What to Get the Woman Who Has Everything

You'll Poke Your Eye Out.

Not sure what to get the femme fatale in your life for Christmas? How about a full series pass to Noir City Seven? San Francisco's loving tribute to dark cinema returns to the historic Castro Theatre January 23 through February 1, 2009. This year's Noir City pays tribute to the mass media of yesteryear, offering a glance into the world of 1940s and '50s newspapers, radio, and magazines. Programmers Eddie Muller and Anita Monga deliver a taste of the 1940s film-going experience by rounding out each evening's double feature with an actual B picture.




A Very Naughty Arlene Dahl in Wicked As They Come.
Once again, Eddie Muller will introduce the films and special guests will also bring their own insights into noir. Film star Arlene Dahl will be on hand the evening of Saturday, January 24, for an onstage interview between screenings of her films, Slightly Scarlet (1956) and Wicked as They Come (1956). Tickets are now available at Noir City's official website for more details. For those Seattleites who wish to have Noir City come to them, it will. February 13th through 19th, in conjunction with SIFF, the Film Noir Foundation will present a slightly shorter version of the series, check it out here.
The full program follows:
Friday, January 23
DEADLINE USA 7:30
SCANDAL SHEET 9:30
Saturday, January 24
BLIND SPOT 1:30
CHICAGO DEADLINE 3:00
PASSPORT HOLDERS RECEPTION FOR ARELENE DAHL 6:00 - 7:00
Evening show with ARLENE DAHL IN PERSON!
WICKED AS THEY COME 7:00
SLIGHTLY SCARLET 9:30
Sunday, January 25
CRY OF THE HUNTED 1:00, 5:00, 9:20
ACE IN THE HOLE 2:45, 7:00
Monday, January 26
ALIAS NICK BEAL 7:30
NIGHT EDITOR 9:30
Tuesday, January 27
THE HARDER THEY FALL 7:30
JOHNNY STOOL PIGEON 9:30
Wednesday, January 28
WHILE THE CITY SLEEPS 7:30
SHAKEDOWN 9:30
Thursday, January 29
THE BIG CLOCK 7:30
STRANGE TRIANGLE 9:30
Friday, January 30
THE UNSUSPECTED 7:30
DESPERATE 9:30
Saturday, January 31
BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT 2:00, 7:30
TWO O'CLOCK COURAGE 3:45, 9:20
Sunday, February 1
THE KILLERS 1:00, 7:00
SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS 3:15, 9:30

Voices of Light

VOICES OF LIGHT /
THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC (1928)
An Oratorio with Silent Film
Hertz Hall, UC Berkeley Campus
Sunday, November 23, 7:30 PM




Bay area residents will get one more chance to see the magnificent pairing of Carl Theodor Dreyer's The Passion of Joan of Arc(1928) with a live performance of Richard Einhorn's Voices of Light, an oratorio inspired by the life of Joan of Arc, on Sunday November 23rd. The Castro previously hosted a performance on the 17th. While Criterion has issued a DVD that couples the two, viewing the film on the big screen while listening to the music performed live, elevates the experience of watching The Passion of Joan of Arc to a spiritual one, the experience that Dreyer intended for his audience.

Dreyer based the film on the transcriptions of Joan's trial, condensing the action down to a few days from the actual seventy days. Dreyer shot the film almost entirely in close-ups, while using a brusque editing technique and a non-traditional style of framing in his cinematography, all of which instills an intense uneasiness. The combination of these cinematic elements also accomplishes both an overwhelming identification with the heroine's point of view and a direct emotional understanding of her fear, as she struggles to maintain her integrity under unimaginable psychological, physical and religious pressures. Maria Falconetti, as Joan, perfectly realizes this struggle with her quietly understated but deeply felt performance.
Einhorn's oratorio, performed by the U.C. Men's & Women's Chorales and the Perfect Fifth and Orchestra, conducted by Dr. Mark Sumner, adds tremendously to Dreyer's depiction of Joan's resistance against her judges. Einhorn's libretto draws on the writings of medieval female mystics, including Joan's. In addition to using soloists, chorus, and an orchestra to bring this creation alive, the piece employs a sample of the church bell of Domremy, Joan's birthplace. Einhorn specifically wrote this oratorio to accompany the film, however, the music could stand on its own as an artistic depiction of Joan of Arc's last and most personal battle.
While the film depicts the martyrdom of a saint, it also depicts a timeless theme with which the believer and non-believer can identify, the moral bravery of an individual in the face of political tyranny. Go early as tickets are only available at the door and the Castro event did sell out. Sincere thanks to The University of California Alumni Chorus and the Pacific Film Archive for staging these performances.

Is It Just Me or Have You Become an Emotionless Shell?

Invasion of the Body Snatchers
The Long View: A Celebration of Widescreen
Pacific Film Archive
Berkley, CA
Friday, August 22, 2008
7:00pm
Available on DVD from Republic Pictures



"There's no emotion. None. Just the pretense of it. The words, the gesture, the tone of voice, everything else is the same, but not the feeling." What if your closest loved one suddenly seemed different? He or she looked exactly the same, spoke the same and remembered all those little things that only he or she could possibly know- the secret things you shared with him or her. The motions of affection are there, but the actual feelings are gone. Don Siegel's science fiction classic, Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) explores this frightening concept.



Beautiful divorcee Becky Driscoll (Dana Wynter) asks small town doctor, Dr. Miles J. Bennell (Kevin McCarthy), to speak with her cousin Wilma whom she's worried about. Wilma is convinced that her Uncle Ira, who raised her as his own, isn't really her Uncle Ira. She tries desperately to explain to Becky and Miles that while he looks, acts and remembers like Uncle Ira- his emotions, especially his affection for her, have disappeared. Wilma knows in her mind that it must be him, but her heart tells her other wise. Miles hears similar complaints from multiple patients. He seeks the advice of a psychiatrist friend who convinces him it's some kind of mass hysteria.
But then his close friends Jack and Theodora Belicec show him something frightening, a human body laying on their pool table that looks unformed. The body vaguely resembles Jack, the same hair color, the same height and build but no wrinkles, no scars and no fingerprints. Yet. A little later, the body begins to resemble Jack more and more- he's being reproduced, but by whom and why? Miles, Becky and the Belicecs realize that the inhabitants of their town are slowly being replaced one by one by unfeeling aliens in a terrible conspiracy to take over the earth. How can they stop them?

The individuals flee society.
Much has been made of the political undertones of this film. Critics have passionately embraced this film as a prime example of cold war anti-communist paranoia and, on the other hand, as a satire of the same. So which is it? Neither. It addresses much more timeless themes- the individual against society and the question of what makes a human a human. Miles doesn't just fight a conspiracy; he fights to keep his individuality and humanness. Subtext aside, the tight plotted screenplay, based on the excellent novel by Jack Finney, the great acting and well passed action make this film worth viewing. So, sit back, enjoy the thrilling ride and contemplate the undertones later.

Heavy Weather Ahead

Night Wind: The Film Noir Cycle


Things get tense in Storm Warning.

October 2 - December 11, 2008
7:30 p.m., Thursdays
Plestcheeff Auditorium
The Seattle Art Museum

It's time again for Seattleites to buy their tickets for a one way ride to desperation and despair. Series passes for the Seattle Art Museum's annual fall film noir series, this year entitled Night Wind: The Film Noir Cycle, go on sale August 19th. Don't get stranded on the side of the road, going nowhere, pick up your full series pass by either emailing boxoffice@seattleartmuseum.org or calling the SAM Box Office at 206.654.3121. Single-film tickets are sold day of show at the auditorium (cash only). Be warned, if you want to try to get in the day of show, go early- this series sells out faster then a double-crossing dame. Tickets are also available through Scarecrow Video: 206.524.8554.

Here's the full line-up:
October 2: Storm Warning
October 9: Highway 301
October 16: Tomorrow Is Another Day
October 23: Johnny O' Clock
October 30: Pickup on South Street
November 6: The Man Between
November 13: Wicked Woman
November 20: Black Widow
December 4: The Night Holds Terror
December 11: A Kiss Before Dying
Member Price: $58
Nonmember Price: $65
Individual Tickets: $7

The Dangers of Florist Shops

99 River Street
August 12th, 6:30pm
The Pacific Film Archive, Berkley
Unavailable on DVD.


John Payne


"It's dangerous to cross the street or to park your cab in front of a florist shop," opines Ernie Driscoll, the protagonist of the rarely shown, but wonderful film noir, Phil Karlson's 99 River Street (1953) which screens at the PFA as part of its United Artist: 90 Years film series. The film co-stars John Payne and Evelyn Keyes. Keyes gives a multifaceted and sexy performance, but the film belongs to John Payne. Payne gives a surprisingly complex performance as an embittered ex-boxer, Ernie Driscoll, who simmers with barely controlled rage.



Modern film viewers typically only know Payne as Maureen O'Hara's love interest in the Christmas classic Miracle on 34th Street. Payne started out his long film career as a contract player at 20th Century Fox in the late 1930s. Studio head Daryl Zanuck, as with most of the male leads at Fox, picked him for his dark good looks. One, because Zanuck always hoped to recreate the success he had with Tyrone Power, and, two, brunette leading men created a striking visual contrast with Fox's blonde leading ladies. Like Warner's Dick Powell, Payne recreated himself from light musical comedy heartthrob to film noir tough guy to survive in post World War II Hollywood.

Eveyln Keyes goes after her man in 99 River Street
In 99 River Street, Payne's Driscoll drives a cab, dreams of owning a gas station and argues constantly with his beautiful, but shrewish, wife, Pauline (Peggie Castle), who married him when he was poised to become the champ. Unbeknownst to him, she has plans to move on. She's tied up in a jewel theft and with the handsome thief, Victor Rollins (Brad Dexter). When Driscoll arrives at the florist shop that she works at, he sees her in the arms of Rollins. He drives off, infuriated, and a short time later, her murdered body turns up. After a series of dizzying plot twists, Driscoll finds himself hunted by the police for Pauline's murder and, in turn, he becomes the hunter. He must find Rollins in order to clear himself before Rollins either leaves the country or Rollins' cohorts in crime gun Driscoll down. His friend, Evelyn Keyes' struggling actress, Linda James, eager to help him puts herself in considerable danger.

Excellent writing, both in terms of plot and dialogue, as well as great performances by the leads, elevates this low budgeted thriller into an entertaining and suspenseful drama. Especially worthy of note are the differing relationships that Driscoll has with wife Pauline and friend Linda. Pauline married him when he verged on greatness but now berates him for his failure. Clearly, she traded her beauty for his potential success and wealth which never materialized. His ever present anger stems from both the fear of losing her and from his own impotent frustration over the turn his life has taken. In contrast, he and Linda have an easy going rapport. He encourages his friend in her struggle for success and helps her, no strings attached, when she needs him. Through these two relationships, the audience sees that life has beaten Driscoll down, but there still seems to be hope that he can somehow turn things around. The suspense of the film comes from both his physical peril- will he be imprisoned or even executed for his wife's murder, and from his emotional/spiritual peril, can he over come his cynicism and despair to find some kind of happiness and meaning in life again?

Tribute to a Forgotten Legend

Streets of No Return: The Dark Cinema of David Goodis
August 1st through August 23rd
The Pacific Film Archive
Berkley, CA



Writer David Goodis at Work.

The Pacific Film Archive will screen the film series Streets of No Return: The Dark Cinema of David Goodis August 1st through August 23rd. This series of films features screenplays written by, or adapted from stories by, David Goodis, ranging from classic Hollywood film noirs to French New Wave landmarks. Goodis wrote extensively for a variety of pulp magazines during the 1930s and 1940s. Great opportunity came with the serialization in The Saturday Evening Post of his novel Dark Passage, which Warner Bros. turned into a film starring Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart. Unfortunately, his alcoholism prevented him from parlaying his hit into further success. He died in 1967 from cirrhosis of the liver.


Several of the films will be introduced by guests influenced in different ways by Goodis. Barry Gifford, author of the Sailor and Lulu novels- the base for Wild at Heart, will introduce the films on opening night. Film critic Mike White will introduce Shoot the Piano Player, check out his site for some early ruminations on the film. The Film Noir Foundation's Eddie Muller will host the screenings of Nightfall and The Burglar. Director Nicholas Kazan will be on hand to discuss his version of the Goodis story, The Professional Man. On closing night, musician Elliot Lavine, will introduce Moon in the Gutter.
A complete schedule follows:
Friday, August 1, 2008 - 7:00 pm
Dark Passage
Introduced by Barry Gifford. A prison escapee has plastic surgery and turns out to be Humphrey Bogart: Delmer Daves experiments with a subjective camera in this San Francisco set film noir. With Lauren Bacall.
Friday, August 1, 2008 - 9:15 pm
The Unfaithful
Ann Sheridan is a wartime adulteress who pays the price when the troops come home in this dank drama.
Saturday, August 2, 2008 - 6:30 pm and
Tuesday, August 5, 2008 - 7:30pm
Shoot the Piano Player
Introduced by Mike White. A brand-new print of Truffaut's frolicsome yet faithful genre pastiche, starring a hangdog Charles Aznavour. Repeated on August 5.
Thursday, August 7, 2008 6:30 pm
Nightfall
Introduced by Eddie Muller. Jacques Tourneur's noir unravels fall guy Aldo Ray's paranoid past. With stunning outdoor cinematography by Burnett Guffey.
Thursday, August 7, 2008 - 8:30 pm
The Burglar
Introduced by Eddie Muller. A miasma of incestuous desire hangs over thief Dan Duryea and his sister Jayne Mansfield in Goodis' pulpy plot.
Sunday, August 10, 2008 - 7:00 pm
Descent into Hell
A boozehound author and his chilly wife go to the tropics to revive their marriage, but Haiti becomes a stand"n for hell.
Thursday, August 14, 2008 - 6:30 pm
The Burglars

Starring Jean-Paul Belmondo, this French retooling of The Burglar shifts the action to Greece, with a famed car chase as centerpiece of the high-speed caper.
Thursday, August 21, 2008 6:30 pm
The Professional Man x Two
Nicholas Kazan in Person. Kazan and Steven Soderbergh directed two totally different TV takes on the same Goodis story.
Thursday, August 21, 2008 8:30 pm
And Hope to Die
Jean-Louis Trintignant and Robert Ryan in Rene Clement's study of pent-up rivalries in a claustrophobic gangland hideout.
Saturday, August 23, 2008 6:30 pm
Moon in the Gutter
Introduced by Elliot Lavine. Jean-Jacques Beineix evokes Goodis's murky and haunted world with sinister artifice. Starring Gerard Depardieu and Nastassia Kinski. This promises to be a fascinating look at one man's writing through a wide variety of lenses.

Are You Ready for the Marathon?

The 13th Annual San Francisco Silent Film Festival
http://www.silentfilm.org/
July 11th-13th, 2008
The Castro Theatre
http://www.castrotheatre.com/index.html
San Francisco


The Baguette Quartette.

San Francisco's historic Castro Theatre will house The 13th Annual San Francisco Silent Film Festival July 11th-13th. "This is our most ambitious festival yet," announced SFSFF Artistic Director Stephen Salmons. "We'll present twelve programs, all with live music, in the space of thirty hours - it's an all-out silent film marathon, designed to showcase the astonishing breadth and depth of the silent era." The festival's selection of foreign titles reflects their commitment to exposing their audiences to the true diversity of silent cinema. Included in this year's programming are the French farce Les Deux Timides; the German gay themed drama Mikael; the German animated film The Adventures of Prince Achmed; and the Japanese avant-garde tragedy Jujiro.


Rene Clair- director of Les Deux Timides
Legendary director Rene Clair's Les Deux Timides (Two Timid Souls) (1928) screens Saturday, July 12th at 2:15PM. Clair's raucous comedy centers on the pathologically shy Pierre's quest to marry the equally shy Cecile. Unfortunately, her father has another suitor in mind, the widowed former wife abuser Garadoux. Can Pierre overcome his timidity and win the girl of his dreams? The live accompaniment for the film marks the debut of the Bay Area's Baguette Quartette, known primarily for their renditions of classic Parisian dance hall music, at the festival. "The combination of Clair's innovative visual comedy and Baguette Quartette's high-energy tangos and fox trots is a match made in heaven," Salmons said. Renown stage magician and director Georges Meli/(R)s' short Les Fromages Automobiles (The Skipping Cheeses, 1907) precedes the feature film.

Danish director Carl Theodor Dreyer's Mikael (1924), a landmark in gay cinema, follows Les Deux Timides at 4:15PM. A beautiful young man, Michael, inspires an older man, Zoret, both romantically and artistically. Zoret takes Mikael as his model and lover, but soon the protege betrays his master with tragic results. Dryer, as always, unfolds the story through powerful imagery (Karl Freund and Rudolph Mate served as cinematographers) and with a sympathetic understanding of the characters. Pianist Donald Sosin, a popular favorite from last year's festival, will return this year to accompany the film. Camille de Morlhon's short L'Histore D'une Rose (1911) precedes this feature.

A still from The Adventures of Prince Achmed.
Sunday July 13th's programming opens with Lotte Reiniger's The Adventures of Prince Achmed (1926). Reiniger's film employs a pioneering technique, cut-out silhouette animation, to retell the exploits of Prince Achmed from the 1001 Arabian Nights. Indonesian shadow puppet theater inspired the film's unique and delicate style. The film's historical importance stems from it being both the earliest surviving feature-length animated film, and the first such film directed by a woman. Pianist Donald Sosin will also accompany this film. Special guest Simone Nelson of the Bay Area Women in Film and Television will introduce the film. The festival will run a fragment of Vincent Whitman's animated The Bottom of the Sea (1914) prior to the feature screening.

Image from Jujiro.
The final foreign selection in the festival, Teinosuke Kinugasa's Jujiro (Crossways) (1928), plays on July 13th at 6:10pm just prior to the closing night film, King Vidor's The Patsy (1928). Jujiro unfolds, in a surrealistic and visually expressionistic style, the story of Rikiya and his sister Okiku. He comes home to her for nursing after being severely wounded in a fight over a geisha. His deteriorating mental and physical condition forces Okiku to make terrible sacrifices. Pianist Stephen Horne, another favorite from last year's festival, will accompany the film. The film short Kaleidoscope (c.1925) screens before the feature.
This year's festival again promises to be an eye opening experience for first time and long time visitors. Festival audience members receive more than just the chance to see a wide-ranging line up of feature films, many unavailable on DVD. They also have a chance to see these films as they were meant to be seen: on the big screen, in a movie palace, accompanied live by talented musicians and with a large and appreciative audience. Every year, the festival also provides an excellent, and free, souvenir program that contains well thought essays on each film. And, as usual, the festival will also host several book signings. This year's authors include Suzanne Lloyd, author of Harold Lloyd's Hollywood Nudes in 3-D; film critic Leonard Maltin, director and author Guy Maddin and film preservationist David Shepard.
For more on The Adventures of Prince Achmed please read my fellow siffblog writer David Jeffers' review: http://www.siffblog.com/reviews/celestial_patience_and_running_with_scissors_weimar_animator_lotte_reiniger_and__004758.html. For more details on the festival schedule and to purchase tickets, please go to: http://www.silentfilm.org/
The full schedule of screenings follows:
Friday July 11
7:00pm THE KID BROTHER Opening Night Film $17 Member/$20 General
9:00pm OPENING NIGHT PARTY $20 Member/$25 General
Saturday July 12
10:00am AMAZING TALES FROM THE ARCHIVES Free Admission- ticket required
11:40am THE SOUL OF YOUTH $12 Member/$14 General
2:15pm LES DEUX TIMIDES $12 Member/$14 General
4:15pm MIKA/aL $12 Member/$14 General
7:45pm THE MAN WHO LAUGHS Centerpiece Film $15 Member/$17 General
10:45pm THE UNKNOWN Director's Pick: Guy Maddin $12/$14
Sunday July 13
10:30am THE ADVENTURES OF PRINCE ACHMED $12 Member/$14 General
1:10pm THE SILENT ENEMY $12 Member/$14 General
3:50pm HER WILD OAT $12 Member/$14 General
6:10pm JUJIRO $12 Member/$14 General
8:45pm THE PATSY Closing Night Film $15 Member/$17 General
FESTIVAL PASS $120 Member/$140 General
HOW TO BUY TICKETS:
May 27-July 10
ONLINE: www.silentfilm.org
BY PHONE: 1-800-838-3006 24 hours a day 7 days a week
BY MAIL OR FAX: download order form at www.silentfilm.org
June 13-July 10
IN PERSON: Festival Box Office, 833 Market Street, Suite 811, San Francisco
Hours: Thursday-Friday Noon-6pm
Day of Show
Castro Theatre Box Office
Hours: Friday 5:00-8:00pm; Saturday 9:00am-11:00pm; Sunday 9:30am-9:00pm