BOWIE IN TIGHTS: LABYRINTH AT THE 99W DRIVE-IN

Some time back, I mentioned Portland's perennial love for a very short list of films, many of which have the name Jim Henson attached to them.  I'm not even going to pretend to understand.  While I definitely had my time in the sun with Mr. Henson, I've been out of short pants for a few decades now and don't find myself returning all that often to his oeuvre, though that's likely to change as my kiddo piles on the years.

Okay, full disclosure: not a day goes by without an Elmo clip being leveraged in exchange for tooth brushing, but I digress.

For those of you who enjoy marinating in childhood nostalgia, there's something to celebrate as the 99W Drive-in in Newberg welcomes back Henson's 1986 film Labyrinth, an extended experiment in puppets, musical fantasy, and David Bowie in very tight (or is it magical?) pants.  Sure, there's a fall chill in the air and the 99W isn't exactly a short drive from PDX, but bring a blanket, Portland, and you'll be rewarded for your efforts with a 35mm screening of your 3rd or 4th favorite film that doesn't star Seth Rogen or Paul Rudd, okay?  And, since the drive-in recently succeeded in their campaign to digitally upgrade their operation, this is pretty close to your final chance to see a film projected on actual film at a local outdoor theater.

As is the gold standard for drive-ins, admission to the 99W gets you a double scoop of film entertainment.  This week's second feature is We're the Millers, which currently holds a not-so-fresh score of 48% on a certain "tomatometer".  But, hey...Labyrinth!

Labyrinth plays in a double feature with We're the Millers on Friday, October 4th through Sunday, October 6th at the 99W Drive-in.  More info available here.

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PBS' AMERICAN CINEMA EMBRACES THE DARK SIDE: THE FILM NOIR EPISODE IS ON YOUTUBE

Yeah, I spent an unreasonable amount of my weekend peering up at The Hollywood Theatre's screen during Noir City Portland.  Do I regret it at all?  Of course not; if I have any regrets, it's that I missed 3 of the 8 features, but sometimes a guy has things he's gotta do, y'know.  Even so, those other priorities haven't kept me from spending a good deal of time thinking about and craving more noir and film noir related highs.  For instance, after skipping out on the third feature on Saturday night, I still ended up streaming Gun Crazy at home on the Warner Archive Instant service.  

DEADLY IS THE FEMALE aka GUN CRAZY

I was also pleased to stumble across the film noir episode of the fairly great 1995 PBS series American Cinema on YouTube.  I hadn't viewed the series since it first aired on public television, so it was great to take another look at a series that, at the time of its release, had a strong influence in reinforcing my obsession with old films.

Anyone with even a mild interest in noir should get a kick out of the episode (introduced by series host John Lithgow).  So here it is, narrated by one of my all-time favorite noir actors, Mr. Richard Widmark (Pickup on South Street, Panic in the Streets, Kiss of Death, & Night and the City), and featuring great insights by Martin Scorsese, Kathryn Bigelow, Paul Schrader, and many of the writers, actors, and directors responsible for some of the greatest entries in the genre:

 

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THE GOLDEN COACH & LE NOTTI BIANCHE: HANGING OUT WITH RENOIR AND VISCONTI THIS WEEKEND

A couple of great films are coming to my workplace this weekend.  Luchino Visconti's fatalistically romantic 1957 adaptation of Dostoevsky's "White Nights," Le Notti Bianche is Marcello Mastroianni's first outing as a leading man playing opposite Maria Schell.  Also on tap, Jean Renoir's The Golden Coach has Anna Magnani playing an actress with three men actively vying for her favor.  The latter film will be screened on 35mm.

Le Notti Bianche (White Nights) screens Friday, September 27th and Sunday, September 29th at the NW Film Center's Whitsell Auditorium (in the Portland Art Museum).  Click here for more info.

The Golden Coach screens at the NW Film Center.  Click here for more info.

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SING-A-LONG WITH CAPTAIN VON TRAPP AT CINEMA 21

You can't get much more iconic than Julie Andrews spinning through Austrian hills in Robert Wise's The Sound of Music.  Well, beginning Thursday, Cinema 21's going to give you a chance to try your hardest to outsing the old girl when Sing-A-Long Sound of Music returns to Portland.  Whether you bring a group of friends or decide to caterwaul with a bunch of strangers, the event promises you the rare opportunity to be loud at the movies without getting tossed out of the theater on your head. 

Here's a glimpse at the release for the event:

The hit, interactive, musical phenomenon, SING-A-LONG SOUND OF MUSIC, returns to Portland for 7 full performances at Cinema 21 September 26 - October 6, 2013! Having started in the UK back in 1999, the Sing-a-Long Sound of Music show has now become a worldwide hit, playing to packed houses across the globe with over 10,000 performances in 11 different countries! It’s even filled the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles – 7 times! 

For those of you not yet converted, Sing-a-Long Sound of Music is a screening of the classic Julie Andrews film musical in glorious, full-screen technicolor, complete with subtitles so that the whole audience can sing along! The fun-filled show starts with a vocal warm-up led by the evening’s host, who also takes the audience through their complimentary "magic moments pack," containing various props to be used at strategic points throughout the film. Then there is the famous fancy-dress competition in which everyone who has come in costume is invited onto the stage to show off their fantastic tailoring skills. And the more venues we play, the more elaborate the costumes get. Previous entries have included: nuns of both genders (including a pregnant nun!), girls (and boys!) in white dresses with blue satin sashes, a lonely Goatherd, a man in a gold lycra catsuit (Ray a Drop of Golden Sun!), a gazebo and more! 

Get out your wimples and warm woolen mittens, put on your white dresses with blue satin sashes, cut up those chintz curtains and get your vocal cords warmed up because the city is alive with SING-A-LONG SOUND OF MUSIC! SING-A-LONG SOUND OF MUSIC is a fun, joyful, interactive event that makes an ideal girls' night or a unique family outing!

Sing-A-Long Sound of Music runs  Thursday, September 26th through Sunday, September 29th, plus Saturday, October 5th through Sunday, October 6th at the Cinema 21.  More info available here.

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GRINDHOUSE TRAILER EXTRAVAGANZA DROPS TONIGHT AT THE HOLLYWOOD THEATRE

They say hindsight is 50/50, but what if the rearview was violent and trashy instead?  Put yer movie watchin' goggles on, 'cause you're going to need 'em tonight at The Hollywood Theatre where Dan Halsted is serving up a bloody, sexy b-movie trailer stew fashioned out of some of the best Grindhouse trailers of the 70s and 80s.  The lineup is unannounced, but expect to be blown away by what's on hand.

Anyone who's been to one of Halsted's trailer parties and/or Grindhouse Film Fest screenings can testify that the man's got excellent curatorial skills when it comes to genre cinema programming.  So you really don't want to miss tonight's show, okay?  Want a taste of what to expect?  Here's a few Grindhouse trailers to get you in the mood:

Here's what the Grindhouse Film Fest release has to say about tonight's proceedings:

Climb aboard the exploitation starship as we travel to the outer reaches of cinematic insanity! In the 1970s and 80's, distributors trying to creatively sell strange movies in oversaturated markets unwittingly created some of the most mind-blowing pieces of cinema to ever be burned into celluloid. 

This is a lineup of the best of these movie previews, presented on 35mm. All the wildest scenes, strangest taglines, and oddball promotional gimmicks crammed into two minute cinematic rollercoaster rides. We'll see Italian horror, blaxploitation, sexploitation, hicksploitation, kung fu insanity, revenge films and so much more. Buckle up and wear a neck brace.

Grindhouse Trailer Spectacular - Greatest Hits happens  Tuesday, September 24th at 7:30p.m. at the Hollywood Theatre.  More info available here.

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CINEMA PROJECT TURNS 10, LOOKS BACK BEFORE MOVING FORWARD

Anyone who's glanced at this blog more than a few times knows that I have a big ol' soft spot in my heart for Cinema Project.  While they're not the only ones in town putting together incredible programs of experimental film (don't worry, EFF Portland, I love you, too), CP has kept their public exhibitions of outré cinema going for longer than most anyone would ever have expected possible.  You think it's difficult for indie and non-profit cinemas to turn a buck nowadays?  How's about a tight little crew of curators/film lovers without a permanent exhibition space and an exclusive focus on non-commercial works of art?  Needless to say, these folks are doing it for love, not money.

Which is why it's so fantastically inspiring that the organization is launching their 10th season this Saturday.  To celebrate their "tin" anniversary, CP is using their first screening of the fall to throw themselves a birthday party with a "best of" film presentation culled from the first 10 years of Cinema Project.

Here's what the good folks at the Project have to say about Saturday night's events:

Over the past ten years Cinema Project has organized and presented more than 100 unique film and video programs and only in rare instances do we ever show the same thing twice. The beginning of a ten-year anniversary, however, seems like a good time to break the rules and break into our own program archive. The first of two “best of” screenings (to be continued in Spring 2014), this program brings together a fun and unlikely mix of work that demonstrates the variety, breadth, and unique curatorial vision that Cinema Project is known for. Each past and present collective member has selected a favorite short film or video that he or she thinks deserves a second look, or that speaks anew to current political and cultural landscapes and personal outlooks. Older, newer, black-and-white, color, sound, silent, representational, abstract, psychedelic, poetic, diaristic, heavy, light: each is a skilled and personal production close to the artist who made it. This is the type of work we champion. 

At 10pm join us downstairs at the VFW Hall for a post-screening party and fall fundraiser kick-off, with DJs Cuica and Calle Danger, snacks, drinks, and sparkling conversation. Bring your dancing shoes!

Here's what's on tap for that evening:

Undefeated by Kevin Jerome Everson 

[US, 2008, video, b&w, sound, 1.5 min.] 

Associations by John Smith 

[US, 1975, 16mm, color, sound, 7 min.] 

 a-b-city by Brigitte Buhler and Dieter Hormel 

[West Germany, 1985, S8 transferred to video, color, sound, 8 min.] 

RE:THE_OPERATION by Paul Chan 

[US, 2002, Digital Video, color, sound, 26 min.] 

Nocturne by Phil Solomon 

[US, 1980/1989, 16mm, color, silent, 10 min.] 

Portrait, Tea Time, and Red Curtain by Helga Fanderl 

[Germany, 1992-2009, S8 blown up to 16mm, 18fps, color, silent, 7 min.] 

Offon by Scott Barlett 

[US, 1968, 16mm, color, sound, 10 min.] 

Ninety-Three by Kevin Jerome Everson 

[US, 2008, video, b&w, silent, 3 min.]

They had me at the inclusion Phil Solomon's Nocturne.  Need convincing?  How's about a look at another one of Solomon's films, PSALM III: "NIGHT OF THE MEEK" to wet your whistle before Saturday arrives.  It lives here.

Cinema Project celebrates their 10th year of existence on Saturday, September 28th at the VFW Hall (825 SE Mill St.).  More info available here.

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NOIR CITY ON THE NEW MARQUEE

Not much to say here, but, damn, doesn't Noir City look amazing on The Hollywood Theatre's newly restored marquee?  Anyone who came out to Friday's festivities already knows what a blast this mini-festival has been so far.  Host Eddie Muller presented beautiful 35mm prints of two obscure gems (Try and Get Me! & Sleep, My Love) to the enthusiastic crowd while offering up illuminating and entertaining pre-show banter before each film.

If you missed out last night, there's still plenty of Noir City Portland magic to take part in beginning today with the 1949 version of The Great Gatsby, followed by an additional two, rarely-screened films (Repeat Performance & The Come On).  And tomorrow brings yet another opportunity for a triple feature.  Anyone else planning on spending their weekend at Noir City?

Noir City Portland runs Friday, September 20th through Sunday, September 22nd at the Hollywood Theatre.  More info available here.

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