Coming of age Irish gem, ‘Kisses’ playing at the Angelika
by Sam Juliano
“If you’re looking for rainbows, look up to the sky, and never, no never, look down.” -Charles Chaplin, lyrics to ‘Swing Little Girl” from The Circus
As we move deeper into the summer and lament on the inability to complete what we may have initially set out to do, we can at least hope to enjoy some well-earned R & R, whether it’s on a seashore vacation, a trip abroad or even at home, with air-conditioned movie viewings. Here at Wonders, we’re nearing the end of the months-long 2000’s decade countdown, a project once thought to be endless in duration. We have decided to delay the naming of Allan’s #1 film until Tuesday (tomorrow) , to give it a kind of regal annointment. Normally, this final and ultimate placement would have been posted today, without the 24 hour red carpet time window. At Good Fellas, Dave Hicks’s popular ‘director’s countdown’ is also nearing completion, though the venture has about two weeks still left.
Many of us are mourning the passing of Yankee owner George Steinbrenner, whose bottom line tactics brought a number of World Championships for our beloved Bronx Bombers. Despite the bullying and seemingly unscropulous methods emplyed since he bought the team from CBS in 1973, many revelations have emerged about his charitable acts to many and his already-known larger-than-life personality. He was a remarkable figure and a true American, and Friday night’s Yankee Stadium game was one of the most emotional ever staged in sports. Even Red Sox Nation have issued their own tributes.
The Anthony Mann Festival concluded Thursday night, with showings of Men in War and The Fall of the Roman Empire, and I succeeded on my mission to watch all 32 of the films offered. It’s the first time in my life I’ve managed anything of this magnitude, and it was achieved with quite a bit of luck and timing. While nearly everyone I know believes I was there for every film, for the sake of accountability, I will be displaying the ticket stubs for all my appearances on that Thursday post, as the Film Forum features the title of the films on each stub. I feel like I know Mr. Mann so much more than I ever have, and predictably he’s risen in my estimation to the first rank of American directors. I am planning a comprehensive post for Thursday, July 22 at WitD, where I will reflect on the experience and write capsule reviews for all 32 films. The Chaplin festival is up next, with a one-week run for The Circus, and then two weeks for all his remaining features, and a good deal of the shorts. After that it’s William Castle. Again I plan to attend both aggressively, and will have some of the kids on board for many. After seeing The Circus at 1:10 P.M. with the entire family in a beautiful new print, one would be hard pressed to deny this as a first-rate Chaplin masterpiece. The excellent short The Idle Class was screened first.
On Saturday night I saw a theatrical show in the Acorn Theatre on Theatre Row in Manhattan staged as a benefit for the early passing of a revered artist who passed from pancreatic cancer. The superlative 45 minute work, THE SHOEMAKER starred Danny Aiello and Lizbeth Mackay, and was written by the show’s moderator, Susan Charlotte. Dealing with the aftermath of 9-11, the show combined sry humor with poignancy and was followed by the greatest Q & A I have ever witnessed, with the relatively small sold-out audience including a number of Aiello’s relatives and famous stage stars.
I managed two contemporary films in theatres this week, INCEPTION and the Irish coming-of-age drama, KISSES. Of course I also saw the final six of the Mann films at the Film Forum, and the two Chaplins, making for a total of ten films:
Inception **** (Friday night) Edgewater Multiplex
Kisses **** 1/2 (Sunday afternoon) Angelika Film Center
The Great Flamarion *** 1/2 (Monday night) Anthony Mann Festival
Strange Impersonation *** 1/2 (Monday night) Anthony Mann Festival
Reign of Terror **** (Wednesday afternoon) Anthony Mann Festival
Side Street **** (Wednesday afternoon) Anthony Mann Festival
Men in War **** 1/2 (Thursday evening) Anthony Mann Festival
The Fall of the Roman Empire **** (Thursday evening) Anthony Mann
The Circus ***** (Sunday afternoon) Charles Chaplin Film Festival
The Idle Class **** (Sunday afternoon) Charles Chaplin Film Festival (more…)
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