I believe some sort of justice was done when BIRDMAN flew off with Oscar's largest offering, pun intended on both counts. I also believe a great injustice was averted when the voters wisely avoided the whims of so-called sophisticates and rightly rejected BOYHOOD, both the film and perhaps the era itself. More worthy elects might have included Anderson's GRAND BUDAPEST or Du Vernay's SELMA. In any event, the potent but merely servicable portayal of the American serviceman, Eastwood's SNIPER, had no biz being counted amongst the nominees. Impressive because it was Clint, but an empty suit without his involvement. THEORY and IMITATION belied their titles' flaws, being nothing more in terms of filmmaking. In the end, WHIPLASH may ultimately be most worthy of grievance against the short-stopping fellow noms. In any event , one more Academy Awards ceremony is in the books, my blood pressure has not raised one jot, and I may now return my normal focus to the repertory scene in NYC.

Ahem.

Ongoing series this day consists simply, but not merely, of the Charles Laughton frottage at Film Forum. The entire mishegoss looks thus;

In either event, I'm anticipating the unfold with bated breath!

So one last going over of tonight's exacts regarding this site's first in-person get-together, the 1st Annual Nitrate Stock Oscar Bash! We've concocted a pair of craft cocktails for the occasion, the Red Carpet Ready and the Golden Boy, pics of which may be found at this site's FB page, here! We'll be showing the paparazzi shenanigans for the bulk of the day, but I'll be arriving around 7pm, and I advise you arrive early as well, if only to fill out your ballot as early as possible; late arrivals will be denied a ballot pick in any category that has already presented its award, and after four or five of the catergories are awarded I'll pretty much stop handing out ballots. It'll be pointless at that juncture.

The purchase of a drink and/or menu item grants you a ballot, and you will be thankful for the proviso. The booze and grub at this particluar public house is exceptional on all fronts, and the enjoyment of said thirst-slakers and comestibles grants you the opportunity to win one of three prizes tonight! The Grand Boyo is the complete 007 BluRay box set, all 23 flicks from DR. NO to SKYFALL, plus about a million hours of bonus content, mostly focused on the Bond Girls yeah baby! Second Prize is most likely a BluRay of MY choice for year's best film, Wes Anderson's THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL, or a $25 Amazon gift card so you can spend the dough as you see fit. Third prize will be three-count-'em-THREE free introductory Pilates courses to be conducted by best friend and master instructor Tracey Ryan, of which you may read more about here. And as I've said, Ist and 2nd prizes will do nothing to sculpt them abs come springtime, so perhaps you should gun for third!

In the event of any ties, I will offer tiebreaker trivia questions, Alex Trebeck-style, and we will eliminate claims to the swag in that manner. Anyone falling out of contention for Grand Prize will automatically be placed in contention for 2nd Prize, and so on. It'll get pretty slim beyond 3rd Prize, but mebbe we buy you a shot. It's that sorta homey joint.

So lastly, I hope to see as many of you there as possible! And once more I thank host venue Lunasa Pub & Grill for hosting this event. It should be a doozy, lads and lasses. Here's to a night to remember, and as always Nitrate Stock thanks you for the years of support and positive feedback.

Now, to today's rep sked.

Everyone's complaining about the weather, let's talk about some other subject. I'm personally looking forward cold to this weekend's reunion of cold cold MLB's pitchers and cold catchers. This coming Sunday brings cold our most welcome annual celecoldbration of cinema's supposed best cold efforts cold, the 87th Academy Awards cerecold. Finally, the OKAY ALREADY WILL SOMEBODY TAKE FEBRUARY OUT INTO THE ALLEY AND BEAT IT TO DEATH ONCE AND FOR ALL?!?!? I GOT FIVE DOLLAHZ TO KICK IN!!!!

Ahem.

Ongoing series this day include Screwball Romance at the IFC Center, the Charles Laughton tux-measuring at Film Forum, the Gordon Willis light-dimming at Museum of he Moving Image, and the righteous and well-deserved John Carpenter exult at BAM. The halide hijinks be thus;

Forgive the brevity, but I'm still dealing with the looming deadline to get my year-end reviews in on Letterboxd, my Top Ten of '14, and a healthy partaking of spicy chili cheese fries all in the books before Oscar night 2015 races past us. So let's get to it. Ongoing series today include te Charles Laughton huggery at Film Forum, the Ginger Rogers pas de deux at MoMA, and the important and formidable Tell It Like It Is: Black Independents in New York, 1968-86 at Lincoln Center. You're coming to the site's first ever live meet-up, the First Annual Nitrate Stock Oscar Bash, this Sunday? Yes? Where we ballot off the complete 007 BluRay box as Grand Prize? Well, good luck to ye should you choose to pass it up, it promises to be a spectacular evening. In any event, this day's doings be thus;

SWAMPED! And no, that's not a title of a screening or series this day, it's my current state! My Year-End reviews are nearly complete, as well as my Top Ten list of '14, and need I mention a minute oncoming tsunami known as the First Annual Nitrate Stock Oscar Bash? In any event, ongoing series this day include the Charles Laughton crowd surf at Film Forum, and the Ginger Rogers toe tap at MoMA. Let's get straight to today's goods;

Members of the faculty and faculty members, students of Huxley and Huxley students; well, as the great man once said, that pretty much covers all the bases. It is my proud privilege, my honor, and my great delight to announce the 1st public event to be hosted by this site. It's been 2 1/2 years, seemed time. While the focus of this here digital periodical is to inform and update the unwashed masses (or perhaps that's simply the populace currently residing at my apartment) as to the comings and goings of classic repertory film in these glorious five boroughs and just beyond, even the most stalwart, antiquated amongst our number, in the bitterest denial of anything birthed cinematic past the deaths of Ford and Hawks, still, I gamble, derives some thrill, whether uplifting or acidic, whilst indulging in the annual trotting out of La La Land glam and the getting-it-wrong in each category. Otherwise known as the Academy Awards. Or the Oscars, should you dig the whole brevity thing. Count me as part of the former. Or latter. Oh hell, there's really no diffference. It all comes down to the ballot pools! And this year, courtesy of host venue, the grand Lunasa Bar & Grill in Manhattan's East Village, we're also dangling a doozy of a Grand Prize!

It suddenly strikes moi, as SNL preps its 40th anniversary telecast special, that I am a mere 5 years older than this program. Oh frabjous day.

Ongoing series this day include Film Forum Jr. and the Boorman and Laughton bathing-suit-area-touching at Film Forum, Screwball Romance at IFC Center, John Carpenter: Master of Fear at BAM Cinématek, and the Valentine's Day Massacre at Anthology Film Archives. The Sunday-ness be thus;

St. Valentine, what'd you ever do, exactly, to earn the enmity of boyfriends/husbands historically and worldwide? Invent chocolates boxed in a heart-shape? Accelerate the advent of the greeting card? Posit the cuddly notion of plush leave-behinds? Whatever it might be, your name is both curse and song, dependent on gender. Not too many folk may boast of the similar status.

New and continuing series this day include Screwball Romance at IFC Center, the Laughton and Boorman smoochery at Film Forum, Tell It Like It Is!: Black Independents in New York, 1968-86 at Lincoln Center, and the Valentine's Day Massacre at Anthology film Archives. The celluloid love lettery be thus;

New and continuing series this day include Screwball Romance at IFC Center, the Laughton and Boorman tribs at Film Forum, Acteurism: Ginger Rogers at MoMA, John Carpenter: Master of Fear at BAM Cinématek, the annual Valentine's Day Massacre at Anthology Film Archives, and the eternally swank Cabaret Cinema at the Rubin Museum. The hooliganism looks thus;

A quick update about Nitrate Stock's February podcast, or the lack thereof: I've taken note of its ratings during the course of its short life, one that has not yet extended to the 1st anniversary mark. I seem to have started off with a slight bang, perhaps what Orson would've deemed a "gonk", and gradually, or more correctly rapidly, slid from those initial numbers. I actually, truly planned to set the usual sked aside in January for its writing, recording and posting, as the discipline of the practice, or...the practice of the discipline...oh HELL I've forgotten the correct phrasing. In either case, I've cared more about the quality of the performance and less about how long, potentially, it would take to build the audience. The audience, however, seems to just not be there, not for the current incarnation anyway. So I'm taking a month off, to rethink the whole enterprise, and hopefully reconfigure its next version. It's a hiatus, not a foreclosure. For those of you who dug the dulcet tones of the white noise that accompanied my voice in the background, I promise the podcast will return shortly, tweaked and better than evah!

And now, on to the opera. Play, Don...

Continuing series this day include the tribs to director John Boorman and thesp Charles Laughton at Film Forum, adjunct curator Dave Kehr's sprightly Acteurism: Ginger Rogers and the it's-about-time Carte Blanche - Women Writing the Language of Cinema at MoMA, the it's-about-goddam-time Tell It Like It Is!: Black Independents, 1968-86 at the Film Society, the cute Chelsea Classics at the BowTie Chelsea, the essential John Carpenter: Master of Fear at BAM Cinématek, and the monthly Deuce undertaken by BillyBurg's Nitehawk. As it were. The cinematic higgeldy piggeldy be thus;