a highly-opinionated selection of things happening around town, and sometimes out of town. this month's page here.
sat. apr. 1 the man who cheated himself, iron man (1951) @ noir fest @ egyptian sun. apr. 2 the big heat, wicked woman @ noir fest @ egyptian sun. apr. 9 sans soleil 7 PM @ silent movie theater mon. apr. 10 internal systems: films by brakhage-kren-lowder-rekveld-sonoda 8 PM @ epfc wed. apr. 12 cinemania! @ aero fri. apr. 14 amps for christ, ezra buchla, etc @ handbag factory indiana jones and the temple of doom MIDNIGHT @ nuart sat. apr. 15 the courtneys @ resident (early show) saccharine trust (11:00) @ cafe nela wild in the streets MIDNIGHT @ silent movie theater tue. apr. 18 downtown boys @ smell thu. apr. 20 the stepford wives @ velaslavasay panorama race & space in los angeles iv 8 PM @ epfc fri. apr. 21 julie byrne @ bootleg sat. apr. 22 dead meadow, cosmonauts, the warlocks, the creation factory @ hm157 frankie and the witch fingers (7:00) FREE @ permanent hp ii mon. apr. 24 hickey & boggs, a name for evil @ new beverly fri. apr. 28 joe baiza, devin sarno, jason kahn @ nowspace personal & the pizzas, the flytraps @ alex's bar (LB) jon brion @ largo sat. apr. 29 colleen green @ the echo the godfather part ii 8:30 PM @ los angeles theatre sat. may 6 fancy space people @ hm157 sat. jun. 3 wayne's world @ cinespia @ hollywood forever fri. jun. 9 her FREE 8:30 PM @ union station sat. jun. 17 the usual suspects @ cinespia @ hollywood forever thu. jun. 29 quintron & miss pussycat @ highland park ebell WHAT IT IS: THE BIG HEAT 1953, Sony Repertory, 90 min, USA, Dir: Fritz Lang One of director Fritz Lang’s best Hollywood films tells the tale of a virtuous cop (Glenn Ford) out for revenge against the gangster who killed his wife. Assisting him in his one-man crusade against the city’s corrupt power base is a kooky, sexy dame (Gloria Grahame, in perhaps her signature role) who’s out for a little vengeance of her own. Featuring an all-time thuggish turn by a young Lee Marvin. As compact and compelling as any crime film ever made. IRON MAN 1951, Universal, 81 min, USA, Dir: Joe Pevney Jeff Chandler stars as Coke Mason, a Pennsylvania coal miner who is talked into becoming a boxer by his gambler brother (Stephen McNally). Coke’s wife (Evelyn Keyes) thinks her husband’s violent streak can make them millionaires, not caring that’s he’s becoming a villain in the public’s eyes. In the end, Coke fights for the title against … Rock Hudson! Based on the novel by W.R. Burnett and featuring Jim Backus, Joyce Holden and James Arness. New 35mm Print! THE MAN WHO CHEATED HIMSELF 1950, 81 min, USA, Dir: Felix Feist A veteran San Francisco homicide cop (Lee J. Cobb) spirals into a moral morass when his married socialite lover (Jane Wyatt, in a rare fatale role) “accidentally” bumps off her husband. Instead of playing it by the book (would that be noir?), he covers up the crime, only to have his younger brother (John Dall) - himself a fledgling homicide dick - start putting together the pieces. This James M. Cain-inspired thriller gets maximum impact out of its San Francisco locations, including a memorable climax at Fort Point. 35 mm! Archival Print! WICKED WOMAN 1953, Park Circus/MGM, 77 min, USA, Dir: Russell Rouse In this racy little B-movie, scarlet woman Beverly Michaels (PICKUP) cons saloon owner Richard Egan into bilking his boozy wife out of her dough, then toys with the affections of slavering devotee Percy Helton (as you’ve never seen him before). She plans on dumping both and leaving a dust trail to Mexico. Michaels was definitely director Rouse’s kind of woman: They married after making this picture - an extra twist to this juicy noir. Featuring a title song that’s a cult favorite! 35 mm!