Grand Illusion Cinema

I quite enjoyed myself with the full house and wonderful gems (complete with a realistic roasting fireplace) last night at the VHSXMAS event. I saw what our good friends at Scarecrow Video, namely the Reverend Spencer Hoyt, mined from their collection of VHS gold to bring yet another GI memory to life. If you were there, you know what I’m talking about. I’m talking about “Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny,” a movie with more padding than sumo wrestlers on tour at a foam factory. Anyway, that event is over, hopefully to rise again next year, as our feature and main attraction for the rest of the month has done for 41 years, “It’s A Wonderful Life.”

Yes, Clarence, I like that face too. I like George Bailey.

So our boy Jimmy leads us to a bright and shining holiday season with a film that brings back many memories for me, a film that I am happy to create new memories with the Grand Illusion. My family tradition was to watch this film on Christmas Eve, or damn close to it. As a stalwart youth I remained unaffected by the film emotionally, but as the years passed by (and I began to experience life) I began to identify even more with our hero George Bailey. My hopes were his, my fears were his. Who wants to get stuck in doldrums? As youthful desires and ambitions give way to the realities of life, I realized our everyman was me. Now I don’t have a young daughter with a crushed rose, but I trampled a lot by life in the year 2011, so I need George now more than ever. I will be watching this film in 35mm glory at the GI this holiday season, and I’ll hope you’ll join me.

As I scribed in last week’s blog, we do have an extended run for three weekends of “Saint,” a Santa-slasher film. Expect awesomely bad puns like “sleighing” and have a little gore in this season that is usually rife with far too snuggly family films. A brief reprieve of chills in a season of overly heart-warming tales.

And if you’ve never attended the GI before, now is the perfect time! Tomorrow night (Monday the 12th) we have a free-to-the-public showing of “It’s A Wonderful Life.” Doors open at 6:30 so arrive early if you want it seat, it will fill up quick! Merry Christmas movie house!

—with warmth, blog man dan

Ahoy all ye mighty blog-lubbers! I’m back to the blog as we race into December. I didn’t blog last week because I was hearing mega shout-outs for “KARP” on KEXP, and maybe just maybe I was in a poultry-induced coma.

I know Nyback left you with a hankerin’ for more classic cartoons (he always does!), but don’t wait until his next GI visit to party down old school.  You may have seen some of the Looney Tunes we got coming at you in a tasty little package (as it includes some of the finest examples of cartoonery (now a word)), but chances are you haven’t seen them in glorious 35mm! Need I say more! I’ll answer that with a no I don’t and I’m on to the next one.

The next one makes it a bunny-based double feature of sorts, as we round out a full month of Stewart with the hilarious “Harvey.” Stewart’s performance in this film is one of his very best, and considering he’s the GI’s favorite leading man, that’s saying something. I mean really saying something. Like shouting perhaps, only less so.

Now, I know some of you have seen these offerings. I surely had. But I doubt you’ve seen our late night feature before, as it’s new and straight out of the Netherlands. I’m talking about “Saint.” Not too long back I caught “Rare Exports,” another Santa-horror film that came out of Europe in the past year. Whereas “Rare Exports” builds to an excellent conclusion but takes its time getting there, “Saint” borrows heavily from American slasher film structure and pacing. In other words, expect gory slayings throughout the film by a Saint Nick not too dissimilar to Tim Burton’s Headless Horseman. I had a lot of fun watching it. If “Rare Exports” left you wanting more, definitely watch this film.

That staff ain't just for looks

Looney Tunes and “Harvey” play for one week only, but “Saint” will be around on not one, not two, but three weekends in December. Three great comedy showtimes, all in one weekend if you come on down the 2^nd or 3^rd.

—dan, blogsmith

Can you handle all the doc block action we’re bringing you this November? We did give you a bit of a break with our boy Dennis, but subject matter will be a bit different over the next two weeks as we turn from concerns of vigilantism and urban sprawl to hardcore alternative music.

Firstly is the WTF antics of musicians I surely would have enjoyed during their heyday had I known they existed: “Fishbone.” As is often the case in American popular music over the last 100 years, talented black musicians had their sound emulated and transformed by white musicians only to see those acts achieve higher levels of long term success. The innovators of punk-funk/whatever-they-felt-like-playing translated into the 90s boom success of bands like “No Doubt” and “Red Hot Chili Peppers,” members of which are present in this documentary to give “Fishbone” the mad props they deserve.

Hats have made a comeback, now here we go suspenders!

Ultimately the movie takes you on a journey not dissimilar to the “Anvil” documentary of a few years past. Scenes from gigs playing in front of tiny audiences of the elderly in Hungary will put you in mind of that excellent doc. “Everyday Sunshine” tells the story of “Fishbone” in a gripping and tender tale of kids from South Central LA playing what they wanted to no matter what.

The film also boasts narration provided by Laurence Fishburne, though his velvet smooth tones only accompany about 5 minutes of film time. This is just fine, as the archival footage and story told by the band members makes for entertaining and engaging viewing on their own. Don’t come for Fishburne is what I’m saying; the film doesn’t need him to sell it as there is already enough character and personality on display in the personages of “Fishbone.” Ha, Fishbone and Fishburne.

Co-director Lev Anderson will be in attendance on Saturday and Sunday, so I’m sure if you’re a fan of the band you will have the opportunity to hear about more anecdotes than what made the final cut.

And as far as filmmaker guests are concerned, this Saturday night we will have a Q+A with the filmmakers of “Quiet Shoes.” The film plays this weekend only at 11pm Friday and Saturday, and as I understand it comedic take on the private dick/noir genre shot in neighboring Tacoma. Yes, a local film! Come see!

—dan, the all-seeing blog eye

Hey gangarino, how’d you like Dennis’s latest animation domination? And no, Fox doesn’t have the market cornered on cartoon onslaughts. I am coming back for a brief convo as a truly unique slice of documentariansim (now a word) is coming your way this week.

Now, imagine if Matthew Barney directed a Terrence Malick script about a Georgian landscape both foreign and familiar, scored by ambient drone masters Stars of the Lid (none of these artists were involved with the film). That being said, this film is not as good as anything made by those masters, but it will at least give you a sense of what you might be up against. This film moves at a snail’s pace, and I’m sure if the director thought he could find a snail that was photogenic enough he would have devoted at least three minutes of screen time to the poor bugger.

What am I saying about “General Orders No. 9?” Well, one it’s not for everybody. Its message of ruralism and historical preservation might jive with a section of a Seattle audience, but it is very much about a very specific small portion of Georgia (Atlanta). Two, it romanticizes a time and place unachievable and perhaps undesirable to our thoroughly modern and tech-worshipping Emerald City, but it is perhaps that emerald green that will appeal to us PNWers. And it has just enough raw and visceral imagery to make you want to run outside and dive into your nearest meadow with a solitary tree.

What sums up relentless urbanization of the American South better than a rabbit with a corncob pipe?

By the by, if you are craving something visceral in an entirely different vein, try the late night “The Woman” on for size. It is a truly unsettling and disturbing film which, yes, does come across as extremely misogynistic, so I will just warn the culturally sensitive up front. I’m sure the audiences at Sundance rioted more over this fact than the scenes of torture and other viscera that are wadded into horror movies.

Apart from our longer running shows, perhaps a Saturday night spent with a focus on Seattle would do you good! If a film about Georgian city building doesn’t hit close enough to home, you can come see Shaun Scott’s doc to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Denny Party landing at Alki Point. It might seem a hell of a lot more relevant to those potentially put off by a nearly dystopic view of Atlanta’s history, and you’ll be a good Seattleite in doing so (and supporting a local filmmaker/local theatre!).

Earlier in the day you could try to procure tickets to the sold out 1st Annual Seattle Shorts fest and pretty much pat yourself on the back for being such a good patron of the arts. If you have tickets already, I wish you the best that the fest can offer.

As for me, I’m headed out of state for the first time in who knows how long. Sure it’s just to Oregon, but who knows how long it’ll be before I can break away again? I’ve been working like a dog of late, and I need to get off the leash! See ya suckers! Check calendars/website for showtimes.

PS, see you soon.

– your blogger extraordinaire, dan xoxo

I hope that the GI brought the scares to all you happy Seattleites when the biggies let you down. Don’t despair now that we are winding down, you can go for broke (but not literally, we wouldn’t do that to you!) with a three-day weekend of triple features, including the annual too secret to name triple feature on Sunday. Starting up at 7pm nightly.

Coming up starting on Monday is a short run of one the greatest feel-good documentaries I’ve seen in a while. Seattle has its own real-life superheroes, though they are not featured in this film put out by HBO. Some of these guys have been doing it for years; certainly further back than Mark Millar wrote “Kick-Ass,” so all you people crying copy-cat shut up and give this film (and its protagonists) a chance. As you would expect, some of the personalities on display here come off as a bit silly and ridiculous, but the passion and do-goodery cannot be put down. You’d basically have to be a huge asshole to not appreciate what they do. I kinda laughed when I learned about some of our PNW heroes, but seeing these guys actually helping out the homeless, I have to give it up.

Superheroes: Patrolling from Port-land-OR to Or-land-o (what a stretch, me!)

This documentary could’ve sided with the law enforcement (who do state in the film what you hear all the time, “they’re not trained,” blah blah blah) but you get a sense that the cops seem to almost spend more time harassing these costumed crusaders instead of focusing on their own patrols. I don’t know if I would take it upon myself to ever follow suit; playing “Batman: Arkham City” has me pretty preoccupied these days.

In somewhat of a different suit, we have a short film screening before the feature. “Hello Caller” is amusing and is also about helping other people. That’s really about how much they’re related; it’s a narrative film and it doesn’t feature superheroes.

your faithful GI blogger—dan

So, how you all doin’? Yes? Good. I don’t know if you’ve been underwhelmed by this year’s horror line-up at the movie theatres, especially now that Halloween is right around the corner. Yes, we have “The Walking Dead” back on the air, and FX’s “American Horror Story” is worth the watch so far, but where are the movies? Well, luckily we have a fourth week of AMA coming at you with two of the best zombie movies of all time to save the season. You can thank us later (or now, by coming and watching).

Now come on Seattle! I know the hardcore have been busy trying to make our fair city zombie capital of the world, what with record-setting zombie walks and conventions that draw big name guests. I know you have all seen Romero’s original genre-creating “NOTLD,” but you know what? It doesn’t age. It’s timeless. I know we bust this film out with fair regularity at the GI, but that don’t mean you can’t wash it as the first part of a delicious double featch! “They’re coming to get you, Barbara!” And very probably the first American horror film to have the black guy last until the end of the movie!

Not quite Poitier, but Jones is all right by me

Some of you fans might wish for the direct Romero sequel to top off the doubling of the dead, but I don’t know anyone who thinks the 2004 remake a disappointment. I think it’s actually one of the best remakes of all time. From the truly terrifying opening to the even more terrifying conclusion, this film and Boyle’s “28 Days Later” brought “fast zombies” to shocking heights and were probably the two films most responsible for the public’s obsession with zombies raging out of control over the past decade. Of course, us true fans were around before the craze began, and not unlike a zombie apocalypse, we will be around after the dust settles. So what I’m saying is, see the film that made Zack Snyder famous before his slow decline. I can’t even mention his other films here on this blog; “Dawn” stands alone as great.

So anyway, 7pm and 9pm respectively and get a discount if you do the right thing and watch both. We got 35mm prints of both so the gore and eviscerations will look a thing of beauty.

And by the by, still got another weekend of late night with the King of horror (see what I did there?), my boy Stephen and his machines-gone-bad film “Maximum Overdrive” at 11pm Fri + Sat. So yeah, munch on those tasty morsels (of brains)!

your faithful GI blogger—dan

Hey gang! This week’s entry will be slightly shorter as we (I) are (am) having trouble with Comcast’s spotty internet service. So this is being typed on my iPhone as I ride the bus to Cinerama’s 70mm film festival. Better something than nothing!

Kappas, which look suspiciously similar to a certain band of mutant turtles, are in full supply with our creature double feature this week. Our first film, “Death Kappa,” features a lovable oaf of a creature, who goes berserk when without the lady who tames the beast. Yes, it is more than a little “King Kong” plus “Godzilla,” but is that really such a bad combo? I ask you? …?

Ancient Mutant Ninja Kappas! (pulsing 80s guitars)

So i’m going to keep this even shorter than anticipated because my iPhone won’t let me see what I am typing anymore talk about a step backwards in technology! Even holding it sideways don’t help!

Anyway, yeah, the movies, that’s why we’re here. I will at least throw a pic up in here when I get back to a real computer with an actual steady supply of interwebs. So yeah, straying from classics to even older classics we are bringing you some newer films, “Death Kappa” being brand new and “The Great Yokai [sp, sorry] War” being only a few. If you aren’t in the mood for the obvious cheese of “Death Kappa,” you should at least check out the latter as it is directed by Takashi Miike, director of one of the best films of 2010, “13 Assassins.” the art direction is strong and the characters a little more fleshed out. I’d say it would even be a great movie for kids but there are too many hear-wrenching scenes of violence inflicted upon a cute furry animal.

We have one more weekend of the ever-zany “The Last Circus” for our (note to self: trademark “splatinee”), and some late night goodness with Stephen King’s “Maximum Overdrive.” Now this is a film that is truly King’s: he wrote and directed it. The short story it is based on gave me the willies when I read it in junior high, this film won’t give you those but you will have fun. Yes, he does cameo at the beginning, but a young Emilio is the real star here. Yes, you do look like Brando, no really you do!

Your faith blogista—dan