Restored (and in one case somewhat redeemed), two movies by writer-director Elaine May at the Cinematheque

Dustin Hoffman and Warren Beatty on a camel in Elaine May’s 1987 movie Ishtar.

Elaine May is a gifted American comic performer, screenwriter, and filmmaker. This month, Cinematheque (1131 Howe St.)  is screening two films by May—including Ishtar, a feature that was a notorious bomb upon its release. Despite, or because, of the fact that she was one of the only women directing features in Hollywood in the 1970s and ’80s, both films happen to be buddy pictures.

Cinematheque is screening the two movies, both in restored versions, Sept. 13–15. Find out more about these two films, and May, below.

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Restored (and in one case somewhat redeemed), two movies by writer-director Elaine May at the Cinematheque

Film noir this August includes classic Detour and films by French master Jean-Pierre Melville

A scene from the noir classic Detour.

Who’s thinking about crime in August? Fans of film noir, that’s who.

Each summer, Vancouver’s premiere arthouse The Cinematheque (1131 Howe St.) presents its annual Film Noir series. This year’s runs from Aug. 1-22 and features the first major restoration of Edgar G. Ulmer’s 1945 classic Detour, a new restoration of Robert Siodmak’s The Killers (1946), and two pictures, both also newly restored, by Ida Lupino. The actress/filmmaker was the only woman to direct noir in the classic period.

Along with the series, the arthouse theatre is featuring a special retrospective of films by French noir master Jean-Pierre Melville. See below for more highlights.

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Film noir this August includes classic Detour and films by French master Jean-Pierre Melville

Where to celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day in Vancouver

June 21 is National Indigenous Peoples Day, a celebration of Indigenous peoples’ culture and heritage in Canada. There are many events planned across the country; here are a few in Vancouver, including an outdoor celebration at an East Van park, a documentary film and Indigenous dance performances. Continue reading:
Where to celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day in Vancouver

Cinematheque celebrates the pulp origins of classic films

Angie Dickinson and Lee Marvin in John Boorman’s 1967 revenge thriller Point Blank.

A close cousin to its annual summer film noir festival, the Cinematheque (1131 Howe St.) is presenting a new film series.

High and Low: From Pulp to Poetry is a collection of art films made from pop art sources.  Vancouver-based culture critic Donald Bracket, the author of several books including Long Slow Train, about the late soul singer Sharon Jones, curated the series.

Six titles will screen May 30 – Jul 1, with four more to screen as part of the arthouse cinema’s Jul + Aug programming cycle. Opening night features High and Low and The Killing, along with refreshments and an intro by Brackett (for High and Low).

For more on the films, see below.

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Cinematheque celebrates the pulp origins of classic films

Getting down and dirty with pre-Code Hollywood at Cinematheque

Damaged Lives was the first feature from Austrian émigré and future Poverty Row auteur Edgar G. Ulmer (Detour).

Film noir, horror, and “sheer Poverty Row audacity” are on the menu in Cinematheque’s Down and Dirty in Gower Gulch: Poverty Row Films Preserved by UCLA.

Most of the features date from Hollywood’s less-censorious pre-Code era. All were produced on Hollywood’s so-called Poverty Row in small, fly-by-night studios that churned out inexpensive pictures for the B-movie markets. These bargain-basement stakes made for a certain artistic freedom: controversial or risqué subjects the big studios wouldn’t touch could be explored; and directors enjoyed a degree of licence.

The program of lurid, low-budget treasures runs from April 11-29 and includes six films. And, in a throwback to how movies used to be presented in that era, each feature will be preceded by a newsreel and short subject. All titles were restored by the UCLA Film & Television Archive. According to Jan-Christopher Horak, director of the archive: “These ‘orphan films’ are worthy of restoration and presentation. They visualize many of the repressed or forbidden themes that preoccupy the nether regions of the American psyche. Get ready for a wild ride!”

Find out more below.

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Getting down and dirty with pre-Code Hollywood at Cinematheque

Six flicks to see at this year’s European Film Festival

A scene from the 2017 Austrian film Mademoiselle Paradis (Licht).

The Cinematheque (1131 Howe St.) presents its 21st Annual European Film Festival (Nov. 23 – Dec. 4). In this year’s fest, 26 EU members countries contribute one of their best films from recent years. Selections range from dramas to comedies to documentaries, and include award winners, official Oscar submissions, and many Vancouver premieres.

We’ve gone through the selections and chosen six that look like best bets, including a thriller from Slovakia, a time-travel comedy from Portugal, and a drama from Ireland. See below for details.

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Six flicks to see at this year’s European Film Festival

Bacon taped to the wall: a Harmony Korine retrospective at Cinematheque

James Franco plays Alien in Harmony Korine’s 2012 “crime drama” Spring Breakers.

Harmony Korine, that post-grunge enfant terrible of America cinema, is the subject of a new retrospective at Vancouver’s premier arthouse, Cinematheque (1131 Howe St.).

Korine’s films include Gummo and Spring Breakers; he also wrote the script for Larry Clark’s controversial 1995 film Kids, which featured the first screen appearances by Chloë Sevigny and Rosario Dawson. The retrospective is the first of its kind in Canada.

See below for more about the films screening in Harm: A Harmony Korine Retrospective (Nov. 8-15).

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Bacon taped to the wall: a Harmony Korine retrospective at Cinematheque