Pick of the Week:
The Fern Flower: A Collection of Ukrainian Animation
Playing at the Clinton from Church of Film on April 2nd. “From witchy Gogol adaptations, sinisterly psychedelic Alice in Wonderland serials and cigarette ads, to surrealist parables, antifascist poems, and even Stephen King (!), Ukrainian animators rebuilt their industry after the second world war and made Kievnauch film one of the most distinguished animation studios in the world.”
Also Playing:
No Other Land (2024). Directed by Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor.
Still playing at Cinema 21 and the Liberty Theater. Recorded between 2019 and 2023, this is a powerful documentary about Palestinians living under Israeli occupation. One of the directors was recently arrested. Don’t look away.
This Week:
I Saw the TV Glow plays at the Clinton on March 29th, which is wonderful movie about transgender identity, weaponized nostalgia, and moon men. I shuddered when I saw the Buffy font appear on the screen. Martin Scorsese liked it and you will too.
At the Academy:
Deep Red returns to Portland theaters for one more red nightmare. This is a Dario Argento movie about a musician who witnesses a murder.
Clue plays so you can finally figure out who killed Lee Ving.
Risky Business plays so you can prove that you’re not a suppressive person by seeing this.
At Cinema 21:
Robocop plays on March 28th to enjoy Paul Verhoeven’s subtle satire about violence and police.
Dune plays on March 28th, returning to theaters in honor of David Lynch—the movie he disowned. I look forward to every theater playing this again when Dune Messiah comes out.
It Happened One Night plays on March 29th. Capra’s romantic comedy about a “feisty” heiress.
Inland Empire plays on March 29th. David Lynch’s final film and maybe his most obtuse. I hated this when it came out (because I was dumb) and loved it on a rewatch. It’s a masterpiece.
Starship Troopers plays on March 29th for a subtle Paul Verhoeven satire about war and bugs.
Eno plays on April 3rd—the great doc about Brian Eno! It’s different every time!
Cinemagic has a sort of connected grouping of films:
Moulin Rouge. Baz Luhrmann movies are something. I’m not a huge fan but they are a spectacle.
Speed Racer by the Wachowskis! This one has a cult following and a monkey in it.
Waterworld was a famous box office turkey. Kevin Costner drinks his pee in this, which he is now selling to fund his western movies. Google Kevin Costner Pee Drink for me, please.
300 based on Frank Miller’s comic book series of the same name. I think both suck!
At the Clinton:
Night of the Living Dead plays on April 1 with Sleepbomb providing the live score. Go see it or the zombies will come to get you, Barbara.
Direct Action on April 3rd. “Portland premiere of a new documentary directed by Guillaume Cailleau and Ben Russell about the daily routines of activists, squatters, anarchists, farmers, and people the government deems “eco-terrorists”—a modern portrait of one of the most important militant activist communities in France.”
At the Hollywood this week:
The Maltese Falcon opens for a run if you’ve never seen this detective classic.
The Slayer plays on March 28th about a couple trapped on a tropical island who are being attacked by a monster from dreams. Look, I just booked my Costco vacation to this island and I got a great deal. I can’t wait until that monster eats me.
Barbarella plays on March 29th, which is somehow not sold out? Icon Jane Fonda has some sexy space adventures on 35mm.
Enjoy your March screenings of:
Stop Making Sense on March 29th
RRR on March 30th
Revenge plays on March 30th. It’s Coralie Fargeat’s (The Substance) first film and is a rape revenge movie.
America Hunter plays on April 1st from B-Movie BINGO. It’s uh… about spies and data?
The Portland Eco Film Festival has:
We & The Wonder & The Woe on April 2nd. “This program features regional premieres of new short films from around the globe, exploring the angst, awe, complexity, and joy of being in our living world.”
The Right to Read plays on April 3rd. “Stand for Children Oregon presents a special screening of The Right to Read…The Right to Read shares the stories of an activist, a teacher, and two American families who fight to provide our youngest generation with the most foundational indicator of life-long success: the ability to read.”
Check the Joy Cinema’s website! This past week they played Peewee’s Big Adventure and some other stuff.
At the Kiggins:
80s classic Better off Dead opens for a run. I loved this as a kid but haven’t seen it in years. How many slurs are in it?
At Omsi:
It’s the annual sci-fi festival!
This week: Mitchells Vs The Machines, Interstellar, The Wild Robot, When World’s Collide, Annihilation, Looper, and The Host. The Host plays all the time and is great and I have a soft spot for Looper.
At the Tomorrow Theater much like millennial life, millennial March Madness ends with an array of sadness and regret.
Charlie’s Angels on March 28th. Sure. Why not. Whatever.
But I’m a Cheerleader is sold out on March 30th. All revenue goes to Basic Rights Oregon. So please consider a donation to support their work.
The Palm Beach Story (1942) Directed by Preston Sturges. Starring Claudette Colbert, Joel McCrea, Mary Astor.
This is a killer screwball comedy. If you don’t know, screwball comedies are generally romantic comedies centering on a stubborn woman who is trying to get married, divorced, remarried, or some secret other thing. There is a rat-at-tat dialogue full of jokes. They are class conscious in ways that Hollywood films aren’t anymore.
It’s difficult to imagine American cinema without Preston Sturges. After rewatching Twin Peaks I’m reminded how much David Lynch stole from his films (and screwball comedies). Just watch the gun club sequence from this and tell me you couldn’t see them at the Great Northern hotel.
This is about a couple dealing with the Depression, not being able to pay rent, and the wife thinking that they are not a good match. So what does she do? She goes to Palm Beach to get a divorce (a taxi driver tells her that it’s nicer than Reno). She also meets the Weenie King. It has one of the boldest (and dumbest) endings to a movie I can think of. There is also a weird scheme about building a giant metal net over a city to serve as an airport.
Screwball comedies are fun to watch with a crowd of people where you can feed off the laughter and vibes, alas they don’t play often here. This is streaming on Criterion but you can also watch for free here. It’s also on YouTube.
The tip jar is open. I’ll tip to that!