the 3 penny opera: NYT review

In a fascinating review of Criterion's new release of G.W. Pabst's "The 3 Penny Opera," Dave Kehr of the New York Times gets a cookie for entrancing me with the following statement:

"Here again is proof of what a fragile medium the movies are, and of how foolish it is for us to condescend to the perceived primitivism of a past that is largely a creation of our own neglect."

I wish I had said that.

more St. Louis cinema

This Sunday at The Fox:

Sunday Sept. 30 - 1pm: 1925 Silent Film PHANTOM OF THE OPERA featuring Stan Kann’s accompaniment on the Mighty Wurlitzer Organ.

This is part of their 25th anniversary celebration. They are also showing E.T. and Chicago, but let's not kid ourselves, the highlight here is the silent Phantom. Maybe seeing this will help me purge the memories of seeing that Joel Schumacher Phantom monstrosity that I hated, hated and hated. If I ever see that again it will be in hell.

ben hur and the ten commandments @ the tivoli

Two of my favorite biblical epics are showing in St. Louis thanks to Saint Louis University's Museum of Contemporary Religious Art (MOCRA) exhibition called The Celluloid Bible: Marketing Films Inspired by Scripture. They are:

• The Ten Commandments (1956) Sunday, October 7
• Ben-Hur (1959) Sunday, November 4

For all of my complaining about the lack of repertory cinema in the area, I have had some real treats lately. Sunday October 7 will be long day as I can't miss the Kompletely Keaton festival either.

robert altman screenings

Lifted directly from Highway 61's blog is information concerning FREE unlisted screenings of some of Robert Altman's best films. I was only able to see a portion of Nashville last night, but the print they were using looked really good. I'm currently looking into whether the other screenings will be actual prints or projected DVDs.

Altman's films are excellent theater experiences as they are so densely layered that they require every ounce of your attention for the full running time.

• The Long Goodbye on September 11th @ 7:30 pm
• Nashville on September 18th @ 7:00 pm
• The Player on September 25th @ 7:30 pm
• Short Cuts on October 2nd @ 6:30 pm
• Gosford Park on October 9th @ 6:30 pm

All showing at the Webster Film Series' regular venue: The Winifred Moore Auditorium.

the seventh seal revisited

Last night's showing of Bergman's masterpiece The Seventh Seal was nothing short of astonishing. I have seen hundreds of black and white prints projected with varying degrees of quality, but I can say with all certainty that I have never seen anything look like the brand new 35mm print that was shown. A person could pay no attention to the narrative whatsoever and be very content simply with the beauty of the cinematography as it is projected from film. Seeing this reminded me of just how far we still have to go in the home theater industry to replace the majesty of theatrical projection. The Webster Film Series should be immensely proud.

So we are going back to see it again tonight.

the seventh seal (1957)

The Seventh Seal (1957)

This weekend @ the Webster film series, Ingmar Bergman's most indelible images.

Opportunities to view art for this price and in this setting are so rare. How can you possibly not show up at 5 or 6 bucks per ticket?