Just some thoughts on current happenings:

Classic film screenings from around the world is returning this month in a limited capacity. Due to the Corona virus pandemic, please contact the theatre of choice regarding any restrictions including vaccination requirements, masks, social distancing, limited seating or last minute cancellations.

In Bergen, Norway The Cinemateket i Bergen will present Even Cowgirls Get the Blues (1993, a 35mm print) Tuesday, May 3 and Thursday, May 5, Walkabout (1972) Thursday, May 12 and Sunday, May 15, and In the Heat of the Night (1967) on Thursday, May 19 and Sunday, May 22.

For more information on each film’s showing, click on the movie’s image above. For more information on the other films showing at The Cinemateket, click on the banner image above.

In London, United Kingdom The Prince Charles Cinema will present Come and See (1985) Wednesday, May 4, Monday, May 9 and Tuesday, May 17, The Conversation (1974, a 35mm print) Wednesday, May 4, Freaks (1932, as part of this film’s 90th Anniversary) Friday, May 6 and Tuesday, May 10, Heat (1995, a 35mm print) Sunday, May 8, Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992, a 35mm print, as part of this film’s 30th Anniversary) Tuesday, May 10 and Thursday, May 12, The Bad Sleep Well (1960, a 35mm print) Sunday, May 15, Goodfellas (1990, a 35mm print) Sunday, May 15, A Room with a View (1986, a 35mm print) Tuesday, May 17, Sorcerer (1977) Sunday, May 22 and Wednesday, May 25, Vertigo (1958, a 4k presentation) Friday, May 27 and Wednesday, June 1, My Darling Clementine (1946, a 4k presentation) Sunday, May 29, and The Seven-Ups (1973) on Tuesday, May 31.

Click on the film’s respective image for more information. To see May’s complete programming, click on The Prince Charles Cinema banner above.

In Auckland, New Zealand Academy Cinemas is presenting The Magnificent Ambersons (1942, celebrating Orson Welles' 107th birthday on May 6th) Friday, May 6, and Vanishing Point (1972, a brand new 4k print, as part of this film’s 50th Anniversary) on Friday, May 13.

To obtain more information specifically on each of these programmes, click on the corresponding image. To see the entire month of May’s programming, click on the Academy banner above.

In Melbourne, Australia The Astor Theatre is presenting a double bill of Collateral (2004) followed by Chinatown (1974) Sunday, May 8, Medea (1969, as part of a tribute to the film’s director Pier Paolo Pasolini) Saturday, May 21 and Sunday, May 22, and Teorema (1968, as part of a tribute to the film’s director Pier Paolo Pasolini) also on Saturday, May 21 and Sunday, May 22.

Click on the film’s image for more information about each individual screening. To see the rest of May’s schedule, click on The Astor Theatre banner above.

In theatres across the U.S. Flashback Cinema is presenting The Wizard of Oz (1939) on Sunday May 8 (Mother’s Day) and Wednesday, May 11.

Click on the respective poster image for more information. To see the entire month’s programming, click on The Flashback Cinema banner above.

In New York City, New York, Film Forum is presenting My Dinner with André (1981, a 35mm print) on Monday, May 9 including an In-person Q&A with André Gregory following the screening. In addition, André Gregory will sign copies of his book, “This is Not My Memoir” (available for purchase at the theatre’s concession) in the lobby after this event.

For information on this special event, click on the corresponding image above. For information on all of the films playing this month, click on the Film Forum banner above.

In Los Angeles, California The Beverly Cinema will present The Wages of Fear (1953, a 35mm print) Tuesday, May 10 and Wednesday, May 11, Dracula (1931, a 35mm print) Saturday, May 14 and Sunday, May 15, and a double bill of Sweet Smell of Success (1957, a 35mm print) and Ace in the Hole (1951, a 35mm print) on Tuesday, May 17 and Wednesday, May 18.

Click on the film’s respective image for more information. To see the rest of May’s schedule, click on The Beverly Cinema banner above.

In Valencia, Spain, Culturarts Generalitat IVAC – La Filmoteca at the Edificio Rialto will be presenting The Lady from Shanghai (1947, as part of a tribute to the film’s director Orson Welles) Wednesday, May 11 and Friday, May 13, Plein Soleil aka Purple Noon (1960, a 35mm print, as part of a tribute to actor Alain Delon in films noir) Sunday, May 15 and Tuesday, May 17, Touch of Evil (1958, as part of a tribute to the film’s director Orson Welles) Wednesday, May 25 and Sunday, May 29, and A Countess from Hong Kong (1967, as part of a tribute to the film’s director Charles Chaplin) on Thursday, May 26 and Friday, May 27.

Click on the respective film’s image for more information on each screening. To discover the entire month’s programming, click on the banner image above.

The Maltese Falcon / The Treasure of the Sierra Madre

In Los Angeles, California Secret Movie Club is presenting at the Secret Movie Club Theater The Battle of Algiers aka La battaglia di Algeri (1966, a 35mm print) Thursday, May 12, and a double bill of The Maltese Falcon (1941, a 35mm print) and The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1947, a 35mm print) on Friday, May 20.

For more information on each screening, click on the appropriate movie image. To discover other screenings organised by this group, click on the above theatre image.

In theatres across the U.S., Fathom Events is presenting Star Trek: The Motion Picture-The Director’s Edition (1979/2001) on Sunday, May 22, Monday, May 23 and Wednesday, May 25.

Click on the film’s poster image for more information. To see this month’s entire schedule, click on The Fathom Events banner above.

There are 18 recommended films to watch on Turner Classic Movies in the U.S. this month:

My first couple May selections form part of a Busby Berkeley musical tribute. Please have a read here and see why Gold Diggers of 1933 is as enjoyable and pertinent as the shows these spirited characters struggle to produce. The show must go on Monday, May 2 at 6:45 pm PDT.

The unmissable Busby Berkeley extravaganza Footlight Parade immediately follows and is also a previous TCM recommendation here. Let the show begin Monday, May 2 at 8:30 pm PDT.

MGM's 1952 musical Singin' in the Rain was not adapted from a theatrical production, though the film was later turned into one, being first presented on stage in 1983. Its abundant creativity, innovation and driving energy place this film at the top of all cinematic musicals ever produced. Singin' in the Rain has been reviewed as a past Blu-ray selection here and will joyously dance its way onto TCM Tuesday, May 3 at 3 pm PDT.

Next is The Treasure of the Sierra Madre with Humphrey Bogart portraying perhaps his darkest and most psychologically troubled character. Watching his slow transformation from an honest and idealistic adventurer to a tormented, paranoid psychotic is one of the art's most stunning, dramatically forceful experiences perfectly matched to a magnificent and fatalistically ironic conclusion. My previous thoughts on this film are here. This treasure can be discovered Tuesday, May 3 at 7:15 pm PDT.

(From left) Walter Huston, Humphrey Bogart, Tim Holt

The caper film first laid its roots in The Asphalt Jungle previously reviewed here. Like the previously recommended film, this is another John Huston directed masterpiece. The depth of its characters and their fascinating interactions as the drama builds to a cathartic resolution, is why this film has become one of America's finest cinematic achievements. The 'planning' will start on TCM Wednesday, May 4 at 2:45 pm PDT.

(From left) Sterling Hayden, Brad Dexter, Louis Calhern, Sam Jaffe

In honour of gonzo filmmaker Robert Downey, Sr. (he passed away last year), TCM is showing the legendary Putney Swope, a no holds barred, no budget, no sense, satire that’s completely insane. Putney Swope is a former Top Ten Guilty Treasure reviewed here and can be met Friday, May 6 at 11 pm PDT.

(From left) Arnold Johnson, George Morgan

Next, is a film noir starring Barbara Stanwyck entitled No Man of Her Own, previously reviewed as a DVD recommendation here. She’s making her next stop in Eddie Muller’s Noir Alley Saturday, May 7 at 9:15 pm PDT and again on Sunday, May 8 at 7 am PDT.

Dustin Hoffman’s breakthrough role occurred in 1967’s The Graduate, reviewed as a previous Blu-ray recommendation here. This young man’s trials and tribulations can be observed Sunday, May 8 at (early morning) 1 am PDT.

This next hypnotic but terrifying entrancement is a highly expressionistic fable that appears as if conveyed from a child's point of view. "Fairytale noir" is what Film Noir expert Eddie Muller calls it, noted author Preston Neal Jones describes the film as “Mother Goose with goose bumps” and in my review the description reads: “… like a Grimm fairy tale only a whole lot grimmer.” Previously reviewed in Opening Up a Treasure: The Night of the Hunter, this extraordinary tale awaits your interpretation Friday, May 13 at 5 pm PDT.

Here’s an almost opposite kind of movie that similarly takes place around Christmas: the light-hearted and charming Ernst Lubitsch's The Shop Around the Corner.

Beneath an inventive situation comedy veneer, however, lies a serious underlying message regarding relationships and how concepts often get in the way of a more fulfilling union based on care and concern for one another. The Shop Around the Corner, previously praised here, will open Tuesday, May 17 at 5 pm PDT.

Casablanca is a film I've often recommended in the past. Sometimes, however, I catch some flack for not being as enamoured with this adored classic as the vast majority of viewers. For those who consider Casablanca to be one of the finest motion pictures ever made, just the inclusion in my series entitled “All that Glitters…”: The Overrated can be objectionable enough to completely ignore my critique. In my defence, there are many qualities attributed to the motion picture contained in my review. In any event, please familiarise yourself with both the film and my write-up before deciding if my appraisal has merit. Casablanca is on TCM's itinerary for Wednesday, May 18 at (early morning) 1:45 am PDT.

Next up is star Jimmy Cagney's foray into noir, White Heat. A criminal's mother-fixated pathology and the undercover cop trying to catch him are the topics of this previous recommendation here. TCM's screen will heat up Wednesday, May 18 at 7 pm PDT.

(From left) James Cagney, Edmond O'Brien

John Huston's Reflections in a Golden Eye is a film I have mixed feelings about. The rather strange inhabitants of these southern Gothically-tinged surroundings may remain underdeveloped but the performances from its superbly chosen cast compensate by genuinely conveying their characters' frustrations and desires making this an engrossing film-watching experience. It is a previous TCM recommendation here, and is worth eyeing Thursday, May 19 at 1:15 pm PDT.

Next up is director John Frankenheimer’s subtle but evocative character study The Gypsy Moths released in 1969. I have previously written about some of this film’s exceptional qualities in a recommendation of its soundtrack here. The Gypsy Moths will take to the skies Friday, May 20 at 9 pm PDT.

(From left) Gene Hackman, Burt Lancaster, Scott Wilson

One of the finest westerns ever made is Top Ten Western #4. Sam Peckinpah's elegiac Ride the High Country will ride into TCM territory Saturday, May 21 at 3:15 pm PDT.

Randolph Scott as Gil Westrum (on the left) and Joel McCrea as Steve Judd

My next recommendation is one of those lesser known films noir with a most appropriate title: Impact. One can experience this captivating little cinematic explosive, previously reviewed here, Thursday, May 26 at 6:15 pm PDT.

Woody Allen’s most personally heartfelt film Manhattan (1979) may still be his finest. Previously reviewed here, interested viewers can decide for themselves Thursday, May 26 at 10:15 pm PDT.

My next TCM recommendation is 1955's modern-day take on the American Western, Bad Day at Black Rock, previously reviewed here. This exceptional suspense-thriller's day will occur in Eddie Muller’s Noir Alley * on Saturday, May 28 at 9 pm PDT and again on Sunday, May 29 at 7 am PDT.

*which may come as a surprise for those who, unlike myself, do not consider this to be a film noir.

TCM's current monthly schedule can be confirmed by clicking on any of the above TCM related images. For those who live in parts of the U.S. other than the western region, the time zone can be adjusted in the upper right-hand corner of TCM's programme.

This month's Happy Birthday shout-out goes to the lovely and talented British actress June Ritchie who turns 81 on May 31st.

She is a graduate and honouree of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Her most prominent role was opposite Alan Bates in John Schlesinger’s A Kind of Loving (1962) as Ingrid Rothwell. She also appeared in The Mouse on the Moon (1963) with Margaret Rutherford, Ron Moody and Terry-Thomas, directed by Richard Lester. Other roles include Ginny in The World Ten Times Over (1963), and two opposite actor Ian Hendry: Live Now - Pay Later (1962) and This is My Street (1964). She also played Mari Brant in The Syndicate (1968). Ritchie made many television appearances including those seen in The Saint (1966), The Baron (1967), The Persuaders! (1971), The Mallens (1980) and The Ruth Rendell Mysteries (1988) among others, and is an accomplished stage actress.

May's Soundtrack recommendation is Inception: an enveloping, overarching score of tremendous conviction composed by Hans Zimmer.

This highly conceptualised, yet imaginative, motion picture is distinguished from practically all of its big budget brethren, including writer/director Christopher Nolan’s outrageously convoluted Tenet which would arrive a decade later. The crucial difference is Inception’s personal relationships and how they are ingeniously interwoven, and so emotionally invested, throughout the elaborate strategies and their outcomes presented in this visually spellbinding narrative. Cobb and Saito, Cobb and Ariadne, Mr. Charles and Fischer, Robert Fischer and his father Maurice and perhaps most influential of all, Cobb and Mal, are just some of the deeply felt interactions between such rich and vibrant characters that make this intricate and unorthodox thriller so engrossing. There is also an attention to detail in the creation of its wildly implausible premise, especially during the planning stages, that provides the intrigue with enough validity and respect for its audience, to give this filmmaking dream maker our own suspension of disbelief.

Like the dream sequences portrayed here, the music by Hans Zimmer is carefully layered and boldly authoritative. This is arguably the composer’s most grand, inventive and yet hauntingly thematic score, carefully designed to stay with you long after this mesmerising story ends. The CD from WaterTower Music can be obtained from Amazon.com by clicking on the accompanying image.

May's DVD recommendation is the beautifully understated illicit romance film Strangers When We Meet released in 1960.

The subject matter may be somewhat 'soapy' but the treatment is far from it: refined, subtle and mature. All of the characters are complex, a few alarmingly insidious like the one played to perfection by Walter Matthau, and developed in a realistic and sophisticated fashion. This is an underrated work that benefits from the novelist’s integrity (Evan Hunter) in adapting his own screenplay and a keen-eyed director (Richard Quine) extracting the truth behind every moment. Stars Kirk Douglas and Kim Novak shine but never in an ostentatious manner. The couple’s interactions are so naturally real it seems as though we are observing their genuine, slowly blossoming feelings for one another, i.e. nothing seems stagey or contrived for dramatic purposes. Notice the relaxed and seemingly improvisational way Kim Novak’s character asks Douglas how he shaves his chin’s dimple, not to mention the actor’s funny response. George Duning composed the wistful score including the title song with lyrics by the film’s director Richard Quine. Charles Lang provided the lush technicolor widescreen cinematography. The lifestyle portrayed in Strangers When We Meet is, for these times, dated of course but truly authentic in depicting its past. The attitudes, settings and considered responses form part of a bygone era reminiscent of Douglas Sirk’s melodramas but without the embellishment one might associate with the more famous director. Even though the emotions felt are timeless, the ambience is subsumed by a nostalgia quotient which can be cherished like a soft, sincere and ultimately poignant recollection of a fond but distant memory. Strangers When We Meet was produced on DVD by Columbia / Sony Pictures and is currently available from Amazon.com by clicking on the accompanying image.

A.G.

The Cinema Cafe

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