THE WEEKEND WARRIOR August 30, 2024

AFRAID, REAGAN, FLY, 1992, SLINGSHOT, YOU GOTTA BELIEVE, CITY OF DREAMS, THE DELIVERANCE, SEEKING MAVIS BEACON, MERCHANT IVORY

I think this week is going to kill me, especially if I try to review ALL of the wide releases, of which there are no less than SIX! Then again, this is Labor Day weekend, and since I’m not pregnant, I guess I should be expected to work extra hard to watch and review as many movies as I possibly can, which I’ve done. It doesn’t help that many of the offerings this weekend range from pretty lame or mediocre, rather than necessarily being good or bad.

AFRAID (Sony)

Filmmaker Chris Weitz makes his first horror film, a fairly high-concept one involving a family that brings a Siri-like device into their home, after which horror ensues. The movie stars John Cho from Searching, Katherine Waterston, and Havana Rose Liu from Bottoms. Unfortunately, Sony decided not to screen this for critics, but I’ll try to see it when it opens and share my thoughts on my Letterboxd… or here, we’ll see. 

REAGAN (Showbiz Direct)

Dennis Quaid plays the country’s 40th President, Ronald Reagan, following him through his acting career, to becoming the president of SAG, the governor of California, and eventually the two-term President, who caused lots of friction for some of his decisions during the ‘80s. This is opening in 2,754 theaters on Friday, so it could do decently.

Directed by Sean McNamara (The King’s Daughter), this is a fairly typical biopic that takes some time to really get going, and suffers a bit from Quaid trying way too hard to do an impression that doesn’t always work. (Like everything else with this movie, it improves as it goes along.) Even worse, the movie is narrated by Jon Voight in a pretty bad Russian accent, as he plays a Russian diplomat whose important to the story was never made very clear to me. Penelope Ann Miller plays Nancy Reagan, and all I really have to say about her is that she’s in the movie, and she is perfectly fine.

Somehow I got past that to generally enjoy seeing Reagan’s life play out, though I was old enough to have seen some of the events from his Presidency play out. I remember that he was generally disliked by liberals, mainly due to his famed “Reaganomics” and his “trickle down” theory, but I generally feel that the economy in the ‘80s was much better than it is now. And after clueless presidents like W and Trump, Reagan actually seems like a decent President in hindsight.

But let’s get back to the movie, which I don’t have a ton to say about it, because I know that many people reading this will refuse to watch it based on their politics alone, and that’s fair enough. Much of the problems come down to whether you believe Dennis Quaid in this role, and before he gets to the later days of Reagan as President (an image more of us will be familiar with), it really takes its sweet time giving one a convincing reason to watch it.

Ultimately, the movie work about as well as Oliver Stone’s W., even though there’s nothing about it that feels like mandatory viewing. If you really feel the need to know more about Reagan, then it does offer a few interesting moments from his life, but not much more.

Rating: 6/10

1992 (Lionsgate)

Tyrese Gibson, Scott Eastwood, and the late Ray Liotta star in this crime-thriller directed by Ariel Vromen (Criminal) that takes place during the L.A. Riots of 1992 when Liotta and his son decide to pull off a heist of valuable platinum from a metal factory with the riots acting as a distraction.

To be fair, I saw this movie quite some time ago, so we’ll have to see how my memory holds up in order to write a review, but two of the things that immediately drew me in were the setting of the L.A. Riots (still very interesting to me, especially with more recent events like the Black Lives Matter movement) and the fact that it stars Gibson and Liotta. I actually have seen Gibson in some great dramatic roles outside the “Fast and Furious” movies, including Deon Taylor’s Black and Blue from a few years back.

This is not the most intellectual of heist movies, as it ticks a lot of familiar beats, though having two sets of fathers and sons at the center of the story goes a long way to making 1992 stand out. This mostly relies on Gibson and Liotta to carry it, as I’ve never really thought much of the Eastwood spawn as an actor, even though he seems to get cast a lot.

I don’t remember any of Vromen’s previous films, but this is well-directed with a solid mix of tension and action, so in some ways, it’s also the most commercial of the moderately wide releases coming out this weekend. This movie was actually made many years ago and had an L.A. premiere in 2022, but who knows why it got delayed and seemingly dumped into this weekend?

1992 uses its setting well, but make no mistake that this is more of a heist action movie than having anything to do with Rodney King or the court verdict that led to the L.A. Riots. It’s a movie that’s more for entertainment than to learn more about what happened, so as long as you go in knowing that, you should be fine.

Rating: 7/10

Lionsgate is releasing 1992 into 800 or more theaters this weekend, but this seems to be one of their “specialty releases” ala last week’s Greedy People, which didn’t report box office or even an official theater count.

CITY OF DREAMS (Roadside Attractions) 

This drama written and directed by Mohit Ramchandani, his first feature, follows a young Mexican teen, Jesús, played by Ari Lopez, whose dreams of becoming a big-time soccer player are sidelined when he’s kidnapped and forced to work in a sweat shop where he and others are abused quite horribly.

Sure, I’ve seen plenty of Mexican immigrant dramas over the years with some great ones, for sure. At times, this one (which used to be called Dreamer, a much better title, if you ask me) is also very good, mainly because it handles the topic seriously but also never gets sensationalistic about something that

We meet Jesús when he’s in Mexico playing soccer with dreams of being a superstar, but for whatever reason, his father gives him up to the flamboyant Rodrigo (Francisco Denis) who promises to give the teenager a better life. On the trip to California, they encounter a police officer played by Jason Patric, who does a routine stop but doesn’t get suspicious when Rodrigo lies about his relationship with the boy. This police officer will play a great part in the movie later, once he realizes that not everything is up to snuff at the home where Jesus has been taken.

I never got around to seeing last year’s hit Sound of Freedom, so I’m not sure how City of Dreams compares – the two movies share a few exec. Producers. This one isn’t so much a faith-based film, but it deals in an authentic way how these Mexican immigrants are treated with many of the girls (and some boys) forced into prostitution. 

Ari Lopez is a decent young actor, being able to carry the film, with better known American actors only popping in and out from time to time. Most of the film takes place in this absolutely disgusting home where the sweat shop is located, and at times, the movie almost delves into horror territory with the way that Jesus is being treated. 

A drama that covers an important topic in a way that’s often hard to watch makes City of Dreams a movie that’s also hard to recommend too heartily. As far as these types of movies go, it isn’t bad and the direction and Lopez’s performance go a long way to keep things interesting

Rating: 6.5/10

SLINGSHOT (Bleecker Street)

Swedish filmmaker Mikael Håfström (Derailed, 1408) returns with this outer space thriller starring Casey Affleck as John, an astronaut on a manned mission to Saturn’s moon, Titan, when things start going wrong and he starts experiencing strange visions and dreams, mainly of his wife back home, played by Emily Beecham. The film co-stars Lawrence Fishburne and Tomer Capone as John’s shipmates.

Considering how much I love Alien and other outer-space thrillers (including Event Horizon, which starred Fishburne), I definitely was intrigued by this new addition to the horror subgenre. There’s just no way around the fact that this is a movie trying its hardest to be 2001: A Space Odyssey or Moon without having the vision of a Kubrick or an actor on par with Sam Rockwell. I think part of it is that I’m just not a fan of the younger Affleck as an actor, so 

In many ways, this seems more like the recent Netflix sci-fi movie Spaceman starring Adam Sandler, also directed by a Swedish filmmaker – that should be two strikes right there – but even more like the Steven Soderbergh remake of Solaris, starring George Clooney, which I did not like very much.

There doesn’t seem to be much point for Fishburne to be in this movie, except as a red herring for an inevitable twist, but he doesn’t really have that much to do except to act like an ersatz Captain Queeg for the other two astronauts to rebel against.

There is some decent practical gore effects later in the movie, but it’s really a stretch to consider this even remotely a “horror” movie, because it’s more of a psychological thriller that happens to be set in space.

Besides having a very bad title, Slingshot is just another weak high concept outer space thriller that never really takes off, nor does it ever really finding its footing by being so derivative of far better films.

Rating: 6/10

YOU GOTTA BELIEVE (Well Go USA)

Luke Wilson and Greg Kinnear star in this Little League baseball movie about a team of Fort Worth, Texas misfits who dedicate their season to their coach (Wilson), who has been diagnosed with a terminal disease. Directed by Ty Roberts (12 Mighty Orphans), the film stars Wilson as Bobby Ratliff, said coach with two sons on the team who suddenly gets ill and convinces his best friend, an attorney played by Kinnear, to take over the coaching in hopes of getting the team to the championships. The film also stars Sarah Gadon and Molly Parker as the men’s respective wives.

Before I start this review, I should state that The Bad News Bears might be one of my favorite sports comedy of all time, right up there with Slap Shot. Obviously, I was hoping for something more in that vein when I saw that this was about a group of misfit Little League players. Unfortunately, it never achieves anything remotely close to that level of humor, probably for good reason since it’s not a comedy, although Lord knows it tries, since otherwise, a film about a dying coach and father would just be too grim to bear.

We’re introduced to all the main characters in quick succession. While both Wilson and Kinnear are good – the women have absolute nothing roles – it decides instead to spend more time getting to know the young players on the team, and those young actors are not nearly as good. The film seems to be challenged in trying to figure out if it’s supposed to be a coming-of-age film, a sports movie, or more about the coach dealing with his sickness, as it bounces between a variety of subplots, rather haphazardly.

There is one scene where the team and those in the audience start singing the theme from “Rawhide,” which just takes one right out of any attempted authenticity, and that’s just one of the film’s many bad decisions. (The score is also ballsy enough to literally rip off a Hives song to score one of the baseball games.)

The film’s last act with the tense final game between Fort Worth and their Kentucky rivals is where things finally pick up and get interesting. The problem with these sports movies is that they can only go one of two ways. Either the team we’re rooting for wins, or they lose, and I won’t spoil which one happens here, but it does end on a massive downer regardless of the outcome of the game. 

Like Reagan, this is based on a true story, but so many ridiculous choices are made in this saccharine sports drama that it’s hard to decide whether this was a story that absolutely had to be told.

Rating: 5.5/10

---

THE BOX OFFICE CHART

The below predictions are all for the four-day weekend, although it’s hard to determine which of the other movies besides AFRAID and Reagan might break into the top 10. 1992, City of Dreams, Slingshot, and You Gotta Believe all will make in the $2 to $3 million range, and it’s hard to determine which might get into the top 10 without having more accurate theater counts. It feels like either Slingshot or 1992 might stand the best chance at cracking the Top 10, but it’s really up in the air right now. I also don’t know if the 15th Anniversary Coraline will still be in theaters this weekend. As always, you can read more about my box office thoughts over at Gold Derby. 

1. Deadpool and Wolverine (Marvel/Disney) - $14.6 million -20%
2. Alien: Romulus (20th Century/Disney) - $11 million -33%
3. AFRAID (Sony) - $10.5 million N/A
4. It Ends with Us (Sony) - $8.2 million -29%
5. Reagan (Showbiz Direct) - $6.3 million N/A
6. The Forge (Sony/Affirm) - $4.5 million -33%
7. Blink Twice (Amazon MGM) - $4.2 million -43%
8. Twisters (Universal) - $4.2 million -31%

---

This week’s “Chosen One” is…

FLY (NatGeo)

Opening on IMAX screens on Sept. 2 and 3 is this amazing doc by Christina Clusiau and Shaul Schwarz, which follows three couples who take part in the sport of BASE jumping and wing-gliding, both dangerous recreations that really test their love for each other.

Everyone has been making such a big deal about Jeff Zimbalist’s Skywalkers: A Love Story since it premiered at Sundance, and fair enough. It’s a decent doc about a daredevil couple and their exploits, but Fly really ups the ante since it covers a couple of extreme sports that were once considered illegal, since a lot of BASE jumping was done in a similar way as the building-climbing in Skywalkers. 

Besides showing a similar loving relationship between these three couples, it deals quite frankly with how they deal with the dangers of what they do, but it’s never a doc that just focuses on the gorgeous views and adrenaline rush of these extreme sports but also shows what happens when things go wrong, sometimes horribly. As someone who is always worried when seeing mountain climbing movies that a subject might perish (which has been the case quite a lot in recent years), Fly balances that with plenty of successful jumps, while creating tension since you never know what might happen next. There is a bit of a teaser about what might happen to one of the subjects, but it definitely feels like the filmmakers are there the whole time following each of the couples through good times and bad, which makes this 

This is an absolutely fantastic doc that is well worth seeing in a theater, and yes, especially on a large screen format like IMAX, which you might only be able to do on Monday and Tuesday next week, although you’re likely to be watching it with your hands covering your eyes.  (Note: That the movie will premiere on the NatGeo channel on Sept. 24, then be able to stream on Hulu, D+ the next day.)

SEEKING MAVIS BEACON (NEON)

Opening at the IFC Center on Friday and in other cities on Sept. 6 is this doc from Jazmin Jones, which follows her obsessive search for the iconic woman who appeared on the packaging and in the ‘90s typing tutorial “game” “Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing,” which was responsible for teaching many black kids how to type. Along with her younger teen ward Olivia, Ms. Jones travels across the country looking for clues about what happened to the woman who was paid a few hundred dollars to model for the software company that eventually made millions. 

I didn’t like this doc nearly as much as others I’ve seen this year. In fact, I’m not sure I liked it at all, since at times, it seems more like a vanity project for Ms. Jones than an actual documentary that needed to be made. Maybe it’s the fact that I’d never heard of “Mavis Beacon,” nor did she play any part in my learning how to type (well before the ‘90s, mind you), though I can see how she could have been such a big influence on the filmmakers and on others. It just isn’t something that connects in such a meandering film where the filmmakers are going to see psychics and going from one person to another trying to find this elusive woman… for reasons we will never learn since she clearly does not want to be found. Anyone who says that the journey often is more interesting than the destination clearly hasn’t sat through this movie.

Confusing, confounding and sometimes grueling to sit through, Seeking Mavis Beacon often comes across like a vanity project that goes off on too many personal tangents to be taken very seriously as a documentary. This is another movie Neon is releasing this year that I doubt will make much money, so it just leaves me scratching my head why it’s not just going straight to streaming.

MERCHANT IVORY (Cohen Media) 

Four-time Oscar nominee Ismail Merchant and Oscar-winner James Ivory were responsible for making 30 movies over the course of 40 years, mostly elegant period dramas with many that were nominated for and won Oscars. (Although Ivory won his Oscar for writing Call Me By Your Name.)

I feel like this is somewhat in the vein of the recent Made in England: The Films of Powell and Pressburger, and like that movie, I hadn’t really seen that many of the duo’s films, maybe because they never seemed like something I might be nterested in. Directed by Stephen Soucy, the movie includes interviews with many of the actors who worked with Merchant Ivory, including Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Vanessa Redgrave, and Helena Bonham Carter, plus many more, but it’s a fairly straight-ahead doc that tells the Merchant Ivory in chronological order.

I don’t have a ton to say about this movie, so I’m not sure if I’d consider this a review, but I do think this doc will appeal more to those who are already diehard Merchant Ivory fans, rather than being something to convince others to watch some of their movies. Made in England is generally better only since it has such a distinctive voice as Scorsese analyzing the films of those filmmakers.

THE DELIVERANCE (Netflix)

Hitting Netflix on Friday, Lee Daniels directs this horror film starring Oscar nominees Andra Day, Glenn Close, and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, and Oscar-winner Mo’Nique (for Daniels’ Precious), about an Indiana family who experience demonic events that makes them think their house is haunted by a demon. Andra Day plays Ebony Jackson, a single mother living with her three kids and mother Alberta (Close), the latter who is fighting cancer. They are dealing with many problems, including poverty and Ebony’s former drinking problem, until her kids start acting erratically, pointing to something nefarious in their house.

I’m generally a Lee Daniels fan, even though he’s been hit or miss with duds like Shadowboxer and The Paperboy being quite horrid, while others, including The Butler, a commercial hit that was sorely-neglected for awards while being up there with films from far more acclaimed black filmmakers. I also know that Daniels has always been a fan of genre and horror, so him making a foray into that realm didn’t really surprise me. This cast is almost like a Lee Daniels supergroup, reuniting with Day from The United States vs. Billie Holiday and with Mo’Nique, who actually may give the best performance in the film, just making it more of a shame that she hasn’t acted that much since winning her Oscar.

The first big problem is how long it takes for the movie to fully explain the connection between Glenn Close and the Jackson family. She’s constantly referred to as Ebony’s equally troubled mother, but it’s never clear whether Ebony was adopted, since during one of their squabbles, she called “half-breed.” On top of that, Ebony’s husband seems to be M.I.A., apparently fighting in Iraq, though he’s also mentioned, and maybe he also has a dark past.

Overall, the film’s writing is weak, constantly leaning on unending swearing during most of the scenes where people are squabbling, which seems to be most of the movie. There’s also the religious aspect of the movie that’s shoehorned into a plot that mainly involves Ebony not backsliding and potentially losing her kids whenever Mo’Nique’s character shows up to make sure all is good in the Jackson household.

To be honest, The Deliverance is barely a horror film, since it constantly veers into family drama territory right up until the last act, when it starts to go completely overboard on the horror and possession elements, including heavy special FX makeup. Even Close gets into the act with heavy make-up and some of the most outlandish overacting.

There’s just no way around stating the obvious, that this is a blatant rip-off of The Exorcist, if it was set in more of a ghetto community (ala the original Candyman). What really destroyed any good will I could possibly have for the movie is that it ends with the equivalent of a “based on a true story” title card, which just made the whole thing seem more ludicrous. They couldn’t mention that at the beginning of the movie?

The Deliverance is another bad horror movie that we can probably blame Jordan Peele for its existence, since he has had so much such success with his far superior Black-led horror films (including the Candyman franchise sequel directed by Nia Long) that everyone now seems to think they can do it. In this case, the results aren’t good, putting The Deliverance into Daniels’ “L” column.

Rating: 5/10

THE WASP (Shout! Studios)

Naomie Harris and Natalie Dormer star in this two-hander psychological thriller from Spanish filmmaker Guillem Morales, which is actually a British film that’s getting a limited release, at least in New York and L.A. this weekend. The two actors play estranged friends who reunite and begin to formulate a plot involving murder. This is opening at the Quad Cinema in New York and at a couple Laemmle theaters in L.A., though I saw a trailer at one of the AMCs in town, so maybe it will expand to more theaters in September. I was hoping to catch this in time to review, but I just wasn’t able to get a screener with enough time to do so.

Other films I didn’t get to…

SARIPODHAA SANIVAARAM
THE FALLING STAR (Kino Lorber)
NOTICE TO QUIT (Whiskey Creek)
TAKE MY HAND (Blue Fox Entertainment)
ACROSS THE RIVER AND INTO THE TREES (Level 33 Entertainment)

---

REPERTORY

PARIS THEATER

I’m giving a little extra bump to the uptown Paris Theater, which has been killing it in the last couple years, but especially with the return of their “Big and Loud!” series, which has such a wide mix of films being shown in 70mm and Dolby Atmos sound. Don’t tell the Metrograph, but I’ll be there for three films over Labor Day weekend.

Sure, there are some things that have been shown elsewhere (like Hitchcock’s overrated Vertigo in 70mm - which you can see on Thursday and Saturday), but also this weekend, you can see Spielberg’s Close Encounters of a Third Kind, James Cameron’s The Abyss: Special Edition in Dolby Atmos, and a rare 70mm print of Paul Thomas Anderson’s Boogie Nights (Note: The world might not be ready for Dirk Diggler’s schlong in 70mm.) They’re also showing PTA’s more recent film, Phantom Thread, in 70mm. I’ll be at the Monday screening of Kubrick’s Spartacus (1960) in 70mm on Monday, but it will also screen on Saturday morning. On Sunday, the Paris is also showing the 1999 Fugazi film Instrument in a 25th anniversary presentation with filmmaker Jem Cohen and Guy Piccioto from the seminal DC harcore band. (Spoiler: I’ll be there, too!)

This weekend, Paris is also showing “Light & Noise: A Don Hertzfeldt Residency” this weekend, which will premiere the animator’s newest short film, ME, as well as his other films, World of Tomorrow and It’s Such a Beautiful Day. He’s also screening films that have inspired him like the 1956 sci-fi classic, Forbidden Planet. 

METROGRAPH

Since it’s the last weekend of the month of August, we’re going to see a bunch of series wrapping up before the start of a number of new series next week.

“Also Starring… Carol Kane” presents a couple classics this weekend, the horror film, When a Stranger Calls from 1979, and the beloved The Princess Bride (1987), as well as The Last Detail (1973) from the great Hal Ashby

“Summer at Sea” continues through the weekend with screenings of Disney’s Lilo & Stitch (2002), Visconti’s Death in Venice (1971), Rohmer’s 1983 film, Pauline at the Beach, and Muriel’s Wedding from 1994.

“Bad Trips” presents one last screening of Deliverance (1972) on Thursday afternoon, a single screening of the 2020 comedy Save Yourselves! On Friday, and then the Bill Murray-Richard Dreyfuss comedy What About Bob (1991), directed by Frank Oz, over the weekend.

The movies playing as part of “Twisted Sister” this weekend are Ingmar Bergman’s The Silence (1963) and Persona (1966), and yes, you can see them as a double feature on Saturday.

“Ties That Bind: Tales of Madness” is only showing J.A. Bayona’s debut horror film, The Orphanage (2007), ONCE this weekend, on Friday night. Produced by Guillermo del Toro, this is one of my favorite horror films of the 21st Century, so of course I’ll be there.

The Sunday screening of Ye Lou’s Summer Palace (2006) in 35mm as part of “Under the Pavement, The Beach” is already sold out.

“In Concert” will show the Talking Heads’ Stop Making Sense (1983) a few more times this weekend.

“Passages” shows Uncle Boonmee and Oscar winner Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s 2015 film, Happy Hour. (Fair warning, that last one is 5 ½ hours long.)

NITEHAWK CINEMA PROSPECT PARK & WILLIAMSBURG

Of course, you already know that I’ll be introducing a screening of M. Night Shyamalan’s 2006 film Lady in the Water on Thursday at Prospect Park, so I hope you’ll all come out for it. Spike Jonze’s Where the Wild Things Are (2009) will screen on Saturday and Sunday at 11AM, as will the 1999 action-thriller, The Mummy. Tobe Hooper’s Funhouse will screen on Monday night at Prospect Park. On Wednesday night, you can see Marlon Brando’s One Eyed Jacks (1961) in 35mm, which he directed and starred in.

Hitchcock’s Frenzy may have ended its run at Film Forum, but you can still see it either Saturday or Sunday at brunch time at Williamsburg. The “Class of ‘99” series wraps up this weekend with David Cronenberg’s Existenz on Friday and Saturday close to midnight, and David Lynch’s The Straight Story on Saturday and Sunday during the daytime.

FILM FORUM

Film Forum is killing it, too, and this weekend, they start their “Spielberg” series that runs through September 12 (but maybe longer). It’s pretty completely including all the movies you’d expect like Raiders of the Lost Ark, Jaws, and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, but also rare stuff like The Sugarland Express and Duel. All of those screen this weekend, including a single screening of Jaws in 3D on Monday afternoon. Jean-Pierre Melville’s Army of Shadows has been extended for another week, but Hitchcok’s Frenzy will end its run on Thurday.

IFC CENTER

This weekend, IFC Center is adding a 40th anniversary screening of Wim Wender’s Paris, Texas to its roster, while Caligula: The Ultimate Cut and Coppola’s The Conversation continues through the weekend, as does Roman Polanski’s Rosemary’s Baby. On the other hand, Amadeus will be wrapping up its run on Thursday if you haven’t seen them yet. The Friday and Saturday late night offerings are Eli Roth’s Hostel (2006) and the 1988 thriller The Vanishing, both as part of the series, “It’s Murder! Four Films” tied into the release of Red Rooms next week. Also, the anime, Cowboy Bebop: The Movie (2001) screens on Friday and Saturday at midnight.

ROXY CINEMA

Another one of the cool downtown arthouse theaters showing many films on 35mm is this theater in the basement of the Roxy Hotel. This weekend, they’re showing the 1968 Malcolm McDowell movie If…, which predated A Clockwork Orange, on Friday and Saturday. It’s also showing The Battle of Algiers (1966) on Saturday as part of its “Explosive Film” series as well as Paul Schrader’s First Reformed (2017) on Friday.

QUAD CINEMA

Ahead of the Merchant Ivory doc opening here on Friday, they’ll show their film, Maurice (1987), starring Hugh Grant, twice on Thurday.

MUSEUM OF MOVING IMAGE

Playing this weekend on Friday and Monday as part of “Disreputable Cinema” is the Wachowskis’ Speed Racer (2008). The 2016 anime A Silent Voice plays as part of “World of Animation” on Saturday and Sunday at 1pm, and then Jim Henson’s The Muppet Movie plays on Monday.

MOMA

Paramount in the ‘70s continues with screenings this weekend of 1975’s Mandingo, the 1973 movie Superfly T.N.T., the 1974 revenge classic Death Wish, starring Charles Bronson, Robert Altman’s Nashville, John Travolta’s Saturday Night Fever, and much more!

VILLAGE EAST

On Friday night, Hedda Lettuce presents, The Eyes of Laura Mars from 1978.

FILM AT LINCOLN CENTER

This week, FilmLinc is showing Bahram Beyzaie’s Iranian film Stranger and the Fog from 1974 on Friday and Saturday.

BAM (BROOKLYN ACADEMY OF MUSIC)

Ivan Dixon’s The Spook Who Sat by the Door (1973) continues through the weekend.

ALAMO DRAFTHOUSE

Starting this weekend, the Alamo begins its “Alamo Time Capsule 1979” with screenings of Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now: Final Cut, which I saw a few weeks back, and it was pretty good. It will also continue showing Caligula: The Ultimate Cut. 

CINEMA ARTS CENTRE

On Friday night, composer Alan Howarth will be out in Huntington, Long Island for a concert to close out the tribute series to his work with John Carpenter. On Thursday night, you can see the Rolling Stones’ concert doc, Gimme Shelter, from 1970. Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion is the “Cult Café” offering on Saturday night, and then Miyazaki’s Oscar-winning The Boy and the Heron plays on Sunday for the families. On Wednesday, Sept 4, the classic giant ant movie, Them!, will play at the Cinema Arts Centre, and then on Thursday, it’s the Who film, The Kids Are Alright. 

Next week, the big release for the week and month is Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice Beetlejuice!