A Neil Simon comedy, a 1960's cynical assessment of corporate America, one of Marlon Brando's most famous performances, an anti-war comedy, and a Hitchcock thriller will be screened for the 2002 Classic Film Festival, October 24th through the 27th at the Morris Theatre.
This is the fourth annual Classic Film Festival, presented by the University of Minnesota, Morris Campus Activities Council's Film Committee and co-sponsored by the Arts Council of Stevens County in conjunction with the Morris Theatre. The Classic Film Festival is devoted to offering a unique film experience to Morris and surrounding communities; bringing classic film back into a theatre--on a big screen; introducing these classic films to a new generation that may not be familiar with them; bringing the "classics" back to be enjoyed by the generation that saw them in their original release; and building an appreciation for seeing films in a historic theatre building with original art deco architecture and interior.
The festival begins on Thursday, October 24th, with Neil Simon's, "The Out-of-Towners," starring Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis as unhappy Ohio suburbanites Henry and Nancy Clark, who are suffering through separate mid-life crisises. While Henry is harboring the secret that he has been laid off from his job and is about to travel to New York City to be interviewed for a high-profile advertising position, Nancy is depressed because all of their adult children have finally left the nest and her relationship with Henry has seriously dwindled. On the spur of the moment, Nancy decides to accompany Henry on his trip, and that is the start of a wild, dangerous, and crazy 24-hour period of hijinx in the city that never sleeps. It's pretty safe to say that almost every outrageous thing that could happen does happen. "The Out-of-Towners" begins at 7 p.m.
Jack Lemmon also stars in Friday's classic movie, "The Apartment." Produced in 1960, "The Apartment" is producer/director Billy Wilder's bittersweet, heartrending tragic-comedy/drama of a compliant insurance clerk (Lemmon) who secretly lends out his apartment to other company executives for adulterous sexual affairs and liaisons. The plot thickens when the clerk realizes that his building's elevator operator (Shirley MacLaine) is being taken for trysts by his married boss to his apartment. The film won five major Academy Awards out of ten nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best B/W Art Direction/Set Decoration, and Best Film Editing.
Two films are scheduled on Saturday. At 7:00 p.m., Marlon Brando stars with Karl Malden, Rod Steiger, Lee J. Cobb, and Eva Marie Saint in, "On the Waterfront." The 1954 drama about an ex-prize fighter turned longshoreman delivers a slice-of-life depiction of dockworkers in New York City and their struggle to form a harbor union despite the efforts of corrupt crime boss. Brando also delivers one of his most memorable lines, "I coulda had class. I coulda been a contender. I coulda been somebody, instead of a bum, which is what I am." Brando received the Oscar for Best Actor for his role as Terry Malloy. The film won a total of eight Oscars.
The second feature on Saturday should top just about anyone's list of anti-war movie list. "The King of Hearts" is set during World War I. Alan Bates plays a Scottish soldier who walks into a small French town and finds, to his amazement, that is has been abandoned, left to the inhabitants of the local insane asylum. Bates' job is to dismantle explosives set by retreating German forces and the village is soon to be blown to bits. When he arrives, the inmates anoint him the King of Hearts. In a story of the madness of war, it is ironical that the inmates are the most rational of all. The movie was filmed in French and does use sub-titles. The "King of Hearts" begins at 9:00 p.m.
The 2002 Classic Film Festival concludes Sunday with a brilliant Hitchcock thriller about a wheelchair-bound photographer who witnesses a murder. James Stewart plays L. B. "Jeff" Jefferies, a successful magazine photographer who is confined to his apartment with a broken leg in a cast and, out of boredom, watches the windows of the building opposite. He thinks a murder might have been committed. Thus begins one of the most enthralling thrillers ever made. Grace Kelly plays his dutiful girlfriend and Raymond Burr the man with a terrible secret.
Film enthusiasts are invited to a post-film discussion and wine and cheese reception following the movies on Thursday, Friday, and Sunday evenings at the Prairie Renaissance Cultural Arts Center, located at 630 Atlantic Avenue.
Tickets for the Classic Film Festival are available on both a Festival and an individual basis. Festival tickets are $10 for general admission, $5 for UMM students, and $7.50 for students under age 18. Individual ticket prices are $3 for general admission, $1.50 for UMM students, and $2 for students under age 18.
The Classic Film Festival is funded in part by a grant from the Lake Region Arts Council through a Minnesota State Legislative appropriation.
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Last Modified Tuesday, February 01, 2005
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