Hudson Valley Crucial Viewing May 23-June 6

Hello everyone! Back at it with another week of great movies. KFF has a busy month ahead of us, so keep your eyes peeled for updates on some of the programming we’ve got coming your way. June is shaping up to be our busiest month yet, and we can’t wait to tell you about it. You’ve probably already seen some of what we’ve got cooking up (Pavements!!!) but there’s more to come. Until then, we appreciate your continued support. If you want to help out more in the coming months, you can reach out to volunteer with us here. We’re putting out a call right now for events volunteers and marketing assistance, so if that sounds like you, shoot us a message! Thanks as always for the support, and see you at the movies!

Steven Spielberg’s E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL
Opus 40, Saugerties – Friday, May 23, 7:00pm

Does anyone else feel like we’ve lost a lot of love for Spielberg in the last ten years? The Fabelman’s unflinching, auto-fictional portrait definitely left me feeling like I needed to revisit and reevaluate a lot of his work, but ultimately, I’m a Spielberg fan. Maybe we’re all a little too jaded for the director whose work (arguably) defined the childhoods of a whole generation? I don’t know. I say all this and now have to eat my words, a little bit, because when I was a kid I hated E.T.. That little dude freaked me out! I remember very vividly watching a VHS of it and my grandparents’ house with my older brother and absolutely not being into it. But I love an E.T. story, and I love the way the film is constructed, and the fable-like narrative of it all. It’s a film about “the other” and what we can learn from things we don’t understand. You know, the classic alien contact story. What does it say about humanity when you force them to face a thing totally outside of themselves? That’s my bread and butter. I’ve seen E.T. since my ill-fated first viewing, and while it’s not my favorite Spielberg (truly not even close) I also think it’s an important film, and one that lasts in its influence and intentions. I still think he’s a creepy little guy, don’t get me wrong, but whatever! He’s an alien, he’s supposed to be. Maybe it’s time you revisited it, too. (1982, 114min)

Gary Hustwit’s ENO ON FOUR SCREENS
Hi-Way Drive-in, Coxsackie – Thursday, May 29, 7:00pm

I’ve written in the past about my love for really good music documentaries, as well as my disdain for the streaming service schlock that gets churned out with no real love or attention to the subject matter. Gary Hustwit’s Eno is very much the former, and it's a technical feat and formal masterpiece to boot. If you’re unfamiliar, Hustwit, in collaboration with “creative technologist” Brendan Dawes developed a generative sequencing software to create unique versions of the film every time it’s shown. Combining 100s of hours of archival footage as well as Hustwit’s own interviews with Eno, the software sequences the footage, creating an experimental pastiche each time. When we talk about AI being used as a tool rather than a resource, I think this is a perfect example. It’s also a perfect way to synthesize Eno’s career-long obsession with technology and advancement into a film about his life and career. Intentional music documentary work! Can you imagine? If you can’t already tell, I’m extremely excited for this screening, especially because it’s being presented in an even more unique way. Hi-Way Drive-in is dedicating all four of its screens to the event, so you’ll be able to see four different edits of the film, all at once. It’s also being presented by Wave Farm, an organization I love dearly, and there’s going to be some incredible live performances, including one from Fred Frith. I took off work for this y’all. It’s not one to be missed. (2024, 100min)

Jim Sharman’s ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW w/ live shadow cast
Rosendale Theater, Rosendale – Saturday, May 31, 9:30pm

If you’ve been reading this newsletter for a while then you know one of my fondest film movie theater memories from childhood is going to see a midnight shadow cast Rocky Horror Picture Show performance at Rosendale Theater. Well, guess what? Now, you too can experience the delights of that very experience. RHPS is the classic midnight movie in my mind, and if you’ve never had the full experience of seeing it in a theater full of dorks shouting the lines then have you ever really seen it? Plus, it’s the 50th anniversary of the film this year and we love a good reason to celebrate. Rocky Horror still remains one of the camp masterpieces of our time, and its liberated sexuality, queerness, and quirk have given it a life that extends far beyond typical midnight movie fare. I’m tempted to end this on a quirky reference, but I won’t. Just get out there and see it. (1975, 100min)

Gina Prince-Bythewood’s LOVE & BASKETBALL
Midtown Linear Park, Kingston – Sunday, June 1, 7:30pm

I have said it before and I will say it again, I love sports movies. If you know me well enough you probably know that I will happily rehash the merits of certain baseball movies as often as anyone will let me. My love for this genre is not, however, limited to the MLB. All sports movies are fair game. You know why? Because they’re fun. Love & Basketball is no exception, and I also love it because it rides the line of my other guilty-pleasure genre, the rom-com. Gina Prince-Bythewood has said that her intention with the film was to make a “black When Harry Met Sally” and I think that’s a pretty apt description. I love a film that deftly handles its characters’ relationships over the course of a long period of time. It’s not an easy feat, especially when the time frame is so extended, as it is here. But Prince-Bythewood manages to succeed, and we see and feel the growth of the two leads in a way that is naturalistic and genuine. I think you could have a really interesting debate about how she handles the maturity and aging of the characters here in comparison to Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers. I’m not trying to talk trash about Challengers (though admittedly I have my complaints about it), and I won’t go into details really. The films’ premises are just so close in concept that a comparison seems natural. It’s also helpful to have a contemporary reference point. I think Prince-Bythewood handles the details of her storytelling with an incredibly deft hand, and it’s worth watching Love & Basketball with an eye towards the writing, and how naturalistic the characters’ development feels. It’s a pretty masterful portrait of two young athletes that embraces the egoism and spirit that makes us love sports. (2000, 127min)

Peter Collinson’s THE ITALIAN JOB
Starr Cinema, Rhinebeck – Wednesday, June 4, 7:00pm

Guys I can’t make it out to this screening and I am so mad about it. I don’t even really want to tell you much about The Italian Job, because I think you’ll have a better time going in as blind as you can. Here’s the premise, okay? Michael Caine plays a recently released thief named Charlie Croker who gathers a gang of criminals to complete his murdered friend’s final, ambitious heist. It’s got everything you want out of a heist movie. It’s got beautiful women, it has cockney accents, it has a beautiful setting (Turin, Italy), it has high stakes (a cool $4 mil in gold), it has a truly legendary car chase. What more could you ask for? If you’re at all a fan of the heist genre you’ve at least heard of the climactic mini cooper car chase, which is both a feat of cinematic planning, and one of the most entertaining I’ve ever seen. Honestly, just watch the trailer. C’mon. How can you not want to see it? The film got a remake in 2003 which, in my honest opinion, is way worse and really an homage and less of a remake. But, I also love British cinema, and the original The Italian Job is one of the pinnacles of the country’s output. Please, please go see it, because I can’t and I’m going to be mad about it for the next two weeks. (1969, 99min)