Here's hoping you had a perfect Yuletide celebration yesterday, them Stockahz whats acknowledge and raise the huzzah over the 25th of December. The weather was mild, the trains ran on time, and I got a handcrafted Xmas tree ornament from my Godson. So points to this guy here.

As the season doesn't slow a knot until Bebeh '15 soils his first diaper, and as I have a calendar and podcast to prep, I'm taking advantage of this holiday weekend to once more bulk-brag of the rep circuit's doings. Are ya ready, Knucklehedz?

How powerful the word and time of year called Christmas. How potent the notion still, whether of savior or pagan pageant or excuse to indulge. How primal. How motivational. How, in some cases, transformative. How often we extend our generosity at this moment on the calendar, how often we reverse our philosophies, a full 180 degrees in some instances. How often we forgive, and in an abundance of cases so rightly so.

Please forgive my brevity with this week's headres, but Xmas be comin' and them geese be hungry. I'm sure you all would rather last-minute shop/holiday meet-up/beg Santa for forgiveness anyways,so let's all just get to it shall we? Can I get a Ho Ho Ho?

Continuing series today include Chandler, Hammett, Woolrich and Cain at Film Forum, Let There Be Light: The Films of John Huston at the Film Society, and MoMa's trib to filmmaker Robert Altman. The madcappery be thus;

So yeah, it's below freezing in our fair metropolis. I can fully attest to this fact not merely by checking my Weather Channel app, but after having trundled forth in this air so frigid molecular activity has itself given a second thought before proceeeding. Professor DeGrasse Tyson will back me up on the science of that last statement. In any event, header be damned, let's get to the day's doings.

Continuing series this day include Screwball Romance, Rated RXmas: Holiday Classics, Naughty and Nice and Cronenberg, all at IFC Center, Chandler, Hammett, Woolrich and Cain at Film Forum, Let There Be Light: The Films of John Huston at the Film Society, the trib to Robert Altman at MoMA, and the jollily-monickered Yuletide program entitled Xmas Chopping at the Nitehawk Cinema. The halide-based hopscotchery be thus;

I'm confused, as I always get around this time of year. Is today the 5th day of Christmas? Is the 12th day Christmas Day itself or is it the day after? Who decided anyway there'd only be twleve days when there's 25 all told? Did this happen during WW2 rationing? Why aren't there 31 days of Christmas? Why must there be more than 2 days, Eve and Day? And who exactly starting this whole gifting of hens-a-layin', pipers piping and golden rings jazz anyway?!?! Macy's?!? GIMBELS?!?! MASTERCARD?!?!?

Ahem. As I said, confused. Now back to the rep circuit.

New and continuing series today include Screwball Romance, Rated RXmas: Holiday Classics, Naughty and Nice and Cronenberg, all at IFC Center, Chandler, Hammett, Woolrich and Cain at Film Forum, Let There Be Light: The Films of John Huston at the Film Society, MoMA's tribs to actress Joan Bennett and filmmaker Robert Altman, Justice in Film at the New York Historical Society, and the heartwarming holiday series Xmas Chopping at the Nitehawk Cinema. The Yuletide yukkery looks thus;

As despicable I find this whole backing-down by SONY over some hacker threats, whch yesterday found the global corporation publically decide to pull a potentially money-printing Christmas release, I must say it gives me some ideas regarding the Robert Altman retrospetive at MoMA. As well as any upcoming career tribs to Brian de Palma, Lars von Trier, and Michael Bay. No need to alert the FBI, I'm just enjoying the daydream.

Continuing series this day include Chandler, Hammett, Woolrich and Cain at Film Forum, and the tribs to actress Joan Bennett and filmmaker Robert Altman at MoMA. The cinephiliac cuckookery be thus;

I'm really starting to resent the 15th of the month, but not nearly enough as I do its extended family, today represented by the 17th. How dare you arrive so unexpectedly, so inconsiderately, so unwelcomed. I'll give you one day, good sir/madam, and then I must send you on your way to make room for a new tenant. I'm sure he or she will be more of a 3rd or 4th of the month type. I just know it.

Continuing series today include Chandler, Hammett, Woolrich and Cain at Film Forum, the tribs to actress Joan Bennett and filmmaker Robert Altman at MoMA, and The Last Laugh: An Alternate History of Spanish Comedy at the Film Society. The filmic foofaraw be thus;

Manhattan's IFC Center finds itself in the deep end of a glorious celebration of cellulose-based cinema, cryptically entitled Celluloid Dreams. The connection puzzles.

Tonight they host King Vidor's seminal silent masterwork THE CROWD, selected and hosted by critic/historian/author Farran Smith Nehme. Last month IFC hosted a 35mm screening of a 70's cult classic, Joan Micklin Silver's CHILLY SCENES OF WINTER, which found itself accompanied not only by the filmmaker herself, but also star Mary Beth Hurt and producer/cameo-thief Griffin Dunne. A partial transcript follows:

It's Sunday morning. Header be damned, let's get to it.

Continuing series today include Film Forum Jr. and Chandler, Hammett, Woolrich and Cain at Film Forum, Screwball Romance and Rated Xmas: Holiday Classics, Naughty and Nice at IFC Center, The Last Laugh: An Alternate History of Spanish Comedy at IFC Center, the comprehensive career retrospective of Robert Altman at MoMA, Screenwriters and the Blacklist: Before, During and After at Anthology Film Archives, and the Jean Grémillon cuillère at Museum of the Moving Image. On Stockahz!

You better watch out, cry, and shout for help today at the top of your lungs. SantaCon is coming to town. It'll most likely be sleepng on a barstool, but it'll definitely see you when it's awake. It'll be bad and no damn good. So head to a repertory film venue today. For goodness' sake.

That felt good to say.

Continuing series today include Screwball Romance, Rated Xmas: Holiday Classics, Naughty and Nice and Cronenberg at IFC Center, Chandler, Hammett, Woolrich and Cain at Film Forum, the Robert Altman trib at MoMA, Screenwriters and the Blacklist: Before, During and After at Anthology Film Archives, the Jean Grémillon baiser géant at Museum of the Moving Image, The Last Laugh: An Alternate History of Spanish Comedy at the Film Society, and the festively monickered Xmas Chopping at the Nitehawk Cinema. The lenticular lunacy be thus;