January 22nd 2014. Pick of the Day.
New York City's premiere resource for classic film screenings in the metropolitan area. Offering reviews, recommendations, venues and a host of links keeping classic film and the silver screens alive.
There are no ongoing series that fit the site's criteria to report on today. And let's just face it; it's way too friggin' brick-ass cold outside for that to matter much even to the most ardent Cinegeek. For those MAD enough to brave this return to the Ice Age that isn't as funny without Ray Romano's voice work, here's today's doings on the rep film circuit;
Film Forum
BOY (1969) Dir; Nagisa Oshima
Film Society of Lincoln Center
ALEXANDER NEVSKY (1938) Dir; Sergei Eisenstein
Today's Pick from amongst this esteemed and voluminous bunch? How 'bout we celebrate Sochi fever a little early and celebrate a Russian film pioneer and his trib to one of his country's great historical figures? Sergei Eisenstein's ALEXANDER NEVSKY is presented at the Film Society's Walter Reade Theater in conjunction with and celebration of the Met's new production of Borodin's PRINCE IGOR. And Russia's hosting of the Winter Olympics. The last part might just be my speculation but hey, it's my site! I can speculatize as much as I damn well please! I also speculate that Katy Perry has a serious crush on me. Or Zooey Deschanel. I'm not greedy.
Eisenstein's masterpiece was a serious piece of propaganda made during the period of Nazi-Soviet history before tensions and uneasy agreements turned to all-out war. It was his first film since 1928's OCTOBER, following several failed attempts to set up films in America and Mexico, and his first completed sound feature. Stylistically not as brazen as his earlier groundbreaking works, NEVSKY nevertheless had great influence on future filmmakers, perhaps most notably for its impressive final Battle of the Ice sequence. The equally named Sergei (but differently named Profokiev) provided the film's score, and in some cases the film was cut to the composer's music and not the other way around, as is traditional. Eisenstein didn't make too many films, but each is worth watching and re-watching for their maker's storytelling authority. Tonight is an opportunity to catch an utter classic in a pretty darn swell screening space. The trek may be bitter, but the Film Society's coffee is warm and delicious, and is there a better day to catch a sequence titled the Battle of the Ice I ask ye? Nostrovia, comrade!
For more info on these and all NYC's classic screenings in January '14 click on the interactive calendar on the upper right hand side of the page. And be sure to follow me on both Facebook, where I provide further info and esoterica on the rep film circuit and star birthdays, and Twitter, where I provide a daily feed for the day's screenings and other blathery. Back with a brand new Pick tomorrow, til then BBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRITSFUCKINGCOLDDDD!!!!!!
-Joe Walsh
