The Official Blog of Laemmle Theatres.

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The official blog of Laemmle Theatres

BREAKING AWAY with actors Dennis Christopher and Paul Dooley in person Tuesday, January 14 at the Laemmle NoHo.

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Laemmle Theatres and the Anniversary Classics Series present a 45th anniversary screening of the Oscar-winning 1979 hit ‘Breaking Away‘ with costar Paul Dooley joining for an in-person Q&A after the screening. The movie earned five Oscar nominations in all, including Best Picture and Best Director for Peter Yates, and it won the Oscar for the Original Screenplay by Steve Tesich. It also won the Golden Globe for Best Comedy or Musical of the year, and it won the Writers Guild award for Best Original Screenplay. Many years later, when the American Film Institute compiled a list of the most inspiring movies in history, ‘Breaking Away‘ ranked in the top 10.

Tesich based the script in part on his own experiences at the University of Indiana in Bloomington. The story tells of the bond between four young working-class men raised in the town but unable to afford college. They are scorned by the college students in town and called “cutters” because of their families’ work as stonecutters in the local quarry. The four young men are played by newcomers Dennis Christopher, Dennis Quaid, Daniel Stern, and Jackie Earle Haley. Christopher’s parents are played by Paul Dooley and Barbara Barrie, and the snooty college kids include actors Hart Bochner and Robyn Douglass.

Christopher’s Dave, the leading character, becomes obsessed with Italian bicycle racers and Italian culture in general, to the dismay of his working-class father, played by Dooley. Eventually he decides to enter the local bicycle race dominated by the college students, and he becomes a symbol to his pals of the possibilities of transcending their humble backgrounds.

Critics were swept up in the story’s inspirational message. Roger Ebert called ‘Breaking Away‘ “a wonderfully sunny, funny, goofy, intelligent movie that makes you feel about as good as any movie in a long time.” The New York Times’ Janet Maslin agreed and declared, “Here is a movie so fresh and funny it didn’t even need a big budget or a pedigree.” Variety summarized the overwhelmingly positive reviews, calling the film “a thoroughly delightful light comedy, lifted by fine performances from Dennis Christopher and Paul Dooley.”

Dooley got his start working several times with director Robert Altman on such films as ‘A Wedding,’ ‘Health,’ and he had a leading role in Altman’s offbeat romantic comedy ‘A Perfect Couple.’ In Altman’s musical adaptation of ‘Popeye,’ Dooley played the role of Wimpy. He also costarred in such films as ‘Paternity,’ ‘Sixteen Candles,’ Steven Soderbergh’s ‘The Underneath,’ ‘Runaway Bride,’ ‘A Mighty Wind,’ and ‘Happy, Texas.’ He provided one of the voices in the ‘Cars’ animated movies, and he also had prominent roles on such popular TV series as ‘thirtysomething’, ‘My So-Called Life,’ ‘Dream On,’ ‘The Practice,’ and ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm.’

LOS FRIKIS Q&A’s with the filmmakers and lead actor this weekend in Santa Monica and North Hollywood.

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  1. Monica Film Center

Fri (1/03) 4pm –  Los Frikis – Special Screening with Q&A with director Michael Schwartz and star Eros de la Puente

Fri (1/03) 7pm  – Los Frikis – Special Screening with Q&A with director  Michael Schwartz and star Eros de la Puente

Sat (1/04) 4pm – Los Frikis – Special Screening with Q&A with director Michael Schwartz

Sat (1/04) 7pm – Los Frikis – Special Screening with Q&A with director Michael Schwartz

  1. Laemmle NoHo 7

Fri (1/03) 4:10 pm –  Los Frikis – Special Screening followed by Q&A with director Tyler Nilson

Fri (1/03) 7:10 pm  – Los Frikis – Special Screening followed by Q&A with director Tyler Nilson

Sat (1/04) 4:10 pm – Los Frikis – Special Screening Q&A  with director Tyler Nilson star Eros de la Puente

Sat (1/04) 7:10 pm – Los Frikis – Special Screening Q&A with director Tyler Nilson star Eros de la Puente

GAUCHO GAUCHO filmmakers on Inside the Arthouse.

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Acclaimed filmmakers Gregory Kershaw and Michael Dweck, three-time Sundance honorees who previously took audiences to the secret corners of the Italian countryside in search of white truffles with The Truffle Hunters, recently sat down with Inside the Arthouse hosts Greg Laemmle and Raphael Sbarge to talk about their latest striking nonfiction work. Gaucho Gaucho paints an Argentinian western with images and sounds of operatic beauty, building on their earlier success with The Last Race, a film that explored the last stock car racetrack on Long Island.

Kershaw and Dweck’s focus is now on the vast mountains of Argentina, expressed in stunning black-and-white photography, and a small community of gauchos who hold profound connections to the surrounding nature and their own traditions. As older generations dispense their wisdom, the film keeps its eye toward a new generation which continue to fight for their families’ legacies in a modern world.

“These filmmakers have enormous reserves of love and empathy for traditions that miraculously survive in spite of the modern world. And their compassion has never looked more cinematic.” ~ Tomris Laffly, Harper’s Bazaar

“An affecting tone poem which ruminates on the passage of time and the passing of traditions from one generation to the next.” ~ Tim Grierson, Screen International

Oscar short-listed FROM GROUND ZERO opens January 3 at the Laemmle Glendale and Monica Film Center.

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Palestine’s Official Submission for the 2025 Academy Awards, From Ground Zero is a powerful collection of short films by 22 Palestinian filmmakers living through war in Gaza. Through a unique blend of animation, documentary, and fiction, these stories capture the unyielding steadfastness of the human spirit and enduring creativity that thrives even in the face of relentless devastation. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences has short-listed the film in its Best International Feature Film category for the 97th Academy Awards.

From Ground Zero was created by filmmaker Rashid Masharawi and designed to give a voice to the people of Gaza and to document their day-to-day experiences, many of which often go unheard by the outside world. In a war-torn society, where artistic creation is extremely complex, the project sought to capture the diversity of perspectives of Gazans through slice-of-life short films, ranging anywhere from three to six minutes in length. Filmmakers were allowed to tell their story through any genre and cinematic storytelling platform, from fiction to documentary to animation.
In order to ensure quality and coherence, a dedicated selection committee was set up to ensure the viability of the short films pitched to be included in the From Ground Zero Project. The committee evaluated every project submitted, giving priority to personal, original stories that focused on the project’s overall message. Once the 22 projects had been selected, the committee worked closely with the filmmakers to ensure their proper development, from concept to production – tackling real-world obstacles that filmmakers outside of Palestine would never have to consider. The creation of From Ground Zero required meticulous organization. Tutors based in the Middle East and Europe supervised the projects, while experienced coordinators on the ground in Gaza ensured the technical and human resources needed for filming.

STRAIT-JACKET 60th Anniversary Holiday Screening December 30.

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Keeping a holiday tradition, this year Laemmle Theatres and the Anniversary Classics Series present the 60th anniversary of the Joan Crawford camp classic Strait-Jacket (1964) for one night only, Monday, December 30, at 7:30 PM at the historic Royal Theater in West Los Angeles.

Crawford, one of the great stars of the Golden Age of Hollywood, had a career revival with the huge success of the psychological horror classic ‘What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?’ in 1962. Looking for new roles, she apparently couldn’t miss an opportunity for self-parody when she chose to star as an axe murderess in the latest project from independent producer-director and huckster showman William Castle, Strait-Jacket.

Castle specialized in low budget exploitation movies with gimmick marketing and hit box office pay dirt with such titles as ‘House on Haunted Hill,’ ‘The Tingler,’ and ’13 Ghosts.’ He tried to up his game with Strait-Jacket, hiring Robert Bloch, the writer of the book Hitchcock’s ‘Psycho’ was based upon; cinematographer Arthur Arling (‘Love Me or Leave Me,’ ‘Pillow Talk’); production designer Boris Leven (‘West Side Story,’ ‘The Sound of Music’)’ and snaring A-list star Crawford. Bloch concocted a sordid tale of a convicted axe murderess released from an asylum twenty years after chopping up her unfaithful husband. She returns to the scene of the crime to reconcile with her grown daughter (Diane Baker) but then new murders begin and guess who the prime suspect is?

Even with all that talent, Strait-Jacket got a mixed reception from reviewers. On the positive side, Variety reported “Miss Crawford does well by her role, delivering an animated performance.” Leonard Maltin was equally enthusiastic, saying “Crawford’s strong portrayal makes this one of the best in the ‘Baby Jane’ genre of older-star shockers.” At the other end of the critical spectrum, Bosley Crowther in The New York Times was not impressed, stating, “Joan Crawford has picked some lemons, very sour lemons, in her day, but the worst of the lot is Strait-Jacket.” Judith Crist in the New York Herald Tribune took the middle ground, asserting, “It’s time to get Joan Crawford out of these housedress horror B movies and back into haute couture.” A 2010 assessment in The Village Voice called Crawford “indefatigable” but noted that in the role of a woman trying to be convincing in a new maternal role, “Crawford is as uncomfortable as a Tingler down your shirt.”

Although the movie was a hit, Castle did not climb into the A ranks until 1968, producing Roman Polanski’s horror classic ‘Rosemary’s Baby.’ On the other hand, it was all downhill for Crawford after this final box office success. She worked for Castle again in a lesser vehicle, ‘I Saw What You Did,’ then traveled to England to finish her career with similar material in ‘Berserk’ and the worst film of her long career, the sci-fi horror turkey ‘Trog’ in 1970.

Paul Schrader’s moving OH, CANADA, starring Richard Gere, Uma Thurman, and Jacob Elordi, opens Friday.

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In Paul Schrader’s new film Oh, Canada, which we open Friday at the Monica Film Center, NoHo, and Town Center, Richard Gere and Jacob Elordi play a man at opposite ends of his life, deciding how to live it. Uma Thurman, Michael Imperioli, and Victoria Hill co-star.

Schrader said this about his film:

“When friend and author Russell Banks (Affliction) took ill I was weighing other story possibilities. I realized that mortality should be the subject. Russell had researched and written a book about dying when he was healthy titled, Foregone. He’d wanted to call it Oh, Canada (there was a conflict with Richard Ford’s Canada), and asked if I would use his original title. So Foregone became Oh, Canada.

“Leonard Fife became a successful documentary filmmaker after fleeing to Canada to avoid the Vietnam War. Sick and dying in Montreal, he is interviewed by his former students. ‘I made a career out of getting people to tell me the truth,’ he says, ‘Now it’s my turn.'”

 

“Paul Schrader and Richard Gere, reunited for the first time since 1980’s American Gigolo, are at the peak of their powers.” – Chuck Bowen, Slant

“Energized by the reunion of its director, Paul Schrader, and its star, Richard Gere, in their first collaboration since American Gigolo.” – Richard Brody, The New Yorker

“Richard Gere gives his best performance in years.” – Hannah Strong, Little White Lies

“Takes on grand themes of memory, mortality, and artistic self-reckoning… to sincerely moving effect.” – Justin Chang, The New Yorker 

“A glorious romantic confection unlike any other in movie history,” THE UMBRELLAS OF CHERBOURG 60th anniversary screenings start Friday at the Royal!

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An angelically beautiful Catherine Deneuve was launched to stardom by this dazzling musical heart-tugger from Jacques Demy. She plays an umbrella-shop owner’s delicate daughter, glowing with first love for a handsome garage mechanic, played by Nino Castelnuovo. When the boy is shipped off to fight in Algeria, the two lovers must grow up quickly. Exquisitely designed in a kaleidoscope of colors, and told entirely through the lilting songs of the great composer Michel Legrand, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg is one of the most revered and unorthodox movie musicals of all time.

“A glorious romantic confection unlike any other in movie history.” ~ The Washington Post

“Elevates the quotidian to the spectacular…Umbrellas’ palette of sherbet-colored pastels remains undimmed.” ~ Melissa Anderson, Village Voice

“Demy’s masterpiece.” ~ Mike D’Angelo, A.V. Club

“Retains its direct appeal to the eyes, ears, and tear ducts.” ~ Slant

“One of the most brain-quiveringly beautiful films ever to flood a screen.” ~ Eileen G’Sell, Hyperallergic

“A surprisingly effective film, touching and knowing and, like Deneuve, ageless…a bold, original experiment.” ~ Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Culture Vulture 2025 ~ more screenings, more places!

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Our eclectic Culture Vulture series returns this weekend. After ten years of screening filmed theater, opera, ballet/dance, gallery/art, and much more at our Town Center/Encino, Glendale, Monica Film Center/Santa Monica, and Claremont 5 theaters, we are now adding our Newhall theater. What’s more, we will now show the films on Saturdays and Sundays at 10:00 A.M. and Mondays at 7:00 P.M. Tickets are now on sale for the first nine films of the new year:
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February 1-3: Art and Life: The Story of Jim Phillips ~ Embark on the epic ride of Jim Phillips, the genius behind skateboarding and rock culture’s electrifying art. Drawing inspiration from his life in Santa Cruz, California, Jim helped shape the golden era of skateboarding. This documentary explores Jim’s dynamic life and career, showcasing his iconic work that has defined an era and secured his place in modern art history. Jim’s story is a profound narrative of resilience, passion, and enduring artistic vision.
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February 8-10: Perugino: Eternal Renaissance is a journey to discover Perugino, one of the most revered artists of the 15th Century and to celebrate the 500th Anniversary of his death. Journey through Italy to discover his great masterpieces, from the frescoes of the Sistine Chapel to the two rooms entirely dedicated to him in the National Gallery of Umbria. Spectators will be led on a guided discovery of the artist’s harmonious work: a perfect balance between man and nature, realism and idealism, as seen in paintings such as “The Delivery of the Keys” in the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel, “Lamentation over the Dead Christ” in the Galleria Palatina in Florence, the “Pietà” and “Agony in the Garden” in the Uffizi Gallery.
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February 22-24: Three-time Olivier Award-winner Sharon D. Clarke is joined by Ncuti Gatwa (Doctor Who; Sex Education) in this joyful reimagining of Oscar Wilde’s most celebrated comedy, The Importance of Being Earnest. While assuming the role of a dutiful guardian in the country, Jack lets loose in town under a false identity. Meanwhile, his friend Algy adopts a similar facade. Hoping to impress two eligible ladies, the gentlemen find themselves caught in a web of lies they must carefully navigate. Max Webster (Life of Pi) directs this hilarious story of identity, impersonation and romance, filmed live at the National Theatre in London.
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March 1-3: Florence and the Uffizi Gallery is a multi-dimensional journey through the city that was the cradle of the Italian Renaissance. Get an exclusive tour through the most beautiful and representative works of art of the period from Michelangelo and Brunelleschi, to Leonardo and Botticelli, with a detailed central chapter dedicated to the treasure house containing their masterpieces: the Uffizi Gallery.
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March 8-10: Welcome to Yiddishland offers an upbeat, witty, and timely exploration of a global community of artists rediscovering and revitalizing the endangered Yiddish language through progressive and provocative creative works. As we journey through Yiddishland—not a homeland, but a heartland without borders—we travel across continents, from Melbourne to Berlin, New York to Haifa, meeting a diverse array of individuals who find solace, identity, and inspiration in Yiddish language and culture.
March 15-17: Utilizing the third act motifs of Anton Chekhov’s Three Sisters as a jumping off point, Dmitry Krymov’s Fragment focuses in on Olga (Samanta in this production), the eldest of the three sisters. Like many of Chekhov’s heroes who attempt to overcome fate, she is doomed to fail, but it is in the attempt itself that she becomes so close and dear to the audience. Ultimately, we empathize with and love this very recognizable person who can’t adequately protect herself, her love, or her home.
March 22-24: The Dawn of Impressionism ~ What led to that first groundbreaking Impressionists show 150 years ago? Who were the maverick personalities that wielded their brushes in such a radical and provocative way? The spectacular Musée d’Orsay exhibition brings fresh eyes to this extraordinary tale of passion and rebellion. The story is told not by historians and curators but in the words of those who witnessed the dawn of Impressionism: the artists, press and people of Paris, 1874. See the show that changed everything on the big screen. Made in close collaboration with the Musee d’Orsay and National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.
March 29-31: Seven-time BAFTA Award-winner Steve Coogan (Alan Partridge, The Trip) plays four roles in the world premiere stage adaptation of Stanley Kubrick’s comedy masterpiece Dr. Strangelove. When a rogue U.S General triggers a nuclear attack, a surreal race takes place, seeing the Government and one eccentric scientist scramble to avert global destruction. This explosively funny satire is led by a world-renowned creative team including Emmy Award-winner Armando Iannucci (The Thick of It, Veep) and Olivier Award-winner Sean Foley (The Upstart Crow, The Play What I Wrote).
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April 5-7: Far Out: Life On and After the Commune traces fifty years in the lives of a group of New England writers, activists and artists. In 1968, in the middle of a left-wing faction fight, a group of radical journalists left New York City for the country, where they became pioneers in the back-to-the-land and organic farming movement. Blending contemporary interviews and a remarkable trove of original archival footage, Far Out is lively, humorous, inspiring and irreverent. The film is vital, telling the history but hewing to the universal themes of how we grapple–over a lifetime–with politics, relationships, morality, spirituality, civic engagement and finding our home.