July 30th 2015. Pick of the Day.
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I dedicate today's Pick to a dear friend of mine, one who walked the earth with a blessed overstock of joviality and generosity. One who gifted me with an added knowledge in the realms of music and film and the written word. One who shared his keen and nearly insatiable interest in all things with anyone who'd listen, and those lucky bums who did so gained by yards not merely in knowledge but disposition. One who has now bequeathed me with a conviction that a life lived in celebration of the better angels of our nature, and in the promotion of these haloed constituents, leads not merely to a satisfied arc, but with all the love you can possibly put into the world ultimately coming back to you in spades. He was a great champion of the human race, of its spirit, and there is no way to mark his passage as anything but a damned loss, or to measure exactly how badly it damages our collective debit column. And yet I cannot help but feel that somewhere, wherever the collective waves and particles that once appeared in a form familiar to us now reside, he is happy that a theater-ful of film enthusiasts will sit down in a darkened space for Malick's BADLANDS this day. Farewell for now, my friend, and thank you. We'll have to continue the film conversation at some future point.
Continuing series this day include True Crime! at Film Forum, Glorious Technicolor: From George Eastman House and Beyond at MoMA, Indie 80's at BAM Cinématek, and This is Celluloid: 35mm Encore at Anthology Film Archives. How do I love the NYC rep film circuit? Let me rattle off the goods;
Film Forum
BADLANDS (1973) Dir; Terrence Malick
HENRY: PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER (1986) Dir; John MacNaughton
THE THIRD MAN (1949) Dir; Carol Reed
MoMA
Glorious Technicolor: From George Eastman House and Beyond
20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA (1954) Dir; Richard Fleischer
ARTISTS AND MODELS (1956) Dir; Frank Tashlin
BAM Cinématek
VIGILANTE (1983) Dir; William Lustig
Clearview Chelsea Cinemas
DESPERATELY SEEKING SUSAN (1984) Dir; Susan Siedelman
Anthology Film Archives
This is Celluloid: 35mm Encore
THE KISS BEFORE THE MIRROR (1933) Dir; James Whale
FEEL MY PULSE (1928) Dir; Gregory La Cava
Tompkins Square Park
CHINATOWN (1974) Dir; Roman Polanski
Brooklyn Bridge Park
CLUE (1985) Dir; Jonathan Lynn
Today's Pick? I feel like the Forum's excellent crime series has been in my blind spot for the course of its run, but I did just choose two of Robert Wise's best contribs to the genre just last week. I've also recently endorsed two trips to MoMA within the fortnight, one for their ode to Techicolor's majesty, the other to Mexican cinema's darkest, most shadowy corners. Lord kniows I love me some Bill Lustig, and Lynn's board game adap has its admirers, as does Polanski's celebration of the human yawn. I know, I know, I'm an awful human being. The real treat this day is to be had at the NYC rep film fan's fave haunted house, a pair of screenings that, well, to say they're extrememly rare feels like a overwhelming undersell. If that's even a thing. They both come from the Pre-Code era, and both unspool as brand new 35mm prints courtesy of the Library of Congress. One comes from the director of FRANKENSTEIN and THE INVISIBLE MAN, the other from the craftsman behind that great screwball comedy MY MAN GODFREY. Because of this event's singular status, I'm compelled to make it my Pick. Life is all about taking advantage of the opportunities. My friend would agree.
James Whale's THE KISS BEFORE THE MIRROR and Gregory La Cava's FEEL MY PULSE wend wistfully though the projector at Anthology Film Archives as part of their excellent reprise series This is Celluloid: 35mm Encore! Procrastinate at yer peril, Stockahz! Nothing sez Summer like sitting in a dark room being pallored by the projector's bulb!
For more info on these and all NYC's rep film screenings in July '15 click on the interactive calendar on the upper right hand side of the page. For reviews of contemporary cinema and my streaming habits (keep it clean!) check out my Letterboxd page. And be sure to follow me on both Facebook, where I provide further info and esoterica on the rep film circuit and star birthdays, and Twitter, where I provide a daily feed for the day's screenings and other blathery. Back soon with new Picks 'n perks, til then safe, sound, make sure the next knucklehead is too!
P. S. The warm cuddle of the sun's friendlier disposition seems finally to have arrived, but believe it or not some of our fellow NY'ers have still yet to be made whole in the wake of the 2012 storm. Should you be feeling charitable please visit the folks at OccupySandy.net, follow their hammer-in-hand efforts to restore people's lives, and donate/volunteer if you have the inclination and availability. Be a collective mensch, Stockahz!
