<<< May 2009 >>>

http://www.myspace.com/americancinematheque

Saturday, May 9 – 7:30 PM

Sneak Preview! EASY VIRTUE, 2009, Sony Pictures Classics, 93 min. Dir. Stephan Elliott. The ‘20s have roared...the ‘30s have yet to swing. John Whittaker (Ben Barnes), a young Englishman, falls madly in love with Larita (Jessica Biel), a sexy, glamorous and free-spirited American woman (and car-racing champion!), and they marry impetuously. However when the couple returns to the family home, his mother (Kristin Scott Thomas) has an instant allergic reaction to her new daughter-in-law.  Colin Firth is wonderfully droll as his hen-pecked fathewr who finally rebels. Larita tries her best to fit in, but fails to tiptoe through the minefield laid by her mother-in-law. A battle of wits ensues and sparks soon fly. This adaptation of Noel Coward’s play was shot entirely on location in the U.K. in magnificent stately homes including Flintham Hall in Nottingham; Englefield House near Reading in Berkshire; and Wimpole Hall in Cambridgeshire. NOT ON DVD Trailer

THE ADVENTURES OF PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT, 1994, MGM Repertory, 103 min. Dir. Stephan Elliot. Bernadette (Terence Stamp), Tick (Hugo Weaving) and Adam (Guy Pearce) each have reasons for wanting to leave the safety of Sydney. Christening their battered tour bus "Priscilla," these wickedly funny "showgirls" head for the Australian Outback where their spectacular adventures are more than matched by their spectacular outfits. A fun and bawdy road-movie-cum-musical! Discussion in between films with director Stephan Elliott and co-writer Sheridan Jobbins. Trailer

Wednesday, May 13 – 7:30 PM

Sneak Preview! SUMMER HOURS, 2008, IFC Films, 103 min. Dir. Olivier Assayas. The divergent paths of three forty-something siblings collide when their mother, heiress to her uncle’s exceptional 19th-century art collection, dies suddenly. Left to come to terms with themselves and their differences, Adrienne (Juliette Binoche), a successful New York designer, Frédéric (Charles Berling), an economist and university professor in Paris, and Jérémie (Jérémie Renier), a dynamic businessman in China, confront the end of childhood, their shared memories, background and unique vision of the future. "Oliver Assayas' SUMMER HOURS is a salutary (and belated) reminder that some of this writer-director's best work comes in modest packages." -- Derek Elley, Variety; "The generosity of spirit in a film so beautifully performed, intelligently written and fluently directed." -- Geoff Andrew, Time Out London NOT ON DVD Trailer

Thursday, May 14 – 7:30 PM

Double Feature:

LOLITA, 1962, Warner Bros, 152 min. Stanley Kubrick’s hilariously bleak and twisted portrait of sexual obsession (based on Vladimir Nabokov’s infamous novel) stars James Mason as ultra-fussy college professor Humbert Humbert, whose life is upended when he sets eyes on Sue Lyon’s blasé blonde nymphet. Watch for Peter Sellers’ scene-stealing performance as Humbert’s nemesis. Trailer

ODD MAN OUT, 1947, MGM Repertory, 115 min. Directed by Carol Reed and starring James Mason as an IRA gunman who gets wounded and lost on a raid. His last hours in the city are as beautiful and hallucinatory as they are tragic. Is Johnny dogged by bad luck? Is fate pursuing him? Or is he actually staggering toward the light? The power of this extraordinary film has lasted, along with the insolubility of its political problem. The film was written by R.C. Sherriff and F.L. Green from the latter's novel. The cast includes Robert Newton, Fay Compton, Robert Beatty, Cyril Cusack, F.J. McCormick and Kathleen Ryan, but just as important is cameraman Robert Krasker, who would get an Oscar two years later for his work on Reed’s THE THIRD MAN. Trailer

Wednesday, May 20 – 7:30 PM

Kevin Thomas’ Favorites:

THE FRENCH CONNECTION, 1971, 20th Century Fox, 104 min. Dir.William Friedkin. Arguably the greatest American crime film ever made: Gene Hackman stars as Detective Popeye Doyle, muscling minor hoods in NYC (the "You ever pick your feet in Poughkeepsie?" scene is still a classic) when he catches the trail of a huge shipment of French heroin. With partner Roy Scheider, Hackman dogs drug kingpin Fernando Rey through the concrete jungle -- highlighted by a brainjangling car chase that still hasn’t been topped (except perhaps in Friedkin’s own TO LIVE AND DIE IN L.A.) Discussion following with film critic Kevin Thomas and cinematographer Owen Roizman. Trailer

Friday, May 22 – 7:30 PM

Joe Dante In Person! GREMLINS, 1984, Warner Bros., 106 min. Dir. Joe Dante. When Billy (Zach Galligan) breaks the cardinal rules for the keeping of his rare new pet – no water, no food after midnight and no bright light -- chaos is unleashed in his idyllic small town. What was once cute and fuzzy wuzzy, transforms and multiplies into a horde of dangerous, mayhem-loving creatures. With Hoyt Axton, Phoebe Cates, Dick Miller, Corey Feldman and Glynn Turman. Trailer

GREMLINS 2: THE NEW BATCH, 1990, Warner Bros., 106 min. Dir Joe Dante. Six years after the original, everybody’s favorite tiny "Woolly Bullies" return to take "a bite outta the Big Apple." When mogul Daniel Clamp (John Glover) decides he’s going forward with plans to evict the Chinatown owner and restaurant that’s home to Gizmo and the very first Mogwais, level the building and create a Chinatown Trade Center, things can only get ugly. Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates and Howie Mandell, the voice of Gizmo, return, joined by Christopher Lee as Dr. Catheter. Discussion in between films with director Joe Dante and actor Glynn Turman (GREMLINS). Trailer

Wednesday, May 27 – 7:30 PM

New Restored 35mm Print! RUTHLESS, 1948, 104 min. "I’m going far, fast and alone," snarls grade-A heel Zachary Scott, taking revenge on the world for being abandoned by his mother. Diana Lynn co-stars as the unlucky girl who falls for Scott’s charms, poisonous Sydney Greenstreet as the snake who finally stops him cold, in Ulmer’s brilliant noir, an over-the-top variation on Welles’ CITIZEN KANE. Co-starring Louis Hayward as Scott’s decent and very disillusioned best friend. 35mm print restoration by UCLA Film and Television Archive. NOT ON DVD

EDGAR G. ULMER - THE MAN OFF-SCREEN, 2004, Kino International, 77 min. Dir. Michael Palm. On his own and in collaboration with movie legends F.W. Murnau, Fritz Lang and Billy Wilder, from Berlin’s legendary UFA Studios to poverty-row purgatory in Hollywood (where he was blackballed for stealing a studio exec's daughter-in-law), Edgar Ulmer created a unique and heady blend of old-world culture and 20th century pulp pizzazz. This "well wrought investigation of the often mysterious life of Edgar G. Ulmer," (Village Voice) that ambitiously blends film clips, interviews, audiotapes and vintage music cues into a fascinating documentary, the homage to the filmmaking genius behind THE BLACK CAT, DETOUR and THE MAN FROM PLANET X, features testimonials from Roger Corman, John Landis, Joe Dante, Wim Wenders and DETOUR’s ultimate femme fatale Ann Savage. The documentary paints a vividly impressionistic portrait of a no-budget auteur stylistically able to "take a rat and make Thanksgiving dinner out of it." Trailer Arianne Ulmer Cipes, daughter of Edgar G. Ulmer, and author Bernd Herzogenrath will introduce the screening. Also, do not miss the booksigning at 6:30 PM at Every Picture Tells a Story, featuring Edgar G. Ulmer by Bernd Herzogenrath and Edgar G. Ulmer: Essays on the King of the Bs.

Thursday, May 28 – 7:30 PM
50^th Anniversary Screening:

JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH, 1959, 20th Century Fox, 132 min. Dir. Henry Levin. Along with Richard Fleischer’s 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA, this is one of the finest versions of a Jules Verne novel ever filmed, with James Mason beautifully cast as an obsessive Scottish geology professor who descends into the depths of the Earth with eager student Pat Boone, alluring widow Arlene Dahl and sinister nemesis Thayer David. The dazzling underground crystal caves and mushroom forests are among the most delightful Hollywood creations of the 1950s. Co-starring a very young Diane Baker. Produced and co-written by Charles Brackett (Billy Wilder’s longtime partner), with a terrific stereo score by the maestro Bernard Herrmann. Discussion following with actor Pat Boone. Trailer

Saturday, May 30 - 5:00 PM

Triple Feature – Marathon:

BACK TO THE FUTURE, 1985, Universal, 117 min. Director Robert Zemeckis provides a pitch-perfect combination of sharp satire and warm sentiment in this ingenious time-travel comedy. Michael J. Fox plays teenager Marty McFly whose mentor (a manic and brilliant Christopher Lloyd) invents a time machine that takes the kid back to the 1950s. When he inadvertently gets in the way of his teenage parents' relationship (and causes his future mother to develop a crush on him!), Fox has to figure out how to get them back together to insure his own eventual existence. Funny, touching and suspenseful, this love letter to American pop culture is one of the most entertaining films of the 1980s. With Crispin Glover. Trailer

20^th Anniversary! BACK TO THE FUTURE PART II, 1989, Universal, 108 min. Rather than rest on their laurels, Robert Zemeckis and writing partner Bob Gale completely reinvented the BACK TO THE FUTURE franchise with this audacious follow-up. In a bit of experimentation worthy of the French New Wave, Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd return for a sequel that spends most of its running time not before or after the original story, but at the same time. A series of time-travel complications send hero Marty McFly and partner Doc Brown back to the 1955 of the first film, after a mishap in 2015 generates a parallel universe. Even more elaborately plotted than the original, this highly ambitious sequel allows Zemeckis more opportunities for witty satire and cutting-edge special effects. Trailer

BACK TO THE FUTURE PART III, 1990, Universal, 118 min. Dir. Robert Zemeckis reunites his posse for this, the final installment, which sets off with McFly (Fox) receiving a 100-year-old letter from Doc Brown (Lloyd), who is now happily living in the Wild West of 1885. Some historical snooping reveals that Brown was to be killed a mere week after penning his missive! Time to reignite the Delorean, hidden in an abandoned mine, save his partner, and get back to the future; but it won’t be easy, what with gasoline as scarce as it was in ‘85, and their nemesis Sheriff Buford "Mad Dog" Biff Tannnen (Thomas F. Wilson) hot on their tail, and if that’s not enough, Doc has to go and fall in love with a schoolmarm (Mary Steenburgen). Set in the American West of ‘50s Television and successfully maintaining the SFX wizardry and warm sentiment of the series, but with ZZ Top. Guests TBA. Trailer

Sunday, May 31 - 7:30 PM

In conjunction with the exhibition at the Getty Research Institute (May 19-October 18) "Walls of Algiers: Narratives of the City", join us for the screening:

BATTLE OF ALGIERS, 1966, Rialto Pictures, 121 min. The Algerian struggle for independence is presented in a compelling, ultra-realistic style by director Gillo Pontecorvo in this landmark 1965 docudrama. Refusing to make villains of either the colonialist French or the bomb-throwing rebels, Pontecorvo weaves a morally complex, dramatically riveting tapestry that presents a balanced yet passionate view of revolution. Frances Terpak, Senior Collections Curator of Getty Research Institute, will introduce the screening. Trailer