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More Musicals this month at the Aero!

From psychological horror (THE HAUNTING) to taut crime dramas to (BORN TO KILL, ODDS AGAINST TOMORROW) and sweeping musicals (STAR!, WEST SIDE STORY, THE SOUND OF MUSIC), director Robert Wise has made his mark on nearly every film genre. Because of this dexterity, it’s been harder to talk about Wise as a director than about brilliant individual films. A closer look, though, reveals a unique, deeply satisfying relationship between Wise’s highly polished surfaces and the stubborn, all-too-realistic subjects he’s tackled throughout his career. Wise spent his early years at RKO Pictures, working as an editor on a succession of films, from THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME to (famously) CITIZEN KANE and THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS. Promoted to director halfway through production on THE CURSE OF THE CAT PEOPLE, Wise learned fast, combining elements of Val Lewton’s gothic romanticism with Welles’ density of characterization. Wise’s 1949 masterpiece THE SET-UP is a synthesis of all these and more: Played out in real time, it traces the physical fall and spiritual emancipation of fighter Robert Ryan, making his grim last stand in the aptly-named Paradise City boxing ring. In Wise’s best films, a beautiful control of craft collides with the lives of people who refuse to hand themselves over to fate. Susan Hayward in I WANT TO LIVE!, Steve McQueen in THE SAND PEBBLES, even the whole human population in THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL – Wise depicts their struggle against fate with intelligence and the dignity of the human spirit.

Wednesday, July 8 – 7:30 PM

Double Feature:

BORN TO KILL, 1947, Warner Bros., 92 min. Dir. Robert Wise. Unquestionably the most depraved picture made in Hollywood in the 1940s, stars Lawrence Tierney (the meanest man in noir) as a homicidal social climber who meets his match in debased San Francisco socialite Claire Trevor. He marries her wealthy half-sister (Audrey Long), but carries on his torrid affair with Claire while tenacious detective Walter Slezak hunts him down. This murderous, panting pair make MacMurray and Stanwyck in DOUBLE INDEMNITY pale in comparison. Elisha Cook Jr. is Tierney’s justifiably nervous pal.

ODDS AGAINST TOMORROW, 1959, MGM Repertory, 96 min. Dir. Robert Wise. Bigoted ex-convict Robert Ryan’s mistrust of partner Harry Belafonte undermines the heist plans of their ex-cop leader Ed Begley, in this searing, underrated crime drama. Great atmospheric, on-location New York ambience fills every exterior shot. With Shelley Winters, Gloria Grahame. Trailer

Thursday, July 9 – 7:30 PM

Double Feature:

THE HAUNTING, 1963, Warner Bros., 112 min. Dir. Robert Wise. "Silence lay steadily against the wood and stone of Hill House, and whatever walked there, walked alone…" Paranormal researcher Richard Johnson leads a team of clairvoyants (Julie Harris, Claire Bloom) to determine if the notorious, bad-karma-filled Hill House is truly haunted. What he doesn’t bargain for is intensely neurotic Harris developing an unhealthy sensitivity to the mansion’s evil-charged atmosphere. Based on Shirley Jackson’s novel, THE HAUNTING is one of the all-time classics of the genre. In supernatural Cinemascope! With Russ Tamblyn. Trailer

THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL, 1951, 20^th Century Fox, 92 min. Dir. Robert Wise. Christ-like alien Michael Rennie arrives in Washington, D.C., with a one-eyed robot to curtail Earth’s weapons of mass destruction before they can jeopardize the universe. Patricia Neal turns in a memorable performance as one of the only human beings attempting to understand him in this still relevant anti-war, anti-nuclear proliferation masterpiece. With Billy Gray, Hugh Marlowe. Trailer

Friday, July 10 – 7:30 PM

70mm! STAR!, 1968, 20th Century Fox, 176 min. Director Robert Wise and star Julie Andrews reunited after THE SOUND OF MUSIC for this ambitious musical biopic. Andrews plays Gertrude Lawrence, a legendary British stage performer whose real-life excesses are a perfect match for Wise's opulent visual style (the film's costume changes alone make it worth seeing on the big screen in 70mm). Andrews performs songs by Gershwin, Cole Porter and others in a series of glorious set pieces that are a must for any musical lover. Trailer

Saturday, July 11 – 7:30 PM

70mm! WEST SIDE STORY, 1961, MGM Repertory, 151 min. Ultra-classic Robert Wise-and Jerome Robbins-helmed musical with Natalie Wood as the lovely Maria and Richard Beymer as her starcrossed lover Tony, surrounded by switchblade-carrying New York gangs led by Russ Tamblyn and George Chakiris. Fiery, charismatic Rita Moreno is Chakris’ sister. Leonard Bernstein’s soaring, instantly memorable score, with lyrics by a young Stephen Sondheim, stands as one of the finest ever written for the American musical theater. Winner of 10 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Director, Supporting Actor (Chakiris) and Actress (Moreno), Cinematography and Art Direction. Our thanks to MGM for striking a brand new print of the film! Trailer

Sunday, July 12 – 4:00 PM

Family Matinee:

THE SOUND OF MUSIC, 1965, 20^th Century Fox, 172 min. Dir. Robert Wise. Who can resist the triumphant musical tale of a nun (Julie Andrews) who becomes the nanny for the seven children of a widowed Austrian captain? Maria wins their hearts and eventually their father's as well. Meanwhile, the Nazis take control of their homeland (where the hills are alive with the Sound of Music). An Oscar winner for Best Picture and Robert Wise's flawless direction. Featuring "The Sound of Music," "My Favorite Things" and more of your favorite songs! THE SOUND OF MUSIC is a reason, a virtual commandment to go see movies on the Big Screen. Co-starring Christopher Plummer, Eleanor Parker, Anna Lee, Marni Nixon and Angela Cartwright, with a wonderful script by Ernest Lehman. (Please note that this is a 35mm print, not 70mm.) Trailer More family matinee screenings.