Film Picks
sponsored
May 25 - May 30
A Fish Called Wanda
Unhappily-married lawyer Archie Leach (John Cleese) gets sucked into a web of warped intrigue by a crafty con-woman (Jamie Lee Curtis) and her nutjob of a lover/partner in crime (Kevin Kline, who won an Oscar for his wonderfully unhinged work here). You’ve seen a similar set-up in a bazillion caper comedies, but seldom with this kind of knockabout ruthlessness. Wanda’s sawed-off-shotgun blasts at stutterers, legal professionals, and innocent animals would be inexcusable if they weren’t so damned funny.
off
June 1 - June 7
The Samaritan
Samuel L. Jackson's turn as Marvel Comics tough guy Nick Fury in The Avengers is likely to overshadow this thriller, but we're pleased as rum punch that one of cinema's most reliable badasses is walking the mean streets again. Jackson plays a recent parolee sucked into a scam that threatens to snatch away his chance at escaping the criminal life. Until Jackson gets to play Toshiro Mifune to Quentin Tarantino’s Kurosawa again, this neo-noir is a fine stopgap.
off
June 8 - June 14
Pretty Poison
Anthony Perkins plays a former mental patient whose encounter with the proverbial all-American girl (Tuesday Weld) exposes apple-pie suburbia’s rotting underbelly. Noel Black’s unnerving movie died quietly in 1968, but it’s one of that decade’s masterpieces. Credit the deliciously ambiguous script, Black's sharp direction, and incredible performances from Perkins (subtler than he’d ever get to be again), Weld (sensual trouble on a stick), and Beverly Garland (chilling to the core as Weld’s jealous, pent-up mom).
off
June 13
For All Mankind
The recent trajectory of NASA can’t help but lend poignancy to this still-unmatchable, Oscar-nominated documentary about man’s journey into space. What makes For All Mankind so essential isn’t just the eye-popping, impeccably restored vintage footage: It’s the voices (and stories) of so many of the key figures in America’s space program. Hearing them tell their tales with resolve and undisguised optimism can’t help but be profound. Best of all, the Uptown’s screening it for free tonight.
off
June 22 - June 23
Super Mario Brothers
Back in the day (1993, to be exact), Super Mario Brothers was pelted with rotten eggs by critics and audiences, but with hindsight, it’s a hideously fascinating artifact. Directed by the husband-and-wife team of Rocky Morton and Annabel Jankel (who created that ’80s pop culture touchstone, Max Headroom), this Nintendo game adaptation chugs a cocktail comprised of the titular video game, 1984 and The Three Stooges—then vomits the results all over a great cast (Bob Hoskins, John Leguizamo, Dennis Hopper and Samantha Mathis!)
off
June 22 - June 27
The Wizard of Oz
So much of The Wizard of Oz has been absorbed into the collective consciousness, it’s easy to lose sight of the movie rooted at the center of it all. Its sensibility remains hopelessly skewed (why go back to Kansas again?), but it spikes into the tumult of growing up with resonance, sports the most dazzling color palate of any movie made prior to the Cinemascope era, and showcases songs that refuse to die. Plus, it’s got fez-wearing flying monkeys.
off
December 2 - December 8
El Bulli: Cooking in Progress
Chef Ferran Adrià is a mad genius whose bold taste and texture experiments made the restaurant he oversaw (El Bulli) an international foodie mecca. A dozen fascinating tangents simmer beneath the surface of Gereon Wetzel’s documentary—sous chefs laboring under their leader’s firm hand, a detailed examination of a world-class eaterie’s logistic nuts-and-bolts—but in the end, the exhaustive preparation and stunning presentation of the dishes takes center stage. It’s impeccably shot, hardcore food porn.
