I am of two moods whence this season makes its annual visitation upon our city. The kinder, gentler one is a deep case of the warm fuzzies, a bask in the glow of renewed holiday spirit, a blush at the recognition of temperments swayed from inherently sour to infinitely pleasant, an all-too-rare provision of evidence visual that the human spirit is ultmately and essentially good. Hence the thumbs-up from none other than Santa himself.

Hm. This has only happened to me once before. Looks like there's nothing eligible screening today for me to choose as my Pick. The one classic unspooling, Leos Carax's MAUVAIS SANG, snagged that distinction mere days ago, and I don't do the double-dip thing.

Lo, how the annual Thanksgiving holiday promise so quickly dissipates, beginning with the invigorating promise of family and food well met and in amounts copious, and so quickly plummeting to expectations of couch, blanket and whatever sports and movie marathon enrichment our televisions may offer. It is, after all, November cold outside, and them leftovers ain't gonna eat themselves. However, there are intrepid souls amongst you who I refuse to believe will designate these concerns for anything other than your utter scoff. SCOFF, mesez! And anyway you know those turkey/cranberry/mashed potato/stuffing/gravy/biscuit sandwiches will certainly be as delicious tomorrow as they are today. Perhaps eminently more digestable after a day of movies n' Tums. Just sayin'. The lowdown, as it were;

Fighting. Tryptophan. Coma.
Today's list;

Last missive before the tryptophan does its worst.

Nitrate Stock is happy to present the first in a series of interviews designed to bring you closer to your NYC film community. From the people who program the films to the ones who pop the corn, our aim is to broaden the dialogue and further personalize the experience. For our inaugural entry I was happy to welcome Tim McHenry to the iPhone mic.

As director of public programs at the Rubin Museum of Art in Manhattan, Tim McHenry oversees the programmatic life of the museum. With a festival background at Edinburgh, in London, and most recently at The New Yorker, his programs place as much emphasis on music and conversation as on film. Many leading filmmakers have appeared on the Rubin stage in less than conventional configurations including Martin Scorsese, Wim Wenders, John Boorman and Jonathan Demme. The weekly Cabaret Cinema started the same week the Rubin opened its doors in 2004 and has continued virtually unbroken ever since.

Should you feel so inclined to brave these Frank Herbert-inspired windstorms this February afternoon you could do worse than patronize exceptional series such as the Film Society's trib to scribe Harold Pinter, BAM's retrospective of Bruce Dern's choicest turns (Hot Dern!), and Anthology Film Archives' Middle Ages on Film: Shakespeare. The full bill of fare;

Continuing series today include the Film Society's Harold Pinter trib, BAM's love letter to one of our foremost character actors (Hot Dern!), and Anthology Film Archives' Middle Ages on Film: Shakespeare. Let's do this;

Spotty rain showers serve as the perfect excuse to attened a classic film screening today, and there's a great batch to pick from. New and continuing series include MoMA's ongoing Auteurist History of Film, BAM's career retrospective Hot Dern!, the Film Society's Harold Pinter trib, Anthology Film Archives' Middle Ages on Film: Shakespeare, and the Rubin Museum's Cabaret Cinema. Here be the readin' of the names;