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In festival news, DocFest continues through this week. The Hitchcock 9 runs from tonight through Sunday. And Frameline opens Thursday night. I’ve separated the festival screenings below.

A Much Ado About Nothing, Albany, Aquarius, Century San Francisco Centre 9, opens Friday. Most of us don’t associate Joss Whedon with Shakespeare, yet he’s done wonders with one of the Bard’s most popular comedies. Set in modern Italy and shot (in black and white) in Whedon’s own LA mansion, it makes the Elizabethan language sound natural as the characters talk about love, marriage, and jealousy. Much Ado has always been a tricky play to stage–screamingly funny in the first half, it glides near the edge of Othello-like tragedy in the second. Whedon finesses these problems in ways that feel effortless, resulting in an exceptional entertainment. Read my full review.

Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Incredibly Strange Creatures who Stopped Living and Became Mixed-up Zombies, New Parkway, Friday, 10:45. Regular readers know that I’m a fan of the classic bad-movie-with-commentary TV show, Mystery Science Theater 3000. I honestly don’t know  how I ever missed this particular episode. In fact, I’ve never seen any version of Ray Dennis Steckler’s messterpiece, although I know its reputation and have laughed at the name. Much as I would love to see this episode–especially with a live audience–there’s no way I’ll be able to attend. Oh, well.

B+ Cabaret, New Parkway, Thursday, 6:30. Back in the spring of 1973, I was angry (but not surprised) when the obviously commercial Godfather beat Bob Fosse’s Weimar-era musical for the Best Picture Oscar. Time proved me wrong, and while I wouldn’t today put Cabaret in the same class as The Godfather, it’s still a dazzling piece of style.

B The Man Who Fell to Earth, Pacific Film Archive, Thursday, 7:00. Movies were pretty weird in the ‘70s, but they didn’t get much weirder than this—at least with a major director and stars. David Bowie plays an alien who comes to Earth in search of water, but instead discovers capitalism, TV, alcohol, and human sex. Yet it’s not entirely clear what the film is about. Nicolas Roeg directed it, so you know that the movie won’t be about story. But the images are intriguing, the central characters are puzzles that cry out to be solved, and it has some very sexy scenes for your enjoyment. If for no other reason, see it to remind yourself what science fiction films could be like in the years between 2001 and Star Wars.

B+ The Ten Commandments (1956 version), Stanford, Saturday and Sunday. I enjoy a strange relationship with the biggest commercial hit of the 1950s. With its simplistic characters, corny dialog, and overriding atmosphere of pomposity, The Ten Commandments is the ultimate unintentional comedy. And yet, it’s also a rich, generous, and entertaining spectacle, and a visually lovely motion picture. It has one truly impressive, low-key performance (Cedric Hardwicke as Sethi). At times, it even succeeds in its simplistic spirituality. Read my Blu-ray review.

D Moulin Rouge (2001 version), New Parkway, Saturday, 10:30. Did this frenetic yet lifeless absurdity really resurrect the movie musical, or did it just happen to come out the year before Chicago? I admit that the whimsical, neo-Méliès art direction evokes a pleasant fantasy of Paris at the start of the 20^th century, but the songs–all pop hits from the 1980′s and ’90′s–destroy that mood. The dance numbers are so heavily edited that we can’t tell if anyone in the cast can actually take a step. I don’t object to the lightweight plot (Top Hat is no War and Peace), but the ingénue’s fatal disease feels like a tacked-on attempt at depth. On the other hand, live burlesque by the Barely Legal Crowd Pleasers may improve the movie.

F Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Castro, Tuesday. Oh, how Terry Gilliam has fallen! Monty Python’s token Yank made three of the best movies of the 1980’s, then his career collapsed and took his talent with it. Fear & Loathing In Las Vegas reeks; a confused, ugly, and meaningless exercise. That would be forgivable, if it also wasn’t boring and witless. On a double bill with The Doors, which I haven’t seen in a very long time; I don’t recall liking that one much, either.

Hitchcock 9

This collection of newly-restored Alfred Hitchcock silents will screen entirely at the Castro. They will be reprised in August at the Pacific Film Archive.

The Lodger, Sunday, 7:30. This is the first Alfred Hitchcock movie with anything like a typical Alfred Hitchcock story. In fact, it combines two of his favorite plot devices: the psychotic killer and the innocent accused (he would go on two combine these elements again in Young and Innocent, Frenzy, and most effectively in Strangers on a Train). I haven’t seen The Lodger in a very long time (which is why I haven’t given it a grade), but I remember enjoying it. Of course it’s a must for Hitchcock fans.

B Blackmail, Friday, 8:00. Hitchcock’s first talkie was also his last silent –making two versions was common practice in 1929. I’ve seem both and the silent one (which the festival is screening) is better. A young woman commits an indiscretion, putting her in a situation where she has to kill a man in self defense. A witness sees this act as a ticket to comfort. This is Hitchcock in an incubator, preparing to blossom a few years later into the master of suspense. By the way, am I the only one who thinks Donald Calthrop, who plays the blackmailer, is a dead ringer for Kenneth Branagh? Accompanied by the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra.

I’ve seen two other of the nine, Downhill and Easy Virtue, years ago. I didn’t care much for either of them.

DocFest

A- Public Sex, Private Lives, New Parkway, Saturday, 7:00. Skip this movie if you’re simply looking for titillation. But if you’re really curious about the performers who make a living (and apparently a good one) having sex–kinky sex, actually–on camera, this is a must. It follows the lives of three porn stars–Lorelei Lee, Princess Donna, and Isis Love–all of whom have gone from merely performing to taking significant part in the creative process. This sympathetic documentary looks at prejudice, how relationships work in the adult film industry (yes, people get jealous), what it’s like to be a porn star’s parent or child, and the dangers of obscenity trials and Child Protective Services. All three subjects come off as intelligent and thoughtful.

B- Edible City, Roxie New Parkway Sunday, 7:00. Talk radio may belong to the right in this country, but the left controls documentaries. This piece of agitprop (or perhaps I should say agriprop) tells you why we should all support the movement to grow edibles in urban environments, and let the people take control of their own food sources. I’m in complete sympathy with these goals, and agree that for many reasons we need to shorten the space between food creation and consumption. But I would have liked more numbers on land available and how many people that land can feed, varied diet, and other issues. I would also have appreciated the thoughts of well-meaning people (not corporate hacks) willing to discuss the downsides (I assume there are some).

C- The Pirate Bay Away From The Keyboard, Roxie, Saturday, 7:00 and Wednesday, 9:00. This Swedish fly-on-the-wall cinéma vérité documentary examines the the controversial file-sharing Web site Pirate Bay, and the lawsuit against it. The stakes are high–copyright laws versus freedom of the Internet. The legal and moral issues are complex and thought-provoking. Unfortunately, director Simon Klose seems more interested in simple personalities and hero worship than  complex issues and moral ambiguity. The movie has its moments–a discussion of WikiLeaks, a drunken tirade–but mostly it’s just people being self-righteous. Although the film gives everyone a chance to defend their view, it’s clearly on the side of the pirates.

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DocFest continues this week and beyond. You’ll find my totally non-fiction festival recommendations and warnings at the bottom of this newsletter.

A On the Town, Cerrito, Thursday, 7:00. Three sailors arrive in New York for a 24-hour leave. That’s precious little time to see the sights, drink in the atmosphere, and fall in love. What makes On the Town so special–beyond the great songs, terrific choreography, and witty script–is the prevailing sense of friendship and camaraderie. These three sailors and the women who fall for them all seem to genuinely like each other. The movie also treats sexuality in a surprisingly upbeat and positive way for a 1949 Hollywood feature. The women in the story (Vera-Ellen, Ann Miller, and the infinitely funny Betty Garrett) are as motivated by lust as the men (Gene Kelly, Jules Munshin, and Frank Sinatra). It’s just too bad that screenwriters Adolph Green and Betty Comden updated their own wartime stage musical to the post-war period, losing the urgency that came from not knowing if the sailors would come back alive. Unfortunately, the Cerrito will be screening On the Town off of a DVD; no over version is available.

Rossellini double bill: Journey to Italy & Stromboli, Castro, Sunday. I haven’t seen either of these important films, both of which star Ingrid Bergman (Rossellini and Bergman became lovers while shooting Stromboli). But their reputations proceed them, and I suspect they’re worth catching. (Whether I’ll have the time is another matter.) They’ve both been newly restored, and will be screened off DCPs–which will upset some people but not me.

B+ Belle de Jour, Castro, Thursday. About as close as one gets to a Luis Buñuel commercial hit, for reasons that probably had more to do with  sex than art. Catherine Deneuve–stunningly beautiful as ever–plays a bored housewife who starts working in a brothel. Why? That’s never explained, but she certainly doesn’t need the extra cash. At least I think she starts working in a brothel; I’m not sure because a lot of the story takes place in her imagination. Although not as profound as it thinks it is, it’s funny and charming and sexy and playful in ways unlike any other movie. On a double bill with Roman Polanski’s early thriller Knife in the Water, which I still haven’t seen.

C- Popeye, Balboa, Saturday, 10:00am. Robert Altman’s one attempt at a big-budget family musical manages to be both extremely odd and utterly mediocre. The story is a mess, the gags are too outrageous to be funny (there are some things that only work in animation), and Harry Nilsson’s songs are utterly forgettable. The only real joy is watching actors who are both recognizable as themselves as near-perfect physical embodiments of the cartoon characters–especially Shelley Duvall’s amazing likeness to Olive Oyl. Part of the Balboa’s Popcorn Palace series of kiddie matinees.

B+ The Source Family, New Parkway, Tuesday, 7:00. Not what you’d expect from a documentary about an early 70s LA-based cult and hippy commune. Told almost entirely from the point of view of former commune members, the film paints a largely nostalgic picture of early new age spirituality and anti-materialistic idealism. But while it presents leader Jim Baker as a truly holy man whose insights improved the lives of his followers, it also shows how his megalomania and libido compromised and hurt the family. Read my full review. Note: When I first wrote about this film, it was called simply The Source.

A+ Raiders of the Lost Ark, various CineMark theaters, Sunday & Wednesday; Kabuki, Wednesday. Steven Spielberg directed it, and the bad guys are Nazis, but it’s as far from Schindler’s List as a great movie can get. But then, it’s great in an entirely different way. There’s absolutely nothing to take seriously in Raiders of the Lost Ark, and no message to help uplift you. The story is fundamentally preposterous, and the hero, Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) is no more an archeologist than I am a butterfly. But the energy is so high, the action scenes so brilliantly choreographed and edited, and the whole story told with such enthusiasm and wit, that the rest of it just doesn’t matter. If you object to mindless, escapist action flicks on principle, you won’t see it anyway. If you don’t, you probably already love it. Part of CineMark’s month-long Steven Spielberg series.

A- From Up on Poppy Hill, New Parkway, opens Friday. Warm, sweet, and nostalgic, this whimsical dramatic comedy from Studio Ghibli focuses on a teenage girl falling on love for the first time. Set in the early 1960s, it tells its love story against a backdrop of students trying to save an old, rundown clubhouse. But first love never runs smooth, and family histories threaten to derail it before it begins. A rare animated feature without talking animals, fantasy creatures, magic, or broadly caricatured human beings. I don’t know whether the New Parkway will screen the subtitled or dubbed version. For more on this picture, see Friday Night Report: Rare Hitchcock and New Studio Ghibli

B+ Ghostbusters, New Parkway, Friday, 4:00; Saturday, 12:30. Comedy rarely gets this scary or this visually spectacular. Or perhaps I should say that special-effects action fantasies rarely get this funny. Either way, it’s not a bad way to pass an afternoon.

DocFest

A- Public Sex, Private Lives, Roxie, Saturday, 9:01 and Wednesday, 9:00. Skip this movie if you’re simply looking for titillation. But if you’re really curious about the performers who make a living (and apparently a good one) having sex–kinky sex, actually–on camera, this is a must. It follows the lives of three porn stars–Lorelei Lee, Princess Donna, and Isis Love–all of whom have gone from merely performing to taking significant part in the creative process. This sympathetic documentary looks at prejudice, how relationships work in the adult film industry (yes, people get jealous), what it’s like to be a porn star’s parent–or child, and the dangers of obscenity trials and Child Protective Services. All three subjects come off as intelligent and thoughtful.

B- Edible City, Roxie Saturday, 5:00 and Monday, 7:00. Talk radio may belong to the right in this country, but the left controls documentaries. This piece of agitprop (or perhaps I should say agriprop) tells you why we should all support the movement to grow edibles in urban environments, and let the people take control of their own food sources. I’m in complete sympathy with these goals, and agree that for many reasons we need to shorten the space between food creation and consumption. But I would have liked more numbers on land available and how many people that land can feed, varied diet, and other issues. I would also have appreciated the thoughts of well-meaning people (not corporate hacks) willing to discuss the downsides (I assume there are some).

C- The Pirate Bay Away From The Keyboard, Aquarius Sunday, 9:00. This Swedish fly-on-the-wall cinéma vérité documentary examines the the controversial file-sharing Web site Pirate Bay, and the lawsuit against it. The stakes are high–copyright laws versus freedom of the Internet. The legal and moral issues are complex and thought-provoking. Unfortunately, director Simon Klose seems more interested in simple personalities and hero worship than  complex issues and moral ambiguity. The movie has its moments–a discussion of WikiLeaks, a drunken tirade–but mostly it’s just people being self-righteous. Although the film gives everyone a chance to defend their view, it’s clearly on the side of the pirates. I expect a lot of youthful cheers and applause when it’s screened. And yet, despite a request in the credits to "Please share this film online," I had to enter a password to preview it for review.

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The Green Film Festival continues through Wednesday. Charlie Chaplin Days takes over not just the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum but the whole neighborhood of Niles. DocFest opens Thursday.

And here’s something heartening. The CineMark Classic Series has been so successful that they’re expanding it, adding a Sunday matinee to the existing Wednesday afternoon and evening shows. This month, they’re doing Spielberg.

A Before Midnight, Embarcadero, Shattuck, Guild, opens Friday. In this threequel to Before Sunrise and Before Sunset, Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy) have been living together for nine years, and they might as well be married. They have twins, a life together, and bodies transitioning into middle age. Like the previous films, this one takes place in a single day, but this time, they’re vacationing in Greece, and they drive, share a talkative dinner with six other people, and spend considerable time in a hotel room. And they fight. Hard. They still love ach other, but you’re not sure if the relationship will last. The result is both sad and sexy. Read my full review.

B+ Charlie Chaplin Shorts, Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum, Saturday, 7:30. This collection of four Chaplin shorts contain some of his best and some of his not-so-best. “Shoulder Arms,” which at four reels was nearly a feature in 1918, is delightfully silly, despite its serious subject matter–a war that was still going on when the film was shot. “Making a Living” was his first movie, and therefore historically significant, but it’s not really very good. “A Night at the Show,” where he plays two characters, was a huge hit in 1915, but I never cared for it. “Easy Street,” on the other hand, is one of his best shorts. Bruce Loeb will provide the piano accompaniment. Part of the Charlie Chaplin Days weekend.

A Shrek, New Parkway, Friday, 4:00; Saturday, 12:30. Enough bad sequels can make us forget how much we loved the original, and in the case of Shrek, the original was very lovable indeed. This story of an ogre on a reluctant quest to save a princess turns both traditional fairy tales and their Disneyfied adaptations inside out. The evil prince’s castle looks like Disneyland, familiar characters make odd cameos, and that old song “Have You Seen the Muffin Man” gets turned into something like Guantanamo Bay. But it isn’t all just for laughs. In the third act, it rips apart one of the worst lessons that children can pick from these old stories, providing a happy ending that neither Grimm nor Disney could have imagined. The computer animation–ahead of the curve in 2001–still impresses today.

A- Blancanieves, New Parkway, opens Friday. Could The Artist have started a trend in new silent films–all in narrow screen and black and white? But while The Artist looked to Hollywood silents for its inspiration, Blancanieves–a loose and very Spanish adaptation of Snow White–follows the more expressionistic silent film of Europe. The result is a story that could not possibly have worked as well with sound and color. Dark and atmospheric, Blancanieves holds you as it finds new twists in the old story. Major kudos for Maribel Verdú, who plays the evil stepmother with a relish that’s a joy to watch. The story is familiar, but writer/director Pablo Berger provides plenty of surprises. In the end, he stands the whole Prince Charming thing on its head. See my full review.

A+ Singin’ in the Rain, Stanford, Saturday and Sunday. In 1952, the late twenties seemed like a fond memory of an innocent time, and nostalgia was a large part of Singin’ in the Rain’s original appeal. The nostalgia is gone now, so we can clearly see this movie for what it is: the greatest musical ever filmed, and perhaps the best work of pure escapist entertainment to ever come out of Hollywood. Take out the songs, and you still have one of the best comedies of the 1950′s, and the funniest movie Hollywood ever made about itself. But take out the songs, and you take out the best part. On a double bill with Brigadoon–one of the first Cinemascope musicals; which I saw long ago and didn’t care for it.

A+ Jaws, various CineMark multiplexes, Sunday, 2:00; Wednesday, 2:00 & 7:00. People associate Jaws with three men in a boat, but the picture is more than half over before the shark chase really starts. For that first half, it’s a suspenseful, witty variation of Henrik Ibsen’s classic play, An Enemy of the People, but with a central character more conflicted and less noble (Roy Scheider). Then the three men board the boat and the picture turns into a more exciting version of Moby Dick. Jaws‘ phenomenal success helped create the summer blockbuster, yet by today’s standards, it’s practically an art film–albeit one that could scare the living eyeballs out of you. For more on Jaws, see my Blu-ray review and Book vs. Movie article.

B Something in the Air, Roxie, Saturday and Sunday, 2:30. Youthful innocence takes strange forms. For Gilles, a French high school student in 1971, those forms are radical activism and artistic ambitions. Sometimes those drives support each other in Olivier Assayas’ loose tale, and at other times they conflict. Something in the Air doesn’t grab you like a great film; you often have to force yourself to stay involved. But the effort is worthwhile. As Gilles grows beyond his radical idealism–even if he never quite renounces it–you’ll find yourself appreciating how we all mature and find ourselves. And yes, the esoteric Marxist arguments are intended to sound ridiculous. Read my full review.

B The Big Lebowski, New Parkway, Thursday, 9:30. Critics originally panned this Coen Brothers gem as a disappointing follow-up to their previous endeavor, Fargo. Well, it isn’t as good as the Coen’s masterpiece, but it’s still one hell of a funny movie. It’s also built quite a cult following; The Big Lebowski has probably played more Bay Area one-night stands in the years I’ve maintained this site than than any three other movies put together.

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The Playground Film Festival continues through Saturday, while the Green Film Festival opens Thursday.

Other than that, not much going on that I can tell you about.

A- What Maisie Knew, Embarcadero, Albany, opens Friday. This family drama follows the aftereffects of a very angry, messy, and vindictive divorce–as seen through the eyes of the bickering couple’s  young daughter. We see nothing that she doesn’t see, or hear anything she doesn’t hear. Of course we realize, even if she doesn’t, that both of her parents are jerks. Julianne Moore plays Maisie’s monster of a mother, an aging rock star incapable of relating to another human being as anything other than an extension of herself. Maisie’s art dealer father (Steve Coogan) fights for joint custody not out of love but revenge. Luckily for her, there are better adults in her life, but they may not be enough to make up for her lousy parents. Read my full review.

A King Kong, New Parkway, Sunday, 6:00. The first effects-laden adventure film of the sound era still holds up. It’s not just Willis O’Brien’s breathtaking special effects–technically crude by today’s standards but still awe-inspiring. It’s the intelligent script by Ruth Rose, the evocative score by Max Steiner, and the wonderful cast headed by Fay Wray and Robert Armstrong. But most of all, it’s the title character. Kong is the stuff of nightmares, utterly terrifying as he grinds people into the ground or bites them to death, but also confused, loving, majestic, and ultimately doomed. Pretty good for an 18-inch model covered with rabbit fur. Sure, the story is silly, but so are dreams. This Thrillville Theater presentation will be hosted by Lord Blood-Rah, and no, I have no idea who that is.

B Valley of the Giants, Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum, Saturday, 7:30. This story of good loggers vs. evil loggers is simple, lurid, yet well-done melodrama, and highly out-of-date by today’s more environmentally-enlightened standards. (Someone must have liked it, though; this is one of three film versions.) But never mind the story; the action sequences are as thrilling and suspenseful as any you’re likely to see. The location photography, shot near Eureka before that area was, well, ruined by loggers, makes The Valley of the Giants terrific eye candy. Accompanied by Judy Rosenberg at the piano.

B Something in the Air, Roxie, opens Friday. Youthful innocence takes strange forms. For Gilles, a French high school student in 1971, it takes the forms of radical activism and artistic ambitions. Sometimes those drives support each other in Olivier Assayas’ loose tale, and at other times they conflict. Something in the Air doesn’t grab you like a great film; you often have to force yourself to stay involved. But the effort is worthwhile. As Gilles grows beyond his radical idealism–even if he never quite renounces it–you’ll find yourself appreciating how we all mature and find ourselves. And yes, the esoteric Marxist arguments are intended to sound ridiculous. Read my full review.

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The Playground Film Festival keeps on going. And if you need something noirish, I Wake Up Dreaming continues through the week.

And this week, the Balboa starts Popcorn Palace, a series of kiddie matinees every Saturday at 10:00am. The series starts with a collection of independent, child-friendly, animated shorts.

B Something in the Air, Opera Plaza, Shattuck, opens Friday. Youthful innocence takes strange forms. For Gilles, a French high school student in 1971, it takes the forms of radical activism and artistic ambitions. Sometimes those drives support each other in Olivier Assayas’ loose tale, and at other times they conflict. Something in the Air doesn’t grab you like a great film; you often have to force yourself to stay involved. But the effort is worthwhile. As Gilles grows beyond his radical idealism–even if he never quite renounces it–you’ll find yourself appreciating how we all mature and find ourselves. And yes, the esoteric Marxist arguments are intended to look ridiculous. Read my full review.

C+ Cleopatra (1963 version), Shattuck, Wednesday. New digital restoration. At 243 minutes, this widescreen epic clocks in as the longest single theatrical release by a major American studio. And at an estimated 40 million 1963 dollars, it’s probably the most expensive. It’s also very dependent on a large screen and a large format to work (it was shot in Todd-AO and originally screened in 70mm). In most theaters and with most projectors, the first half (Rex Harrison as Julius Caesar) is mildly entertaining, and the second half (Richard Burton as Mark Antony), unbearably boring. But with a large enough screen and a good enough print (or DCP), the movie’s spectacle makes it much more fun. The first half becomes spectacular entertainment and the second…well, not quite as boring. Frankly, I can’t imagine any screen in the Shattuck doing it justice.

A+ Rear Window, Castro, Saturday. Alfred Hitchcock at his absolute best. James Stewart is riveting as a news photographer temporarily confined to his apartment and a wheelchair, amusing himself by spying on his neighbors (none of whom he knows) and guessing at the details of their lives. Then he begins to suspect that one of them committed murder. As he and his girlfriend (Grace Kelly) begin to investigate, it slowly begins to dawn on us that they’re getting into some pretty dangerous territory (something they don’t realize until it’s almost too late). Hitchcock uses this story to examine voyeurism, urban alienation, and the institution of marriage, as well as to treat his audience to a great entertainment. On a double bill with Body Double, which I haven’t seen.

A Sweet Smell of Success, Roxie, Saturday. Burt Lancaster risked his career to produce this exploration of the seamy side of fame. He plays New York gossip columnist J. J. Hunsecker–a truly repellent and despicable character who happily bathes in the adulation and fear of the people around him. Tonight’s main victim: a whinny Broadway press agent (Tony Curtis belying his reputation as a bad actor), terrified that his career will collapse if Hunsecker doesn’t praise the right client. In addition to everything else, Hunsecker–who’s based loosely on the actual Walter Winchell–has a rather too-close relationship with his kid sister. From a script by Clifford Odets and Ernest (North by Northwest) Lehman. On a double bill with All Night Long, which I haven’t seen. Part of the I Wake Up Dreaming series.

A+ The Godfather Trilogy, New Parkway, Sunday, 11:00am. The A+ goes to the first two films. Francis Coppola, taking the job simply because he needed the money, turned Mario Puzo’s potboiler into the Great American Crime Epic. Marlon Brando may have top billing, but Al Pacino owns the film (and became a star) as Michael Corleone, the respectable son inevitably and reluctantly pulled into a life of crime he doesn’t want but fits him like a glove. Great as The Godfather is, the sequel (which is also a prequel) tops it. By juxtaposing the rise of Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando in the first film, a young Robert De Niro here) with the moral fall of his son Michael (Al Pacino again), Puzo and Coppola show us how the decision a seemingly good man makes to care for his family will eventually destroy the very people he loves. I recommend you leave before Part III starts.

A Shadow of a Doubt, Castro, Tuesday. In Alfred Hitchcock’s first great American film, a serial killer (Joseph Cotton at his most charming) returns to his small-town roots. When his favorite niece (Teresa Wright) begins to suspect that all is not right with her beloved Uncle Charlie, her own life is in danger. Cotton’s performance makes the movie. Most of the time he’s warm, friendly, and relaxed. But he can turn brooding and dark, and say things that no well-adjusted person could possibly say. Written in part by Our Town playwright Thorton Wilder. The locations were shot in Santa Rosa. On a double bill with Stoker, which I haven’t seen.

A- Milk, Castro, Wednesday. Yep, I’m always a sucker for a historical epic, and it’s such a rare treat to see one set in a time and place where I actually lived. Sprawling but never boring, and inspiring without preaching, Milk tells the story of America’s first openly gay elected official, from his closeted time in New York to his Castro activism, his all-to-brief service in City Hall, and his untimely assassination. I’ve always known that Sean Penn was a great actor; it’s nice to know that he can do “happy” as well as more tragic emotions. James Franco is also very good as what in a more conventional film would be called the "chick" part.

B+ Black Swan, Castro, Thursday. Natalie Portman loses her grip on reality (and wins an Oscar) in this over-the-top psychological melodrama set in the world of ballet. Between her dominating mother, the artistic director trying to awaken her suppressed sexuality for the sake of art (yeah, right), and the other ballerinas who may be friends or enemies, she has a lot on her mind. No wonder she has a hard time holding on to it. Deliciously fun entertainment. Not to be confused with the 1942 Tyrone Power pirate movie, The Black Swan, which is also deliciously fun entertainment. On a double-bill with Dancer in the Dark.

A+ Raiders of the Lost Ark, Clay, Friday and Saturday, midnight. Steven Spielberg directed it, and the bad guys are Nazis, but it’s as far from Schindler’s List as a great movie can get. But then, it’s great in an entirely different way. There’s absolutely nothing to take seriously in Raiders of the Lost Ark, and no message to help uplift you. The story is fundamentally preposterous, and the hero, Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) is no more an archeologist than I am a butterfly. But the energy is so high, the action scenes so brilliantly choreographed and edited, and the whole story told with such enthusiasm and wit, that the rest of it just doesn’t matter. If you object to mindless, escapist action flicks on principle, you won’t see it anyway. If you don’t, you probably already love it.

B+ Bridge on the River Kwai, Stanford, Friday. The longer it’s been since you’ve seen David Lean’s World War II adventure, the better it gets in your  memory. That’s because the brilliant story of an over-proud British POW whose actions become arguably treasonable (Alec Guinness) sticks in the mind. But to see the actual movie again is to be reminded that Guinness’ tale is just a subplot (the actor received third billing). The bulk of Kwai is a very well made but conventional action movie with some uncomfortably Hollywoodish elements. Remember the Burmese porters who all just happen to all be beautiful young women? In one way, Kwai is like sex: When it’s good, it’s fantastic, and when it’s bad, it’s at least entertaining. Read my Blu-ray review.

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Okay, the San Francisco International Film Festival is over for the year. But today (Friday), the Roxie opens its annual festival of Noir, often crossed with other genres, 
I Wake Up Dreaming. And the Playground Film Festival continues at various locations.

And then there are these:

A+ Powell & Pressburger Technicolor Double Bill: The Red Shoes & The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp, Castro, Sunday. The A+ goes to Colonel Blimp, which follows a career soldier in His Majesty’s army through four decades and three wars, from his dashing youth to a somewhat foolish old age. Along the way, filmmakers Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger provide warmth, heartbreak, laughs, and several viewpoints on what it means to be a soldier, a patriot, a young man, an old man, and a decent human being. The Red Shows, set in the world of ballet, examines what it takes to be an artist. The cast and characters are all excellent, but the final hour weighs down with more melodrama than even a well-acted film can bear. On the other hand—and this is why The Red Shoes holds on to its classic status—the 20-minute ballet at the center is a masterpiece of filmed dance, and no other picture used three-strip Technicolor this expressively. I discuss Colonel Blimp in more detail in this article and this Blu-ray review; and The Red Shoes here.

Balboa History Night, Balboa, Tuesday. I know virtually nothing about this. But there’s a trailer.

A- The Master, Castro, Tuesday. Presented in 70mm! Paul Thomas Anderson loosely based The Master on Scientology and it’s founder, L. Ron Hubbard. But this is no more a critique of Hubbard’s cult than Citizen Kane is an attack on Hearst newspapers. The story is really about an alcoholic drifter (Joaquin Phoenix) who finds himself in the circle of a charismatic cult leader (Philip Seymour Hoffman). Neither man is trustworthy; one steals from his hosts, the other runs what he may or may not consciously realize is a scam. Amy Adams gives The Master’s third great performance, as the "great" man’s wife–sweet on the outside but inwardly hard as nails. The film suffers from a weak third act. Shot in the 70mm format. For more on the film and the format, see The Master, by a Master, in Masterly 70mm and When You Least Expect It: The Return of 70mm,

B+ The Source Family, Rafael, opens Friday. Not what you’d expect from a documentary about an early 70s LA-based cult and hippy commune. Told almost entirely from the point of view of former commune members, the film paints a largely nostalgic picture of early new age spirituality and anti-materialistic idealism. But while it presents leader Jim Baker as a truly holy man whose insights improved the lives of his followers, it also shows how his megalomania and his libido compromised and hurt the family. Read my full review. Note: When I first wrote about this film last year, it was called The Source.

A+ Jaws, United Artists Berkeley, Thursday, 9:00. People associate Jaws with three men in a boat, but the picture is more than half over before the shark chase really starts. For that first half, it’s a suspenseful, witty variation of Henrik Ibsen’s classic play, An Enemy of the People, but with a central character more conflicted and less noble (Roy Scheider). Then the three men board the boat and the picture turns into Moby Dick. Jaws‘ phenomenal success changed how Hollywood operates, creating the summer blockbusters which are now all that the major studios care about. Yet by today’s standards, it’s practically an art film, albeit one that could scare the living eyeballs out of you. For more on Jaws, see my Blu-ray review and Book vs. Movie article.

B+ Bridge on the River Kwai, Stanford, Thursday and next Friday. The longer it’s been since you’ve seen David Lean’s World War II adventure, the better it gets in your  memory. That’s because the brilliant story of an over-proud British POW (Alec Guinness) sticks in the mind. But to see the actual movie again is to be reminded that Guinness’ tale is just a subplot (the actor only received third billing). The bulk of Kwai is a very well made but conventional action movie with some uncomfortably Hollywoodish elements. Remember the Burmese porters who all just happen to all be beautiful young women? In one way, Kwai is like sex: When it’s good, it’s fantastic, and when it’s bad, it’s at least entertaining. Read my Blu-ray review.

B- Blazing Saddles, Kabuki and various CineMark Theaters, Wednesday. The most beloved western comedy of all time doesn’t do all that much for me. Sure, it has moments of great laughter as it lampoons everything from the clichés of the genre to institutional racism to the clichés of every other genre. But for every joke that hits home, two are killed by Mel Brooks’ over-the-top, beat-the-audience-over-the-head directing style. If you’re looking for western laughs, Paleface, Son of Paleface, Support Your Local Sherriff, and Shanghai Noon all beat Blazing Saddles.

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The San Francisco International Film Festival and the Playground Film Festival continue through the week. You’ll find my SFIFF recommendations and warnings at the bottom of this newsletter.

A The Last Picture Show, Castro, Friday. This film put director Peter Bogdanovich on the map (as well as Jeff Bridges and Cybill Shepherd), and he never again made a picture half this good. Filmed in deep-focus black and white, it studies a group of teenagers in a small Texas town in the early 1950s. The town appears to be blowing away (the title refers to the community’s single movie theater, struggling to stay open). There’s no conventional plot; the youths work, play, experiment with sex, and dream of their lives to come. Think American Graffiti, except made two years earlier, set eleven years earlier, and played for reality rather than laughs. A somber and sexy examination of a dying town, a country in transition, and the behavior of people everywhere. On a double bill with Dazed and Confused, which I haven’t seen since it was new but remember liking.

A On the Waterfront, Stanford, Saturday and Sunday. It’s best to look at On the Waterfront as a drama about finding the courage to do what’s right. Marlon Brando brilliantly plays a half-bright longshoreman torn between his moral obligation to testify against a corrupt union and the serious and dangerous consequences of being a stool pidgin. On that level, it’s a brilliant motion picture. But things get uglier when you put it into a political and autobiographical context. Both writer Budd Schulberg and director Elia Kazan named names to get off the anti-Communist blacklist, after which they made this film to justify their acts of cowardice. On a double-bill with Guys and Dolls, the movie that answers the question: Why did Marlon Brando only make one musical?

The Kiss, Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum, Saturday, 7:30. I saw this silent Garbo vehicle about 40 years, and I remember little except her incredible face, with its ability to go from one emotion to another without seemingly moving a muscle. One interesting note: To my knowledge, this was the last silent film produced by a major Hollywood studio before Mel Brook’s 1976 Silent Movie.

A Badlands, Castro, Wednesday. Terrence Malick’s first feature introduced us to one of the most daring and unique filmmakers to ever work for Hollywood. Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek (very young at the time) play lovers who go on a shockingly casual killing spree; it never seems to occur to them that they’ve done anything wrong. Told through Spacek’s first-person narration, we get the impression at times that it’s little more than a camping trip. Beautifully photographed (of course),Badlands leaves you feeling shocked, confused, sympathetic, and terrified. On a double bill with Electra Glide in Blue, which I’ve never seen.

A Alien, Kabuki and various CineMark Theaters, Wednesday. In the wake of Jaws’ and Star Wars’ phenomenal success, someone had to make a big-budget movie about a large predator on a spaceship. But the obvious marketing value doesn’t explain how good this film actually is, and on so many levels. First you’ve got the extraordinary art direction, giving us a spaceship that feels like a strange and unsettling high-tech haunted house, yet is absolutely believable. Then there’s the working-class astronauts complaining about the food and pay–easily the most realistic people Hollywood has ever shot into space. Don’t forget the star-making performance by Sigourney Weaver, or the overriding sense of loneliness, corporate exploitation, and–dare I say it–alienation. It’s also one hell of a fun, scary ride.

B Donnie Darko, Castro, Saturday. How many alienated-teenager-in-suburbia-time-travel-science-fantasy comedies can you name? Okay, there’s Back to the Future and its sequels, but add the adjectives horrific and surreal to that description, and Donnie Darko stands alone. And how many alienated movie teenagers have to deal with a slick self-help guru and a six-foot rabbit named Frank (think Harvey, only vicious). It’s not entirely clear what’s going on in this strange movie, but that just adds to the fun. On a double bill with–what else?–Back to the Future.

A+ North By Northwest, Alameda, Tuesday and Wednesday. Alfred Hitchcock’s light masterpiece, not as thoughtful as Rear Window or Notorious, but more entertaining than both of them combined. Cary Grant plays an unusually suave and witty everyman in trouble with evil foreign spies (who think he’s a crack American agent), and by the police (who think he’s a murderer). And so he must escape almost certain death again and again while chased from New York to Mount Rushmore. On the bright side , he gets to spend some quality time with a very glamorous Eva Marie Saint (danger has its rewards).

A The French Connection,  Cerrito, Thursday, 7:00. Perhaps the grittiest, filthiest, most realistic contemporary drama to ever win the Best Picture Oscar (and only two years after Midnight Cowboy, the other contender for that honor). A mystery and a character study about a foul-mouthed, violent, and borderline racist police detective (Gene Hackman in the best performance of his career), The French Connection sinks you into a dirty business and the people who have to do it. It also includes one of the best car chases in movie history.

B+ The Source Family, Roxie, through Sunday. Not what you’d expect from a documentary about an early 70s LA-based cult and hippy commune. Told almost entirely from the point of view of former commune members, the film paints a largely nostalgic picture of early new age spirituality and anti-materialistic idealism. But while it paints leader Jim Baker as a truly holy man whose insights improved the lives of his followers, it also shows how his megalomania and his libido compromised and hurt the family. Read my full review. Note: When I first wrote about this film last year, it was called The Source.

C+ 20 Million Miles to Earth, Stanford, Thursday and next Friday. Much as I love Ray Harryhausen, I have to admit that most of his films are barely mediocre. Yes, his character-driven special effects still astound, decades after they became technically obsolete. But with few exceptions, the movies wrapped around those effects were flat and cheap. Alas, 20 Million Miles to Earth is not an exception. A spaceship returning from Venus brings home an egg that soon grows into a very large monster. The creature is expertly realized and your heart goes out to it, but that may be in part because the human characters are so badly drawn that you’re left with no one else the care about. I’m assuming that the Stanford will not screen the colorized version. On a double bill with the original War of the Worlds, which I haven’t seen in decades.

San Francisco International Film Festival

A- The Daughter, Pacific Film Archive, Monday, 9:00. A serial killer is loose in a small Russian town, targeting teenage girls. That’s not a good time for Inna to go through the usual problems of adolescence. What’s more, her mother is long dead, her stern father is cold and strict (although there is a sense that he loves her), she’s responsible for her little brother, and her new best friend is a "bad" girl out to seduce the local priest’s handsome son. The film uses the mystery genre to  take us on a tour of post-Soviet Russian life as the protagonist and the community deal with raging alcoholism,  religious conflict, and corpses turning up in the mud. While in many ways deeply depressing, The Daughter also celebrates the resilience of youth, the genuine magic of first love, and the healing power of humanitarian religion.

B+ Youth, Kabuki, Friday, 6:45; Saturday, 1:30. Justine Malle–the daughter of Louis Malle–makes her narrative feature debut in this openly autobiographical feature. Juliette (Esther Garrel) is the 20-year-old daughter of a great and respected filmmaker, coming to grips with sex, romantic love, and her father’s slow death from a degenerative disease. That’s pretty much what Justine Malle went through in the mid 1990s. Like her father–who also made at least two autobiographical narratives–she handles the story with direct and intimate camerawork, and with love and compassion for the characters. Her protagonist doesn’t know what she wants to do with her life, but watching her father slowly die is not on the top of her list.

B Shorts 3: Animation, New People Cinema, Wednesday, 9:00. Quality-wise, this collection of eleven cartoons ranges from the amazing to the dull, with far more good than bad. Among my favorites: In Tram, the driver of the title vehicle gets carried away with her sexual fantasies. Bite of the Tail, a moody mini-drama, explores a married couple in crisis. Eyes on the Stars tells the true story  of Ronald McNair, an African-American astronaut who died in the Challenger explosion. I’m not sure what Lumerence is about, but it sure was beautiful to look at.

B Something in the Air, Pacific Film Archive, Thursday, 6:30. Youthful innocence takes strange forms. For Gilles, a French high school student in 1971, it takes the forms of radical activism and artistic ambitions. Sometimes those drives support each other in Olivier Assayas’ loose tale, and at other times they conflict. Something in the Air doesn’t grab you like a great film; you often have to force yourself to stay involved. But the effort is worthwhile. As Gilles grows beyond his radical idealism–even if he never quite renounces it–you’ll find yourself appreciating how we all mature and find ourselves. And yes, the esoteric Marxist arguments look ridiculous.

B- Night Across the Street, Pacific Film Archive, Saturday, 6:30. Writer/director Raúl Ruiz was dying of cancer when he made this strange, surreal comedy, where an elderly man faces retirement and a seemingly pre-ordained violent death with a matter-of-fact calmness. That all fits well with the film’s deadpan humor. Beethoven and Long John Silver pop up, mostly in scenes where the protagonist is a young boy. Ruiz lit almost the entire film with an amber glow–as if everything was shot at what photographers call golden hour. Wonderful at first, Night Across the Street eventually drags. It should have been a half hour shorter.

C+ Good Ol’ Freda, Pacific Film Archive, Sunday, 6:30. How much more is there to say about The Beatles? Not much, apparently. This documentary focuses on the young woman who became their secretary soon after Brian Epstein signed them, and stayed with them in that capacity until they broke up. She sheds some light on the early days, as the band quickly moved from a local group with a small following to the biggest stars of all time. But once they achieve major fame, she has little to say that you probably haven’t heard before. Most of all, she talks about how she’s always refused to talk about The Beatles. She comes off as extremely principled but not particularly interesting. Good music, though.

C The Last Step, New People Cinema, Saturday, 7:00; Wednesday, 6:15; Thursday, 1:00. In this interesting but ultimately disappointing work, an actress (Leila Hatami of A Separation) can’t keep a straight face when filming a monolog about her dead husband. It doesn’t help that the ghost of her recently-deceased husband is on the set. In the flashbacks that take up most of the film, her still-alive husband seemingly courts death with one dangerous act after another. The real movie and the movie inside the movie appear to be quite possibly the same. This may sound like 8 1/2,but writer/director Ali Mosaffa lacks the light touch that makes Fellini’s masterpiece work. On the other hand, Leila Hatami’s expressive and open face makes anything she’s in at least partially worth seeing.

C- Nights with Theodore, Kabuki, Sunday, 9:30. Here’s a great idea for a supernatural thriller: Two young people meet at a party, leave together, sneak into a large city park officially closed for the night, and make love. But instead of starting a conventional romance, they keep returning every night to the park, which becomes an obsession. The man seems particularly effected, developing mental and physical problems whenever he’s outside the park. It’s a great idea, but writer/director Sébastien Betbeder fails to build empathy, suspense, dread, or any other appropriate emotion. The film just lays there. At least, at 67 minutes, it’s short. I’m hoping that someone more talented will buy the remake rights.

D Leviathan, Kabuki, Thursday, 5:30. One could make an fascinating and informative documentary about a fishing boat plowing the choppy waters off the Massachusetts coast, but this isn’t it. Leviathan consists almost entirely of badly-framed close shots of objects, waves, pieces of the boat, and so on. You  never get to know any of the men you fleetingly see (there are far more close-ups of dead fish than living humans). The film contains some visually striking shots, but it lingers on them long past the point of boredom. I’m happy that people push the cinematic art with daring experimentation, but sometimes, the experiment fails.

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The big one…well, one of the two big ones…opens Thursday: the San Francisco International Film Festival.

And although it’s not officially a festival, the Lark will screen four classics in 4K digital this week . I discuss three of them below. (I haven’t seen the fourth, Investigation of a Citizen Above Suspicion.)

A- Blancanieves, Embarcadero, opens Friday. Could The Artist have started a trend in new silent films–all in narrow screen and black and white? But while The Artist looked to Hollywood for its inspiration, Blancanieves–a loose and very Spanish adaptation of Snow White–follows the more expressionistic silent film of Europe. The result is a story that could not possibly have worked as well with sound and color. Dark and atmospheric, Blancanieves holds you as it finds new twists in the old story. Major kudos for Maribel Verdú, who plays the evil stepmother with a relish that’s a joy to watch. The story is familiar, but writer/director Pablo Berger provides plenty of surprises. In the end, he stands the whole Prince Charming thing on its head. See my full review.

A- What Maisie Knew, Castro, Thursday, 7:00. This family drama follows the aftereffects of a very angry, messy, and vindictive divorce–as seen through the eyes of the bickering couple’s  young daughter. We see nothing that she doesn’t see, or hear anything she doesn’t hear. Of course we realize, even if she doesn’t, that both of her parents are jerks. Julianne Moore plays Maisie’s monster of a mother, an aging rock star incapable of relating to another human being as anything other than an extension of herself. Maisie’s art dealer father (Steve Coogan) fights for joint custody not out of love but revenge. Luckily for her, there are better adults in her life, but they may not be enough to make up for her lousy parents. Opening night of the San Francisco International Film Festival.

A Raging Bull, Kabuki and various CineMark Theaters, Wednesday. Martin Scorsese put a cap on 70’s cinema with Raging Bull, his study of boxer Jake La Motta. It isn’t an easy film to watch; the experience is not unlike a fierce pummeling, but it’s absolutely worth it. Robert De Niro gives one of the great physical performances in cinema, changing from a taut athlete to a man who has let himself go, and at no point does he ask for our sympathy–which is primarily reserved for the other people in his life. Scorsese and cinematographer Michael Chapman make brilliant use of black and white, allowing us to experience the emotional brutality of the fights.

A+ Indiana Jones & The Last Crusade, United Artists Berkeley, Thursday, 9:00. I agree with common wisdom: Raider of the Lost Ark is a masterpiece of escapist action entertainment. But I split with the herd on this second sequel; to my mind, it improves on near-perfection. The action sequences are just as well done, but the pacing is better; this time Spielberg knew exactly when to give you a breather. Best of all, adding Sean Connery as the hero’s father humanizes Jones and provides plenty of good laughs. Once again they’re fighting Nazis to recover an ancient religious relic of extreme importance (this time, the holy grail). Just don’t confuse The Last Crusade with the wretched Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

A+ Groundhog Day, Lark, Friday & Sunday, 7:00; Saturday & Wednesday, 9:15. Spiritual, humane, and hilarious,Groundhog Day wraps its thoughtful world view inside a slick, Hollywood comedy. Without explanation, the movie plunges its self-centered protagonist into a time warp that becomes his purgatory, living the same day over and over for who knows how long (it could be thousands of years). Bill Murray’s weatherman goes through stages of panic, giddiness, and despair before figuring out that life is about serving others. And yet not a frame of this movie feels preachy. Fast-paced and brilliantly edited, it’s pure, inescapable, but not escapist, entertainment. Even in its darkest, most hopeless moments, something comes up to make you laugh–usually Sonny and Cher singing "I’ve Got You, Babe." For more on this great comedy, see Wait 20 Years, and Then You Can Call a Groundhog Day a Classic. Presented in 4K digital.

B+ Frenzy, Pacific Film Archive, Wednesday, 7:00. Hitchcock’s penultimate movie isn’t up to his best work, but it’s good enough to remind you of just how amazing a talent he was. An innocent-accused-of-murder thriller set and shot in his native England, it harkens back to the low-budget potboilers that first made him famous. It’s also his only R-rated film, and it’s interesting to see what he did without the confines of censorship. This isn’t quite his last masterpiece, but it’s his last really good film–and the first really good one he had made in years.

A Samsara, Castro, Monday. Ron Fricke (Baraka) provides us with a succession of stunningly beautiful and occasionally shocking images, accompanied by a hypnotic musical score and almost no other sound. I sat, enraptured, my eyes and mouth open in astonishment. Although there’s no real story, Samsara is structured like one. Or if not a story, then at least a journey. Fricke shot Samsara in the 70mm format, providing a level of detail impossible to capture with today’s digital cameras or with standard 35mm film. The filmmakers have stated that Samsara is best seen in 4K digital projection, a format that the Castro doesn’t support. See my full review as well as More on Samsara, 70mm, and 4K Digital Projection. On a double bill Monday with Chasing Ice.

A+ The General, Pacific Film Archive Gallery B, Friday, 7:30. Buster Keaton pushed film comedy like no one else when he made this one. He meticulously recreated the Civil War setting. He mixed slapstick comedy with battlefield death. He hired thousands of extras and filmed what may be the single most expensive shot of the silent era (then used that shot as the setup for a gag whose punch line is a simple close-up). The result was a critical and commercial flop in 1926, but today it’s rightly considered one of the greatest comedies ever made. In this special Cine/Spin presentation, UC student DJs will spin records to provide a presumably hip-hop accompaniment for the film.

A Psycho, Pacific Film Archive, Saturday, 8:30. You may never want to take a shower again. In his last great movie, Alfred Hitchcock pulls the rug out from under us several times, leaving us unsure who we’re supposed to be rooting for or what could constitute a happy ending. In roles that defined their careers, Janet Leigh stars as a secretary turned thief, and Anthony Perkins as a momma’s boy with a lot to hide. I’ll always regret that I knew too much about Psycho before I saw it for the first time; I wish I could erase all memory of this movie and watch it with fresh eyes. Part of the series Alfred Hitchcock: The Shape of Suspense.

A+ Lawrence of Arabia, Castro, Sunday. Lawrence isn’t just the best big historical epic of the 70mm roadshow era, it’s one of the greatest films ever made. Stunning to look at and terrific as pure spectacle, it’s also an intelligent study of a fascinatingly complex and enigmatic war hero. T. E. Lawrence—at least in this film—both loved and hated violence, and tried liberating Arabia by turning it over to the British. No, that’s not a flaw in the script, but in his character. This masterpiece requires a very large screen and excellent projection–either 70mm or DCP–preferably 4K–to do it justice. The Castro has the screen, but only 2K digital projection. In other words, this isn’t the optimal Lawrence experience, but it’s pretty damn close. For more on this epic, read The Digital Lawrence of Arabia Experience and Thoughts on Lawrence of Arabia.

A Dr. Strangelove, Lark, Friday, 9:15; Saturday, 7:00, Sunday, 4:45; Wednesday, 7:00. A psychotic general named Jack D. Ripper (Sterling Hayden) orders his men to bomb the USSR and start World War III. But have no fear! The men responsible for avoiding Armageddon (three of whom are played by Peter Sellers) are slightly more competent than the Three Stooges.  We like to look back at earlier decades as simpler, less fearful times, but Stanley Kubrick’s “nightmare comedy” reminds you just how scary things were back then. Presented in 4K digital.

B+ The Bridge on the River Kwai, Lark, Sunday, 1:30; Tuesday, 7:00. The longer it’s been since you’ve seen David Lean’s World War II adventure, the better it gets in your  memory. That’s because the brilliant story of an over-proud British POW (Alec Guinness) sticks in the mind. But to see the actual movie again is to be reminded that Guinness’ tale is just a subplot (the actor only received third billing). The bulk of Kwai is a very well made but conventional action movie with some uncomfortably Hollywoodish elements. Remember the Burmese porters who all just happen to all be beautiful young women? In one way, Kwai is like sex: When it’s good, it’s fantastic, and when it’s bad, it’s at least entertaining. Presented in 4K digital.. Read my Blu-ray review.

B+ The Truman Show, Pacific Film Archive, Wednesday, 3:10. Before reality television reared its mediocre head, writer Andrew Niccol and director Peter Weir foresaw it in this comic fable about a man raised unknowingly in a giant television studio. Although prophetic in many ways, The Truman Show takes the concept way beyond plausibility, suggesting a television show that would be economically and legally impossible (that’s why I call it a fable). A few months after this picture came out, The Ed Show offered a far more realistic prophesy of reality TV. Part of the series and class Film 50: History of Cinema: The Cinematic City.

B- Foreign Correspondent, Pacific Film Archive, Friday, 9:00. Not one of Hitchcock’s best, but fun, with a couple of great Hitchcockian set pieces. It’s also an anti-Nazi film from a time when such a thing was still controversial in America (it was only Hitchcock’s second American film, made at a time when his native England was fighting for its life). Part of the series Alfred Hitchcock: The Shape of Suspense.

C The Sound of Music, New Parkway, Friday and Saturday. Many people love it, but I find the biggest money maker of the 1960s lumbering, slow, and dull. Not funny or romantic enough for light entertainment, yet lacking the substance necessary for anything else. And most of the songs give the impression that, by their last collaboration, Roger and Hammerstein had run out of steam. On the other hand, the Todd-AO photography of Alpine landscapes makes this one of the most visually beautiful of Hollywood movies–in a picture-postcard sort of way.

B The Big Lebowski, Clay, Friday and Saturday, midnight. Critics originally panned this Coen Brothers gem as a disappointing follow-up to their previous endeavor, Fargo. Well, it isn’t as good as the Coen’s masterpiece, but it’s still one hell of a funny movie. It’s also built quite a cult following;The Big Lebowski has probably played more Bay Area one-night stands in the years I’ve maintained this site than than any three other movies put together.

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We’ve got two international festivals running in the North Bay right now. Sonoma ends Sunday, while Tiburon‘s festival continues through the week.

A Best of Looney Tunes Cartoons, Sebastiani Theatre, Saturday, 9:30am. For much of the mid 20th century, Warner Brothers’ cartoon division ran wild, making some of funniest and cleverest seven-minute shorts ever drawn. This collection, concentrating on the work of the great director Chuck Jones, includes "The Dot & the Line," "Ali Baba Bunny," and the immortal "What’s Opera Doc." Let’s hope it also includes my all-time favorite, "Duck Amuck." All in 35mm prints. Part of the Sonoma International Film Festival.

A Matinee, Rafael, Thursday, 7:00. On one level, Matinee works as a nostalgic comedy, allowing us to laugh at the bad movies and outrageous attitudes of the early 1960′s. But there’s something deeper at work here. Writer Charles S. Haas and director Joe Dante juxtapose a cheap horror film with the Cuban Missile Crisis to examine the nature of fear. It’s one thing to jump in your seat when the monster leaps out on the movie screen. But everything changes when nuclear war is imminent just outside the theater. And what about the fear of asking out a girl with a violent and jealous ex-boyfriend (even if he does write poetry)? Of course, things can’t get too scary when John Goodman and Cathy Moriarty steal the show as a crafty b-movie producer and his long-suffering girlfriend. And watch for John Sayles as a religious fanatic who might not be what he seems. One of the little-known gems of the 1990s. David Templeton & screenwriter Charlie Haas in person.

A Double bill: Touch of Evil & Blood Simple, Castro, Friday. Two excellent noirs, each of which deserves an A on its own merits. In Orson Welles’ Touch of Evil, the director plays a corrupt border-town sheriff–bloated, scary, and yet strangely sympathetic. Janet Leigh is a lovely and effective damsel in distress. True, Charlton Heston is miscast as the Mexican hero, but not as badly miscast as some people say. One of Welles’ best work. The Coen Brothers made a name for themselves with the atmospheric and grotesquely violent Blood Simple. The noirish plot, involving adultery and murder (both real and faked), makes perfect sense to the viewer, although it’s unlikely that anyone within the story will ever figure it all out.

B+ Z, Pacific Film Archive, Friday, 8:40. Costa-Gavras’ breakout film–at least for American audiences–put us in the middle of the military coup that brought fascism to Greece in the 1960s. Fast-paced even when it’s talky, and accompanied by one of the most audaciously exciting scores in movie history (by Mikis Theodorakis),  Z speeds through its combination of edge-of-the-seat thrills and left-wing polemics. With Yves Montand as the progressive candidate targetted for assassination, Irene Papas as his long-suffering wife, and Jean-Louis Trintignant as the magistrate who looks like a fascist but doesn’t act like one. When it was new, Z became the very first subtitled film I ever saw. Part of the series And God Created Jean-Louis Trintignant.

A The Conformist, Pacific Film Archive, Thursday, 7:00. It takes more than good men doing nothing to create fascism. According to Bernardo Bertolucci’s haunting character study, it also takes mediocre men with career ambitions. Jean-Louis Trintignant is chilling as a bland cog in the machine, ready to use his honeymoon in homicidal service to Mussolini. With Stefania Sandrelli as his not-too-bright bride and Dominique Sanda, in a star-making performance, as the object of everyone’s desire. Part of the series And God Created Jean-Louis Trintignant.

B The Pink Panther (original, 1963 version), Castro, Tuesday. The original Pink Panther was never intended to be an Inspector Clouseau movie, or a Peter Sellers vehicle. It was meant to be a charming European comedy of manners starring David Niven. But when Peter Ustinov dropped out at the last minute, Sellers was cast in the supporting role of the bumbling detective. It’s a tribute to Sellers’ performance that we now think of him as the star. But the scenes without him, which are most of the movie, are only okay. This TCM presentation will include actor Robert Wagner in person.

C Old San Francisco, Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum, Saturday, 7:30. Well, I’m glad someone remembered the Earthquake anniversary, even if they’re remembering it with aristocratic Spaniards, corrupt Chinese, a caged dwarf, an Irishman in love, and an evil land speculator with a humiliating secret–all shaken by the 1906 earthquake and stirred with lurid melodrama. Silly and offensively racist, but still fun, Old San Francisco offers considerable historical interest with its fascinating glimpse at how Hollywood (and white America) saw the world in 1927. With its pre-Jazz Singer Vitaphone music-and-effects soundtrack, the essentially silent Old San Francisco stands as an important early film in the transition to sound. But you won’t hear that soundtrack at Niles; Greg Pane will be tickling the ivories. Also on the bill: Two short subjects shot in San Francisco in 1906.

B+ American Graffiti, Alameda, Tuesday and Wednesday. A long time ago, in a Bay Area that feels very far away, George Lucas made an entertaining (and extremely profitable) movie without action, a big budget, or special effects. Talk about nostalgia. You can also talk about old-time rock ‘n’ roll–American Graffiti makes great use of early 60s rock-n-roll.

C+ High Society, Stanford, Friday. To watch this VistaVision and Technicolor musical remake of The Philadelphia Story is to understand why screwball comedy died. It also makes you appreciate how wonderful Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, and James Stewart were in the original. High Society’s Bing Crosby, Grace Kelly, and Frank Sinatra are fine, but their comedic skills just don’t measure up. On the other hand, this version has Louis Armstrong, and that makes up for a whole lot. On a double bill with Silk Stockings, a 1950s musical remake of Ninotchka (do you sense a theme here); I haven’t seen this one in decades but I remember mildly liking it.

A- Moonrise Kingdom, Castro, Saturday. Wes Anderson at his most playful. Also at his sweetest and funniest. Two pre-teens in love run away–disrupting everything on the small New England island where the story is set. While the fantasy of young love makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, the adult reaction keeps you laughing–in large part because the main adults are played by major stars clearly enjoying a chance to clown around. They include Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Bruce Willis, and, best of all, Tilda Swinton as “Social Services." On a Wes Anderson double bill with Rushmore, which, I must confess, I haven’t yet seen.

D Marnie, Pacific Film Archive, Saturday, 8:15. I’ve seen most of Alfred Hitchcock’s films, and of the ones I’ve seen, Marnie is undoubtedly the worst. More of a physiological mystery than a thriller, it follows the adventures of a beautiful woman (Tippi Hedren) who is both frigid and a compulsive thief. Sean Connery plays the aristocrat who loves her and sets out to cure her. This kind of story depends entirely on the stars, who must have looks, charisma, and acting talent to pull it off. Connery has the looks and the charisma–although perhaps not enough charisma to let us forgive him for raping Marnie on their wedding night. All Hedren has is looks; and the part is so far beyond her it’s embarrassing. Part of the series Alfred Hitchcock: The Shape of Suspense.

A Lawrence of Arabia, United Artists Berkeley, Thursday, 9:00. One of the greatest films ever made. Stunning to look at and terrific as pure spectacle, Lawrence is also an intelligent study of a fascinatingly complex and enigmatic war hero. T. E. Lawrence—at least in this film—both loved and hated violence, wanted desperately to become something he could never be, and told himself that he was liberating Arabia while knowing deep down that he was turning it over to the British. This masterpiece requires a very large screen and either 70mm film or 4K DCP digital projection for its full effect. I’m knocking this down from an A+ to an A because this theater doesn’t have a really large screen (and it has some really small ones), they often don’t bother to remove the 3D lens, effectively downgrading 4K to 2K, and who wants to start a four-hour film at 9:00 on a weeknight?

B- The Birds, Castro, Sunday. Alfred Hitchcock’s only out-and-out fantasy has some great sequences. The scene where Tippi Hedren calmly sits andsmokes while more and more crows gather on playground equipment, and the following attack on the children, are classics. The lovely Bodega Bay location adds atmosphere and local color, and many of the special effects were way ahead of their time. But the story is weak, the ending unsatisfactory, and that lovely scenery plays side-by-side with obvious soundstage mockups. Worse yet, new-comer Hedren doesn’t provide a single believable moment. She’s beautiful, but utterly lacking in acting talent or charisma.

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