diasporas find joy celebrating Carnival year... read more
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (Digital)
After the success of 1975’s JAWS, Steven Spielberg wanted to film a smaller-scale story about a man obsessed with an alien encounter. After he opted to include special effects, the project grew enormously complicated but ultimately resulted in another major success. Roy Neary (Richard Dreyfuss) witnesses a UFO on an abandoned road and, against the wishes of his wife (Teri Garr), goes searching for answers. François Truffaut plays a French UFO specialist who leads the effort to communicate with the aliens. John Williams’ Oscar®-nominated score, featuring the “five-tone” motif now ingrained in popular culture, lost that Oscar® to his own... read more
After the success of 1975’s JAWS, Steven Spielberg wanted to film a smaller-scale story about a man obsessed with an... read more
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND in 70mm
After the success of 1975’s JAWS, Steven Spielberg wanted to film a smaller-scale story about a man obsessed with an alien encounter. After he opted to include special effects, the project grew enormously complicated but ultimately resulted in another major success. Roy Neary (Richard Dreyfuss) witnesses a UFO on an abandoned road and, against the wishes of his wife (Teri Garr), goes searching for answers. François Truffaut plays a French UFO specialist who leads the effort to communicate with the aliens. John Williams’ Oscar®-nominated score, featuring the “five-tone” motif now ingrained in popular culture, lost that Oscar® to his own... read more
After the success of 1975’s JAWS, Steven Spielberg wanted to film a smaller-scale story about a man obsessed with an... read more
COME AND SEE (1985)
[IDI I SMOTRI] This legendary film from Soviet director Elem Klimov is a senses-shattering plunge into the dehumanizing horrors of war. As Nazi forces encroach on his small village in what today is known as Belarus, teenaged Flyora (Aleksei Kravchenko, in a searing depiction of anguish) eagerly joins the Soviet resistance. Rather than the adventure and glory he envisioned, what he finds is a waking nightmare of unimaginable carnage and cruelty — rendered with a feverish, otherworldly intensity by the film’s subjective camerawork and expressionistic sound design. Nearly blocked from being made by Soviet censors who took seven years to... read more
[IDI I SMOTRI] This legendary film from Soviet director Elem Klimov is a senses-shattering plunge into the dehumanizing horrors of... read more
COMING TO AMERICA
Sheltered African prince Akeem (Eddie Murphy) refuses the arranged marriage designed by his father (James Earl Jones), dreaming of finding a bride who loves him unconditionally and not just for his social status. Thus, he packs his bag and drags his loyal aid, Semmi (Arsenio Hall), to America to find a queen in the most logical place: Queens, New York. Disguised as poor students, they rent a squalid apartment and get jobs working at a fast-food restaurant. But when Akeem meets the perfect woman (Shari Headley), he struggles to reveal his regal identity. After the success of TRADING PLACES, Murphy... read more
Sheltered African prince Akeem (Eddie Murphy) refuses the arranged marriage designed by his father (James Earl Jones), dreaming of finding... read more
Count Gore presents THE ALIEN FACTOR + NIGHTBEAST
Join us for some creepy good fun when local TV legend Count Gore De Vol (Dick Dyszel) returns to present a double feature of Baltimore-born low-budget maestro Don Dohler’s masterpieces in the spirit of the original CREATURE FEATURE broadcasts, including vintage clips from the Count’s vault and interactive fun and games. Keep your eyes peeled for Mayor Bert Wicker, who appears in both films and might share an uncanny resemblance to your favorite vampirific TV host. THE ALIEN FACTOR Director Don Dohler’s homage to the classic sci-fi creature features from the 1950s has endured the passage of time to become... read more
Join us for some creepy good fun when local TV legend Count Gore De Vol (Dick Dyszel) returns to present... read more
DAUGHTERS OF THE DUST
AFI Conservatory Alumna Julie Dash’s 1991 film was the first feature by a Black woman to receive a wide release in the U.S. The story centers on the Peazant family, living on the Sea Islands off of South Carolina at the turn of the century. Part of a Gullah community — former West African enslaved people who preserved their ancestors’ Yoruba traditions — the family struggles to maintain their cultural heritage while contemplating a migration to the mainland. Shot by Arthur Jafa (who oversaw color grading on the restoration), DAUGHTERS OF THE DUST won the Cinematography Award at the 1991... read more
AFI Conservatory Alumna Julie Dash’s 1991 film was the first feature by a Black woman to receive a wide release... read more
DEMETRIUS AND THE GLADIATORS
Before GLADIATOR and even SPARTACUS, Delmer Daves (3:10 TO YUMA, A SUMMER PLACE) cast a mold for the gladiator epic with his sequel to THE ROBE, the 1953 biblical saga that was also Hollywood’s first CinemaScope release. Well into production before its prequel had even been released, DEMETRIUS AND THE GLADIATORS niftily cashed in on the success of its predecessor and the sensation caused by CinemaScope, going on to become one of the highest-grossing films of 1954. Picking up where THE ROBE ends, as ill-fated Christian martyrs Marcellus (Richard Burton) and Diana (Jean Simmons) meet their fate at the hands... read more
Before GLADIATOR and even SPARTACUS, Delmer Daves (3:10 TO YUMA, A SUMMER PLACE) cast a mold for the gladiator epic... read more
THE DEVIL QUEEN
[A RAINHA DIABA] In the underworld of 1970s Rio de Janeiro, the feared “Devil Queen” rules a drug cartel from the back room of a brothel. Draped in green eyeshadow and menace, she commands loyalty with a jackknife that serves equally for shaving legs and slitting throats. Her grip on power begins to falter as rival factions — favela gangsters, drag queens and sex workers — turn on one another in a violent struggle to claim her throne, exposing a world where those excluded from bourgeois society fight for dominance on the margins. Directed by Antônio Carlos de Fontoura during... read more
[A RAINHA DIABA] In the underworld of 1970s Rio de Janeiro, the feared “Devil Queen” rules a drug cartel from... read more
DREAMGIRLS
After his Academy Award® nomination for crafting the screenplay for smash-hit musical CHICAGO, filmmaker Bill Condon returned to the genre with this adaptation of DREAMGIRLS, a 1981 Broadway show inspired by Berry Gordy’s Motown Records and its premiere act, the Supremes. Jennifer Hudson stars as Effie White, lead singer of The Dreamettes, alongside backup singers Deena Jones (Beyoncé) and Lorrell Robinson (Anika Noni Rose). Discovered by Curtis Taylor Jr. (Jamie Foxx), an ambitious car salesman turned record label executive, the group are catapulted to stardom after opening for Jimmy “Thunder” Early (Eddie Murphy). But when they are rebranded as The... read more
After his Academy Award® nomination for crafting the screenplay for smash-hit musical CHICAGO, filmmaker Bill Condon returned to the genre... read more
DUAL CITIZEN
In 2012, the Haitian government amended the country’s constitution to allow dual citizenship. Filmmaker Rachelle Salnave is eager to reclaim her Haitian citizenship, but the process is far from simple: To do so, her father, Edouard, must reclaim his first before she can. Edouard, a New York Republican who has not set foot in Haiti in more than 50 years, reluctantly agrees to help his daughter, which means engaging with a country and government he has kept at arm’s length since his family’s political exile in the 1960s. This humorous and heartfelt documentary is both a father-daughter road trip and... read more
In 2012, the Haitian government amended the country’s constitution to allow dual citizenship. Filmmaker Rachelle Salnave is eager to reclaim... read more
THE EASY KIND
When Elizabeth Cook first emerged on the country music scene, she was plucked up by the Nashville establishment, briefly paraded around as the latest sweet young thing and quickly cast aside when she refused to fit neatly into a marketable box. In THE EASY KIND, Cook plays a fictionalized version of herself named EC: a renegade singer/songwriter steadfast in her own skin while navigating the personal and professional complexities of midlife. She is breaking new ground musically — even if the powers that be still cannot see how to monetize her magnetic, hardscrabble talent. As she frees herself from the... read more
When Elizabeth Cook first emerged on the country music scene, she was plucked up by the Nashville establishment, briefly paraded... read more
EDDIE MURPHY RAW
Uncensored. Uncut. Irresistible. EDDIE MURPHY RAW, the record-setting, highest-grossing stand-up film of all time, is Eddie Murphy doing what he does best: making people laugh. In the special, filmed live at New York’s Felt Forum in 1987, Murphy delights, shocks and entertains with dead-on celebrity impersonations; observations on ‘80s love, sex and marriage; a remembrance of his mother’s hamburgers; and much more. An incredible time capsule of Murphy at the height of his comedic powers, the film was crafted by an all-star team of talent, with actor-turned-filmmaker Robert Townsend directing, joined by cinematographer and Spike Lee–collaborator Ernest Dickerson, plus a... read more
Uncensored. Uncut. Irresistible. EDDIE MURPHY RAW, the record-setting, highest-grossing stand-up film of all time, is Eddie Murphy doing what he... read more
THE EGYPTIAN
As he records his memoirs, the elderly Sinuhe (Edmund Purdom) narrates the story of his amazing life during Egypt’s 18th dynasty, in the 13th century BCE. Adopted as a foundling rescued from a reed basket on the Nile, Sinuhe rises to become a renowned physician and trusted adviser to the Pharaoh Akhnaton (Michael Wilding). But multiple court intrigues threaten peace in the kingdom. The impressive cast includes Victor Mature, Jean Simmons, Gene Tierney and Peter Ustinov. Film historian Foster Hirsch expands upon the cinematic scale of THE EGYPTIAN in his 2023 book “Hollywood and the Movies of the Fifties”: “[It... read more
As he records his memoirs, the elderly Sinuhe (Edmund Purdom) narrates the story of his amazing life during Egypt’s 18th... read more
EL REGRESADO
Cuba, early 21st century. Mandi, a young painter and recent graduate from the National Art School, returns to his small coastal town of Gibara to complete his mandatory community service. There, he reconnects with his former professor, a local artist silenced by the Cuban regime for his anti-Castro views. Mandi thus finds himself at a crossroads that clashes with his aspirations and ideals: avoiding confrontation within an oppressive political context while pursuing personal and artistic freedom. The latest film from Cuban filmmaker Armando Capó (AGOSTO) is a fictional work with autobiographical elements that paints a portrait of the struggles faced... read more
Cuba, early 21st century. Mandi, a young painter and recent graduate from the National Art School, returns to his small... read more
THE FALL OF OTRAR
[ОТЫРАРДЫҢ КҮЙРЕУІ] [OTYRARDYÑ KÜIREWI] Kazakh New Wave director Ardak Amirkulov’s THE FALL OF OTRAR is a hypnotic epic about one of world history’s crucial military battles. In the early 13th century, Genghis Khan conquered Otrar, a major city in the old Persian kingdom of Khwarazm and a gateway to the West. This victory marked the fearsome warrior’s first campaign beyond traditional Mongol territory — and the opening salvo to his near-complete domination of Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Evoking the dynamic pacing of Akira Kurosawa and the hallucinatory sensuousness of Tarkovsky (aided by a deft alternation among color, black-and-white and... read more
[ОТЫРАРДЫҢ КҮЙРЕУІ] [OTYRARDYÑ KÜIREWI] Kazakh New Wave director Ardak Amirkulov’s THE FALL OF OTRAR is a hypnotic epic about one... read more
FANTASTIC VOYAGE
Sci-fi meets spy-fi in this imaginative ‘60s spectacular that combines adventurous speculative technology and Cold War paranoia, directed by Richard Fleischer and produced by Saul David, who hit pay dirt with the spy spoof OUR MAN FLINT and its sequel IN LIKE FLINT. After a scientist working behind the Iron Curtain on top secret miniaturization technology defects to the West, he is targeted for assassination and grievously wounded. To save his life, U.S. Navy submariner Captain Bill Owens (William Redfield), CIA agent Grant (Stephen Boyd) and a crew of medical experts are recruited to be shrunk down to microscopic size... read more
Sci-fi meets spy-fi in this imaginative ‘60s spectacular that combines adventurous speculative technology and Cold War paranoia, directed by Richard... read more
A FEW GOOD MEN
“You can’t handle the truth!” Callow young JAG lieutenant Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise) gets paired with senior officer Lieutenant Commander JoAnne Galloway (Demi Moore) to defend two Guantanamo Marines charged with the hazing death of a third. The top brass would like a speedy trial or better yet a plea bargain — Kaffee’s specialty — but Galloway suspects there is more to the story, including how much base commander Colonel Nathan Jessep (Jack Nicholson) really knew. Rob Reiner nimbly directs from Aaron Sorkin’s career-making screenplay, adapted from his own Broadway play. Beyond the high star–wattage leads, Kevin Bacon, Kiefer Sutherland,... read more
“You can’t handle the truth!” Callow young JAG lieutenant Daniel Kaffee (Tom Cruise) gets paired with senior officer Lieutenant Commander... read more
FORBIDDEN PLANET
Everyone’s favorite 1950s sci-fi knockoff of Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” — characters in a remote setting contending with a superpowered adversary and his minions — is significant for a number of screen “firsts,” including its groundbreaking depiction of faster-than-light-speed travel; its exclusively electronic score by Bebe and Louis Barron; and the iconic Robbie the Robot, a full-fledged character and a great leap forward in popular conceptions of AI. A major influence on sci-fi for generations to come — STAR TREK creator Gene Roddenberry acknowledges its influence — the film made the Library of Congress’ National Film Registry in 2013. DIR Fred... read more
Everyone’s favorite 1950s sci-fi knockoff of Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” — characters in a remote setting contending with a superpowered adversary... read more
FORTY GUNS
Barbara Stanwyck gives a steely performance as powerful Arizona rancher Jessica Drummond, who rules over Cochise County like a warlord, backed by her personal army of 40 hired guns, while indulging the lawless buffoonery of her younger brother, Brockie (John Ericson). When reformed gunslinger-turned-lawman Griff Bonnell (Barry Sullivan) arrives in Tombstone along with his brothers, Wes and Chico (Gener Barry and Robert Dix), bearing a warrant to arrest one of Jessica’s men, the two find themselves at odds, yet strangely attracted to one another. Samuel Fuller’s inventive, eccentric and wildly entertaining western has become a cult classic, inspiring filmmakers from... read more
Barbara Stanwyck gives a steely performance as powerful Arizona rancher Jessica Drummond, who rules over Cochise County like a warlord,... read more
FUCKTOYS
Welcome to Trashtown, U.S.A., rising like a pastel-hued industrial mirage out of the Louisiana swampland, where everyone has a kink and there is enough bad luck going around to keep a bevy of psychics employed. Sex worker AP (played by the intrepid writer/director/producer Annapurna Sriram) has learned she has been cursed. And it is a gnarly one. A fabulously bejeweled tarot reader (Big Freedia) delivers the prognosis and the cure: AP will need $1,000 and a baby lamb to complete the purification ritual, lest she be swallowed up by a black hole of bad juju. Thus, AP embarks on a... read more
Welcome to Trashtown, U.S.A., rising like a pastel-hued industrial mirage out of the Louisiana swampland, where everyone has a kink... read more
THE GIRL CAN'T HELP IT
A landmark showcase of first-wave rock ‘n’ roll talent — and simultaneously an incendiary send-up of the showbiz machinery behind pop culture —THE GIRL CAN’T HELP IT stands as one of writer/director/producer Frank Tashlin’s greatest accomplishments. A talented cartoonist and animation director in his early career, Tashlin retained a penchant for absurdist sight gags, anarchic energy and breakneck pacing in the feature films of his later career, which at times play like live-action cartoons. In her first starring role, blonde bombshell Jayne Mansfield plays a gangster’s moll reluctant to be pushed into the spotlight by her boyfriend, Marty “Fats” Murdock... read more
A landmark showcase of first-wave rock ‘n’ roll talent — and simultaneously an incendiary send-up of the showbiz machinery behind... read more
GRAVE OF THE FIREFLIES
[HOTARU NO HAKA] [火垂るの墓] When the U.S. firebombing of Kobe leaves siblings Setsuko and Seita orphaned, they are forced to fend for themselves amid the chaos of the final days of World War II. They first take shelter with an aunt, but her cold reception and reluctance to help forces them back out on the street. They next set up camp in a cave, relying on fireflies for light. At first their adventure is full of excitement and wonder, but the harsh deprivations of war quickly become too real to ignore, culminating in a devastating finale. Roger Ebert considered this... read more
[HOTARU NO HAKA] [火垂るの墓] When the U.S. firebombing of Kobe leaves siblings Setsuko and Seita orphaned, they are forced to... read more
GUNMAN'S WALK
Directed by Phil Karlson, who excelled with hard-hitting film noirs like 99 RIVER STREET, KANSAS CITY CONFIDENTIAL and THE PHENIX CITY STORY, from a screenplay by Frank S. Nugent (THE SEARCHERS), GUNMAN’S WALK is a surprising and psychologically complex western, critically incisive on its themes of violence, patriarchy and racism, while incorporating elements of Oedipal drama and Shakespearean tragedy for good measure. Arizona rancher and land baron Lee Hackett (a masterful Van Heflin) accumulated his wealth and stature during a more lawless time, and while his past — possibly dirty — deeds are now sublimated into legend, his reputation as... read more
Directed by Phil Karlson, who excelled with hard-hitting film noirs like 99 RIVER STREET, KANSAS CITY CONFIDENTIAL and THE PHENIX... read more
THE GUNS OF NAVARONE
The Greek Islands, 1943: A renowned officer (Gregory Peck) leads an intrepid team of commandos on a dangerous mission to blow up a Nazi gun battery high upon the island of Navarone, with the lives of 2,000 marooned British troops hanging in the balance. A smash hit and hugely influential men-on-a-mission wartime adventure, the film features memorable turns by David Niven, Anthony Quinn, Stanley Baker, Anthony Quayle, James Darren, Irene Papas, Gia Scala and Richard Harris, and won the Oscar® for Best Special Effects. DIR J. Lee Thompson; SCR/PROD Carl Foreman, from the novel by Alistair MacLean. UK/U.S, 1961, color,... read more
The Greek Islands, 1943: A renowned officer (Gregory Peck) leads an intrepid team of commandos on a dangerous mission to... read more
GUYS AND DOLLS
“Luck, be a lady tonight!” This is the screen version of the Tony Award®–winning Broadway musical smash, featuring the music of Frank Loesser, with Marlon Brando as Sky Masterson; Jean Simmons as the unattainable Sarah Brown, the Salvation Army sergeant with whom he falls in love; Frank Sinatra as Nathan Detroit, proprietor of “The Oldest Established Permanent Floating Crap Game in New York;” and Vivian Blaine, the lone carryover from the original Broadway production, as his long-suffering fiancée Miss Adelaide. DIR/SCR Joseph L. Mankiewicz, from the musical by Frank Loesser, Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows, based on stories by Damon... read more
“Luck, be a lady tonight!” This is the screen version of the Tony Award®–winning Broadway musical smash, featuring the music... read more
THE HANDMAIDEN
[AGASSI] [아가씨] The full range of Park Chan-wook's directorial skills — stunning visuals, thrilling voyeurism, twisty plots and moving performances — are on display in THE HANDMAIDEN, Park’s 2016 adaptation of Sarah Waters’ crime novel “Fingersmith.” Transplanting the setting from Victorian-era England to 1930s Korea under Japanese occupation, Park weaves a gripping and sensual tale of two women: a Japanese heiress (Kim Min-hee) living on the secluded estate of her wealthy uncle (Cho Jin-woong), and a younger Korean woman (Kim Tae-ri), who is hired to serve as her handmaiden but is secretly plotting with a con man (Ha Jung-woo) to... read more
[AGASSI] [아가씨] The full range of Park Chan-wook's directorial skills — stunning visuals, thrilling voyeurism, twisty plots and moving performances... read more
HARLEM NIGHTS
After a string of box-office hits, Eddie Murphy capped off his legendary ‘80s run with his only directorial effort, HARLEM NIGHTS. Murphy stars as Quick, the adopted son of nightclub owner Sugar Ray (Richard Pryor). Together they run one of the hottest spots in Harlem during the tail end of Prohibition. But when mobster Bugsy Calhoune (Michael Lerner) gets words of their success, he hires a crooked cop (Danny Aiello) to try and shut them down. Murphy united three generations of incredible Black talent — Redd Foxx, Charlie Murphy, Della Reese, Jasmine Guy and Arsenio Hall — to craft this... read more
After a string of box-office hits, Eddie Murphy capped off his legendary ‘80s run with his only directorial effort, HARLEM... read more
HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER'S STONE
“Let the magic begin.” On his 11th birthday, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) is plucked from the care of his awful aunt and uncle to fulfill his destiny as a student at the fantastic Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It is there that he meets new best friends Ron Weasley (Rupert Grint) and Hermione Granger (Emma Watson), and the magical adventures begin. A who’s who of seasoned British actors portray the magical mentors and teachers of Hogwarts, including Alan Rickman as Professor Snape, Robbie Coltrane as Hagrid, Richard Harris as Dumbledore and Maggie Smith as Professor McGonagall. DIR Chris Columbus;... read more
“Let the magic begin.” On his 11th birthday, Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) is plucked from the care of his awful... read more
HEAVEN KNOWS, MR. ALLISON
Salty Marine Corporal Allison (Robert Mitchum) and nun Sister Angela (Deborah Kerr) are marooned on a small Pacific island during WWII, battling the elements and each other until they have to put their heads together to outwit an expedition of Japanese soldiers. The pairing of Kerr with Mitchum — the Scottish actress’ favorite leading man — produced terrific screen chemistry, and an Oscar® nomination for Kerr. DIR/SCR John Huston; SCR John Lee Mahin, from the novel by Charles Shaw; PROD Buddy Alder, Eugene Frenke. U.S., 1957, color, 107 min. NOT RATED read more
Salty Marine Corporal Allison (Robert Mitchum) and nun Sister Angela (Deborah Kerr) are marooned on a small Pacific island during... read more
HOUSE OF USHER (1960)
The first of Roger Corman’s many low-budget, high-style adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe stories became a huge hit in the summer of 1960, leading Corman to make a total of eight Poe films over the coming years. Philip Winthrop (Mark Damon) travels to the Usher family estate to visit his betrothed, Madeline Usher (Myrna Fahey). The family’s imposing Gothic mansion, located in a desolate patch of swampland, makes for a chilling setting, as does Madeline’s creepy, controlling brother Roderick (Vincent Price), who informs his future brother-in-law of the family’s curse, adding to the eerie atmosphere. Cinematographer Floyd Crosby (HIGH NOON,... read more
The first of Roger Corman’s many low-budget, high-style adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe stories became a huge hit in the... read more
THE HUSTLER (1961)
Paul Newman gives one of his most iconic performances as pool hustler “Fast Eddie” Felson, who is adept at taking small-town rubes for small-time money but longs for a shot at the big money in the city. Over the course of Robert Rossen’s seedy but spirited sporting epic, Felson will win big, lose bigger, find love, lose love and nearly lose his soul. The existential action culminates in a dual finale — Felson’s final high-stakes game against star player Minnesota Fats (Jackie Gleason), and his showdown with malicious gambler Bert Gordon (George C. Scott). The excellent cast includes Piper Laurie,... read more
Paul Newman gives one of his most iconic performances as pool hustler “Fast Eddie” Felson, who is adept at taking... read more
I LOVE BOOSTERS
The latest idiosyncratic film from director Boots Riley is as wide-ranging as his debut, SORRY TO BOTHER YOU, but no less ambitious in its aims or pointed in its critique. Corvette (Keke Palmer), an aspiring fashion designer stuck living in a shuttered chicken restaurant, makes ends meet as a booster (someone who steals merchandise and resells it at a discount) with her friends Sade (Naomi Ackie) and Mariah (Taylour Paige). After she repeatedly boosts outfits from stores operated by fashion designer Christie Smith (Demi Moore), Corvette draws the mogul’s ire, setting in motion a chain of events that extends far... read more
The latest idiosyncratic film from director Boots Riley is as wide-ranging as his debut, SORRY TO BOTHER YOU, but no... read more
INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE
Sean Connery enters as Professor Henry Jones, Indiana Jones’ medievalist father who is kidnapped by the Nazis while researching the whereabouts of the fabled Holy Grail. Ford and Connery make for a wonderfully entertaining odd couple as they bicker their way through the adventure. River Phoenix stars in the opening sequence as the young Indiana Jones. DIR Steven Spielberg; SCR Jeffrey Boam; PROD Robert Watts. U.S.,1989, color, 127 min. RATED PG-13 read more
Sean Connery enters as Professor Henry Jones, Indiana Jones’ medievalist father who is kidnapped by the Nazis while researching the... read more
INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM
Steven Spielberg’s second installment in the adventures of treasure-hunting archaeologist Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) famously opens with a bravura action sequence that begins in a Shanghai nightclub and ends with our hero and his companions — nightclub singer Willie Scott (Kate Capshaw) and savvy street kid Short Round (Ke Huy Quan) — jumping out of a plane over the Himalayas without the aid of parachutes. An Indian death cult that has enslaved village children takes over the bad-guy roles from the Nazis this time around. The graphic human sacrifice scenes, involving the extraction of a still-beating human heart, eventually led... read more
Steven Spielberg’s second installment in the adventures of treasure-hunting archaeologist Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) famously opens with a bravura action... read more
THE INNOCENTS (1961)
In this haunting adaptation (co-written by Truman Capote) of Henry James’ “The Turn of the Screw,” a 19th-century English governess (Deborah Kerr) begins to fear that evil spirits haunt her seemingly angelic charges. But are those specters real or just figments of her own hysteria? Film critic Pauline Kael wrote that “Deborah Kerr [...] is more exciting than ever” and called the film “the best ghost movie I’ve ever seen.” DIR/PROD Jack Clayton; SCR William Archibald, Truman Capote, from the novella “The Turn of the Screw” by Henry James. U.S./UK, 1961, b&w, 100 min. NOT RATED read more
In this haunting adaptation (co-written by Truman Capote) of Henry James’ “The Turn of the Screw,” a 19th-century English governess... read more
JAWS
“You're gonna need a bigger boat.” Steven Spielberg’s monster hit, adapted from the Peter Benchley bestseller, did not merely set box office records; it reshaped the fundamentals of the movie world, setting the template for how future summer blockbusters would be made, marketed and released. Though it spawned several sequels and countless rip-offs, Spielberg’s original remains as deliciously unsettling today as it was in the summer of 1975. The film stars Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss. DIR Steven Spielberg; SCR Peter Benchley, Carl Gottlieb, from Benchley’s novel; PROD David Brown, Richard D. Zanuck. U.S., 1975, color, 124 min.... read more
“You're gonna need a bigger boat.” Steven Spielberg’s monster hit, adapted from the Peter Benchley bestseller, did not merely set... read more
JINSEI
Our hero (voiced by rapper ACE COOL), called by a different name in each chapter of his life, becomes a J-pop idol, an outcast, a leader and an oracle in this hundred-year chronicle spanning the past, present, and future. Through a chance encounter with a transfer student, he trains to become an idol, starting his search for self-identity, a journey toward greatness beyond superstardom. Written, directed, edited and entirely hand-drawn by newcomer Ryuya Suzuki over 18 months, JINSEI (meaning “life” in Japanese) is an anime tour de force that announces Suzuki to the world as a bold new talent in... read more
Our hero (voiced by rapper ACE COOL), called by a different name in each chapter of his life, becomes a... read more
KORCZAK
This heartbreaking film about Janusz Korczak, a Polish-Jewish educator and pediatrician during the Second World War, saw Wajda collaborate on the screenplay with filmmaker Agnieszka Holland. The topic of Jewishness within Polish history and society is a feature of a number of Wajda’s films; KORCZAK is arguably his most resonant, and vital, account of the Holocaust, exploring themes of self-sacrifice, honor and the strength of the human spirit, even in the face of evil. (Note courtesy of DI Factory.) DIR Andrzej Wajda; SCR Agnieszka Holland; PROD Janusz Morgenstern, Willi Segler, Daniel Toscan du Plantier, Regina Ziegler. Poland/Germany/UK, 1990, color, 118... read more
This heartbreaking film about Janusz Korczak, a Polish-Jewish educator and pediatrician during the Second World War, saw Wajda collaborate on... read more
LADY AND THE TRAMP
The first animated feature made in CinemaScope takes full advantage of the wider screen, with richly detailed backgrounds and innovative compositions. Lady, a pampered cocker spaniel living in a comfortable home, has her place of privilege challenged, first by the birth of her owners’ baby boy, then by the arrival of a pair of devious Siamese cats introduced by the babysitter Aunt Sarah. Finding herself out on the street, she is befriended and protected by the streetwise, happy-go-lucky terrier-mix Tramp. He invites her to join him in living “footloose and collar-free,” making a persuasive case over a romantic shared spaghetti... read more
The first animated feature made in CinemaScope takes full advantage of the wider screen, with richly detailed backgrounds and innovative... read more
THE LAST ONE FOR THE ROAD
[LE CITTÀ DI PIANURA] The bottom has fallen out for Carlobianchi and Doriano, two small-time Italian crooks. They have not been able to mount an honest scam since the 2008 financial crisis and now face the impending mediocrity of middle age. The return of an exiled partner-in-crime from Argentina affords a second chance for long-buried riches, but can Carlobianchi and Doriano put down their beers long enough to keep their eyes on the prize? Along their slow-motion, alcoholic grand tour of the Venetian countryside, they cross paths with Giulio, a shy architecture student who reluctantly warms to the sodden pair... read more
[LE CITTÀ DI PIANURA] The bottom has fallen out for Carlobianchi and Doriano, two small-time Italian crooks. They have not... read more
A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN
“There's no crying in baseball!” Penny Marshall’s beloved film follows the rise of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League created by Chicago Cubs owner Walter Harvey (Garry Marshall) in the 1940s, responding to the diminished ranks of male pro ballplayers during World War II. The genuine crowd-pleaser stars Geena Davis, Madonna, Lori Petty and Rosie O'Donnell as Rockford Peaches teammates, and Tom Hanks as their jaded, alcoholic manager. DIR Penny Marshall; SCR Lowell Ganz, Babaloo Mandel; PROD Elliot Abbott, Robert Greenhut. U.S., 1992, color, 128 min. RATED PG read more
“There's no crying in baseball!” Penny Marshall’s beloved film follows the rise of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League created... read more
THE MAN FROM LARAMIE
A mysterious stranger (James Stewart) unsettles the residents of Coronado, New Mexico, when he asks too many questions about a recent Apache attack that wiped out the local cavalry unit. But a run-in with the local cattle baron’s hotheaded son (Alex Nicol) sets him on the path to getting some answers — and also toward a deadly showdown. The last of the Mann-Stewart westerns, and the only one filmed in CinemaScope, this film combines epic western grandeur with some of the most down-and-dirty screen violence of its era. DIR Anthony Mann; SCR Frank Burt, Philip Yordan, from the story by... read more
A mysterious stranger (James Stewart) unsettles the residents of Coronado, New Mexico, when he asks too many questions about a... read more
THE MAN WHO WASN'T THERE
The seemingly simple barber Ed Crane (Billy Bob Thornton) lives a dull, dissatisfied life in his small 1949 California town. When customer Creighton Tolliver (Joe Polito) convinces Ed to invest in a dry-cleaning scheme, Ed secretly blackmails department store magnate “Big Dave” Brewster (James Gandolfini) — whom he suspects of having an affair with his wife, Doris (Frances McDormand) — for $10,000, but Ed’s plans quickly go awry in spectacular fashion. Shot in glorious black and white by Oscar® winner Roger Deakins, the Coen brothers’ homage to crime-fiction novelist James M. Cain is a moody, existential meta-noir. Joel Coen won... read more
The seemingly simple barber Ed Crane (Billy Bob Thornton) lives a dull, dissatisfied life in his small 1949 California town.... read more
MATADOR
Eager to prove his heterosexuality, young bullfighter-in-training Ángel (Antonio Banderas) attempts to rape the girlfriend of his teacher, retired-yet-renowned bullfighter Diego Montes (Nacho Martínez). After his bumbling attempt ends in failure, Ángel concocts a new plan: He will confess to a series of grisly murders that, unbeknownst to him, were perpetrated by Diego, who is consumed by a lust for blood and death. Ángel’s case is taken up by María, a shrewd lawyer hiding her own double life of sex and murder. For his fifth film, Spanish auteur Pedro Almodóvar once again intertwines a vivid visual palette with an exploration... read more
Eager to prove his heterosexuality, young bullfighter-in-training Ángel (Antonio Banderas) attempts to rape the girlfriend of his teacher, retired-yet-renowned bullfighter... read more
MIKEY AND NICKY
The saga behind the making of this film is legendary: One million feet of film were shot to get spontaneous raw drama, 18 months were spent in the editing room and director Elaine May and star Peter Falk had to hide their own footage away in a secret location to keep it from prying studio executives. After a botched release, May’s preferred cut of the film first saw the light of day a decade later, and the film now reflects her intended vision. Nick (John Cassavetes) is a small-timer with a contract out on him, on the run from the... read more
The saga behind the making of this film is legendary: One million feet of film were shot to get spontaneous... read more
MISERY
Celebrated author Paul Sheldon (James Caan) is desperate to distance himself from the cheesy romance novels that made him famous. En route to deliver his newest and more serious-minded work, Paul crashes his Mustang in a blizzard, only to be rescued by his number one fan, Annie Wilkes (Kathy Bates). Nursing him back to health in her remote cabin, Annie finds the manuscript and decides it is not up to her exacting expectations; she refuses to let Paul leave until he rewrites it — under threat of injury and sledgehammer. Best known for his more warmhearted fare, filmmaker Rob Reiner... read more
Celebrated author Paul Sheldon (James Caan) is desperate to distance himself from the cheesy romance novels that made him famous.... read more
MOONLIGHT
MOONLIGHT is the tender, heartbreaking story of a young man’s struggle to find himself, told across three defining chapters in his life as he experiences the ecstasy, pain and beauty of falling in love, while grappling with his own sexuality. Anchored by astonishing performances and the singular vision of filmmaker Barry Jenkins, MOONLIGHT is a groundbreaking exploration of masculinity — a sensual, intoxicating piece of cinema that uncovers deep truths about the moments that define us, the people who shape us most and the ache of love that can last a lifetime. The film stars Naomie Harris, André Holland, Mahershala... read more
MOONLIGHT is the tender, heartbreaking story of a young man’s struggle to find himself, told across three defining chapters in... read more
MULAN (1998)
Loosely based on a figure in Chinese folk legend, Mulan (Ming-Na Wen) is an adventurous yet duty-bound young woman. When the Imperial Army orders that one man from each family must enlist to fight the invading Huns, Mulan worries about her elderly father’s safety. She cuts her hair and dons her father’s old armor to bravely take his place, disguised as a male soldier named Ping. Helped by her outrageously funny guardian dragon Mushu (Eddie Murphy) and a lucky cricket named Cri-Kee, Mulan strives to earn the respect of her fellow warriors and their courageous Captain Shang (BD Wong). Mulan’s... read more
Loosely based on a figure in Chinese folk legend, Mulan (Ming-Na Wen) is an adventurous yet duty-bound young woman. When... read more
MULHOLLAND DRIVE
After surviving a murder attempt and a car crash with no memory of who tried to kill her (or why), an amnesiac actress (Laura Harring) wanders into an apartment where she discovers Hollywood hopeful Betty Elms (Naomi Watts). Playing detective, the two eventually uncover some shady doings in the movie biz, a volcanic attraction to one another and the idea that they may just be two characters in someone else's dream. In many ways the culmination of Lynch's oeuvre, masterfully revisiting his signature themes of identity, desire and dream logic, this surrealistic film noir's subject is nothing less than the... read more
After surviving a murder attempt and a car crash with no memory of who tried to kill her (or why),... read more
THE MUPPET MOVIE
In their first foray onto the silver screen, Kermit the Frog and his Muppet cohort — Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, Miss Piggy and the gang — sing their way to Hollywood, hoping to make it big. But Charles Durning’s evil Doc Hopper, a frog-leg restaurant magnate, has other plans for Kermit. Tremendously funny — as much for adults as for kids, and maybe more so — the film features memorable musical numbers like “Movin’ Right Along” and the Oscar®-nominated “Rainbow Connection,” plus cameos galore from stars including Steve Martin, Mel Brooks, Madeline Kahn, Richard Pryor, Carol Kane, Cloris Leachman, Orson Welles... read more
In their first foray onto the silver screen, Kermit the Frog and his Muppet cohort — Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, Miss... read more
MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO
“I always know where I am by the way the road looks...” In director Gus Van Sant’s meditation on the nature of innocence, Keanu Reeves and River Phoenix star as two young men living on the fringes of society who peddle their bodies for sex. Amiable, none-too-bright street hustler Mike Waters (Phoenix) works the streets of the Pacific Northwest with his best friend, Scott Favor (Reeves). Mike secretly loves Scott. And Scott, the son of Portland’s wealthy mayor, secretly yearns to cast off the friendship of his fellow lowlifes and assume his birthright of wealth, power and respectability. Earning Phoenix... read more
“I always know where I am by the way the road looks...” In director Gus Van Sant’s meditation on the... read more
NAKED ACTS
Celebrated as a key film in the canon of Black independent cinema in the 1990s, Bridgett M. Davis’ NAKED ACTS was included in the seminal anthology “The 50 Most Influential Black Films” by S. Torriano Berry. Beautiful aspiring actor Cicely (Jake-Ann Jones) has just landed her first major role, but there is a big problem: It requires a nude scene. Her mother was a Blaxploitation star known for her sex appeal, while Cicely is a survivor of sexual assault with lifelong body image issues, all of which has left her with a strong aversion to disrobing in public. Now, with... read more
Celebrated as a key film in the canon of Black independent cinema in the 1990s, Bridgett M. Davis’ NAKED ACTS... read more
THE ODYSSEY in 70mm
Christopher Nolan’s next film is a mythic action epic shot around the world that brings Homer’s foundational saga to the screen in glorious 70mm. THE ODYSSEY stars Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson and Lupita Nyong’o, with Zendaya and Charlize Theron. DIR/SCR/PROD Christopher Nolan; SCR from the epic poem by Homer; PROD Emma Thomas. 2026, UK/U.S., color, 172 min. RATED R read more
Christopher Nolan’s next film is a mythic action epic shot around the world that brings Homer’s foundational saga to the... read more
PICNIC (1956)
It is Labor Day weekend, and happy-go-lucky drifter Hal (William Holden) is fresh off a freight train and looking for a brand-new start in life. A robust, handsome show-off, he has come to Kansas to seek work in the family granary of his old fraternity brother (Cliff Robertson). But despite his high hopes and expectations, these ambitious plans soon go awry when Hal’s sexual magnetism attracts every woman in town, including an alluring young beauty queen (Kim Novak), who just happens to be his fraternity brother’s girlfriend. Also starring Rosalind Russell, Arthur O’Connell, Susan Strasberg and Nick Adams, PICNIC was... read more
It is Labor Day weekend, and happy-go-lucky drifter Hal (William Holden) is fresh off a freight train and looking for... read more
PILLION
A deeply felt story of discovery — of the self and of loving another — PILLION is the striking debut feature from director Harry Lighton about one man’s first steps into the world of the BDSM community. Timid Colin (Harry Melling) finds himself swept off his feet when the enigmatic and impossibly handsome Ray (Alexander Skarsgård) ushers him into the gay biker scene as his submissive. At first uncertain about his new relationship but eager to please, Colin is soon in pure bliss, boasting about Ray to coworkers and family despite Ray’s brusque refusal to meet his father and terminally... read more
A deeply felt story of discovery — of the self and of loving another — PILLION is the striking debut... read more
PLANET OF THE APES (1968)
“Take your stinking paws off me, you damned dirty ape!” So says time-tossed astronaut George Taylor (Charlton Heston) to his intelligent ape captors on the mysterious planet where he has crash-landed. Franklin J. Schaffner’s enduring sci-fi classic is memorable for the breakthrough makeup effects that transformed Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter and Maurice Evans into ape scientists Dr. Cornelius, Dr. Zira and Dr. Zaius, earning makeup artist John Chambers an honorary Oscar®. The ace script is credited to THE TWILIGHT ZONE creator Rod Serling and former blacklistee Michael Wilson and the pulse-pounding score is by the great Jerry Goldsmith. DIR Franklin... read more
“Take your stinking paws off me, you damned dirty ape!” So says time-tossed astronaut George Taylor (Charlton Heston) to his... read more
POSSIBLE LANDSCAPES with MADULU, THE SEAMAN
POSSIBLE LANDSCAPES Shot across two seasons in Trinidad and Tobago, POSSIBLE LANDSCAPES is a poignant exploration of intergenerational experiences of landscape and environmental transformation in the Caribbean. The film immerses viewers in sugarcane fields, winding mountain valleys and pristine seas that mask the devastation of dying coral reefs, unfinished homes that stretch into oil fields and fishing communities that struggle against the ravages of the Atlantic. As the Caribbean faces escalating environmental crises, filmmaker Kannan Arunasalam captures the tensions of post-independence aspirations and disappointments, and explores the legacies of colonialism, postcolonial nationalism and changing forms of extractivism, offering a profound... read more
POSSIBLE LANDSCAPES Shot across two seasons in Trinidad and Tobago, POSSIBLE LANDSCAPES is a poignant exploration of intergenerational experiences of... read more
THE PRIDE OF THE YANKEES
Gary Cooper lends his customary dignity to the story of Yankee Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig, “The Iron Man of Baseball,“ whose brilliant career — 17 seasons and a streak of 2,130 consecutive games played — only came to an end after he fell ill and was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, the disease now commonly known by his name. The moving biopic also stars Teresa Wright as Eleanor Twitchell, Gehrig’s wife who championed the left-handed first baseman’s legacy in the decades after his death, and fellow Yankees Babe Ruth, Bob Meusel, Mark Koenig and Bill Dickey as themselves. The... read more
Gary Cooper lends his customary dignity to the story of Yankee Hall of Famer Lou Gehrig, “The Iron Man of... read more
QUEEN OF SOCA
Olivia, a talented young singer from an impoverished community in Trinidad, lives under the strict rules of her deeply religious mother. She is forbidden from pursuing soca music, a genre her mother condemns as sinful. When Olivia reconnects with an old friend who believes in her gift, she decides to pursue her dream. As she struggles to balance faith, family and her desire to escape poverty, Olivia discovers that her greatest battle is not with her mother but with the courage to believe in herself. QUEEN OF SOCA is a coming-of-age story told through rhythm, movement, action, passion and humour... read more
Olivia, a talented young singer from an impoverished community in Trinidad, lives under the strict rules of her deeply religious... read more
RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK in 35mm
This collaboration between STAR WARS’ George Lucas and wunderkind Steven Spielberg resulted in one of the biggest blockbusters of the early 1980s, launched an enduring and beloved franchise and established Harrison Ford as an A-list leading man. The rip-roaring, action-packed yarn careens from steamy South American jungle to snowy Nepalese mountaintop to dusty Egyptian desert — with Ford’s intrepid adventurer/archaeologist Indiana Jones battling Nazis to discover an ancient relic. John Williams’ Oscar®-nominated score includes the well-known theme “The Raiders March,” which came to symbolize hero Jones and was used in the film’s four sequels. DIR Steven Spielberg; SCR Lawrence Kasdan,... read more
This collaboration between STAR WARS’ George Lucas and wunderkind Steven Spielberg resulted in one of the biggest blockbusters of the... read more
RATCATCHER
In her breathtaking and assured debut feature, Lynne Ramsay creates a haunting evocation of a troubled Glasgow childhood. Set during Scotland’s national garbage strike of the mid-1970s, RATCATCHER explores the experiences of a poor adolescent boy as he struggles to reconcile his dreams and his guilt with the abjection that surrounds him. Utilizing beautiful, elusive imagery, candid performances and unexpected humor, Ramsay deftly contrasts urban decay with a rich interior landscape of hope and perseverance, resulting in a work at once raw and deeply poetic. (Note adapted from Janus Films.) DIR/SCR Lynne Ramsay; PROD Gavin Emerson. UK/France, 1999, color, 94... read more
In her breathtaking and assured debut feature, Lynne Ramsay creates a haunting evocation of a troubled Glasgow childhood. Set during... read more
REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE
“You’re tearin’ me apart!” wails James Dean as Jim Stark in Nicholas Ray’s touchstone of teen angst and nobody-understands-me melodrama, an Eisenhower-era anticipation of the even sharper generational rift to come in the 1960s. Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo give breakout performances as troubled suburban teens Judy and Plato, who, like Jim, are badly in need of real friendship. Ray’s sensitive direction, dynamic storytelling and brilliant use of WarnerColor and the CinemaScope frame have ensured that this film has remained alive and vital across multiple generations. In his book “The Films of Nicholas Ray: The Poet of Nightfall,” film historian... read more
“You’re tearin’ me apart!” wails James Dean as Jim Stark in Nicholas Ray’s touchstone of teen angst and nobody-understands-me melodrama,... read more
REGGAE GIRLZ
In a David vs. Goliath saga, the Jamaican women’s football team, affectionately known as the “Reggae Girlz,” rose from obscurity to challenge global giants France and Brazil in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, defying all odds and capturing the world’s imagination with their unyielding spirit. Off the field, the team was stymied by institutional neglect and meager resources that nearly cost them their chance at the tournament, but their perseverance and talent won out. With a groovy soundtrack featuring the music of Bob Marley — whose daughter, Cedella, was appointed ambassador for the Reggae Girlz — this inspiring documentary... read more
In a David vs. Goliath saga, the Jamaican women’s football team, affectionately known as the “Reggae Girlz,” rose from obscurity... read more
THE REVOLT OF MAMIE STOVER
Jane Russell gives one of her best performances as a defiantly independent prostitute-turned-real estate mogul in WWII-era Hawaii. Run out of San Francisco by the law, Mamie Stover (Russell) sets out for Hawaii intending to turn over a new leaf. Shipboard, she meets and falls for sensitive writer Jim Blair (Richard Egan), but the two must part, as he is betrothed to Annalee (Joan Leslie). In Honolulu, Mamie falls back into the game, dying her hair red and taking a job at a shady dance hall owned by the cruel Bertha Parchman (Agnes Moorehead), where she becomes the star attraction... read more
Jane Russell gives one of her best performances as a defiantly independent prostitute-turned-real estate mogul in WWII-era Hawaii. Run out... read more
THE ROBE
Based on the mega-bestseller by Lloyd C. Douglas, THE ROBE was a supersized ancient-world epic, and the first feature film released in the new widescreen format of CinemaScope, projected onto a wide rectangular screen nearly twice as big (originally 2.55:1) as the more square-shaped screens used previously. Roman tribune Marcellus Gallio (Richard Burton), sent from the capital to the imperial backwater of Jerusalem after insulting emperor-in-waiting Caligula (Jay Robinson), plans to bide his time until he can orchestrate his return to the Eternal City. But once in Judea, he is assigned the task of overseeing the execution of three criminals... read more
Based on the mega-bestseller by Lloyd C. Douglas, THE ROBE was a supersized ancient-world epic, and the first feature film... read more
ROSE OF NEVADA
In a forgotten fishing village, a boat mysteriously appears in the old harbor. The Rose of Nevada, lost at sea with all hands 30 years ago, has returned. For the few who remember, it is a sign. The Rose of Nevada must go out to sea again, and maybe then the luck of the devastated village will turn. Nick (George MacKay) takes a job aboard the boat in an attempt to provide for his young family. Alongside him, newly arrived Liam (Callum Turner) joins the crew, desperate to escape his past. They head to sea and return to harbor after... read more
In a forgotten fishing village, a boat mysteriously appears in the old harbor. The Rose of Nevada, lost at sea... read more
SALÒ, OR THE 120 DAYS OF SODOM
[SALÒ O LE 120 GIORNATE DI SODOMA] The notorious final film from Pier Paolo Pasolini, SALÒ, OR THE 120 DAYS OF SODOM, has been called nauseating, shocking, depraved, pornographic — but it is also a masterpiece. The controversial poet, novelist and filmmaker’s transposition of the Marquis de Sade’s 18th-century opus of torture and degradation to Fascist Italy in 1944 — a year before Mussolini’s death and the end of World War II — remains one of the most passionately debated films of all time, a thought-provoking inquiry into the political, social and sexual dynamics that define the world we live... read more
[SALÒ O LE 120 GIORNATE DI SODOMA] The notorious final film from Pier Paolo Pasolini, SALÒ, OR THE 120 DAYS... read more
THE SERPENT'S SKIN
This supernatural romance follows Anna (Alexandra McVicker, CASTRATION MOVIE ANTHOLOGY II) after she escapes from her small, transphobic town and develops a romantic relationship with another young woman, a goth tattoo artist named Gen (Avalon Fast, CASTRATION MOVIE ANTHOLOGY I). After unwittingly unleashing a demon that begins feeding on their friends, the pair need to face their insecurities in order to defeat evil. In her sixth feature film — at just 21 years old — Australian filmmaker Alice Maio Mackay delivers a stylish, visually resplendent ode to love and community that is unabashedly influenced by ‘90s genre classics like BUFFY... read more
This supernatural romance follows Anna (Alexandra McVicker, CASTRATION MOVIE ANTHOLOGY II) after she escapes from her small, transphobic town and... read more
SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS
In this dazzling example of frame-filling CinemaScope mastery, frontierswoman Milly (Jane Powell) falls for backwoodsman Adam (Howard Keel), even if he still needs a little civilizing. But his six brothers really need work, as they decide to forgo courtship of local women and kidnap prospective brides instead. The film earned five Oscar® nominations, including a win for the Gene de Paul/Johnny Mercer score, but it is the vigorous dance numbers, choreographed by Michael Kidd, that give the picture great vitality, including the stunning barn-raising ballet dance sequences. DIR Stanley Donen; SCR Frances Goodrich, Albert Hackett, Dorothy Kingsley, from the story... read more
In this dazzling example of frame-filling CinemaScope mastery, frontierswoman Milly (Jane Powell) falls for backwoodsman Adam (Howard Keel), even if... read more
SHREK
From competing for the Palme d’Or at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival to winning the inaugural Academy Award® for Best Animated Feature and launching the second highest–grossing animated film franchise of all time in the process, everything about SHREK seems as unlikely to break the mold as the film’s green-skinned ogre of a protagonist. After finding his swamp overrun with exiled fairy tale characters relocated by the scheming Lord Farquaad (John Lithgow), Shrek (Mike Myers) sets out on a quest to rescue Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) in exchange for a return to his peaceful life. Aided along the way by... read more
From competing for the Palme d’Or at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival to winning the inaugural Academy Award® for Best... read more
SÁTÁNTANGÓ
Béla Tarr’s 1994 masterpiece immerses viewers in the darkest, dankest, grimmest and most godforsaken of worlds — a derelict Hungarian village, its inhabitants adrift after the fall of Communism and the dissolution of their farming collective. The film is truly uncompromising in its cinematic vision: black-and-white cinematography, long takes and slowly paced (indeed, the film is a foundational text for what came to be called “slow cinema”) but sharply realized scenes sprawling across an epic seven-plus hours of screen time. But SÁTÁNTANGÓ is utterly transfixing and pulses with the force of life despite the degradation on display. In this desolate,... read more
Béla Tarr’s 1994 masterpiece immerses viewers in the darkest, dankest, grimmest and most godforsaken of worlds — a derelict Hungarian... read more
TAXI DRIVER (1976)
“You talkin' to me?” Robert De Niro’s alienated Vietnam vet/Gotham cab driver Travis Bickle yearns for a rain that will “wash all the scum off the streets,” blows his big date with a beautiful politico (Cybill Shepherd), then turns mohawked crusader at the sight of a pimp (Harvey Keitel) slapping around a child prostitute (Jodie Foster). An apotheosis for all of the film’s then-on-the-rise creative talents, including director Martin Scorsese, screenwriter Paul Schrader and star De Niro, TAXI DRIVER also features one of the final scores by the great Bernard Herrmann — and the feature film acting debut of Albert... read more
“You talkin' to me?” Robert De Niro’s alienated Vietnam vet/Gotham cab driver Travis Bickle yearns for a rain that will... read more
THIEF (1981)
Michael Mann’s neon-drenched neo-noir thriller, his debut feature, stylishly set the template for hard-boiled drama in the 1980s. James Caan gives one of his greatest performances as a career jewel thief torn between continuing his criminal enterprise and settling down for a normal life with the woman he loves. The film’s ensemble includes Tuesday Weld, Willie Nelson, Robert Prosky, Jim Belushi and Dennis Farina; the moody soundtrack is by Tangerine Dream. DIR/SCR Michael Mann, from the memoir “The Home Invaders: Confessions of a Cat Burglar” by Frank Hohimer; PROD Jerry Bruckheimer, Ronnie Caan. U.S., 1981, color, 123 min. RATED R... read more
Michael Mann’s neon-drenched neo-noir thriller, his debut feature, stylishly set the template for hard-boiled drama in the 1980s. James Caan... read more
THE THING (1982)
Decades after its release, John Carpenter’s stylish and suspenseful THE THING still boasts some of the most shockingly grotesque and fiendishly inventive monster effects ever put on screen, courtesy of master makeup artist Rob Bottin, putting much of today’s CGI to shame. Frequent Carpenter collaborator Kurt Russell stars as R.J. MacReady, leading a rapidly dwindling and ever-more paranoid group of Antarctic-based scientists in their fight against a shape-shifting alien that can assume any animal form, at times combining different species’ parts into some gruesome improvisations. Carpenter’s lunatic vision, accompanied by Ennio Morricone’s pulsating synth score, demands to be seen on... read more
Decades after its release, John Carpenter’s stylish and suspenseful THE THING still boasts some of the most shockingly grotesque and... read more
THREADS
Upon its 1984 premiere at the height of global nuclear tension, THREADS shocked the entirety of the BBC’s viewership. Months later, when it aired in the U.S., it was quickly hailed as the British answer to ABC’s infamous 1983 TV movie THE DAY AFTER. Exactingly directed by Mick Jackson (THE BODYGUARD, VOLCANO) from a screenplay by Barry Hines (Ken Loach’s KES), this graphic drama depicts the unraveling of society after the working-class city of Sheffield undergoes nuclear attack. With talk of nuclear conflict back in the news, the time is now for audiences with fortitude to experience and absorb this... read more
Upon its 1984 premiere at the height of global nuclear tension, THREADS shocked the entirety of the BBC’s viewership. Months... read more
TIME AND WATER
Renowned Icelandic poet and author Andri Snær Magnason is chasing something elusive. As the glacial ice of his homeland melts, he constructs a cinematic time capsule to hold onto this moment and send it to the future, before everything he loves slips away. Using his own collected archives and his grandparents’ photographs and films, as well as traditional songs and folktales, Andri interlaces his family’s story with that of the land around him. From Academy Award®-nominated director Sara Dosa, TIME AND WATER is a universal reflection on the power of home and what it means to be alive amid profound... read more
Renowned Icelandic poet and author Andri Snær Magnason is chasing something elusive. As the glacial ice of his homeland melts,... read more
TRADING PLACES
Nature vs. nurture is given a cynical test by the Duke brothers, Randolph (Ralph Bellamy) and Mortimer (Don Ameche), snobby Wall Street one-percenters who engineer an outrageous change of fortune — framing their star broker Louis Winthorpe III (Dan Aykroyd) for crimes, while giving a plum position to street hustler Billy Ray Valentine (Eddie Murphy) — to settle a bet. The excellent cast, including Jamie Lee Curtis as a financially savvy streetwalker and Denholm Elliott as a put-upon butler, give top-of-their game performances, led b y the hilariously inventive Murphy. The film also features cameos from Frank Oz, Bo Diddley... read more
Nature vs. nurture is given a cynical test by the Duke brothers, Randolph (Ralph Bellamy) and Mortimer (Don Ameche), snobby... read more
TRAINSPOTTING
“Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family.” In a grungy corner of Edinburgh, heroin addiction takes its toll on a group of friends. Danny Boyle's energetically stylized drama, based on the Irvine Welsh bestseller, follows Mark Renton (Ewan McGregor) and his pals Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller), Spud (Ewen Bremner), Begbie (Robert Carlyle) and Tommy (Kevin McKidd) as they careen lustily through life. After too much excess and too many casualties, Mark tries to kick heroin, but it is hard to leave old habits and old mates behind. This ‘90s-era touchstone is considered one of the... read more
“Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family.” In a grungy corner of Edinburgh, heroin addiction takes... read more
TROUBLE EVERY DAY
American newlyweds Dr. Shane and June Brown (Vincent Gallo and Tricia Vessey) travel to Paris for their honeymoon. Once there, Shane begins a search for his former medical colleague Léo (Alex Descas), who may have information or a cure for the tropical virus that has transformed Leo’s wife (Béatrice Dalle) into a murderous sexual carnivore — and may soon do the same to Shane. Claire Denis’ bloody dissection of desire caused a stir upon release due to its graphic sexual violence (two women purportedly fainted at its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival), but over the last 25 years, film... read more
American newlyweds Dr. Shane and June Brown (Vincent Gallo and Tricia Vessey) travel to Paris for their honeymoon. Once there,... read more
UNDER THE CHERRY MOON
Two gigolos from Miami, Christopher Tracy (Prince) and Tricky (Jerome Benton), ply their trade on the French Riviera, seducing wealthy women and scamming them for cash. The two set their sights on a bigger prize: Mary Sharon (Kristin Scott Thomas, in her feature film debut), set to inherit $50 million on her 21st birthday. But Christopher did not count on falling in love with his mark. An homage to the romantic farces and screwball comedies of classic Hollywood, with production design by Richard Sylbert (CHINATOWN) and black-and-white cinematography by Michael Ballhaus (GOODFELLAS), the ebullient UNDER THE CHERRY MOON is bawdy... read more
Two gigolos from Miami, Christopher Tracy (Prince) and Tricky (Jerome Benton), ply their trade on the French Riviera, seducing wealthy... read more
A USEFUL GHOST
[PEE CHAI DAI KA] Poised as a confident new entry in the cinematic canon of unlikely possessions, Thai filmmaker Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke’s absurdist, shapeshifting feature debut marks the beginning of the era of electrical appliance phantasmagoria. Self-proclaimed Academic Ladyboy calls for tech support after his new vacuum cleaner coughs like a human throughout the night. A mysterious, attractive repairman, Krong, soon appears, identifying the appliance as part of a faulty recurrence from one factory. To explain, he reveals two interconnected stories: the reincarnation of Nat, late wife of the factory owner’s son, in the form of a red compact vacuum cleaner,... read more
[PEE CHAI DAI KA] Poised as a confident new entry in the cinematic canon of unlikely possessions, Thai filmmaker Ratchapoom... read more
VIOLENT SATURDAY
A trio of bandits (Lee Marvin, Stephen McNally and J. Carrol Naish) holes up in an Arizona mining burg, scheming to knock over the bank as the town’s oblivious residents go about lives filled with bad habits, bad reputations and bad romances. Every plotline converges in this one-of-a-kind fusion of pulp fiction and Douglas Sirk–style melodrama, effortlessly balanced by director Richard Fleischer and shot in gorgeously lush CinemaScope. Do not miss your chance to see this small-town powder keg explode on the big screen. (Note courtesy of Noir City.) DIR Richard Fleischer; SCR Sydney Boehm, from the novel by William... read more
A trio of bandits (Lee Marvin, Stephen McNally and J. Carrol Naish) holes up in an Arizona mining burg, scheming... read more
WAKE IN FRIGHT
Alongside George Miller’s MAD MAX and Nicolas Roeg’s WALKABOUT, WAKE IN FRIGHT is widely acknowledged as one of the seminal films in the development of modern Australian cinema. Directed by Ted Kotcheff (FIRST BLOOD, NORTH DALLAS FORTY), it tells the story of a British schoolteacher’s descent into personal corruption at the hands of drunken, deranged derelicts while stranded in a small town in the outback of Australia. WAKE IN FRIGHT was one of two Australian films (the other being WALKABOUT) to compete for the top prize at the 1971 Cannes Film Festival. Musician Nick Cave called it “the best and... read more
Alongside George Miller’s MAD MAX and Nicolas Roeg’s WALKABOUT, WAKE IN FRIGHT is widely acknowledged as one of the seminal... read more
WALESA: MAN OF HOPE
[WAŁĘSA. CZŁOWIEK Z NADZIEI] Andrzej Wajda brings the story of Lech Wałęsa and the Solidarity movement to the big screen. Robert Wieckiewicz (IN DARKNESS) is magnetic as Wałęsa, while Agnieszka Grochowska shines as his loyal wife, Danuta. The sharp screenplay by Janusz Glowacki hinges on Wałęsa’s landmark 1981 interview, just months before Poland declared martial law, with Italian journalist Oriana Fallaci (Maria Rosaria Omaggio), recounting in flashback the previous decade and a half of activism; Wałęsa would be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983. DIR Andrzej Wajda; SCR Janusz Glowacki; PROD Michal Kwiecinski. Poland, 2013, color, 128 min. In... read more
[WAŁĘSA. CZŁOWIEK Z NADZIEI] Andrzej Wajda brings the story of Lech Wałęsa and the Solidarity movement to the big screen.... read more
WITH HASAN IN GAZA
Three MiniDV tapes of life in Gaza from 2001 were recently rediscovered. This footage, shot by filmmaker Kamal Aljafari, is now a testament to a place and time that no longer exists. What started as a search for a former prison mate from 1989 — a man lost to time and war — led to an unexpected road trip from the north of Gaza to the south with Hasan, a local guide whose fate remains unknown. As the camera moves through Gaza’s streets and landscapes, it records fleeting moments of everyday life — fragments of a reality now irreversibly altered.... read more
Three MiniDV tapes of life in Gaza from 2001 were recently rediscovered. This footage, shot by filmmaker Kamal Aljafari, is... read more
THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
Leonardo DiCaprio plays Jordan Belfort, a young stockbroker hungry for a life of nonstop thrills, in a wickedly funny and epic rags-to-riches drama from Martin Scorsese. Adapted by writer Terence Winter (creator of BOARDWALK EMPIRE) from the real-life Belfort’s memoir, THE WOLF OF WALL STREET follows Belfort’s meteoric rise as a stockbroker engaged in increasingly corrupt and fraudulent money-making schemes. The bacchanalian debauchery and moral ambiguity on display is familiar territory for Scorsese — while the characters here do not belong to any bona fide mafia, they certainly resemble the gangsters in GOODFELLAS. Running at a brisk three hours, the... read more
Leonardo DiCaprio plays Jordan Belfort, a young stockbroker hungry for a life of nonstop thrills, in a wickedly funny and... read more
YOUNG SOUL REBELS - DIRECTOR'S CUT
Set in the late 1970s, YOUNG SOUL REBELS examines youth cultural movements — namely skinheads, punks and soulboys — along with the social, political and cultural tensions between them, including race clashes and homophobia. The film won the Critics’ Prize at the 1991 Cannes Film Festival and has continued to receive international acclaim since its release. Its soundtrack features music by Parliament, Funkadelic, The O’Jays, War and many others. (Note adapted from Strand Releasing). DIR/SCR Isaac Julien; SCR Derrick Saldaan McClintock, Paul Hallam; PROD Nadine Marsh-Edwards. UK, 1991, color, 105 min. RATED R 4K restoration overseen by director Isaac Julien... read more
Set in the late 1970s, YOUNG SOUL REBELS examines youth cultural movements — namely skinheads, punks and soulboys — along... read more
ZION
In Guadeloupe, Chris juggles his time between drug deals, one-night stands and motorcycle rides. When he draws the attention of local gang leader Odell, he is entrusted with a risky delivery. But on the day of the mission, he finds that a baby has been left at his doorstep. With the arrival of the helpless child, Chris is forced to make a crucial decision. French-Guadeloupean filmmaker Nelson Foix has crafted an explosive thriller, featuring exhilarating action sequences and authentic performances from a cast of non-professional actors. (Note adapted from Magnify.) DIR/SCR Nelson Foix; PROD Slievan Harkin, Laurence Lascary. Guadeloupe/France/Belgium, 2025,... read more
In Guadeloupe, Chris juggles his time between drug deals, one-night stands and motorcycle rides. When he draws the attention of... read more
