Authored By Joshua Pickard
The Week in Film is a column dedicated to bringing awareness to award-winning films, special movie screenings, rereleases, limited-distribution runs and avant cinema that should be seen in theaters to be properly appreciated. “Metropolis” Fritz Lang’s 1927 silent masterpiece, “Metropolis,” has rightly been heralded as one of cinema’s most awe-inspiring creations. Allegorical, beautiful and monstrous, it’s a film whose images stick in your mind for weeks and provoke thoughtful debate and passionate obsession. Employing close to 37,000 extras and filming over 17 months, “Metropolis” was a daunting undertaking for Lang and his crew. The result, however, has etched in film history, has been discovered and enjoyed by countless generations of film lovers as something to be cherished and shared with those who truly appreciate the grandeur of early cinema. Heritage House Arts & Civic Center will present this fascinating and miraculous film at 6:45 p.m. with plenty of time for discussion both before and after the screening. When: Monday, Aug. 20 Where: Heritage House Arts & Civic Center Rating: Not rated https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-HwQ9pJa38 “RiffTrax Live: Krull” Follow Bill, Mike and Kevin of RiffTrax comedic infamy as they wind their pun-filled way through the landscape of 1983’s sci-fi action film, “Krull.” Starring Ken Marshall, Liam Neeson and Lysette Antony, the film chronicles the evil of an entity known as The Beast, the rescue of a kidnapped princess named Lyssa and a prince’s quest to restore his kingdom—and the aerial acrobatics of an over-sized throwing star weapon known as the Glaive. Filled with heart, humor and mild violence—and that’s before we even get to the movie—this screening should please fans of the original film as well as RiffTrax and MST3K devotees. When: Thursday, Saturday, Aug. 23, 25 Where: Regal Hamilton Place 8, AMC Chattanooga 18 Rating: PG-13 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Pa4bB4dxrA “South Pacific” In honor of its 60th anniversary, Turner Classic Movies and Fathom Events will bring the beloved 1958 romantic musical “South Pacific” to the big screen once again. Lauded for its music and cinematography, the film tells the rousing story of an American woman stationed as a navy nurse in the South Pacific during World War II where she falls in love with a Frenchman. Directed by Joshua Logan and starring Rossano Brazzi, Mitzi Gaynor, John Kerr and Ray Walston, the film has been championed as one of the great cinematic musicals, often finding itself competing for spots on various American Film Institute lists. Visually dazzling and sweeping in its depiction of love during wartime, this is a film you won’t want to miss if you’re got a soft spot for musically-inclined films. When: Sunday, Aug. 26 Where: Regal Hamilton Place 8, AMC Chattanooga 18 Rating: Not rated https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZIkoARAgcw “The Four Feathers” Filled with elaborate battle scenes, whirlwind romance and enough sand to fill a North African desert (which makes sense as most of the movie was filmed in Sudan), director Zoltan Korda’s magnificent 1939 version of A.E.W. Mason’s adventure novel,” The Four Feathers,” is widely seen as the best adaptation of this story. Starring John Clements, Ralph Richardson, June Duprez and C. Aubrey Smith, the film tells the story of a man pressured into service and who subsequently deserts his post on the eve of a large battle. Branded as a coward, he spends his remaining years trying to amend for his behavior and restore his good name. Eventually, he does find redemption and discovers his own courage through various acts of heroism. When: Thursday, Aug. 23 Where: Heritage House Arts & Civic Center Rating: Not rated https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33duWrY8iuE “The Ranger” A visually impressive slasher flick with a killer punk rock soundtrack, “The Ranger” is a film that feels wonderfully unhinged and unfettered by the confines of its genre. Following the trials and bloody tribulations of a group of teen punks who take refuge from the cops in a deserted section of woods, the film pits them against the local park ranger who is more familiar with the sharp edges of an ax than you might assume. This film was screened at the Chattanooga Film Festival earlier this year; so if you didn’t get a chance to see it then, now is a great time to catch up on one of the best horror films of the year. When: Tuesday, Aug. 21 Where: Improv Chattanooga Rating: R https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJ0BG3-fxzA “The Night is Short, Walk on Girl” Directed by Masaaki Yuasa (“Lu Over the Wall,” Adventure Time’s “Food Chain”), “The Night is Short, Walk on Girl” is an exhilarating and hallucinatory romp into the depths of mutated rom-com territory. Documenting one epic night on Kyoto, the film follows a group of teens, including a student known only as “The Girl with Black Hair,” as they make their way across the city and experience the often bizarre and outlandish urban night life. The movie also explores the romantic intentions of Senpai, a fellow student who has romantic feelings toward this dark-haired girl and who creates strange and increasingly contrived reasons for him to bump into her throughout the evening. Stunning in its various visual aesthetics, the film is a whirlwind of styles and narratives that will have you entranced and longing for a just a few more minutes with these characters when the end credits begin to roll. When: Tuesday-Wednesday, Aug. 21-22 Where: AMC Chattanooga 18 Rating: PG-13 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqsgHqnJHhw Joshua Pickard covers local and national music, film and other aspects of pop culture. You can contact him on Facebook, Twitter or by email. The opinions expressed in this column belong solely to the author, not Nooga.com or its employees.
