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Home , Concert film, Echo in the Canyon, Lynn Shelton, Music Box Theatre, Satan Met a Lady, Sean Baker (filmmaker)

CALENDAR JUNE 7 - JULY 25, 2019

DO THE RIGHT THING 30th Anniversary - On 35mm Opens June 28

Chicago’s Year-Round Film Festival 3733 N. Southport Avenue, Chicago www.musicboxtheatre.com 773.871.6607

DISNEY’S ECHO IN THE CANYON THE OF STAR WARS: SWORD PINOCCHIO JOHN SINGLETON A NEW HOPE OF TRUST ON 35MM IN PERSON JUNE 25 - JULY 9 MEMBER’S SCREENING OPENS JULY 19 JUNE 9 AT NOON OPENS JUNE 21 JULY 16 AT 7PM Welcome TO THE MUSIC BOX THEATRE!

FEATURE FILMS 4 HALSTON OPENS JUNE 7 6 ECHO IN THE CANYON OPENS JUNE 21 7 IN THE AISLES OPENS JUNE 21 9 DO THE RIGHT THING OPENS JUNE 28 11 TONI MORRISON: THE PIECES I AM OPENS JULY 5 11 ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK JULY 5-11 12 PARIS IS BURNING OPENS JULY 12 13 JUNIPER TREE OPENS JULY 12 15 HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH JULY 19-24 16 SWORD OF TRUST OPENS JULY 19 18 COMMENTARIES SERIES 24 CLASSIC MATINEES 26 CHICAGO FILM SOCIETY 28 SILENT CINEMA 30 STAGE TO SCREEN 33 MIDNIGHTS SPECIAL EVENTS 4 GALLAGHER WAY MOVIE SERIES MAY - SEPTEMBER 5 DEPAUL PREMIERE FILM FESTIVAL JUNE 7 5 THE FEELING OF BEING WATCHED JUNE 8-10 6 DISNEY’S PINOCCHIO JUNE 9 7 METAL MOVIE NIGHT JUNE 22 8 JOHN SINGLETON TRIBUTE JUNE 25-JULY 9 10 METROPOLIS JUNE 30 10 JAWS DRINK-A-LONG JULY 3 12 DECONSTRUCTING JULY 7 & 10 13 LOONEY TUNES ON 35MM JULY 13 & 14 14 STAR WARS: EPISODE IV JULY 16 14 GHOSTBUSTERS JULY 17 15 BJORK: BIOPHILIA LIVE JULY 18 17 MUSIC BOX 90TH ANNIVERSARY COMING IN AUGUST

Brian Andreotti, Director of Programming VOLUME 37 ISSUE 156 Ryan Oestreich, General Manager Copyright 2019 Southport Music Box Corp. MusicBoxTheatre.com Buck LePard, Senior Operations Manager Will Morris, Programming Manager Published by Newcity Custom Publishing Newcitynetwork.com Claire Alden, Group Sales and Membership Manager For information, email [email protected] Steve Prokopy, Public Relations Manager or call 312.243.8786 Julian Antos, Technical Director and Assistant Programmer Kyle Westphal, Programming Associate Cover Image from the film DO THE RIGHT THING, opening June 28 at Music Box Theatre. Rebecca Lyon, Assistant Technical Director

Music Box Theatre 3733 North Southport musicboxtheatre.com 773-871-6604 showtimes 773-871-6607 office 3 FEATURES AND SPECIAL EVENTS

MAY 15 - SEPTEMBER 25 SPECIAL EVENT

MUSIC BOX THEATRE MOVIES AT GALLAGHER WAY

Every Other Wednesday, May 15 - September 25 at 7:30pm Come enjoy Gallagher Way’s free summer movie series with friends and family, brought to you by Chicago’s premier venue for independent and classic films, the Music Box Theatre. Running every other Wednesday through September, join us as we screen classic films including SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE, CLUELESS, FIELD OF DREAMS, and more. All screenings take place at Gallagher Way, located at 3637 N. Clark Street, Chicago. Visit GallagherWay.com for more information and events. There is no cost for Music Box Theatre Movies at the Gallagher Way. Join us for free!

OPENS JUNE 7 FEATURE JUNE 8-10 SPECIAL FILM EVENT

Director Assia Boundaoui in-person for Q&As

THE FEELING OF BEING WATCHED Real-world HALSTON READ PETER SOBCZYNSKI’S conspiracy ” A roller coaster of “ COMMENTARY ON PAGE 18 –Variety “fabulousness and folly” 3 Shows Only - June 8-10 DIRECTED BY: Frédéric Tcheng –The Hollywood Reporter (Assia Boundaoui, 2018, 87 mins, DCP) 2019, 105 mins, DCP In the Arab-American neighborhood outside of Chicago where journalist and filmmaker Assia HALSTON captures the epic sweep of the life and times of the legendary designer Roy Halston Frowick, Boundaoui grew up, most of her neighbors think they have been under surveillance for over a decade. the man who set women free with his unstructured designs and strove to “dress all of America.” Framing While investigating their experiences, Assia uncovers tens of thousands of pages of FBI documents the story as an investigation featuring actress and writer Tavi Gevinson as a young archivist diving into that prove her hometown was the subject of one of the largest counter terrorism investigations ever the Halston company records, acclaimed filmmaker Frédéric Tcheng expertly weaves rare archival conducted in the U.S. before 9/11, code-named “Operation Vulgar Betrayal.” footage and intimate interviews with Halston’s family, friends and collaborators including Jacqueline Kennedy, Liza​ Minnelli​, Andy Warhol and Iman. Reaching beyond the glamour and glitz, Tcheng reveals THE FEELING OF BEING WATCHED follows Assia as she pieces together this secret FBI operation, Halston’s profound impact on fashion, culture and business. while grappling with the effects of a lifetime of surveillance on herself and her family.

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JUNE 9 SPECIAL OPENS JUNE 21 FEATURE EVENT FILM

A Music Box Films Release!

Presented on 35mm! IN THE AISLES [A] poignant and richly “sympathetic film.” DIRECTED BY: Thomas Stuber –The Hollywood Reporter DISNEY’S PINOCCHIO STARRING: Franz Rogowski, Sandra Hüller, Peter Kurth 2018, 125 mins, DCP, In German with English subtitles It will break your heart — One Show “a few times — but it will Sunday, June 9 at Noon When the reclusive Christian (Franz Rogowski, TRANSIT) takes a job definitely leave a smile Only on your face.” working the night shift at a big box store, he becomes enamored by his The second animated film from Walt Disney Studios, the Music Box brings the timeless –ScreenAnarchy charming but mysterious co-worker “Sweets Marion” (Sandra Hüller, story of PINOCCHIO back to the big screen with its masterful , award-winning TONI ERDMANN), with whom he begins to share flirtatious break room music and unforgettable characters! With his faithful friend Jiminy Cricket by his side, Pinocchio coffees and conversations. But Marion has secrets of her own and when she suddenly goes on sick embarks on fantastic adventures that test his bravery, loyalty and honesty until he triumphs in his leave, Christian is tempted to fall into habits of his dark past. An affecting and bittersweet glimpse quest for his heart’s desire: to become a real boy. into the shared connections of a motley group of workers, IN THE AISLES quietly celebrates the Winner of 2 , including Best Song for “When You Wish Upon A Star.” beauty in the day-to-day and the collective pride we take in our jobs with dark humor and nuance.

OPENS JUNE 21 FEATURE JUNE 22 SPECIAL FILM EVENT

Opening Night - Jakob Dylan in person! METAL MOVIE NIGHTS: HIGHWAY TO HELL ECHO IN THE CANYON A combination musical READ PATRICK MCDONALD’ “documentary and concert Saturday, June 22 at Midnight COMMENTARY ON PAGE 22 film right up there with DIRECTED BY: Andrew Slater S the all-time greats.” (Ate de Jong, 1991, 94 mins, Digital) 2019, 90 mins, DCP –FilmThreat Featuring Metal Vinyl Weekend | Hosted by Chris Larkin and Gregg Elzinga ECHO IN THE CANYON celebrates the explosion of popular music that Sponsored by 3 Floyds came out of LA’s Laurel Canyon in the mid-‘60s as folk went electric and , and The Mamas and the Papas gave birth to the California Sound. It was a moment when Laurel Canyon Chad Lowe and Kristy Swanson star in this horror-comedy-action-adventure as young lovers Charlie emerged as a hotbed of creativity for a new generation of musicians who would put an indelible stamp and Rachel eloping to Las Vegas for a secret wedding. Standing in their way is Satan, who has taken a on the history of American music. liking to the lovely Rachel, and has sent his Hell Cop to bring her down to Hell where she can satisfy his devilish lust. When Charlie follows, he’s thrust into an unexpected world of living satanic bikers, Featuring Jakob Dylan, as he uncovers never-before-heard personal details behind the bands and their cannibalistic blondes and a coffee shop where the only thing living is the food. songs and how that music continues to inspire today. With candid conversations and performances with , , , , (in his last film interview), Event kicks off in the Lounge w/ Metal Vinyl Weekend at 10pm. Screening begins at Midnight. , , Cat Power and Norah Jones. Also featuring the BUDFOOT (Dir. Tim Reis & James Sizemore).

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SPECIAL OPENS JUNE 28 FEATURE YOU’LL NEVER BE EVENT FILM AS IMPORTANT AS THE OCEAN THE FILMS OF JOHN SINGLETON June 25 - July 9

The Music Box pays tribute to the groundbreaking director with a trio of his most powerful, personal films.

BOYZ N THE HOOD (1991, 112 mins, DCP) Tuesday, June 25 at 7pm Friday, June 28 & Saturday, June 29 at Midnight The granddaddy of ‘90s ‘hood dramas charts On the diverging fates of three friends—includ- 35mm! ing rapper Ice Cube, making a big impression in his first film—coming of age in the urban war zone of South Central L.A. John Singleton became the first black filmmaker ever nominated for a Best Director Oscar, as well as the youngest nominee ever in the category, for his still-potent debut, a landmark look at the devastation of gang violence and the young men caught in its cycle. —BAM

POETIC JUSTICE (1993, 109 mins, DCP) Friday, July 5 & Saturday, July 6 at Midnight John Singleton’s follow-up to BOYZ N THE HOOD casts two of the biggest music su- 30th perstars of the ‘90s—Janet Jackson (sporting Anniversary! now-iconic box braids) and Tupac Shakur DO THE RIGHT THING (displaying his softer side)—and builds a free- flowing romance around their undeniable chemistry. Peppered with the poetry of Maya Angelou, POETIC JUSTICE is a sensitive, hopeful depiction of black struggle, joy and creativity. —BAM DIRECTED BY: Spike Lee STARRING: Spike Lee, Danny Aiello, John Turturro, Rosie Perez, I have been given only a Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, Samuel L. Jackson “few filmgoing experiences in my life to equal the first time ROSEWOOD 1989, 120 mins, 35mm I saw DO THE RIGHT THING. Set on one block of Brooklyn’s Bed-Stuy Do or Die neighborhood, Most movies remain up (1997, 140 mins, 35mm) there on the screen. Only at the height of summer, Spike Lee’s 1989 masterpiece confirmed a few penetrate your soul.” Tuesday, July 9 at 7pm him as a writer and filmmaker of peerless vision and passionate –Roger Ebert America is a country obsessed with neatly social engagement. Over the course of a single day, the easygoing forgetting its past, and ROSEWOOD is a film interactions of a cast of unforgettable characters—Da Mayor, eager to force remembrance. In many of his Mother Sister, Mister Señor Love Daddy, Tina, Sweet Dick Willie, Buggin Out, Radio Raheem, Sal, films, but particularly in ROSEWOOD, Single- Pino, Vito and Lee’s Mookie among them—give way to heated confrontations as tensions rise along ton chose to see black people as more than racial fault lines, ultimately exploding into violence. just victims of violence, or capable of carrying Punctuated by the anthemic refrain of Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power,” DO THE RIGHT THING is a out violence. At its heart, ROSEWOOD is a love story, between Ving Rhames’ Mann and Elise Neal’s Beulah, but landmark in American cinema, as politically and emotionally charged and as relevant now as when also a love story about people who didn’t have much, fighting to keep what they gained. —Hanif Abdurraqib it first hit the big screen.

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JUNE 30 SPECIAL OPENS JULY 5 FEATURE EVENT FILM

TONI MORRISON: THE PIECES I AM Rousing! “Underscores the DIRECTED BY: Timothy Greenfield-Sanders deeply humanistic METROPOLIS soul responsible Presented 2019, 120 mins, DCP for broadening the with Live An artful and intimate meditation on the life and works of the legendary storyteller literary landscape.” Sunday June 30 at 7pm –Variety and Nobel prize-winner. From her childhood in a steel town in Ohio to ‘70s-era (Fritz Lang, 1927, 148 mins, DCP) Score! book tours with Muhammad Ali, from the front lines with Angela Davis to her Featuring a Live Original Score performed by David DiDonato own riverfront writing room, Toni Morrison leads an assembly of her peers, critics and colleagues Made in Germany during the Weimar Period, Fritz Lang’s METROPOLIS is an expressionist sci-fi on an exploration of race, America, and the human condition as seen through the prism of her own allegory, regarded as one of the first feature-length science fiction movies. Set in a futuristic urban literature. Inspired to write because no one took a “little black girl” seriously, Morrison reflects on her dystopia, METROPOLIS follows the attempts of Freder, the wealthy son of the city master, and lifelong deconstruction of the master narrative. Woven together with a rich collection of art, history Maria, a saintly figure to the workers, to overcome the vast gulf separating the classes in their city and personality, the film includes discussions about her many critically acclaimed works, her role as an and bring the workers together with Joh Fredersen, the city master. editor of iconic African-American literature and her time teaching at Princeton University.

JULY 3 SPECIAL JULY 5-11 FEATURE EVENT FILM

ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK New 4K Restoration! MUSIC BOX DRINK-A-LONG: JAWS DIRECTED BY: John Carpenter STARRING: Kurt Russell, Lee Van Cleef, Ernest Borgnine, Adrienne Barbeau 1981, 99 mins, DCP Wednesday, July 3 at 7pm When the President crash lands on the island of , now a maximum security prison, It’s the monthly Music Box Drink-A-Long! This month—grab your floaties and your bad hats, because Snake Plissken is sent in to rescue him...or die trying. John Carpenter crafts a detailed, lived-in post- we’re drinking along to ’s JAWS! Hosts Brooke and Cody have created a list of apocalyptic world, and inhabits it with memorable characters played by previous collaborators drinking rules to accompany the movie, and they’ll be cuing you when to drink (by cheerfully yelling (THE FOG’s Adrienne Barbeau, HALLOWEEN’s Donald Pleasence), heavyweights (THE GOOD, at you in the theater). A specialty cocktail will be on hand, plus the Music Box’s usual selection of THE BAD & THE UGLY’s Lee Van Cleef, SHAFT’s Isaac Hayes), and reinvents former Disney child star beer and wine. And even if drinking isn’t your thing, you can still join us to scream and shout along! Kurt Russell as one of the ‘80s most badass action heroes. The result is a sci-fi action thriller where You must be at least 21 or older to join in the fun. the rules are simple: Once you go in, you don’t come out.

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JULY 7 & 10 SPECIAL OPENS JULY 12 FEATURE EVENT FILM

Friday & THE JUNIPER TREE Saturday in 35mm DIRECTED BY: Nietzchka Keene DECONSTRUCTING THE BEATLES’ STARRING: Björk Guðmundsdóttir, Bryndis Petra Bragadóttir MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR 1990, 78 mins An unsung talent in her lifetime, director Nietzchka Keene’s stark, stunning debut feature THE Sunday, July 7 at 11:30am & Wednesday, July 10 at 7pm JUNIPER TREE is loosely based on a Brothers Grimm of the same name, and stars Björk in her riveting first on-screen performance. In 1967, The Beatles embarked on an ambitious project, writing and directing a one-hour film, MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR. The music for that film is some of The Beatles’ psychedelic best. In Set in medieval Iceland, THE JUNIPER TREE follows Margit and her older sister Katla as they flee DECONSTRUCTING THE BEATLES’ MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR, composer/producer/Beatles expert for safety after their mother is burned to death for witchcraft. Finding shelter with Johan and his Scott Freiman delves into the creative process behind “The Fool On The Hill,” “Blue Jay Way,” “I Am resentful young son Jonas, the sisters help form an impromptu family unit that’s soon strained The Walrus,” and other selections from MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR. Scott will also “deconstruct” by Katla’s burgeoning sorcery. Photographed on location in the stunning landscapes of Iceland in other songs from the Magical Mystery Tour album, including “Strawberry Fields Forever,” “Penny spectacular black-and-white, THE JUNIPER TREE is a potent allegory for misogyny and its attendant Lane” and “All You Need Is Love.” tragedies, and a major rediscovery for art house audiences.

OPENS JULY 12 FEATURE JULY 13 & 14 SPECIAL FILM EVENT

PARIS IS BURNING 2K DIRECTED BY: Jennie Livingston Restoration! A 1990, 71 mins, DCP SUMMER ON Where does voguing come from, and what, exactly, is throwing shade? This landmark SOUTHPORT documentary provides a vibrant snapshot of the 1980s through the eyes of New York SPECIAL! City’s African American and Latinx Harlem drag ball scene. Made over seven years, PARIS IS LOONEY TUNES ON 35MM! BURNING offers an intimate portrait of rival fashion “houses,” from fierce contests for trophies, to house mothers offering sustenance in a world rampant with homophobia and transphobia, racism, To coincide with the annual Summer on Southport street festival, the Music Box presents classic AIDS and poverty. Featuring legendary voguers, drag queens and trans women, PARIS IS BURNING Warner Bros. cartoons on 35MM. Join Bugs, Daffy and the rest of the gang as we screen some brings it, celebrating the joy of movement, the force of eloquence, and the draw of community. classic cartoons guaranteed to bring out the kid in you. Digitally remastered by the UCLA Television Archive in conjunction with Sundance Institute Catch over 3 hours of cartoons FOR FREE, starting at 11am on Saturday and Sunday. Take a break from and Outfest UCLA. Preservation funded by Sundance Institute, Outfest UCLA and the Andrew the outdoor activities to watch Looney Tunes on the famous Music Box big screen. Come and go as J. Kuehn Jr. Foundation. you please!

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JULY 16 SPECIAL JULY 18 SPECIAL EVENT EVENT

Exclusive One Show STAR WARS: EPISODE IV - A NEW HOPE FREE Screening BJÖRK: BIOPHILIA LIVE for Music Box Only! Members! Tuesday, July 16 at 7pm Thursday, July 18 at 9pm (George Lucas, 1977, 121 mins, DCP) (Peter Strickland & Nick Fenton, 2014, 97 mins, DCP) Nineteen years after the formation of the Empire, Luke Skywalker is thrust into the struggle of the BIOPHILIA LIVE is a concert film that captures the human element of Björk’s multi-disciplinary Rebel Alliance when he meets Obi-Wan Kenobi, who has lived for years in seclusion on the desert multimedia project: biophilia. recorded live at Björk’s show at London’s Alexandra Palace in 2013. planet of Tatooine. Obi-Wan begins Luke’s Jedi training as Luke joins him on a daring mission to rescue Featuring Björk and her band performing every song on ‘biophilia’ and more, using a broad variety the beautiful Rebel leader Princess Leia from the clutches of the evil Empire. And after Obi-Wan of instruments—some digital, some traditional and some completely unclassifiable. BIOPHILIA sacrifices himself in a lightsaber duel with his former apprentice, Darth Vader, Luke proves that the has been hailed as “A captivating record of an artist in full command of her idiosyncratic powers” Force is with him by destroying the Empire’s dreaded Death Star. (Variety) and “An imaginative stand-alone artwork” (The Hollywood Reporter) and is a vital piece Special Edition Cut of the grand mosaic that is “Biophilia.”

JULY 17 SPECIAL JULY 19-24 FEATURE EVENT FILM

GHOSTBUSTERS HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH Co-Presented by The Harold Ramis Film School New 4K DIRECTED BY: John Cameron Mitchell DCP Wednesday, July 17 at 7pm STARRING: John Cameron Mitchell, Miriam Shor, Michael Pitt Remaster! (Ivan Reitman, 1984, 105 mins, DCP) 2001, 95 mins, DCP When ghosts go on a rampage, only four men can save the world! Fired from university research With this trailblazing musical, writer-director-star John Cameron Mitchell and jobs, Drs. Venkman (Bill Murray), Stantz (Dan Aykroyd) and Spengler (Harold Ramis) set up shop composer-lyricist Stephen Trask brought their signature creation from stage to as “Ghostbusters,” hiring Zeddemore (Ernie Hudson) and together ridding Manhattan of bizarre screen for a movie as unclassifiable as its protagonist. Raised a boy in East Berlin, Hedwig (Mitchell) apparitions. But the spirit exterminators are severely tested undergoes a traumatic personal transformation in order to emigrate to the U.S., where she reinvents when Dana Barrett (Sigourney Weaver) and her nerdy neighbor herself as an “internationally ignored” but divinely talented rock diva. The film tells Hedwig’s story Louis Tully (Rick Moranis) become possessed by demons living through her music, an eclectic assortment of original punk anthems and power ballads by Trask, in their building. Soon every spook in the city is loose and our matching them with a freewheeling cinematic mosaic of music-video fantasies, animated interludes heroes face their supreme challenge. If you want your spirits and moments of bracing emotional realism. A hard-charging song cycle and a tender character study, raised, who you gonna call? Ghostbusters! HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH is a tribute to the transcendent power of rock and roll.

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OPENS JULY 19 FEATURE SPECIAL FILM EVENT

SWORD OF TRUST is better than READ ANDREA GRONVALL’S “ever in Lynn Shelton’s COMMENTARY ON PAGE 20 endearing misadventure” DIRECTED BY: Lynn Shelton –IndieWire STARRING: Marc Maron, Jillian Bell, Michaela Watkins, Jon Bass 2019, 89 mins, DCP Mel (Marc Maron) is a cantankerous pawnshop owner in Alabama who spends most of his time swindling customers. When Cynthia (Jillian Bell) and her wife Mary (Michaela Watkins) try to hawk a Civil War-era sword inherited from Cynthia’s recently deceased grandfather, Mel tries to get the better of them. The sword, however, comes with a convoluted report claiming it as proof the South actually won the war. Before long, the coveted “prover item” draws the attention of overzealous conspiracy theorists, and Mel and Cynthia have to join forces in order to sell the sword to the highest bidder. Infused with a lot of heart and laughs, SWORD OF TRUST takes a stab at uncovering emotional truths through moments of hilarity and hits right on the mark. BRINGING THE ARTHOUSE TO YOUR HOUSE

Coming in August THE MUSIC BOX THEATRE: 90TH ANNIVERSARY Subscription video on demand for $4.99/mo or $49.99/yr The Music Box Theatre first opened its doors to Chicago in August 1929. This summer, the Music Box celebrates 90 years of cinema with a weeklong Join free for 7 days | Currently available with Roku celebration of films, special events and our history. Sign up at www.musicbox.direct

16 Music Box Theatre June-July 2019 Features and Special Events 17 COMMENTARY HALSTON OPENS JUNE 7 SEE PAGE 4 FOR DETAILS.

THE PURE DECADENCE OF HAUTE COUTURE he developed a loyal fan base that included the likes of Bianca Jagger and Liza Minnelli that helped to make him a household name brand that would go on to create everything from fragrances to Examining HALSTON’s Influence on American Culture uniforms for Braniff Airways and the 1976 U.S. Olympics Team. By Peter Sobczynski There are two key elements that help to separate HALSTON from many of the recent flood of fashion-related documentaries. For starters, most films of this sort drop phrases like “innovative” The last few years have seen an influx of documentaries revolving around people involved with the or “ground-breaking” when describing their subjects without doing much to back up those fashion industry ranging from the designers who create the clothing in question to the magazine assertions—the assumption being that such films are preaching to the converted. Tcheng does editors who elect to highlight these creations in their influential publications. Some of these films a good job of conveying, via the judicious use of archival videotaped material showing Halston at have been entertaining to some degree but in many cases, they have often come across more as work as well as current interviews with former friends, colleagues and co-workers (including Joel big-screen brand extensions than as comprehensive or incisive examinations of their respective Schumacher, who started off in the fashion industry before become a filmmaker), what it was about subjects and their influence on the industry as a whole. Frederic Tcheng’s HALSTON is as much of Halston’s approach to his craft that made it stand out from other designers in ways that attracted an exception to that rule as its subject, fashion designer Roy Halston Frowick, was to the world of both fashionistas and ordinary people alike. You come out of it genuinely feeling as if you have fashion in the way that it charts how Frowick emerged from a conservative upbringing in Iowa to learned something about the subject at hand. The other is that the Halston story is just more become one of the top names in fashion during the sixties and seventies—even staging a show at interesting than most, especially when it shifts to the eighties and his company’s eventual collapse the Palace of Versailles at one point—only to see it all collapse around him in an equally spectacular in the face of a number of bad business dealings, including a controversial billion-dollar deal with manner in the eighties before his untimely AIDS-related death in 1990. The result is a roller-coaster JCPenny that was meant to merge high fashion and mass marketing but ended up causing an industry combination of haute couture and pure decadence that plays at times like a real-life hybrid of backlash from which he never recovered. (Ironically, while this approach proved to be disastrous PHANTOM THREAD and BOOGIE NIGHTS. for Halston in the short run, it would prove to be eerily prescient in the ways in which the industry It says a lot about the immense influence that Halston had on American culture that even though would eventually develop over time.) the label bearing his name has pretty much only been a shell of its former self for decades now, the Part riveting narrative and part nostalgia machine, HALSTON is a fascinating take on the life and very mention of his name can still conjure up memories of a more glamorous era where his designs work of an artist who may have lost everything, even his name, but whose influence on his industry were at the forefront of what was going on. He first became internationally famous as a hat designer can still be felt to this day. When it is all over, my guess is that most viewers will go back out into and was responsible for the iconic pillbox hat that Jacqueline Kennedy wore to her husband’s the world and realize that it could use a little bit of the old Halston touch more than ever. presidential inauguration in 1961. When the demand for hats began to fade, he shifted into designing women’s clothing, opening his first boutique in 1968 and introducing his first ready-to-wear line the Peter Sobczynski is a locally based film critic whose work can be seen at RogerEbert.com next year. His minimalist but chic designs helped to redefine formalwear for American women and and eFilmcritic.com.

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It’s a serious set-up for the light comedy to come, but it does establish the theme of trust. In whom and what should we set stock? Bass costars as his assistant Nathaniel, a gullible internet surfer who never met a conspiracy theory he didn’t like, and Watkins is Mary, an acerbic lesbian who’s suspicious of almost everyone; she’s come to town with her lover Cynthia, played by Bell, who has inherited her grandfather’s antique sword, an object of questionable provenance. The sword, with accompanying documents, is supposedly proof that the South won the Civil War (or, as it’s known in Alabama and thereabouts, the War of Aggression). Soon the race is on to see who can out-con whom and soak a secret online society of redneck “provers” for a hefty $40,000.

Maron, who has his share of funny lines, is essentially the straight man for the other characters’ goofiness; this is the most screwball bunch of connivers you would ever want—make that not SWORD OF TRUST OPENS JULY 19. want—to be trapped in a truck with. But Maron is also the soul of the picture (and composed the SEE PAGE 16 FOR DETAILS. blues-infused music score). Answering the others’ query about his history with Deirdre, his character resurrects painful memories of his dark years of addiction. After years of sobriety, it’s not a place Mel wants to revisit, but anyone who understands anything about recovery knows that a recovering DELUSION AND DENIAL IN THE AGE OF FAKE NEWS alcoholic and/or drug addict is just that: someone who may be in recovery, but will always be an addict because of the consequent long-term neurochemical and functional changes in the brain, The Humorous SWORD OF TRUST and the danger of relapses that could be triggered by any number of things. The goal is to face the By Andrea Gronvall problem head on, stop using, and stay stopped, but that takes willpower and a certain amount of faith—and not necessarily faith in a higher power. It requires a belief that life is worth living again. Writer/director/producer/actor Lynn Shelton has a deft touch in peeling back the layers of her When you think about it, the delusions under which the crackpot “provers” in SWORD OF TRUST sometimes prickly subjects, whether in the drama OUTSIDE IN, the satirical , or the labor are not that far removed from the layers of denial an addict constructs to maintain his/her comedy of manners, YOUR SISTER’S SISTER. She’s expert at creating an atmosphere of intimacy dysfunctional lifestyle and relationships, although the swipes the filmmakers take at laced with recognizable human behaviors, in part because she favors an improvisational approach and the paranoia of modern-day conspiracists’ ideation are fairly gentle. The humor here is not of to working with her actors. More broadly humorous and ambling than some of her other work (it the nasty sort, and is far removed from the vitriol of fake news and finger-pointing that peppers our involves a road trip, of sorts), her latest film, SWORD OF TRUST, is tailor-made for the whip-smart media daily. It’s the antic gaiety of the movie that encourages the audience not to demonize those standup comedian Marc Maron, and features an ensemble of performers skilled at improv--such who may be in the grip of a peculiar obsession (and hopefully will eventually snap out of). Many in as Michaela Watkins and Jillian Bell, members of famed troupe The Groundlings—and the southern U.S. regard the aftermath of the Civil War as the lowest point in their history; for them, physical comedy, like up-and-comer Jon Bass (’s THE BOOK OF MORMON). Shelton’s it’s no laughing matter. co-writer, Michael Patrick O’Brien, who appears in a cameo at the top of the film, is a veteran of SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE; like many an SNL alumnus, he got his start at The Second City in Chicago. But laughter has an amazing power to heal, allowing us to stand outside of ourselves, reflect on the past, and say, “Whoa! That was truly horrible, but look, we’re still standing. Where do we go from Shelton and Maron have a seemingly effortless rapport: she and he hit it off immediately when he here?” Is it possible to hit rock bottom, and then pull out of the ensuing well of isolation, and leave interviewed her on his podcast WTF on August 10, 2015, during the happy week he was celebrating blame and self-recrimination behind? It helps if you can joke about it. If that’s possible for Marc/Mel, his sixteenth anniversary of living clean and sober. She went on to direct him the next year in two then maybe there’s hope for the rest of us. And we could all use a little more trust. episodes of his IFC TV series, MARON, which led to helming four episodes of his current Netflix series, GLOW, and a Netflix comedy special, MARC MARON: TOO REAL. In SWORD OF TRUST he Andrea Gronvall is a contributor to the Chicago Reader and other publications and web sites, and stars as Mel, a cranky pawn shop owner in a small Alabama town, who relocated there from New has served as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Chicago’s Graham School. She holds a Mexico after a codependent relationship with his addicted lover Deirdre nearly destroyed him. bachelor’s degree in film theory, history and criticism from Northwestern University. After 21+ years Deirdre, played by Shelton, has followed him to Alabama to make amends, but early in the movie as a producer of a weekly syndicated talk show, she began the long road to recovery from the televi- when she corners him at work, looking for money she says she needs to repair her broken-down car, sion industry. She’s grateful to have found her way into writing, something she should have been he doesn’t believe her and turns her away with the words, “I can’t do this anymore.” doing all along. But, hey—better late than never.

20 Music Box Theatre June-July 2019 Commentary 21 COMMENTARY ECHO IN THE CANYON OPENS JUNE 21. SEE PAGE 6 FOR DETAILS. The modern interpreters are intriguing in their own way, as the centerpiece meetings regarding the 2015 concert’s songs take place at a groovy California home, and the singers lovingly go over the old record albums like worshipers handling artifacts. They rightly point out that it’s a treasure trove, mar- velous in its depth and breadth (the four bands put out an astounding 20 studio albums in total during the period outlined in the film). But the admiration really comes through during the actual concert clips, when even stoic senders like Beck had an illumination in his eyes as he performs the holy writ. It’s an unusual format for a rock doc, and captures more enlightenment than what is standard.

The outliers have their say, and The Beatles get their props, for it was their ap- pearance on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1964 that lit the fuse for the California Sound explosion (and steered The Beach Boys toward “Pet Rock Past Reverberates with ECHO IN THE CANYON Sounds”). Ringo Starr is By Patrick McDonald especially funny in relating his and George Harrison’s So much ink and retrospective media space has been taken up with the British Invasion of America, attraction toward the L.A. starting with The Beatles in 1964. Well, finally there is a documentary that goes back to the good old “hippies” and their habits (and USA during that era, to give that folk/rock “California Sound” its due. It begins with the first jingle- in turn, The Beatle albums “Rubber Soul” and “Revolver” were directly influenced by their friends jangle of the 12 string electric guitar from Roger McGuinn and The Byrds in 1965 on “Mr. Tambourine in America). And it is truly heart rending to see Tom Petty’s reminiscence of a Man,” and resonates as the ECHO IN THE CANYON. concert in his native Florida in 1968...the old man got to be a kid again, shortly before his shuffle off This folk/rock movement during mid-1960s, primarily based in Laurel Canyon (the Los Angeles neighbor- the mortal coil. hood where many of the rockers lived) is the basis for this documentary overview, directed by Andrew But it is the music and songs that still sound fresh, even overplayed hits like “California Dreaming” Slater. The interviews are conducted by Jakob Dylan (yes, he is Bob’s son) and features the inventors and (Mamas & Papas) and “Turn! Turn! Turn!” (The Byrds), because the documentary gets under the skin contemporaries of the Sound, including McGuinn, Brian Wilson, , Michelle Phillips, Graham of the Sound’s development. The most reverence seems to be for The Beach Boys’ “Pet Sounds,” and Nash, , and even cheeky Ringo Starr himself. The focus is on four influential its creator Brian Wilson is almost animated (he must be on new meds) as he describes his use of four groups ... The Byrds, The Mamas & the Papas, Buffalo Springfield and The Beach Boys. different L.A. studios to get the song “Good Vibrations” just right. Producer Lou Adler (Mamas & Jakob Dylan has the role of a seeker, as he puts together a modern line-up of fellow troubadours— Papas) is also present, representing the background guys, although Stephen Stills of Buffalo Spring- Beck, Fiona Apple, Cat Power, Regina Spektor and Norah Jones among them—to emulate the songs, field points out that many of the old school engineers would get a day rate just by “sitting in,” as the and coordinate a 50th Anniversary concert in 2015. When he talks to the California Sound originators, inventors of the Sound went in their own direction. Dylan sits at the feet of the masters like an eager student, and also gets perspective from the icons And what a direction it was, all pointing to both revolution and evolution. As a second wave admirer influenced by them, like Eric Clapton, Jackson Browne and especially Tom Petty, in his last interview of the era, based in The Beatles but hungry for every other band that got a chance because of them, before his death in 2017. I was most impressed with the Laurel Canyon expression being compared to the 1930s Moveable The film goes back and forth from the interviews, archival footage of the four groups’ histories and Feast eon of Hemingway and Paris. Time and place and people, together at a moment that sparks all the preparations/performances of the 50th Anniversary Tribute event. It is a righteous journey, even of them, then going out into the world, and creating the Sound that continues to inspire our collec- using MODEL SHOP (1969)—a film set in the Los Angeles of the time—as a mirror to Jakob Dylan’s path tive cultural soul. That Canyon Echo, so resilient and clear, still pulsing in the universe. “I’m picking up of redemption and remembrance. The now old time rockers have nothing to lose 50 years on, and good vibrations, she’s giving me exultation …” their memories are punctuated with refreshing honesty, even in describing themselves... David Crosby Patrick McDonald is an Editor and Film Writer for HollywoodChicago.com, and can be heard weekly (The Byrds) and Michelle Phillips (The Mamas & the Papas) especially getting points for their candor. providing film insight on WBGR (Monroe, Wisconsin) and WSSR (Joliet, The Eddie Volkman Show).

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THE INDESTRUCTIBLE July 20 & 21 JEZEBEL (, 1938, 104 mins, 35mm) Her role in Wyler’s sensitive Antebellum SATURDAYS & SUNDAYS AT 11:30am drama garnered Bette Davis the second—and somewhat shockingly, The Music Box Theatre is proud to present THE INDESTRUCTIBLE BETTE DAVIS; a celebration spanning final—Oscar of her burgeoning career, Davis’ astonishingly varied career of unforgettable performances, indomitable spirit, demand for unforgettably playing the careening New respect, and bottomless passion for her work and equal treatment in Hollywood. Orleans society belle Julie Marsden. Julie is engaged to Preston “Pres” Dillard Bette Davis Matinees will continue in August! Full Schedule at MusicBoxTheatre.com (Henry Fonda in a particularly headstrong role), a banker in the midst of the biggest deal of his career, who refuses to drop June 22 & 23 his work obligations at Julie’s beck and call. Julie lashes out and Pres, unwilling to NOW, VOYAGER capitulate, fights back—most prominent- ly in an unforgettable, lavish Olympus (Irving Rapper, 1942, 117 mins, 35mm) Ball sequence. But in JEZEBEL, where Dowdy, repressed spinster Charlotte (Bette lovers freely quarrel and North-South Davis, with support from her untamed eye- politics collide, a yellow fever outbreak brows) of the patrician Vale family is on the looms and the couple’s fighting soon verge of a mental breakdown, thanks largely takes a back seat to more substantial to her overbearing mother (Gladys Cooper). concerns—namely, life and death. In the With the help of avuncular psychiatrist Dr. end, Davis steals the show, for JEZEBEL is Jaquith (Claude Rains), Charlotte’s wilting flower “a lurid Deep South women’s picture that begins to blossom, sparking a trajectory of allows Davis first to scheme then repent: self-improvement that lands her on a pleasure it is lit up by her little girl’s conviction— cruise. Onboard, her newfound confidence a trash heap glowing at twilight…Now at becomes enmeshed with unhappily married last she was in her tortured element.” Jeremiah Duvaux Durrance (Paul Henreid). — David Thomson Fondly remembered for suggestive moments of Henreid lighting two cigarettes, one for himself and one for Davis, NOW, VOYAGER could be the Rosetta Stone of the self-sacrificial women’s picture. —UCLA August 3 & 4 July 7 ALL ABOUT SATAN MET A LADY EVE (, 1936, 74 mins, 35mm) (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, While investigating the mysterious death of his 1950, 138 mins, 35mm) partner, detective Ted Shane () “Fasten your seatbelts— becomes embroiled in a competitive search it’s going to be a bumpy for the infamous Horn of Roland, desired by a night.” Jealousy, manipula- femme fatale (Bette Davis), an Englishman, an tion, and betrayal unfold old woman and her son. SATAN MET A LADY in this tour de force drama was the second of three adaptations of the of an ambitious wannabe same material that would ultimately culminate (Anne Baxter) who sets in its finest moment with ’s 1941 her sights on stealing the THE MALTESE FALCON. With its goofy mystery spotlight from legendary machinations and comedic overtones, SATAN stage actor Margo Channing feels more in the vein of than the bleak, hard-boiled Huston film that would follow. (Bette Davis). Insecurities and designer gowns abound as Margo desperately tries to hold onto her friends With lines like “After I’ve cleared up a couple murders, you and I could have lots of fun,” plus Davis and career. Nominated for an unprecedented fourteen Academy Awards (to date, one of only three films chewing it up as the femme fatale, SATAN is an admittedly silly, but oft-delightful curioso . to hold this record), ALL ABOUT EVE immortalized Davis’s screen persona. George Sanders, , 35MM preservation print courtesy of UCLA Film & Television Archive and Marilyn Monroe costar.

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The Music Box hosts the Chicago Film Society for monthly all-celluloid screenings of classic and underseen features, short subjects, trailer reels and other analog odds and ends from archives, studio vaults, small distributors and private film collectors. PRESENTS For more information, visit chicagofilmsociety.org

TRUST (Hal Hartley, 1990, 107 mins, 35mm) Monday, June 10 at 7pm If Frank Borzage had survived to see the end of the Reagan Era, hated television and took the gruff-but- gentle romance of Spencer Tracy and Loretta Young in MAN’S CASTLE and set it in suburban, blue collar Long Island in 1990, he might have made a New movie like TRUST. 35mm Print Adrienne Shelly stars as a high school senior whose mother accuses her of killing Commissioned her father. When she meets Martin Donovan, an electronics whiz who can’t hold by Chicago Film down a job and lives alone with his abusive father, she’s looking for a place to stay, Society and the two heroes quickly find they have something the other one needs. TRUST is as moving, subversive and funny as it was in 1990, simply the kind of movie we have to show to you.

bartonperreira.com bartonperreira.com exclusively available at Custom Eyes THE FLORIDA exclusively available at Custom Eyes PROJECT (, 2017, 112 mins, 35mm) Monday, July 22 at 7pm An unvarnished work about people living on the margins and continually flirting with homelessness, incarceration and Child Protective Services, could fit snugly within a classic “” framework, but luckily Sean Baker’s celluloid north star is rather than . Six-year-old Moonee () could hold her own with OUR GANG any day of the week, whether she’s spitting on cars over a railing or accidentally setting abandoned buildings ablaze. Director This unassuming film is so rigorous in maintaining its child’s-eye-view that the Sean Baker in eventual rupture is heartbreaking beyond words. Gorgeously photographed in Person! 35mm by Alexis Zabe, THE FLORIDA PROJECT was initially distributed digitally; we are proud to present the Chicago premiere of this unique print. 35393539 N. N. SOUTHPORT SOUTHPORT AVE.AVE. CHICAGO, ILIL 6065760657 | 773.871.2773 871 2020020 www.customeyes2www.customeyes2020.com020.com SINCE 2003

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H EST SILENT CINEMA TC AT A E Rare and classic silent films, the way they were meant to be seen! Featuring live musical B W accompaniment on the famous Music Box organ by Dennis Scott, Music Box House L I Organist. Programmed and co-presented by the Chicago Film Society. L N A E HOTEL IMPERIAL M R (Mauritz Stiller, 1927, 85 mins, 35mm) S Y Saturday, June 8 at 11:30am The height of Hollywood’s polyglot cos- mopolitanism from Paramount, the most continental of studios, HOTEL IMPERIAL was based on a 1917 play from Hungar- ian writer Lajos Biro, directed by Swed- ish pioneer Mauritz Stiller, produced by • German UFA exile Erich Pommer, and O • built around the peculiar glow of Polish P K E E star Pola Negri. The titular hotel stands N 7 E as a bygone luxury in war-torn Galicia, with the Russian army advancing on Austro-Hungarian forces. An DAYS A W escaped Hussar (James Hall) finds refuge in the Hotel Imperial and poses as the establishment’s butler with the help of housekeeper Anna (Negri), who must fend off the amorous advances of a Russian general (George Siegmann) and keep her eyes on an infamous spy (Michael Vavitch). Stiller’s only extant American feature, HOTEL IMPERIAL is a rare glimpse of a cinema too fragile to last. Print courtesy of the Library of Congress

THE SCARLET LETTER (Victor Sjöström, 1926, 100 mins, 35mm) Saturday, July 6 at 11:30am THE SCARLET LETTER is that rarest of things: a movie adapted from a great DABLON work of American literature that doesn’t embarrass the source material. Indeed, this tale of adultery, hypocrisy and mu- tilation purportedly reached the screen only because Lillian Gish’s wholesome VINEYARDS bona fides, not Nathaniel Hawthorne’s literary reputation, assuaged church group skepticism. Gish stars as Hester Prynne, the Puritan woman whose affair Winery & Tasting Room with pastor Dimmesdale (Lars Hanson) brings an out-of-wedlock birth and the injunction that the adulterous wife be forced to wear a scarlet ‘A’ affixed to her dress. Discussing the choice to hire Victor Sjöström (THE WIND) to direct this quintessentially American story, Gish explained, “The Swedish people are closer to what our Pilgrims were, or what we consider them to have been, than our present day Americans.” 111 W. Shawnee Rd. • Baroda, MI • 49101 Print courtesy of UCLA Film & Television Archive • 28 Music Box Theatre June-July 2019 269-422-2846 DABLON.COM CONTINUING SERIES FROM STAGE TO SCREEN The Music Box Theatre proudly presents the greatest in filmed theatrical experiences from around the world!

42ND STREET - THE MUSICAL Directed by: Mark Bramble Presented by: BY EXPERIENCE Saturday, June 29 at 11am Tuesday, July 2 at 7pm One of Broadway’s most clas- sic and beloved tales, , comes to the Music Box in the largest-ever production of the breathtaking musical. Filmed in 2018 at London’s Theatre Royal, the production is directed by the original author of the show, Mark Bramble. This eye-watering extravaganza is full of crowd-pleasing tap dances, popular musical theatre standards (“Lullaby of Broadway,” “We’re in the Money” (the gold digger’s song), “42nd Street” and more), and show-stopping ensemble production numbers.

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@musicboxfi lms 30 Music Box Theatre June-July 2019 musicboxfi lms.com Music Box Member CONTINUING SERIES

Becoming a member at the Music Box is a great way to MIDNIGHTS FRIDAYS & SATURDAYS AT MIDNIGHT support the quality programming at the independently June 7 & 8 BELLY June 22 HIGHWAY TO HELL owned and operated historic movie theatre, lounge (Hype Williams, 1998, 96 mins, 35mm) (Ate de Jong, 1991, 94 mins, DCP)

Bonus Screening – June 28 & 29 BOYZ N THE HOOD and garden. This includes our holiday classics, talk Wednesday, June 12 at 9:30pm (John Singleton, 1991, 112 mins, DCP) June 28 & 29 EVER AFTER backs, film festivals, visits from directors, producers, June 21 THE ROOM (Carolina Hellsguard, 2019, 90 mins, DCP) & July 19 (Tommy Wiseau, 2003, 99 mins, 35mm) and actors, as well as our regular midnight, matinee, July 5 & 6 POETIC JUSTICE June 22 THE ROCKY HORROR (John Singleton, 1993, 109 mins, DCP) & July 20 PICTURE SHOW and feature presentations. (Jim Sharman, 1975, 100 mins, 35mm) July 12 & 13 MAD MAX: FURY ROAD (George Miller, 2015, 120 mins, 35mm)

join today BELLY (Hype Williams, 1998, 96 mins, 35mm) • Discounted tickets • Restaurant discounts “Fuck a book,” says star DMX, and indeed this is post-verbal filmmaking, with • Members-only screenings • Deals on Music Box Films DVD’s vital plot points rendered in Jamaican patois. BELLY opens with a blacklight nightclub stickup set to a cappella vocal • Advanced purchase for • Bottomless popcorn gymnastics, and director Hype Williams ( of shiny-suit-era Bad Boy music special screenings • Discounted house wines videos) doesn’t allow a routine frame past the velvet rope in his one-of-a-kind, Alizé-and-mushrooms swirl of millennial Manhattan and dancehall reggae. —BAM

MAD MAX: register online FURY ROAD at musicboxtheatre.com (George Miller, 2015, 120 mins, 35mm) Years after the collapse of civilization, the tyrannical Immortan Joe enslaves or visit our box office! apocalypse survivors inside the desert fortress the Citadel. When the warrior Imperator Furiosa (Charlize Theron) leads the despot’s five wives in a dar- ing escape, she forges an alliance with Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy), a loner and former captive. Fortified in the mas- sive, armored truck the War Rig, they try to outrun the ruthless warlord and his henchmen in a deadly high-speed chase through the Wasteland.

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