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Neorealism is Just the Beginning

Italian film has historically moved through cycles, swayed by popular attendance, international acceptance or political scrutiny, each contributing to international cinema in a meaningful way. The spaghetti westerns that began in the mid-sixties, bursting on the international scene, followed the more insular sword and sandals epics that drew filmmakers from Hollywood to catch the wave of popularity. Similarly, the giallo horror films that influenced a generation of filmmakers the world over, overlapped with the spaghetti westerns, but were a wholly different generation of Italian filmmakers. Even while auteurs like Fellini, Rossellini, Monicelli, and Visconti were imprinting their unique visions outside of or adjacent to these movements, Italian film evolved on the world stage. It is even more impressive, then, that one movement shines brightest amongst them all and that is Italian Neo-Realism, which still impacts world film some 75 years after its beginnings.Created through a desire to depict life as it happened, where it happened, and reflecting the poor and working class in Italy after World War II, Neo-realism was unique in its beginnings and its practice. Using location shooting with mostly non-professional actors, Neo-Realism changed the way filmmakers looked at their art. Not only could film depict a non-glamourous environment, based in pure reality, but the people and the stories were personal, yet universal at the same time. Beginning as the French New Wave would a generation later, Neo-realism began within the pages of a magazine Cinema, among critics, in the immediate aftermath of WWII, even though the first neo-realist film is largely credited to Luchino Visconti's groundbreaking interpretation of James M. Cain's noir classic The Postman Always Rings Twice, called Ossessione, from 1943. Rossellini's Rome, Open City, released in 1945, really began the cycle in earnest, however, even garnering an Oscar nomination for Best Screenplay.It was Vittorio De Seka's, Bicycle Thieves, released in 1948, however, that quickly became viewed as not only the best of the cycle, but as the best film of all time. Just 4 years after its release the British Magazine named it the top film in its inaugural poll of international film critics.

William Hurt and Kathleen Turner, in her feature film debut, heat up the screen in writer/director Lawrence Kasdan's steamy Neo-Noir, Body Heat! In a film that has been credited with reigniting the Neo-Noir movement in the 1980's, Body Heat is a loose reimagining of Double Indemnity, this time without the weight of the puritanical Production Code. While Kasdan shot more sex scenes than made the final theatrical cut, don't think he took short cuts in crafting a twisty plot, with fully drawn out supporting characters, wonderful imagery and whip smart dialogue. Richard Corliss wrote in his initial review that "Body Heat has more narrative drive, character congestion, and sense of place than any original screenplay since Chinatown." While Kasdan may have borrowed, or at the very least paid homage to Wilder's classic, his film all but eliminates empathy for the femme fatale, as she not just ensnares the unsuspecting attorney into her sexual trap, but preys on his professional laziness and ego to seal his fate. Her telling line from an early meeting, "You aren't too smart, are you? I like that in a man," says all we need to know about him and her knowledge of him.

Body Heat helped begin the 1980's Neo Noir cycle that included films like Body Double, Angel Heart, To Live & Die in LA, Blood Simple, Blade Runner and Blue Velvet, among many others. It also foreshadowed a broader cycle of 1980's films with more explicit sexual content, in some cases for better in others for the worse. Perhaps when it was released, just 7 months into the Regan administration's first term and the beginning of a decade filled with political pressure on culture and sexuality, places the film as both a harbinger and a sign post for what would come in an assuredly reactionary environment in America.

The 1973 Cannes Film Festival Palme d'Or winning Scarecrow is an under seen and under appreciated film from 1973 starring Al Pacino and Gene Hackman. Directed by Jerry Schatzberg, Scarecrow is the story Max and Lion, two drifters, one an ex-con and the other a former sailor, as they travel across the US towards Pittsburgh to open a car wash. A film once compared to Of Mice and Men and Midnight Cowboy, in both story and tone, Scarecrow becomes a heartbreaking tale of friendship and tragedy, as it careens through Denver and Detroit on its way towards a melancholy, yet redemptive conclusion.

Scarecrow was born of the Hollywood studios desire to find low budget, yet marketable films, during the New Hollywood era (1967-1974), each looking to recreate the box office and profitability of Easy Rider (1969). Director Schatzberg was a former fashion photographer who had made Panic in Needle Park with Pacino in 1971. At the time of its release the film attained fully mixed reviews and bombed at the box office, but has since found a cult following and renewed regard for the performances of Pacino and Hackman.

French film magazine Cahiers du Cinema called The Night of the Hunter the 2nd greatest film of all-time in 2008, but it was a critical and audience flop when it was released in 1955. What has changed? It's simple really. The appreciation for the lyrical and expressionistic style of the film, compliments of first time director Charles Laughton (Witness for the Prosecution, Spartacus) and cinematographer Stanley Cortez (The Naked Kiss, The Magnificent Ambersons), was overlooked or viewed as out of fashion in its initial release. Robert Mitchum's iconic portrayal of misogynistic serial killer/preacher Harry Powell wasn't fully appreciated for its depiction of evil and the combination of elements of Film Noir, Southern Gothic and horror confused audiences and marketers alike. In retrospect none of this was surprising because the film has the look and feel of nothing that came before or has been released since. it is wholly unique, even as it has inspired several generations of imitators and admirers, including Spike Lee, Martin Scorsese, The Coen brothers, and Robert Altman, to name a few.

While Laughton was insecure shooting his first and only film, he relied on technical experts like Cortez to execute his vision and complete shooting in a mere 36 days. Noted film critic and screenwriter James Agee (The African Queen) is credited with writing the screenplay, but in truth Laughton worked with source novelist Davis Grubb throughout filming to weave a filmable whole from the various pieces of the novel and Agee's writing. When the film flopped commercially Laughton blamed himself, sending him into a months long depression and vowing to never direct a film again.

Crafting a fairytale structure of good versus evil, children in peril, and a fairy godmother savior, The Night of the Hunter works on an incredible number of levels, not simply relying on its stunning visuals, haunting performances, and sometimes disturbing black humor, but on a human level crafted by the simple pacing and pitch black story. Mitchum's performance stands alone, but it truly is the detail of everything else that makes this film one of the greatest ever made!

In honor of Producer/Director Roger Corman's death on May 9th, Motor City Cinema Society is proud to present Dementia 13, Francis Ford Coppola's directorial debut! Coppola doubled as the film's screenwriter, riffing on a 'Psycho rip-off' producer Corman demanded. Using sets from the recently completed The Young Racers, Coppola created a gothic infused story, complete with brutal murders, a coverup and the potential for riches doled out in an old ladies will. Shot in Ireland on a budget of less than $150,000, Corman determined the film unreleasable and demanded changes be made. William Campbell (All the Pretty Maids in a Row), Patrick Magee (A Clockwork Orange) & Luana Andrews (Easy Rider, The Last Detail) star in a film that has all the touches of B-movie maven Corman, with flashes of Coppola's autuerism, splashed with blood, gore and a little sex!!

Can anyone ever guarantee that nobody will be disappointed by a movie? Of course not, but if we could tell you this might be the ONLY time to see this movie on this film stock (16MM), you'd be intrigued, right? Well, that's where we are for Monday's mystery movie!! it's not a movie with a mystery, it's a movie that once the credits role you will likely recognize right away, but we're not telling you what it is. No clues, no guesses, no nothing, until we fire up the projector!! It's going to be lots fun and Nick will, of course, have some surprises in the pre-show!! Come out and join us!!

Director Roman Polanski's first English language stars Catherine Deneuve as a woman tormented by repression, delusion and hallucinations. Over the course of a weekend where she is left alone her mental state deteriorates to include self harm and murder. A wondrous psychological horror film, Polanski's camera imbeds itself within the film as he tells the story from Carole Ledoux's (Deneuve) point of view, drawing the viewer into her anguish and confusion.

Deneuve, coming off her international success of The Umbrellas of Cherbourg would have been an odd choice for the role, but Polanski wonderfully guided one of the most important roles of her career.

Join us for a mind-bending journey through some of the most rare and dazzling animated wonders not seen anywhere else! Motor City Cinema directors Nick, John and Darian have curated an assortment of animated shorts ranging from early 20th century stop motion to mid-century propaganda and trippy 1970's dazzlers!! You won't be disappointed and you're sure to be pleasantly surprised ad the shear array of styles and subjects!!

The Appaloosa stars screen legend Marlon Brando, Annette Comer and John Paxon, who was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor. The film tells the story of the theft of a prized horse and its retrieval by any means necessary, including deception, torture, and arm wrestling! Of course there's a girl, who may of may not be acting in good faith, that complicates the proceedings nonetheless. Screened in glorious Color CinemaScope, The Appaloosa crowns itself as the first Western shown in Motor City Cinema Society history!!

New York in the 70's didn't look anything like New York city today. Time Square was the home for pornography, prostitution and drugs, not Disney musicals and costume characters. Urban decay was everywhere and buildings were being torn down, not rehabbed and gentrified. And corruption at all levels of government, real estate and city services was out of control, particularly in the New York Police department. Frank Serpico served in the NYPD for 11 years, but it was a quick 2 years between when he testified before the Knapp Commission on corruption and when Serpico debuted in December of 1973. The near real time presentation on film gave the film a sense of immediacy when it was released, but even watching it today there is little that diminishes the rawness of the film.

Al Pacino, who's performance garnered him his 2nd of four consecutive Best Actor Oscar nominations, embodies the morality of Frank Serpico, particularly as it's reflected in his eyes. Whereas Pacino would later use his voice as the modulator of his performances, here his eyes, darting around a room taking in every corruption, act as reflecting pools of pain, sadness and disappointment. Serpico is as incorruptible as Michael Corleone and Sonny Wortzik are corrupted, yet Pacino never lets him become sanctimonious or cloying.

Otto Preminger's iconic 1959 courtroom drama, filmed on location in Michigan's stunning Upper Peninsula, and based on a 1952 murder in nearby Big Bay, hits all the perfect notes, including a stunning score by Jazz legend Duke Ellington. Jimmy Stewart, in one of his most memorable roles, plays a stand-in for Michigan supreme court justice John D. Volker, who tried the case the film depicts, then wrote the bestselling novel that was adapted for the screen. Preminger, who studied law in Vienna, and was the son of a prosecutor, was acutely aware of how the courtroom and legal proceedings in particular, were the perfect backdrop for narrative structure, never allowed a simple 'gotcha' moment to interfere with the simple task at hand; to convince 12 jurors to agree one way or the other on their belief about what happened. His staging and narrative arc are perfectly aligned to create a serious, yet highly entertaining depiction of trial law at work. In fact, the film is often sighted by legal scholars as one of the best representation of juris prudence in American film.

Condemned in some circles, however, including local censors in Chicago, the film was the first to use very direct and explicit language, most importantly the language of sexual assault, to bring to light the terrible crime that may or may not have led to the crime on trial. Anatomy of a Murder is never simple, instead creating dynamic and flawed characters on both sides of the law and forcing the viewer to determine whether the jurors 'got it right." Preminger, who also acted as the producer of the film, was no stranger to pushing boundaries with censors, and also adept at letting the camera remain a neutral observer. Anatomy of a Murder is perhaps his best film at combining those elements because of his knowledge of the law and his understanding of its language and directness.

Stewart, by this time a Hollywood icon, creates a typically folksy character in the defense attorney, but at its core, he relies on the screenplay, wonderfully adapted by Oscar nominee Wendell Mayes, to emphasize the importance of words, how they are spoken and where they are placed. Video blogger Evan Pershack noted that in Anatomy of a Murder "every word is loaded with history and when you choose a word, you choose its history as well." The film becomes the most dynamic example of the drama of a courtroom because of its frank depiction of the words of assault, its placement of those words with simple, straightforward visuals and rich and engaging performances of flawed people.

Supporting performances by Lee Remick, Ben Gazzara, George C. Scott and Arthur O'Connell are stellar, but Boston attorney Joseph N. Welch, playing trial Judge Weaver practically steals the show. Famous for his nationally televised confrontation with Jospeh McCarthy and his infamous "have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last?" line, Welch was already a folk hero before performing for the first time in Anatomy of a Murder. His homespun line readings, whip smart wit, and amusing facial expressions, bely a deft acting touch and make the courtroom scenes even more dynamic.

Join us on Monday June 17th for a 16mm film presentation of Anatomy of a Murder, including a curated pre-show and lively post-screening discussion of the film, its place in Michigan history, and many other 'social films' of the late 1950's.

Producer Ivan Reitman's (Ghostbusters, Stripes) adult animated science fiction anthology opus has to be experienced! A wonderful combination of Second City sensability, mixed with Ralph Bakshi inspired visuals and Thundarr the Barbarian-like mythology, Heavy Metal is a sensory explosion...and it's back by a righteous Rock-n-Roll soundtrack featuring Black Sabbath, Blue Oyster Cult, Devo, and the title track from the Red Rocker himself, Sammy Hagar! Co-producer Leonard Mogel, the publisher of Heavy Metal magazine inspired the story based on pieces from the magazine and other sources, capturing the spirit of the graphic violence, sexuality and nudity that populated of the magazine.

Created in Canada, and featuring the voices of John Candy, Eugene Levy, Joe Flaherty and Harold Ramis, among many others, the film's eight vignettes are connected through the battle agains an evil force known as 'the sum of all evils' and includes action and comedy in equal measures. Using different animators due to timing and budget constraints, the vignettes are each unique, yet linked in spirit. Director Gerald Potterton battled producers and animators alike in his effort to stitch together what was largely positively reviewed, with Gene Siskel noting the film isn't meant to be viewed literally, but rather as a trip that 'works quite nicely."

A film perfect for Motor City Cinema Society, Heavy Metal first achieved fame through midnight screenings in the mid-eighties, before being a staple of home entertainment collections and has been the inspiration for such diverse films as Blade Runner, Akira, The Fifth Element and the television show Futurama.

Join us Monday June 10th for a head banging good time, featuring an entertaining pre-show and our always fun post screening discussion of all things Heavy Metal!!

Pinball Summer, or Pick-Up Summer, was a Canadian made teen comedy released in 1980. Directed George Mihalik, who would go on to direct My Bloody Valentine ('82, La Florida ('93), the largest grossing film in Canada for the year, and Black Christmas Legacy ('15). Pinball Summer, as our print is titled, was a bit of a family affair, as screenwriter Richard Zlniker assisted in getting his son Michael one of the lead parts. Firmly placed in the pantheon of 1980's teenage exploitation films, Pinball Summer tells the story of a randy group of high schoolers as they chase sex, summer fun, and more sex!!! It should be a fun time! If you loved Porky's, Hardbodies, Fast Times at Ridgemont High, or Hot Dog! The Movie back in the day, or more recently Superbad, American Pie or Dazed and Confused, you're bound to find enjoyment in Pinball Summer!!

So much more than a concert film, but still capturing riveting and energetic performances from Bo Didley, Bill Haley & the Comets, Little Richard, The Shirelles, The Coasters and the late, great Chuck Berry, Let the Good Times Roll is a cultural touchstone.  Featuring split screen and 3 screen images of social and historical images, newsreels and media of all kinds and hailed as the greatest rock-n-roll film of all-time when it released in 1973, Let the Good Times Roll is a spectacle in the truest sense of the word. That it takes place over the course of two concerts in 1973 is besides the point, because without fail, age has added to to soul of each and every performance. What youthful buoyancy that may be missing is more than made up for with the the wisdom of 1,000's of performances from Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Bo Diddley, Bill Haley and the Comets and many others! Split screen comparisons between '50's performances and scenes shot at Nassau Coliseum and Detroit's classic concert venue Cobo Arena during a rock-n-roll revival tour, illustrate the staying power of several of rocks formational artists. When the film debuted on May 25, 1973 it was shown in just 4 theaters, two of which were in New York City, but went on to be screened in countries including Finland, Hungary, and Sweden.