Mary Pickford Theater

Past Screenings : April - June 2008

Tuesday, April 1 (7:00pm)

Night of the Juggler (Jay Weston/Columbia, 1980). Dir Robert Butler. Wrt Bill Norton, Sr. & Rick Natkin, from the novel by William P. McGivern. With James Brolin, Cliff Gorman, Richard Castellano, Abby Bluestone, Dan Hedaya, Julie Carmen (100 min, Technicolor, 35mm)

The Big Town gets a rough going over in this chaotic chase film. From the South Bronx to 42nd Street (years before its Disney makeover), New York City's local color is the hero of this kidnaping yarn. The outstanding street photography is the work of Victor J. Kemper.

Wednesday, April 2 (7:00pm)

Jazz Film Series

Imagine the Sound (Sphinx Productions, 1981). Dir Ron Mann. (90 min, color, DVD)

preceded by:

Jazz--Rhythms of Freedom (JAK Films, 2007). Dir Mike Welt. (32 min, color, DigiBeta video)

Ron Mann's recently restored version of his now classic 1981 documentary features interviews and beautifully shot studio performances by four free-jazz firebrands: pianist Paul Bley, trumpeter Bill Dixon, saxophonist Archie Shepp and pianist Cecil Taylor.

Preceded by the short film Jazz--Rhythms of Freedom , one of 94 historical documentaries recently produced by Lucasfilm, which explores the use of jazz as a tool for liberation with profiles of contemporary musicians Billy Taylor, Kahil El'Zabar and Joe McPhee.

Thursday, April 3 (7:00pm)

Pinter by Pinter

The Caretaker ; U.S. release title: The Guest (Caretaker Films, U.K., 1964). Dir Clive Donner. Wrt Harold Pinter, from his own play. With Alan Bates, Donald Pleasence , Robert Shaw. (105 min, b&w, 35mm)

Shot on a shoestring budget in six weeks, The Caretaker involves a pair of brothers who engage a vagrant to mind a semi-derelict house. First performed in 1960, the play was Pinter's breakthrough success earning him serious recognition as a dramatist.

Friday, April 4 (7:00pm)

Pinter by Pinter

The Homecoming (American Express Films - Ely Landau Organisation, for The American Film Theatre, U.S./U.K., 1973). Dir Peter Hall. Wrt Harold Pinter, from his own play. With Cyril Cusack, Ian Holm, Michael Jayston, Vivien Merchant, Terence Rigby, Paul Rogers. (114 min, color, 35mm)

A philosophy professor returns from America with his wife to his North London home and family. The second film made for the National Film Theater project, this is a deliberately stage-bound filming of Harold Pinter's play reuniting the director and cast members from the original 1965 Royal Shakespeare Company production at London's Aldwych Theatre and the subsequent Broadway run. In characteristically uncompromising fashion, Pinter sets loose a savage familial corpus that bleeds all over the fixtures of the traditional drawing room drama.

Tuesday, April 8 (7:00pm)

Pinter by Pinter

Betrayal (Horizon Pictures, U.K., 1982). Dir David Jones. Wrt Harold Pinter, from his own play. With Jeremy Irons, Ben Kingsley, Patricia Hodge, Avril Elgar. (95 min, color, 35mm)

First performed as a play in 1978, Betrayal tells the story of a literary agent (Kingsley) who discovers his wife (Hodge) and best friend (Irons) are having an affair. Pinter's love triangle unfolds over a nine year period and is told in reverse chronology, beginning in ashes and culminating with first sparks.

Wednesday, April 9 (7:00pm)

Jazz Film Series

Anita O'Day--The Life of a Jazz Singer (Elan Entertainment/UGO Productions, 2007). Dir Robbie Cavolina & Ian McCrudden. Producers Robbie Cavolina, Ian McCrudden, Melissa Davis. (90 min, color, DVD)

Legendary jazz vocalist Anita O'Day (Anita Colton) became popular singing with the Gene Krupa and Stan Kenton Big Bands before carving out a long career as a solo artist. In this new documentary, the so-called "Jezebel of Jazz" looks back over her life and tells the story of her struggles in the music world and triumphs over addiction, with rarely seen film performances and interviews with Annie Ross, Margaret Whiting, Bill Holman, Johnny Mandel and Gerald Wilson

Friday, April 11 (7:00pm)

Bitter Sweet (British and Dominions Film Corp./United Artists, U.K., 1933). Dir Herbert Wilcox. Wrt Lydia Hayward, Wilcox, Monckton Hoffe, from the operetta by Noël Coward. With Anna Neagle, Fernand Gravey, Miles Mander, Clifford Heatherley, Esmé Percy, Ivy St. Hélier. (93 min, b&w, 35mm)

Noël Coward's operetta gets its first big screen treatment by Irish-born British producer/director Herbert Wilcox. (As for the MGM version, starring Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy, released in 1940, Coward wrote, "It is, on all counts, far and away the worst picture I have ever seen.") Wilcox intended Bitter Sweet as a star-making property for Anna Neagle, his lovely young protégée. Thanks to this film and others she made after it, Neagle became a show business institution in the U.K. Today Bitter Sweet has many other attractions beyond the leading lady's dewy appeal, principally its beguiling music and its evocation of a bygone world. The depiction of café life in Vienna is full of charm, but with a slight tinge of menace.

Tuesday, April 15 (7:00pm)

Ann-Margret

R. P. M. (Columbia, 1970). Dir Stanley Kramer. Wrt Erich Segal. With Anthony Quinn, Ann-Margret, Gary Lockwood, Paul Winfield, Graham Jarvis. (92 min, Eastmancolor, 35mm, print exhibits color fading)

A celebration of the multifaceted career of one of Hollywood's greatest "Sex Kittens" - actually, the one for whom the term was coined. What sets Ann-Margret apart from most of her contemporary movie goddesses was her versatility as a performer. She made her start as a dancer and then moved on to acting, eventually becoming a fine actress in her own right, with a career ranging from Viva Las Vegas and surf movies to Tommy and Grumpier Old Men. Her performance alongside Jack Nicholson in Carnal Knowledge won her an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She starred in her own show in Vegas, had an ongoing love affair with Elvis, and worked with Bob Hope for U.S.O. This mini series will focus on Ann-Margret's early films that have not been seen in decades. A real visual treat and the start of a long and successful career.

In R.P.M., in a complete change from his usual role, Anthony Quinn stars as a hip, progressive college professor who surprisingly gets promoted to dean to try to quell the swell of social unrest that is crippling the school. As a sociologist, he wants to test his theories by using his students as guinea pigs. Ann-Margret plays his girlfriend and confidante who tries to help him through this deepening mess. An amazing role-reversal for Quinn as he gets to show a much softer and more progressive side of his character.

Wednesday, April 16 (7:00pm)

Jazz Film Series

Brotherly Jazz--The Heath Brothers (DanSun Productions, 2006). Dir Jesse Block. Producer Danny Scher. (70 mins, color, DVD)

In a series of revealing interviews, Brotherly Jazz paints a vivid portrait of Philadelphia's hard-bopping Heath Brothers; bassist Percy Heath talks about his long tenure with the Modern Jazz Quartet; saxophonist/composer Jimmy Heath discusses his painful past and how he turned his life around; and youngest brother, drummer Al "Tootie" Heath admits that "had it not been for my older brothers, I might have gone astray and become a doctor or lawyer." The film features selections from a 2004 California concert that marked one of the last times the brothers performed together.

Thursday, April 17 (7:00pm)

Ann-Margret

Kitten with a Whip (Universal, 1964). Dir Douglas Heyes. Wrt Heyes, from the novel by Wade Miller. With Ann-Margret, John Forsythe, Peter Brown, Patricia Barry, Richard Anderson, James Ward. (83 min, b&w, 35mm)

with:

The Flintstones. Ann Margrock Presents (Hanna-Barbera Productions/ABC, 9/19/1963). Dir William Hanna, Joseph Barbera. Wrt Harvey Bullock, R. S. Allen. Voices Alan Reed, Mel Blanc, Ann-Margret. (30 min, b&w, 16mm)

Ann Margret is a very naughty girl. Kicked out of reform school and on the run, she is discovered in her nighty at the home of a wealthy married man (Forsythe), who instead of turning her in invites her to stay. Join us for the hijinks.

Shown with a classic Flintstones episode in which Fred and Barney find a very special babysitter to look after Pebbles. She even helps the two with their musical act and gets them a spot in a big show.

Friday, April 18 (7:00pm)

Ann-Margret

The Swinger (Paramount, 1966). Dir George Sidney. Wrt Lawrence Roman. With Ann-Margret, Tony Franciosa, Robert Coote, Yvonne Romain, Horace McMahon. (81 min, Technicolor, 35mm)

with:

Simply Beautiful (Peckham Productions for Avon Cosmetics, 1966). (14 min, color, 16mm)

Filmed in dazzling Technicolor, The Swinger is a feast for the eyes and senses. Ann-Margret is the catalyst for all the action in this visual romp that has been called the first music video by the few who have seen it. More a series of vignettes than a cohesive whole, the film is an early portrayal of the 60's counter culture offering a free flowing slice of the new found freedom. Don't miss this visually unique and colorful testament to the charms of the birth of a new era later labeled the "Swinging Sixties."

Preceded by a Revlon instructional film which allows us to explore the efforts that go into keeping Hollywood actresses "simply beautiful." Filmed on Kodachrome 16mm stock this is one of the most visually stunning narrow-gauge color prints in the Library's collection.

Tuesday, April 22 (7:00pm)

Omnibus. VII, Vol. 9, The Medium (Robert Saudek Associates/NBC, 2/15/1959). Dir Gian-Carlo Menotti, William A. Graham. Wrt Menotti. With Claramae Turner, Lee Venora, Jose Perez, Beverly Dame, Donald P. Morgan. (60 min, b&w, U-matic video)

with:

The Medium (Transfilm Productions/Lopert Films, 1951). Dir Gian-Carlo Menotti. With Marie Powers, Leo Coleman, Anna Maria Alberghetti, Beverly Dame, Belva Kibler; Donald Morgan. (84 min, b&w, 35mm)

As introduced by Alistair Cooke for the NBC television Omnibus production, "Nobody has done more to make opera be an American citizen than Gian Carlo Menotti. He doesn't write about medieval dukes, or hired assassins, or middle aged Italian heroines whose grief is as mountainous as their girth. He writes about The Saint of Bleecker Street, The Consul, The Telephone and today The Medium."

Most middle-aged U.S. citizens remember first seeing "The Medium" as a TV broadcast, thirteen years after the opera was composed. Subsequently, professional, amateur and university productions picked up on the success of this popular and accessible work. Menotti originally wrote the main role, Madame Flora, for the San Francisco Opera based contralto, Miss Claramae Turner, who sang the lead in the Omnibus production. Other singers include, from the concert and Broadway stage, the middle aged Lee Venora singing Monica, the role of the young daughter, and Jose Perez as the mime character Toby. The other smaller vocal parts were given to the singers who performed the same roles in the earlier film adaptation.

Following the first disastrous, then later successful Broadway production, originally staged as an Efrem Zimbilist, Jr. production in the mid 1940's, Menotti directed this Italian-made film adaptation in the early 1950's. He also provided additional incidental music which is usually required for cinematic versions of operas: an interesting percussive introduction for the opening credits and extra instrumental and choral music for the added street scenes. In this operatic film noir, Marie Powers takes on the dark role of Madame Flora with great success. In her film debut, a very young Anna Maria Alberghetti sings the role of Monica, and Toby is acted by Leo Coleman.

Wednesday, April 23 (7:00pm)

Jazz Film Series

'Tis Autumn--The Search for Jackie Paris (Outsider Pictures, 2006). Dir & Wrt Raymond De Felitta. Producer Peter Peterson. (100 min, color, DVD)

For a time in the 1950s and 60s, the Italian-American jazz singer and guitarist Jackie Paris seemed poised for stardom. He worked on 52nd Street during its heyday, won the Down Beat Critics Poll, toured with Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Lionel Hampton, and recorded with luminaries Charles Mingus, Donald Byrd and Gigi Gryce. Then inexplicably, Paris's career went into free-fall and he lapsed into undeserved obscurity. Filmmaker Raymond De Felitta searches out the 79-year old singer while he attempts a comeback and unravels the mystery behind the roller coaster career of this über-hip jazz singer.

Thursday, April 24 (7:00pm)

Roller Disco Cinema

The Unholy Rollers (Roger Corman Productions/AIP, 1972). Dir Vernon Zimmerman. Wrt Howard R. Cohen, from a story by Zimmerman and Cohen. With Claudia Jennings, Betty Anne Rees, Roberta Collins, Candice Roman, Charlene Jones, Alan Vint. (88 min, De Luxe color, 35mm)

with:

Le Mariage de Thomas Poirot = Fun with the Bridal Party (Georges Méliès, France, 1908). Dir Georges Méliès. (7 min, b&w, 35mm)

And When She Was Bad [Trailer] (1973). (2 min 30 sec, color, 35mm).

Door to Door Maniac [Trailer] (1961). (2 min, b&w, 35mm)

Personal Health for Girls (Coronet Instructional Films, 1972). (13 min, color, 16mm)

1970's "Playboy Playmate of the Year", Claudia Jennings, shocked audiences and critics alike for her gritty and gut wrenching portrayal of Karen Walker, a woman who appears to have nitroglycerine pumping through her veins where blood should be. The Sexual Revolution and counter culture of the late 1960's & early 1970's have left Karen bored and disillusioned. 23 years old and stuck in a dead end job at a cat food plant, it would appear as there was little hope for her future. That is until the day that her boss made an unwanted advance. With frenzied anger she trashes the plant and loses her job.

Karen turns her vengeance to the sport of roller derby, where her breathtaking beauty makes her a shoe-in for a team. What they get is most unexpected, a gladiator of epic proportions. Soon she is leading "The Avengers" to countless victories. Loved by the crowds and hated by her teammates she goes on a kamikaze mission, laying her wrath upon all those on and off the tracks, slipping further and further into madness.

This is not a tale of redemption or absolution, nor a tale of deeper understanding of one's fellow human beings. This is a tale of a true non-conformist, a warrior of great magnitude. This is a tale of an unholy roller.

Helmed by Vernon Zimmerman as a follow-up to his debut film Deadhead Miles, The Unholy Rollers was edited by film icon Martin Scorsese (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas) and showcases a plethora of astounding camera techniques and fits of athletic prowess.

Preceded by a couple of trailers, a delightful comedy by Georges Méliès in which a turn-of-the-century wedding turns chaotic as the attendees are all wearing roller-skates, and a short intended for classroom viewing about how important it is to live a healthy lifestyle and be a proper young lady.

Friday, April 25 (7:00pm)

Iranian Film Series

Zir-e darakhtan-e zeyton = Through the Olive Trees (Abbas Kiarostami Productions, Iran, 1994). Dir & Wrt Abbas Kiarostami. With Mohamad Ali Keshavarz, Hossein Rezai, Zarifeh Shiva, Tahereh Ladanian. (103 min, color, 35mm, in Persian with English subtitles)

Through the Olive Trees is the final part of Kiarostami's Earthquake Trilogy, and the plot revolves around the production of the second episode, Life, and Nothing More..., which itself was a revisitation of the first film, Where Is the Friend's Home?. Like many of Kiarostami's films, it is filmed in a simplistic, naturalistic way, while also being a complex study of the link between art and life, constantly blurring the boundaries between fiction and reality. Rezai plays a local stonemason turned actor who, outside the film set, makes a marriage proposal to his leading lady, a student recently orphaned after the earthquake. She considers his offer insulting however, as he is poor and illiterate, and refuses to speak to him again. She continues to ignore him even when they are filming, as she seems to have trouble grasping the difference between her role and real life.

Tuesday, April 29 (7:00pm)

Iranian Film Series

Rang-e Khoda = The Color of Paradise (Varahonar Co., Iran, 1999). Dir & Wrt Majid Majidi. With Hossein Mahjoub, Mohsen Ramezani, Salameh Feyzi, Farnaz Saffati. (90 min, color, 35mm, in Persian with English subtitles)

The Color of Paradise is a fable of a child's innocence and a complex look at faith and humanity. Visually magnificent and wrenchingly moving, the film tells the story of a boy whose inability to see the world only enhances his ability to feel its powerful forces. The film was nominated for an Academy Award and is one of the most successful (financially and critically) Iranian films released in the States.

Wednesday April 30 (7:00 pm)

Jazz Film Series

The Gig (Castle Hill Productions, 1985). Dir & Wrt Frank D. Gilroy. With Wayne Rogers, Cleavon Little, Andrew Duncan, Daniel Nalbach, Warren Vaché. (91 min, color, 35mm)

Frank Gilroy's often overlooked feature film concerns five white middle-aged amateur jazz musicians who accept an offer for a gig in the Catskills, only to find problems when they must fill out the group with a young, jaded black professional bassist (played by Cleavon Little). Cast also includes actors and amateurs, including Andrew Duncan, Jerry Matz, Daniel Nalbach, Wayne Rogers, Joe Silver and real-life trumpeter Warren Vache who plays his own music onscreen. Musicians on the soundtrack include Kenny Davern, Milt Hinton, George Masso, Dick Wellstood, John Bunch and Reggie Johnson.

Thursday, May 1 (7:00pm)

Iranian Film Series

Safar-i Qandahar = Kandahar (Makhmalbaf Film House - Bac Films, Iran/France, 2001). Dir & Wrt Mohsen Makhmalbaf. With Nelofer Pazira , Hassan Tantai, Sadour Teymouri, Hayatalah Hakimi. (85 min, color, 35mm, in Persian, English & Polish with English subtitles)

Pazira plays Nafas, a reporter who was born in Afghanistan but fled with her family to Canada when she was a child. However, her sister wasn't so lucky; she lost her legs to a land mine while young, and when the family left the country, the sister was accidentally left behind. Nafas receives a letter from her sister announcing that she's decided to commit suicide during the final eclipse before the dawn of the 21st century; desperate to spare her sister's life, Nafas makes haste to Afghanistan, where she joins a caravan of refugees who, for a variety of reasons, are returning to the war-torn nation. As she searches for her sister, she soon gets a clear and disturbing portrait of the toll the Taliban regime has taken upon its people.

Friday, May 2 (7:00pm)

Iranian Film Series

Osama (Barmak Films -- LeBrocquy Fraser Productions - NHK, Afghanistan/Ireland/Japan, 2003). Dir & Wrt Siddiq Barmak. With Marina Golbahari, Khwaja Nader, Arif Herati, Zubaida Sahar. (83 min, color, 35mm, in Persian & Pashtu with English subtitles)

A 12-year-old Afghan girl and her mother lose their jobs when the Taliban closes the hospital where they work. The Taliban have also forbidden women to leave their houses without a male "legal companion." With her husband and brother dead, killed in battle, there is no one left to support the family. Without being able to leave the house, the mother is left with nowhere to turn. Feeling that she has no other choice, she disguises her daughter as a boy. Now called 'Osama,' the girl embarks on a terrifying and confusing journey as she tries to keep the Taliban from finding out her true identity. Inspired by a true story, Osama is the first entirely Afghan film shot since the fall of the Taliban.

Tuesday, May 6 (7:00pm)

Roller Disco Cinema

Skatetown U.S.A. (Skatetown Co./Columbia, 1979). Dir William A. Levey. Wrt Nick Castle. With Scott Baio, Flip Wilson, Maureen McCormick, Patrick Swayze, Ron Palillo. (93 min, color, 35mm)

with:

Roller Skating Safety (Charles Cahill & Associates/Aims Instructional Media, 1980). (15 min, color, 16mm)

Roller Skate Fever (Shaper-Panahi Productions/Pyramid Films, 1981). Dir Paul M. Shaper & Iradj Panahi. With Fred Dagher, Terry Caccia, Tom Peterson. (9 min, color, 16mm)

"Skatetown is a place of magic! Nobody leaves here the same as they came in!" cries the DJ aka "the Wizard". This is roller disco cinema at its finest! It is the Championship Disco Derby at Harvey Ross's (Wilson) mega roller disco palace, Skatetown, USA. Richie (Baio) persuades good boy Stan (Bradford) to sign up for the competition. Along for the fun is Stan's boy crazed sister Suzie (McCormick) who flirts with every man in the place. Winning the contest isn't so easy for Stan because Skatetown, USA is the turf of a skate gang called the Westside Wheelers. The leader of the gang is Ace played by future leading man Patrick Swayze (this is Swayze's first starring role). Another notable appearance is from future minor cult figure Dorothy Stratten (Playboy Playmate 1980) who plays the girl at the snack bar. The soundtrack is disco-tastic with hits such as Earth Wind and Fire's "Boogie Wonderland" and the Jackson's "Shake your Body." This film will definitely leave you wondering where you've put your roller skates.

Preceded by the amusing and dated Roller Skating Safety , in which the County Sheriff's Department of Glendale California goes over the do's and don't of roller skating, and Roller Skate Fever , a hypnotic, wordless film that captures the fantastic skills of rollerskaters on Venice Beach, California in 1981.

Thursday, May 8 (7:00pm)

Two by Loach

Family Life, a.k.a. Wednesday's Child (Kestrel Films, U.K., 1971). Dir Ken Loach. Wrt David Mercer, from his TV play "In Two Minds." With Sandy Ratcliff, Bill Dean, Grace Cave, Malcom Tierney, Hilary Martyn, Michael Riddall. (108 min, Technicolor, 35mm)

In this rarely seen early drama by British director Ken Loach, the generation gap between an emotionally confused teenage girl and her rigid, puritan-minded parents serves as the backdrop for the film's austere "cinéma vérité" style. Janice, an otherwise normal young woman, suffers a breakdown after having an abortion and winds up in a state medical hospital. Her unruly behavior (she throws tantrums, destroys objects, and has extreme mood shifts) embarrasses her parents, who make weekly visits to demonstrate their love, in spite of Janice's unacceptable behavior. Reminiscent of European, documentary-inspired films of the '60's, Family Life focuses less on character development and drama, and more on revealing the subtle complexities that undercut family life.

Friday, May 9 (7:00pm)

Two by Loach

Black Jack (Kestrel Films, U.K., 1979). Dir & Wrt Ken Loach, based on the novel by Leon Garfield. With Stephen Hirst, Louise Cooper, Jean Franval, Phil Askham, Andrew Bennett, Packie Byrne. (110 min, color, 35mm)

Based on the novel by Leon Garfield set in Yorshire in 1750, Black Jack explores the lives of two young teens, Tolly, an orphan apprenticed to a draper, and Belle Carter, a young mentally disturbed girl who never fully recovered from a severe fever. The film begins with Tolly's discovery that the corpse he is guarding is not dead. Black Jack, a rogue who has escaped being hanged by lodging a spoon in his mouth to keep his neck from snapping, opens his eyes to see the schocked response of Tolly, who stands by the casket in disbelief. Without wasting any time, Black Jack grabs Tolly and they escape from the locked room. Meanwhile, Belle is being placed in an asylum so her parents can avoid public scrutiny of her unstable mental condition, which threatens to interfere with her older sister's social-climbing marriage. During her transport to the asylum, a staged accident frees Belle, and she and Tolly meet. Moving together across Yorshire, Tolly works for a doctor in a traveling medicine show as Belle slowly begins to recover.

Tuesday, May 13 (7:00pm)

La Leggenda di Faust = Faust and the Devil (Cineopera, Italy, 1948). Dir Carmine Gallone. With Italo Tajo, Nelly Corradi, Gino Mattera, Thérèse Dorny, Gilles Quéant, Cesare Barbetti. (87 min, b&w, 35mm, in Italian with English subtitles & voiceover)

Carmine Gallone (1866-1973), a prolific Italian film director, producer and sometime actor, adapts Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's drama using both the popular arias and tunes of the French composer Charles Gounod's opera, as well as Italian opera's perspective on the story, Arrigo Boito's orchestral sketches of "Mefistofele." The performers sing in Italian, which this U.S. release version (distributed by Columbia) translates via English subtitles, while the elder Dr. Faustus's thoughts are delivered in English voiceover. Gallone's cutting of Gounod's original five act opera into an 87-minute film was a major chore, similar to the one Tim Burton had to face when shooting last year's film version of Stephen Sondheim's operatic musical "Sweeney Todd." There's so much great music there, but something has to go.

Thursday, May 15 (7:00pm)

3:10 to Yuma (Columbia, 1957). Dir Delmer Daves. Wrt Halsted Welles, from the short story by Elmore Leonard. With Glenn Ford, Van Heflin, Felicia Farr, Leora Dana, Henry Jones, Richard Jaeckel. (92 min, b&w, 35mm)

In spite of its bigger budget and considerably longer running time, the recent remake of 3:10 to Yuma could not match the taut intensity of the original. In this memorable variation on High Noon, farmer Van Heflin, desperate to pay his debts, takes on an apparently simple job: escort a smooth talking but vicious bandit Glenn Ford to the Federal Prison at Yuma. One by one, Heflin's allies desert him as Ford's gang draws a tight ring around the isolated town, until only the town drunk stands between him and death. 3:10 to Yuma was one of the first, and best metaphysical westerns, with plenty of action and suspense in its moral universe.

Friday, May 16 (7:00pm)

Il Mondo di Yor = Yor, the Hunter from the Future (Diamant Film - RAI, Italy, 1983). Dir Anthony M. Dawson (=Antonio Margheriti). Wrt Dawson, Robert Bailey, from the novel by Juan Zanotto and Ray Collins. With Reb Brown, John Steiner, Corinne Clery, Carole Andre, Alan Collins (=Luciano Pigozzi), Sergio Nicolai. (90 min, color, 35mm, dubbed in English)

with

Tron [Trailer] (1982) (2 min, color, 35mm)
Doc Savage: The Man of Bronze [Trailer] (1975) (2 min, color, 35mm)
Black Samurai [Trailer] (1977) (2 min, color, 35mm)
Warlords of the 21st Century [Trailer] (1982) (2 min, color, 35mm)
Creature [Trailer] (1985) (2 min, color, 35mm)

and:

Spaced Vision (ABBA Productions, 1972). (2 min, color, 16mm)

On a strange and distant planet, not unlike a desert in Arizona, there is a peaceful clan of cave people that seem to have invented hair spray, the bikini and rouge, prior to the invention of the wheel. Without warning the clan is attacked in a haze of laser beams from UFOs. Out of the storm comes Yor, who gallantly saves the clan from the barrage! Who is this muscular platinum-blond man who speaks in a Southern Californian accent? Unfortunately, Yor does not seem to know.

The members of the hair-sprayed bikini clan notice the mysterious gold medallion on his waxed chest (it seems that Yor's clan may have also invented hair waxing). They tell him of a desert goddess who wears the same medallion. Yor decides that he must go on a quest to find her and learn his true identity. Along the way he encounters dinosaurs and other prehistoric monsters, half-man half-beast creatures, sex hungry ape-men, an android army, spaceships, and an overacting John Steiner, proving that he has to eat (and eat he does by chewing ever scene that he is in).

A cornerstone of "Il cinema ridicolo" (Cinema Ridiculous), the film is often both intentionally and unintentionally humorous. Part of Italian cinema's long-running tradition of interpreting American blockbusters, Yor is an absurd take on multiple films and genres. The soundtrack by Guido & Maurizio De Angelis has to be heard to be believed. Seeing this in a theater is rare at best, and the notion of Library of Congress screening a 1980's film where a caveman uses a pterodactyl as a hang glider is almost as absurd as the film itself!

Preceded by a selection of trailers and an experimental short that has animated images projected off a woman while music from India plays. Hypnotic.

Tuesday, May 20 (7:00pm)

The Legacy of "Bojangles"

The Little Colonel (Fox, 1935). Dir David Butler. Wrt William Conselman, based on the novel by Annie Fellows Johnston. With Shirley Temple, Lionel Barrymore, Evelyn Venable, John Lodge, Sidney Blackmer, Hattie McDaniel. (80 min, b&w, 35mm)

In 1870's Kentucky, Elizabeth Sherman is evicted by her Southern father for deigning to marry a "Northerner." When Elizabeth returns home with her daughter Lloyd, "The Little Colonel," the ill-tempered codger (Lionel Barrymore) refuses to reconcile, although he slowly warms up to his determined grand daughter. Bill Robinson delights in his hoofing with the irrepressible Temple!

Wednesday, May 21 (7:00pm)

The Legacy of "Bojangles"

The Littlest Rebel (Twentieth Century-Fox, 1935). Dir David Butler. Wrt Edwin Burke, based on the play by Edward Peple. With Shirley Temple, John Boles, Jack Holt, Karen Morley, Bill Robinson, Guinn Williams. (73 min, b&w, 35mm)

When Shirley Temple's rebel officer father slinks back to his plantation to see his family, he is arrested. A Yankee soldier takes pity and arranges an escape. Everyone is captured and both soldiers are to be executed. Temple and "Bojangles" dance their way to Washington, DC to beg President Lincoln to intercede.

Thursday, May 22 (7:00pm)

The Legacy of "Bojangles"

Stormy Weather (Twentieth Century-Fox, 1943). Dir Andrew Stone. Wrt Frederick Jackson, Ted Koehler, H. S. Kraft, from an original story by Jerry Horwin & Seymour B. Robinson. With Lena Horne, Bill Robinson, Cab Calloway, Katherine Dunham, Fats Waller, Nicholas Brothers, Ada Brown, Dooley Wilson. (78 min, b&w, 35mm)

with:

Celebrity Profile. The Nicholas Brothers--Flying High (Van Ness Films, 1999). Dir Steven Smith. Host Harry Smith. Narrated by Peter Graves. (60 min, color, U-matic video)

In Stormy Weather , dancing legend Bill "Williamson," just back from World War I, meets lovely singer Selina Rogers (Horne) at a soldiers' ball and promises to come back to her when he establishes his career. Years later, Bill's and Selina's rising careers intersect only briefly, as Selina is unwilling to "settle down." Will she ever change her mind? This was Bojangles's biggest role--a part that he played with dignity and clarity--and his dancing was the most contextual. Concludes with an all-star show hosted by Cab Calloway.

Shown with a profile of Fayard and Harold, from their earliest appearances in 1920's Philadelphia, through the Cotton Club in 1932 and the Ziegfeld Follies of 1936 to the end of the 20th century, combating racism and inspiring generations of black entertainers.

Friday, May 23 (7:00pm)

A Rage to Live (Mirisch Corp. - Rage Productions/United Artists, 1965). Dir Walter Grauman. Wrt John T. Kelley, from the novel by John O'Hara. With Suzanne Pleshette, Bradford Dillman, Ben Gazzara, Peter Graves, Bethel Leslie, Carmen Mathews. (101 min, b&w, Panavision, 35mm)

Prior to her success as second banana in The Bob Newhart Show, Suzanne Pleshette, who died on Jan. 19 this year, appeared as the sexually insatiable society belle in this somewhat underrated melodrama. In this loose film adaptation from the novel by John O'Hara, Ms. Pleshette holds the screen as a remarkably self-contained yet clearly troubled young woman. Her steamiest scenes are with Ben Gazzara, who played sexual angst better than any young actor in the 1960's.

Tuesday, May 27 (7:00pm)

Wild River (Twentieth Century-Fox, 1960). Dir Elia Kazan. Wrt Paul Osborn, based on the novels "Mud on the Stars" by William Bradford Huie and "Dunbar's Cove" by Borden Deal. With Montgomery Clift, Lee Remick, Jo Van Fleet, Albert Salmi, J. C. Flippen, James Westerfield, Barbara Loden. (110 min, De Luxe color, CinemaScope, 35mm)

Elia Kazan had long wanted to make a motion picture about the New Deal. Wild River , his film about a Tennessee Valley Authority employee who tries to convince an elderly woman to leave her island home, turned out to be one of the director's finest. Anchored by Jo Van Fleet's masterly performance as the wise matriarch, it's a passionate and humane exploration of the costs of progress. Wild River was selected to the National Film Registry in 2002; we will be screening a pristine print donated to the Library by 20th Century-Fox.

Thursday, May 29 (7:00pm)

Two by Warhol

I, a Man (Andy Warhol Films, 1967). Dir Andy Warhol, Paul Morrissey. With Tom Baker, Nico, Valerie Solanis, Bettina Coffin, Ingrid Superstar. (99 min, color, 16mm)

with:

Fashion. Flowers (Manhattan Cable, 1980). (30 min, color, U-matic video)

The Pickford Theater is proud to present two of Andy Warhol's lesser-known feature films, complete with long takes, strobe-cuts (the glitches you hear in the soundtrack are deliberate alienating affects) and the unbearable loggorhea of Factory superstars. I, a Man follows Tom Baker as he meets a series of New York women for conversation, confrontation, copulation, and sometimes all of the above. The most notable of these females may be chanteuse Nico of Velvet Underground fame, but the most notorious is certainly Valerie Solanas, who a year later would shoot and nearly kill Warhol. Co-star Baker described the budding would-be assassin as "intelligent, funny, almost charming, and very, very frightened."

Shown with Flowers , from a series Warhol produced for Manhattan Cable television. In this episode, four different New York florists with four distinct approaches to the trade are interviewed.

Friday, May 30 (7:00pm)

Two by Warhol

The Nude Restaurant (Andy Warhol Films, 1967). Dir & Wrt Andy Warhol. With Viva, Brigid Polk, Julian Burrough, Taylor Mead, Allen Midgette. (100 min, color, 16mm, print exhibits some color fading)

with:

Andy Warhol's TV. The Best of Andy Warhol's TV (Madison Square Garden Network, 1981). (30 min, color, U-matic video)

The Nude Restaurant was one of the first vehicles for Warhol superstar Susan Hoffman, aka Viva. For much of the film displays that quality which, according to biographer Victor Bockris, most endeared her to Warhol: "she complained endlessly about personal things that no respectable woman talked about in public, with an upper-class languor which Andy began to imitate in his own speech." Also starring Taylor Mead, who most recently has been seen in a segment of Coffee and Cigarettes.

Shown with The Best of Andy Warhol's TV , featuring Debbie Harry, David Hockney, and Fran Leibowitz, among others.

Tuesday, June 3 (7:00pm)

Tudors on Film

Anne of the Thousand Days (Universal, U.K., 1969). Dir Charles Jarrott. Wrt Bridget Boland, John Hale, Richard Sokolove, based on the play by Maxwell Anderson. With Richard Burton, Genevieve Bujold, Irene Papas, Anthony Quayle, John Colicos, Michael Hordern. (145 min, Technicolor, Panavision, 35mm)

As one of the most interesting dysfunctional families ever, the Tudors of Great Britain continue to fascinate us even though they reigned more than 400 years ago. So if you can't get enough of The Tudors on Showtime or The Other Boleyn Girl, watch this series of Tudor-themed films, showing various interpretations of Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth, Edward, and Mary, Queen of Scots.

Anne of the Thousand Days is a largely sympathetic portrayal of Anne Boleyn which shows her life from the moment King Henry VIII first spies her on the dance floor. Immediately taken with her, he pursues Anne, but is rebuffed until he promises to marry her. Anne's ambitions soar, but her inability to give Henry a son dooms her. The film was nominated for ten Academy Awards and won the award for best costumes.

Thursday, June 5 (7:00pm)

Red, White and Zero (Holly Productions for Woodfall/United Artists, U.K., 1967). Red and Blue . Dir Tony Richardson. Wrt Richardson, Julian More. With Vanessa Redgrave, John Bird, Gary Raymond, Michael York, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. The Ride of the Valkyrie . Dir & Wrt Peter Brook. With Zero Mostel, Julia Foster, Frank Thornton. The White Bus . Dir Lindsay Anderson. Wrt Shelagh Delaney. With Patricia Healey, Arthur Lowe, John Sharp, Julie Perry, Anthony Hopkins. (97 min, b&w/color, 35mm)

Originally intended as a trilogy of stories by Shelagh Delaney, Red, White, and Zero was never released as such. When two of the three directors filmed non-Delaney subjects, UA shelved the project as there was no unifying theme.

In Lindsay Anderson's film of Delaney's quasi-autobiographical The White Bus , a young woman returning to her hometown joins a conducted bus tour, only to find herself increasingly cut off from her surroundings and other people. Here Anderson displays the melancholy satire and poetic surrealism that he would further explore in If... and O Lucky Man!

Peter Brooks' inexplicable romp The Ride of the Valkyrie features Zero Mostel running around the streets of London.

In Red and Blue , Tony Richardson's wistful, candy-colored Demy-inflected musical, Vanessa Redgrave is a wayward chanteuse who gets fatefully involved with gangster Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.

Red, White, and Zero received its belated Washington premiere when it was screened at the Pickford Theater in 2000.

Friday, June 6 (7:00pm)

Queen of Burlesque (Sigmund Neufeld Productions/PRC, 1946). Dir Sam Newfield. Wrt David Lang. With Evelyn Ankers, Carleton Young, Marian Martin, Craig Reynolds, Rose La Rose. (70 min, b&w, 35mm)

with:

Tiger Fangs (PRC, 1943). Dir Sam Newfield. Wrt Arthur St. Claire. With Frank Buck, June Duprez, Duncan Renaldo, Howard Banks, J. Farrell MacDonald. (60 min, b&w, 16mm)

Killer show girls and crazed flesh eating tigers are at the center of our B-picture double bill. First, competition between dancers on the burlesque stage leads to blackmail and a series of murders in Queen of Burlesque . Variety noted this "routine murder" mystery as "adequate" but with "dialogue of questionable taste." The film boasts song and dance numbers popular in 40's burlesque houses and features the "original TNT girl" Rose La Rose in a supporting role. Then in Tiger Fangs , an East Asian rubber plantation is terrorized by tigers and the American government, in need of rubber for the war effort, sends a world famous explorer to investigate. The locals believe the animals are possessed by evil spirits but clues lead to the work of a Nazi saboteur.

Tuesday, June 10 (7:00pm)

Tudors on Film

Young Bess (MGM, 1953). Dir George Sidney. Wrt Jan Lustig, Arthur Wimperis, based on the novel by Margaret Irwin. With Jean Simmons, Stewart Granger, Deborah Kerr, Charles Laughton, Kay Walsh. (111 min, Technicolor, 35mm)

Young Bess focuses on the early years of Queen Elizabeth before she attains the throne. Elizabeth 's early life is hard as her father frequently banishes her from court, and she not only loses a mother, but also a succession of stepmothers. Henry's last wife, Catherine Parr, treats Elizabeth kindly and brings her back to court. Elizabeth falls in love with Thomas Seymour, brother of Henry's wife, Jane Seymour, but he marries Catherine Parr after Henry's death. Her close relationship with him, however, causes her to be taken into custody to testify against him. Jean Simmons and Stewart Granger were married to each other in real life when this was filmed.

Thursday, June 12 (7:00pm)

Borzage's Germany

Three Comrades (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1938). Dir Frank Borzage. Wrt F. Scott Fitzgerald, Edward E. Paramore, from the novel by Erich Maria Remarque. With Robert Taylor, Margaret Sullavan, Franchot Tone, Robert Young, Guy Kibbee, Lionel Atwill. (100 min, b&w, 35mm)

Adapted from Erich Maria Remarque's novel set in post-World War I Germany, the tale follows the struggles of three war veterans who attempt to eke out a living running an auto repair shop and taxi service. Their friendship is strengthened by their shared love of a woman dying of tuberculosis. The ethereal presence of Margaret Sullavan's character bestows a sense of hope and transcendence in the face of poverty, disease and the threat of facism. It is considered to be her finest performance. Borzage's lush romanticism is skillfully realized by Joseph Ruttenberg's cinematography and Franz Waxman's score. This is F. Scott Fitzgerald's only screenwriting credit.

Friday, June 13 (7:00pm)

Borzage's Germany

The Mortal Storm (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1940). Dir Frank Borzage. Wrt George Froeschel, Anderson Ellis, Claudine West, from the novel by Phyllis Bottome. With Margaret Sullavan, James Stewart, Robert Young, Frank Morgan, Robert Stack. (100 min, b&w, 35mm)

This is the most explicit anti-Nazi film to be released in pre-war America. The loyalties of a family living in a small Bavarian village become divided when news of Hitler's rise to power reaches them. Despite the one-dimensionality of its propaganda, it is a telling analogy for Germany as a whole and a compelling story of persecution.

Tuesday, June 17 (7:00pm)

Tudors on Film

The Prince and the Pauper (Warner Bros., 1937). Dir William Keighley. Wrt Laird Doyle, based on the novel by Mark Twain. With Errol Flynn, Billy Mauch, Bobby Mauch, Claude Rains, Alan Hale, Henry Stephenson, Barton MacLane. (118 min, b&w, 35mm)

Based on the novel by Mark Twain, The Prince and the Pauper shows two young boys living in very different circumstances who resemble one another. One is Edward, a prince and heir to the throne, while the other lives in poverty. When they meet by chance, they decide to trade places, but then are forced to stay in the roles they have adopted.

Thursday, June 19 (7:00pm)

Japan at War

Gekido no showashi--Okinawa kessen = The Battle of Okinawa (Toho, 1971). Dir Kihachi Okamoto. Wrt Kaneto Shindo. With Keiju Kobayashi, Tetsuro Tanba, Tatsuya Nakadai, Wakako Sakai, Mayumi Ozora, Yuzo Kayama, Ryo Ikebe. (150 min, color, scope, 35mm, in Japanese with English subtitles)

It is somewhat surprising that the recent focus on an American filmmaker depicting a World War II battle from a Japanese perspective (Clint Eastwood in Letters from Iwo Jima) did not translate into an increased interest in Japanese cinema's own take on the war. With a few notable exceptions, such as the anti-militarist films of Kon Ichikawa (The Burmese Harp, Fires on the Plain) and Masaki Kobayashi (The Human Condition trilogy), the Japanese war movie is largely an unknown quantity in the West, in no small part due to the unavailability of some of the key works of the genre outside of Japan. Our modest attempt to shed light on the topic consists of two treatments of the same event, the bloody battle for the island of Okinawa (see also June 12).

Unlike Iwo Jima, its immediate predecessor, the assault on Okinawa was marked by a high civilian casualty rate - a third of the island's pre-war population died in the battle. Director Kihachi Okamoto, who had himself seen military service during the war, skillfully provides the big picture by detailing the historical timeline and introducing all the major players while at the same time portraying the harrowing human toll on the indigenous residents. The film, however, stops short of accusing the Japanese military for the civilan deaths, to this day a controversial subject in Japan. The cast includes several well-known names (even to Western audiences), including Tatsuya Nakadai as the U.S.-educated Col. Hiromichi Yahara, the highest ranking officer to survive the battle. The Japanese title translates as "A Tempestuous Chronicle of the Showa Period - Battle of Okinawa."

Friday, June 20 (6:30pm)

Tokyo Orinpikku = Tokyo Olympiad (Organizing Committee for the Games of the XVIII Olympiad - Toho, Japan, 1965). Dir Kon Ichikawa. Wrt Natto Wada, Yoshio Shirasaka, Shuntaro Tanikawa, Ichikawa. With Abebe Bikila, Dawn Fraser, Billy Mills, Don Schollander, Anton Geesink, Joe Frazier, Avery Brundage, Emperor Hirohito, and a cast of thousands. (170 min, Eastmancolor, CinemaScope, 35mm)

"I tried to grasp the solemnity of the moment when man defies his limits, and to express the solitude of the athlete who, in order to win, struggles against himself. I wanted people to rediscover with astonishment that wonder which is a human being." -- Kon Ichikawa

Kon Ichikawa was the surprise choice of the Olympic Committee to document the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. He was one of Japan's top directors of dramatic films, not a documentarian, and he admitted to being no sports fan. Still, the challenge must have been irresistible. Ichikawa and his crew often found drama, wonder and humor throughout the games, and utilizing over 100 widescreen cameras, created a visually stunning and deeply humanitarian celebration of the human spirit expressed in athletics.

In it's initial U.S. release, Tokyo Olympiad was seen only in a severely truncated, re-edited version barely half the length of the original, and was also the victim of a hopelessly inept publicity campaign. We will see the film at its full length, in the restored, subtitled version released in the U.S. for the first time in the 1990s.

Tuesday, June 24 (7:00pm)

Tudors on Film

Mary, Queen of Scots (Hal Wallis Productions - Universal, U.S./U.K., 1971). Dir Charles Jarrott. Wrt John Hale. With Vanessa Redgrave, Glenda Jackson, Patrick McGoohan, Timothy Dalton, Nigel Davenport., Trevor Howard (128 min, Technicolor, Panavision, 35mm)

Mary, Queen of Scotland, and likely heir to the English throne, faces a tumultuous life as she battles the plotting of her lords to unseat her and fights to have her claim to the English throne recognized. She is imprisoned by her cousin Queen Elizabeth, who accuses her of treason. This film was nominated for 5 Academy Awards, including Best Actress.

Thursday, June 26 (7:00pm)

Japan at War

Himeyuri no To = The Eternal Monument = Tower of the Lilies (Geneisha/Toho, 1982). Dir Tadashi Imai. Wrt Yoko Mizuki. With Komaki Kurihara, Yuko Kotegawa, Kumiko Oba, Yoshiko Tanaka, Tomoko Saito. (140 min, color, 35mm, in Japanese with English subtitles)

Unlike The Battle of Okinawa (see June 5), which is primarily a large scale war epic, The Eternal Monument is more intimate in scope as it tells the story of a group of female high school students assigned to the island's army field hospitals. The picture is based on real life events which have over the years received several cinematic treatments, the first of which (1953) was also directed by Tadashi Imai. With its focus on suffering and self-sacrifice and its unabashedly sentimental celebration of the Japanese spirit, the film was obviously aimed at local audiences (it was a box office hit in Japan), and has never been released in the West. The title refers to the Okinawa monument commemorating almost 200 girls who perished in the battle.

Friday, June 27 (7:00pm)

Wake in Fright, a.k.a. Outback (NLT Productions - Group W Films, Australia/U.S., 1971). Dir Ted Kotcheff. Wrt Evan Jones, from the novel by Kenneth Cook. With Gary Bond, Donald Pleasence, Chips rafferty, Sylvia Kay, Jack Thomspon. (96 min, color, 35mm)

with:

Frightmare [Trailer] (1974). (2 min, color, 35mm)
Love and Bullets [Trailer] (1979). (2 min, color, 35mm)
Mary, Mary, Bloody Mary [Trailer] (1975). (2 min, color, 35mm)

and:

Small Apartment (Andrew T. Betzer Films, 2008). Dir: Andrew T. Betzer. With Alex Wasinski, Alexandre Marouani, Julia Fragias. (8 min, color, 35mm)

John Grant is a mild mannered young schoolteacher in the desolate Australian outback town of Tiboonda. Summer vacation occurs and John is taking leave to heavily populated Sydney, where his girlfriend awaits. Along the way, he must stop in the town of Bundanyabba (or "Yabba") to catch a flight. Once there, John encounters a clan of people unlike anything he has ever known. They are charming people who inhale alcohol in equal quantities as they do air. Men who are quickly prone to violence and derive pleasure in it, including their main joy of hunting and slaughtering kangaroos. John slowly finds himself slipping further and further into the madness of his surroundings.

Controversial and unsettling, the highly praised Wake in Fright is often named by Aussie critics as "The Greatest of Australian Film Achievements". It was nominated for the Golden Palm at the 1971 Cannes Film Festival. The script was penned by Evan Jones (Eva, These Are the Damned, King & Country) from the award winning novel by Kenneth Moore. Directed by Ted Kotcheff, who went on to a long and extremely successful career directing such films as First Blood, North Dallas Forty, and The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz. Wake in Fright is a difficult film to see as all but a handful of prints have been lost or are incomplete. The print that will be screened tonight is an original in excellent condition.

Preceded by a selection of trailers and the short Small Apartment . In the latter, a middle-aged man, his son, and daughter-in-law explore love and perversion in 700 square feet of space. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2008 South By Southwest Film Festival.

The Mary Pickford Theater is programmed by Matthew Barton, Jennifer Harbster, Jerry Hatfield, Wilbur King, Steve Leggett, Karen Lund, Mike Mashon, David Novack, Jennifer Ormson, Pat Padua, Lynne Parks, Sam Serafy, Christel Schmidt, Zoran Sinobad, John Snelson, Chris Spehr, Brian Taves, and Kim Tomadjoglou.

Projectionists: Amy Gallick, David March, Jennifer Ormson, Mike Smith
Theater Managers: Jerry Hatfield, Christel Schmidt, Chris Spehr