<<< September 2010 >>>

World Premiere! TITANS OF YOGA, 2010, 70 min. Dir. Johannes R. Fisslinger. This documentary brings together "25 masters of yoga, meditation and mindfulness in a magical journey of self-discovery and personal transformation," from Dr. Dean Ornish, a physician consultant to President Clinton, to Lilias Folan, the "First Lady of Yoga." As these yoga masters share their life experiences, their tales of addiction, depression and an HIV-positive diagnosis will move you - and the way they transform these challenges into life victories will have you cheering. Discussion following with director Johannes R. Fisslinger and "Titans" Dr. Dean Ornish, Shiva Rea, Vinnie Marino, Beth Shaw and others. Trailer   | Buy Tickets

Co-Presented with the British Academy of Film and Television Arts/Los Angeles

Double Feature: LIVE AND LET DIE, 1973, MGM Repertory, 121 min. Dir. Guy Hamilton. In his first outing as James Bond, Roger Moore takes on heroin magnate Yaphet Kotto and romances the gorgeous Jane Seymour. Blaxploitation meets elegant spy thriller in this chase-filled roller-coaster ride written by Tom Mankiewicz. Trailer

THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN, 1974, United Artists, 125 min. Dir. Guy Hamilton. Roger Moore's second outing as James Bond sends Agent 007 after a gadget that can harness the power of the sun; Christopher Lee is the bad guy he's up against. Britt Ekland is one of the most beautiful of all Bond girls as Mary Goodnight in this action classic scripted by Richard Maibaum and Tom Mankiewicz. Trailer  |  Buy Tickets

Double Feature: RICHARD PRYOR LIVE ON THE SUNSET STRIP, 1982, Sony Repertory, 82 min. Richard Pryor came back from his nearly fatal freebasing accident to create the best stand-up act of his career, captured beautifully in this landmark concert film by director Joe Layton and cinematographer Haskell Wexler. Pryor's riffs on marriage, the mob, Africa, and his own drug problems are hilarious, but the underlying complexity of his material makes this the rare stand-up routine that's as poignant as it is funny. Trailer

RICHARD PRYOR... HERE AND NOW, 1983, Sony Repertory, 83 min. Dir. Richard Pryor. The final concert film of arguably the greatest stand up comedian of all time, is his most raucous and political, as he takes on Ronald Reagan, racism, and the hecklers in the audience, as well as reintroducing classic characters like wino philosopher Mudbone! Buy Tickets

Back by Popular Demand! LOS ANGELES PLAYS ITSELF, 2003, 169 min. Dir. Thom Andersen. Voted Best Doc of 2004 by The Village Voice. A must-see for Los Angeles history buffs and cinema enthusiasts, who will marvel at the hundreds of archival and film clips revealing an almost secret history of the City of Angels! "This cinematic essay focuses on the discrepancy between the lived-in urban reality of Los Angeles and its various century-deep cinematic mythologies; the movie is about more than just what the movies get wrong. It’s about the way the imaginary space of cinema intrudes upon the actual space of our lives, so that the L.A. of the movies becomes a kind of separate urban reality unto itself." -Toronto Star See it now on the big screen. It will never be on DVD! Trailer   | Buy Tickets

Back by Popular Demand! LOS ANGELES PLAYS ITSELF, 2003, 169 min. Dir. Thom Andersen. [See description 9/4.] Discussion following with director Thom Andersen. Buy Tickets

Co-Presented with the British Academy of Film and Television Arts/Los Angeles

ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE, 1969, MGM/UA, 140 min. Dir. Peter Hunt. Former male model George Lazenby plays Ian Fleming’s superspy in one of the most satisfying (and underrated) of the 1960s Bonds. Lovely Diana Rigg proves more than Bond’s match as the two team up to topple scar-faced Ernst Blofeld (Telly Savalas) who is conducting suspect "allergy research" on beautiful women from around the world. Scripted by 007 veteran Richard Maibaum. Discussion following with actor George Lazenby. Trailer | Buy Tickets

SPEAKING IN TONGUES, 2009, Patchworks Productions, 60 min. Marcia Jarmel and Ken Schneider's fascinating documentary follows four kids from diverse backgrounds on a bold journey to becoming bilingual despite a troubled school system. At a time when 31 states have passed "English-only" laws, a few pioneering families have put their children in public schools where, from the first day of kindergarten, their teachers speak mostly Chinese or Spanish. Winner of the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the San Francisco International Film Festival. Discussion following the film with director Marcia Jarmel and executive director of Californians Live Together, Shelly Spiegel-Coleman, with more guests TBA. Trailer | Website | Buy Tickets

Patricia Neal Memorial Double Feature: A FACE IN THE CROWD, 1957, Warner Bros., 125 min. Dir. Elia Kazan. Andy Griffith is mesmerizing as Larry "Lonesome" Rhodes, a wild Arkansas vagrant-turned-television sensation in Kazan’s provocative and poignant masterpiece about fame, fraud, and the media’s transition from radio to television. Equally captivating is Patricia Neal as Marcia Jeffries, the naïve Sarah Lawrence-attendee who is the first to fall under Larry’s fraudulent spell. "Brilliantly cinematic melodrama…paints a luridly entertaining picture of modern show business." - Leslie Halliwell. Trailer

HUD, 1963, Paramount, 112 min. Dir. Martin Ritt. Paul Newman delivers one of his finest performances as a modern-day cowboy whose hell-raising, playboy ways put him into direct conflict with father Melvyn Douglas and sharp-tongued housekeeper, Patricia Neal (Winner, Best Actress). Buy Tickets

Presented by the Consulate General of Belgium in Los Angeles, in cooperation with Flanders Image and Wallonie Bruxelles Images, with the support of E.L.M.A. (European Languages and Movies in America): THE OVER-THE-HILL BAND, 2009, Kinepolis Film Distribution, 93 min. Dir. Geoffrey Enthoven. When 70-year-old Claire reconnects with her son Sid, a struggling R&B musician, she persuades Sid to help her form a new band with some of her aging girlfriends. Sid agrees, but with one condition: The old gals have to play his music. Groovy-grandma hilarity ensues in this winning comedy, which Variety dubbed the "Flemish counterpart of the Brit hit CALENDAR GIRLS." Trailer | Buy Tickets

THE GREAT CONTEMPORARY ART BUBBLE, 2009, DR TV International Sales, 96 min. The beginning of the 21st century saw an unprecedented boom in the contemporary art market - followed by an unprecedented collapse. Documentarian and art critic Ben Lewis bounces around the globe, interviewing the art world's biggest stars - including Damian Hurst and LA MOCA director Jeffrey Deitch - and uncovering an extraordinary world of speculation, secrecy and passion. After the screening, an exciting panel of art world professionals will discuss the issues brought up in the film. Website | Buy Tickets

STARSHIP TROOPERS, 1997, Sony Repertory, 129 min. Dir. Paul Verhoeven. This underrated sci-fi masterpiece is a dark political satire about an overly-militarized world, disguised as a violent space opera. Campy, melodramatic rock-jawed heroes (Casper Van Dien, Parick Muldoon), Archie and Jughead type (Neil Patrick Harris, Jake Busey) and sexually aggressive amazons (Dina Myer, Denise Richards) cavort in the fascist future fighting intelligent, insectoid monsters. Discussion after the film with director Paul Verhoeven. Join us in the lobby at 6:30PM for a booksigning of Verhoeven’s Jesus of Nazareth. Trailer | Buy Tickets

Double Feature: MANHATTAN, 1979, Sony Repertory, 96 min. Director Woody Allen is a divorced New York City comedy writer interacting with a variety of friends and lovers in this biting comedy-drama about relationships. Co-starring a dream cast, including Diane Keaton, Meryl Streep, Mariel Hemingway, Michael Murphy, Tisa Farrow. Trailer

L.A. STORY, 1991, Sony Repertory, 95 min. Dir. Mick Jackson. Taking the advice of a talking billboard, quirky weatherman Harris Telemacher (a top-notch Steve Martin) tries to woo a British newspaper reporter (Victoria Tennant) who is trying to get a handle on the glitzy, alien utopia that is Los Angeles. Buy Tickets

"Chasing Mummies," Episode 5: SUNKEN, 44 min. Zahi Hawass has finally permitted archaeologists from the Hellenic Institute to dive into the Mediterranean Sea and bring up a relic confirmed to be part of Cleopatra’s historic shrine. But with the persistent problems of permits and an impending storm approaching, Hawass’ fury is felt by everyone working to get this 2,000-year-old pylon out of Alexandria's Eastern Harbor. Trailer

THE MUMMY, 1932, Universal, 73 min. Dir. Karl Freund. Boris Karloff gives one of his finest performances as the 3000-year-old Egyptian who returns from the dead to reclaim reincarnated love Zita Johann, in cinematographer-turned-director Karl Freund’s marvelously atmospheric chiller - easily the best of many mummy films to come. Lecture and discussion between films with archaeologist David Cheetham. Trailer | Buy Tickets

Double Feature: REPO MAN, 1984, Universal, 92 min. Dir. Alex Cox. "It happens sometimes. People just explode. Natural causes." Veteran repo warhorse Bud (Harry Dean Stanton in one of his funniest roles) breaks in new repo man Otto (Emilio Estevez) while tracking a vintage Chevy Malibu driven by a lobotomized nuclear physicist (Fox Harris). But the two soon find that ruthless feds are hoping to retrieve the car and get the radioactive alien corpse out of the trunk! Trailer

SEARCHERS 2.0, 2007, Helltown Pictures, 96 min. Dir. Alex Cox. When washed-up Western actors Mel and Fred (Del Zamora and Ed Pansullo) hear that a notorious director from their past will attend a screening in Arizona, the two decide to drive out to the desert and exact revenge on the evil auteur. Mel's daughter (Jaclyn Jonet) grudgingly lends her car to the delusional duo and tags along on a darkly comic road trip. Discussion between films with director Alex Cox. Trailer | Buy Tickets

Art Directors Guild Film Society Tribute to Eiko Ishioka, Sponsored by Variety: MISHIMA: A LIFE IN FOUR CHAPTERS, 1985, Warner Bros., 121 min. Dir. Paul Schrader. This episodic, impressionistic portrait of the life and work of the Japanese writer Yukio Mishima stars Ken Ogata in the title role, while Roy Scheider contributes off-screen English narration, also as Mishima. Produced by Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas. Join us as we honor Oscar-winning production designer Eiko Ishioka. Clip reel and PowerPoint presentation preceding the film. Trailer | Buy Tickets

OH, MEN! OH, WOMEN!, 1957, 20th Century Fox, 90 min. Bored housewife Mildred Turner (Ginger Rogers) seeks psychiatric counseling from Dr. Coles (David Niven) - but little does Mildred know that the doctor has a few emotional problems of his own, namely that one of his patients is the ex-boyfriend of his increasingly strange fiancée (Barbara Rush). Director Nunnally Johnson's farcical, fantastical romp excellently captures the comical woes of married and soon-to-be-married life. Discussion between films with actress Barbara Rush. Buy Tickets

Larry Karaszewski Presents! THE PLAYER, 1992, Fine Line, 124 min. Director Robert Altman and writer Michael Tolkin mercilessly rip apart the higher-ups at major movie studios and conjure a spot-on satire in the process. After accidentally killing a writer who has been harassing him, exec Griffin Mill (Tim Robbins) tries to cover his tracks but becomes mesmerized by the dead scribe’s girlfriend (Greta Scacchi). Trailer

THE RAPTURE, 1991, Fine Line Features, 100 min. Dir. Michael Tolkin. Sharon (Mimi Rogers), a bored telephone operator, spends her evenings out with her boyfriend and picking up couples for casual group sex. When a collection of strange occurrences all seem to add up to the existence of a higher power, Sharon becomes a full-on born-again Christian. But she soon finds that God can be lost as quickly as found. Discussion between films with writer/director Michael Tolkin moderated by Larry Karaszewski. Trailer | Buy Tickets