Cinephile’s Dream – Max’s Picks, March Edition

More awesome films to see throughout LA and OC are here!

Check out
the full March calendar here
.  Enjoy! -JP

View all the Cinephile’s Dream calendars here.  You can sign up to receive the calendar by email, or Tweet with the author.

Hello everyone, I hope you’re all getting a lot of use out of not only the calendar, but also the bi-weekly posts that go along with it. The first half of March had some great screenings, but I believe the second half is even better. Below you’ll find my picks for March 19th through the 31st, and before you know it, the April calendar will be up on the blog as well.

•
Say Anything…
and
Almost Famous
at the New Beverly on March 18th and 19th – In the last week of December last year,
We Bought a Zoo
was released in theatres. It was the first feature from writer/director Cameron Crowe in over six years. While it’s certainly not his best film, it has all the tropes of his filmography (wonderful characters, rich dialogue, and a killer soundtrack). Even if it wasn’t perfect, it reminded me that he is a truly gifted filmmaker, and this double feature the New Bev has set up is a combination of two of his best.
Say Anything
… is a classic, one of the best romantic comedies of the last 25 years. John Cusack is fantastic, and who can forget the famous finale with the boom box that has been parodied to death?
Almost Famous
is easily the most autobiographic film Crowe has ever made, based on his time as a reporter for “Rolling Stone.” The film follows William Miller, a young rock reporter in 1973 as he travels with Stillwater, a band on the brink of becoming one of the biggest rock acts in the world. Along the way, he meets Penny Lane, the leader of The Band-Aids (they’re not groupies, they’re muses) and gets to see the world for the first time, out from under the thumb of repressive mother. There are an infinite number of great things I could say about the film, but the most important is that it’s easily the most loving tribute to rock and roll music ever created. For a guy like me, whose two great passions are film and classic rock, the film is pure nirvana.

•
City Lights
at Cinefamily on March 21st – Cinefamily has been doing a Chaplin retrospective most of the month. They started it with a week’s worth of screenings of the original, 1925 version of
The Gold Rush
and have done occasional screenings of other Chaplin films as well. This is the second to last screening, and they left (one of) the best for last. Expanding on some of the themes of his shorts (
The Idle Class
, in particular, comes to mind), Chaplin’s iconic tramp mistaken for a millionaire by a blind woman. Does hilarity ensue? Of course, otherwise it wouldn’t be a Chaplin film. But of all his films, this one may have the most pathos. The story of the Tramp fighting to help pay for this woman’s operation so she can see again is filled with brilliant highs and lows and is touching, even for the Tramp. The sub-plot involving the Tramp’s friendship with a millionaire who only remembers him when he’s drunk adds to the hilarity. Several of Chaplin’s most iconic moments appear here, but none more than the final shot of the film, a close-up of the Tramp’s delighted face. The way Chaplin handles the scene as an actor was once described as “greatest single piece of acting ever committed to celluloid” by James Agee, and he’s right, it’s a truly beautiful moment. I’ve had the opportunity to see a fair amount of Chaplin in theatres with an audience, and it is definitely the way to go.

•
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World
or
The Big Lebowski
midnight shows at the New Beverly and the NuArt, respectively on March 23rd – Decisions, decisions. Two midnight shows on the same night, but you can only choose one. Scott Pilgrim is a personal favorite of mine, a film I saw 10 times in theatres within a year of its theatrical release in August 2010 (yes, I’m that dorky and I’m willing to admit it). Since its release, it has become a cult classic. The New Beverly has a midnight screening of it every month, and usually Edgar Wright is there along with at least one or two cast members. These screenings are always sold out and there are very few more enjoyable screenings to see with an audience. These people come out each and every month to see it, they know all the lines by heart, and the audience laughs along with every comedic beat perfectly. However, these screenings do happen every month, unlike the screening of The Big Lebowski. Another cult classic, that also opened poorly commercially, the film has developed an ardent following. It’s the strangest film noir ever made. Bridges, Buscemi, and Goodman make just about the strangest group of friends imaginable (in fact, the film probably has the weirdest collection of characters the Coens have ever assembled, and that’s saying something). If you haven’t seen it yet, this is definitely the way to go (and sneak some White Russians into the theatre with you).

• Live Read, Directed by Jason Reitman on March 29th at LACMA – Though I’ve never actually been to one of these, they’ve made the list. Why? Because it’s such an awesome idea. The Los Angeles County Museum of Art has hooked up with director Jason Reitman (
Young Adult
,
Up in the Air
) and once a month hosts a live reading of a famous script. What’s so special about it? Well, first of all, the film that they’re doing the reading of is only announced a couple of days beforehand, with no pre-sales of tickets to the event, and Reitman brings in A-list talent to do the reading. Last month was a reading of Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs with an all African-American cast including Terrence Howard, Cuba Gooding, Jr., and Lawrence Fishburne. Other previous readings include The Princess Bride and Billy Wilder’s
The Apartment
(with Natalie Portman reading the part of Fran Kubelik, made famous by the great Shirley MacLaine). This is the final scheduled reading, so Reitman probably has something amazing up his sleeve. If you plan on going, get there REALLY early. As I said earlier, there are no pre-sale tickets, and the line to get in is always massive, so if you really want to get in, get there early.

•
Annie Hall
and
Radio Days
at the Aero on March 30th – The Best Picture winner of 1977, and the only film that I know of that’s edited in a stream of consciousness style, Annie Hall is easily one of the greatest romantic comedies ever made. Woody Allen stars as Alvy Singer (but, let’s be real here, he’s playing himself), a comedian who begins a relationship with Annie Hall. We see their relationship from beginning to end, and then some. This film is required viewing for anyone who wants to call themselves a cinephile or a filmmaker, as it is not only a classic, but it also uses a larger variety of filmmaking techniques than any other film I can think of, using everything from breaking the fourth wall to subtitles (to tell what the characters are actually thinking) to animation. Radio Days, released a decade after Annie Hall, is Allen doing Fellini once again (Stardust Memories is Allen’s version of 8 ½, Radio Days is his version of Amarcord). Intertwining a nostalgic take on the importance of radio to a particular family in the 1940s with stories of the great radio entertainers of the day. It’s witty and charming, and presented here as a 25th anniversary screening. With this double feature, you get arguably Allen’s most well-known and beloved film along with a lesser known, but equally fun and enjoyable film.

•
The Great Escape
at the Egyptian on March 31st – While there are many great films being shown during the Cinematheque’s Steve McQueen retrospective, there is no greater film than this one. Based on an actual event, the film stars McQueen as the leader of a group of American POWs planning an escape from a German internment camp during World War II. The film’s cast is nothing short of astounding, bringing together an international cast of stars including Richard Attenborough, James Garner, and Charles Bronson. However, the real star of the film is McQueen, who cemented his A-list status with the film. The technical are all top notch, and Elmer Bernstein’s score is a classic. The film manages to perfectly balance action and humor. While the film runs nearly three hours, it is never slow or boring and definitely ranks amongst the finest World War II films ever made.

These are my personal picks, but there are also some other great screenings such as
Cinema Paradiso
(if you loved Hugo, you’ll love this too), Chaplin’s
The Circus
, Fellini’s
La Dolce Vita
, and a phenomenal screening at LACMA of Christian Marclay’s
The Clock
: 24 hour screening (a 24 hour long film that covers the evolution of film and television from the mid-1890s to present day).