February 9th 2013. Pick Of The Day.

Make it through Blizzard Nemo okay?

Yeah?

Good, 'cause there's a plethora of classic screenings to get excited about today, well worth the efforts of stitchin' up yer boots and trudging through some magical Manhattan snow, which seems to perennially fall in lovely coal grey tones.

The day in retro cinema kicks off at noon at the Nitehawk Cinema as beloved basement auteur Edgar G. Ulmer is repped by his lone box office smash and quasi-entry into the Universal horor cycle of the 30's, THE BLACK CAT. Preposterous and gloriously so, the film marked the first time horror icons Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff would face off on film, and perhaps the best. Flick's awesome, food's great. Not my Pick.

Film Forum slides into the second day of its month-long fest dedicated to the year 1933 and all its resplendent pleasures both perverse and pious. GOLD DIGGERS OF 1933 kicks the day off, featuring Mervyn Le Roy's then-gritty take on backstage Broadway life paired with Busby Berkeley's patented elaborate impressionist choreography. The Depression was never so entertaining! SITTING PRETTY finds stage and screen stalwarts Jack Oakie and Jack Haley pairing up with Ginger Rogers as the stardom-seeking trio trek to Hollywood to find their fortunes. But how does it end? Screening as a two-fer today. Not my Pick.

BAM serves up a second day of tribute to Richard Pryor with a screening of UPTOWN SATURDAY NIGHT as part of their A Pryor Engagement retrospective. A stolen wallet containing a winning lottery ticket serves as narrative gravitational pull for orbiting stars Bill Cosby, Sidney Poitier, Harry Belafonte, Flip Wilson, Calvin Lockhart, Rosalind Cash, Roscoe Lee Brown and Paula Kelly. So who really gives a damn WHAT the movie's about? Essential viewing, but after choosing CAR WASH yesterday it's too soon to return to this series methinks. So not my Pick.

Anthology Film Archives also trods into a second day of a retrospective, this one dedicted to the late Amos Vogel, founder of the New York Film Fest and all-around art house swell. THE LATE MATTHEW PASCAL is the earliest adap of Pirandello's meditation on identity and the true source of said, as a man attempts to escape his very self by faking his death. It also features early production design from Alberto Cavalcanti, which makes it an absolute must-see. Just not today.

Back at the Nitehawk Brian De Palma's BLOW OUT and Donald Cammel's DEMON SEED compete for your attendance at midnight. One features a cold artificial intelligence with mechanical appendages trying to mate with humanity in order to prove its worth, and the other is DEMON SEED starring Julie Christie. Suck it De Palma! The Nitehawk rules and the film experience in my new fave venue rocks, but this day I must reserve my pick for a monumental classic, one so important to the cinematic timeline it not only practically single-handedly redefined the perfect confluence of cinematic art and commerce in the modern era, it has also become shorthand for guy code, the I-Ching of manhood, whose tenets instruct in the importance of family, the perfect recipe for marinara sauce, and the answer to the quandry eternal; guns or cannolis? Take a guess.

The history and influence of this film has been written about and debated to death, but its merits are near unequivocal, as is the devotion of the cinematic faithful. Yes EASY RIDER paved the way, and yes Bogdonavich and Friedkin had scored big with their individual masterpieces just prior to this, but nothing cemented the status of the New Hollywod quite like this film. Like Caesar film and director trod boldly into territories thought unconquerable and established a new order. Like Caesar it remains awe-inspiring to this day. And for a change we can pay tribute in the appropriate temple. No offense to the AMC channel.

THE GODFATHER screens at midnight at the Landmark Sunshine Cinema. My Pick Of the Day. I have selfish reasons.

Follow me on Twitter @NitrateStock! Like the page at Facebook.com/NitrateStock! Bad storms remind that some folks still need our help out there, so check with Occupy Sandy to see how you can help. Be safe and sound and make sure the next guy is too, Stockahz! See ya next week! Mwah!

-Jow Walsh