<<< January 22-25, 2004 >>>

From Super Technirama 70 to Ultra Panavision to Dimension 150 and more, the 70mm large-screen format promised – and delivered – a Barnum-esque world of spectacular sights and 6-track sounds. If the movies were always larger-than-life, then 70mm movies were MUCH much larger! From 1955 to 1970 – the Golden Age of 70mm Filmmaking – there were nearly 60 Hollywood features shot in large format, with many more released in special engagements as 35mm-to-70mm blow-ups (which still offered superior sound and image quality to their 35mm counterparts).

This semi-annual series is a very rare opportunity to experience 70mm as it was meant to be seen: on a big, beautiful screen, with booming six-track multi-channel sound. Following the success of our past Festivals, we’re delighted to present gorgeous new restorations of two seminal 70mm films: Jacques Tati’s masterpiece PLAYTIME (not to be missed!) and the restored Todd AO print of Ken Annakin’s THOSE MAGNIFICENT MEN IN THEIR FLYING MACHINES; as well as new prints of the sumptuous musical HELLO DOLLY! and Stanley Kramer’s IT’S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD. Also, don’t miss the rare screening of Walt Disney’s landmark film SLEEPING BEAUTY !

Thursday, January 22 – 7:30 PM

PLAYTIME, 1967, Criterion/Films Distribution, 126 min. Dir. Jacques Tati. This is a unique, once-in-a-lifetime cinematic experience not to be missed: the fully restored Jacques Tati masterpiece PLAYTIME, which was conceived originally as a 70mm viewing experience, then lost for over 30 years (there were only 35mm prints left of a cut version), and finally rescued by Tati's daughter Sophie Tatischeff and Jerome Deschamps. Click here for restoration details. Monsieur Hulot must contact an American official in Paris, but he gets lost in the maze of modern architecture filled with the latest technical gadgets. Caught in a tourist invasion, Hulot roams around Paris with a group of American tourists, causing chaos in his usual manner. The star of the film: the city built by Tati and called Tativille/Taticity. From surprise to surprise, it’s an exquisite and divine experience! François Truffaut, writing to Jacques Tati about PLAYTIME, said simply, "A film from another planet."

Friday, January 23 – 7:30 PM

Restored 70mm Print!!

PLAYTIME, 1967, Criterion/Films Distribution, 126 min. Dir. Jacques Tati. [see 1/22 for description] Not to be missed!

Saturday, January 24 – 5:00 PM

Jerry Herman In Person! New Todd-AO 70mm Print:

HELLO DOLLY!, 1969, 20^th Century Fox, 146 min. This irresistible film adaptation – from one of Jerry Herman’s finest musicals – features the fabulous Barbra Streisand in a kick-out-the-jams performance as matchmaker Dolly Levi, furiously working to make marriages while trying to snag reluctant bachelor Walter Matthau for herself. Staged with gusto by dancing legend-turned-director Gene Kelly, and featuring a wonderful supporting cast including Tommy Tune, Michael Crawford, and jazz legend Louis Armstrong (whose version of the title song is worth the price of admission alone!).

Legendary composer Jerry Herman will be present for American Cinematheque’s screening of HELLO DOLLY! at the Egyptian Theatre on January 24, presented as part of "The 4th Great Big 70mm Festival." Herman will be signing copies of his new book Jerry Herman: The Lyrics, co-authored by Ken Bloom, prior to the screening from 4:00pm - 5:00pm in the Lobby. Herman will also available for a discussion following the film.

Booksigning with Jerry Herman prior to the screening. Discussion with Jerry Herman following the screening.

Saturday, January 24 – 8:15 PM

Restored 70mm Print!!

PLAYTIME, 1967, Criterion/Films Distribution, 126 min. Dir. Jacques Tati. [see 1/22 for description] Last screening. Not to be missed!

Sunday, January 25 – 1:00 PM

Childrens Matinee:

SLEEPING BEAUTY, 1959, Walt Disney Co., 75 min. Once upon a time, in a kingdom far away, the beautiful princess Aurora was born under the protection of three magical, good-natured fairies, Flora, Fauna, and Merryweather, but cursed by the wicked and terrifying Maleficent. Valiant Prince Phillip vows to save his beloved princess. Masterful Disney animation and Tchaikovsky's celebrated musical score enrich the fairy tale.

Sunday, January 25 – 4:00 PM

Brand new restored Todd-AO 70mm Print!!

THOSE MAGNIFICENT MEN IN THEIR FLYING MACHINES, 1965, 20^th Century Fox, 133 min. Stuart Whitman, Sarah Miles, Robert Morley, James Fox, and the ever-delightful Terry-Thomas star as a group of lovably crack-pot aviators, inventors, and villains competing to win a London-to-Paris air race in 1910, in director Ken Annakin’s combination of epic adventure and slapstick comedy. Make sure to catch this premiere of the brand-new, restored 70mm print! Discussion following with director Ken Annakin.

Sunday, January 25 – 7:30 PM

New 70mm Print:

IT’S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD, 1963, MGM/UA, 162 min. Dir. Stanley Kramer. Legendary producer/director Stanley Kramer’s (GUESS WHO’S COMING TO DINNER, JUDGMENT AT NUREMBERG) most beloved film features one of the greatest line-ups of comic talent ever assembled, including Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, Edie Adams, Spencer Tracy, Buddy Hackett, Ethel Merman, Mickey Rooney, Dick Shawn, Dorothy Provine, Phil Silvers, Jonathan Winters, Don Knotts, Peter Falk, Terry-Thomas, Carl Reiner, Jerry Lewis, and many more, in the story of a group of average, upstanding Americans who are given the key to locating $350,000 in stolen bank loot – and resort to every form of lying, deceit, and double-crossing in their manic cross-country chase to retrieve it!!