Friday, August 17, 2018

Next Week in Tickets: Films playing Boston 17 August 2018 - 23 August 2018

Does anyone know what the heck is happening with MoviePass on a day-to-day basis? I mean, they seem like they've finally hit something sensible and then they go for stupid again. Like, give sensible a week to work, guys!

  • So, I guess this is the week when we can really say Crazy Rich Asians opens, with John Chu's romantic comedy about an Asian-American woman who discovers that her boyfriend is, in fact, part of the wealthiest family in Singapore, and his mother (Michelle Yeoh!) is a force to be reckoned with. Final count for opening weekend includes Fresh Pond, the Capitol, West Newton Cinema, Boston Common (with some screenings subtitled in Chinese), Fenway, the Seaport (including Icon-X), South Bay, Assembly Row, Revere, and the SuperLux.

    Elsewhere, Alpha finally arrives after this adventure about a prehistoric warrior befriending a wolf has been pushed back since at least March (it's apparently now subtitled and not getting as many Imax 3D screenings as expected). That plays Fresh Pond (2D only), Boston Common (including 3D), Fenway (including 3D), South Bay (Imax 3D only), Assembly Row (Imax 3D only) and Revere (including 3D). Then there's Mile 22, with Peter Berg directing Mark Wahlberg in some action thing that you can't convince me has even had a trailer released. It's at Fresh Pond, the Embassy, Boston Common (including Imax), Fenway (including RPX), the Seaport (including Icon-X), South Bay (Dolby Cinema Only), Assembly Row (Dolby Cinema only), Revere (including XPlus), and the SuperLux.

    I ignore a lot of the faith-based movies that come out, but An Interview with God landed David Strathairn in the title role, although it's amazing how quickly he's gone from nondescript pro to "space pirate with a crazy accent" thanks to The Expanse, and I'm sad he's not playing God like that. More importantly, one of my favorite Fantasia films in recent years, Night Is Short, Walk On Girl plays a couple nights at Boston Common, Fenway, Assembly Row, and Revere (Tuesday only); subtitled on Tuesday, with Fenway playing it dubbed on Wednesday. It's a daffy, surreal kick, although I'm surprised a company called GKIDS is distributing a movie that is in large part about everybody getting really drunk. Documentary Alt-Right: Age of Rage plays Revere on Wednesday, with that spot also showing Jaws on Thursday.
  • I missed Skate Kitchen at Fantasia this year, so it's cool to see that it's already showing up at Kendall Square and Boston Common, telling the story of an all-girl skate crew in New York City. The Kendall also gets IFFBoston alum Never Goin' Back, a stoner comedy about two high-school dropouts in Dallas just trying to take a vacation, for two shows a day, and it made me laugh a lot. They also have documentary Scotty and the Secret History of Hollywood, telling the story of a handsome gas station attendant who became confidante and lover to stars of both sexes.
  • Boston Common keeps The Island around, but it seems to mean there's not a whole lot of room for their other Asian features: Europe Raiders reunites director Jingle Ma and Tony Leung Chiu-wai for a third entry in this series (the first in 13 years) with Kris Wu along for the ride and some potentially good action with Cung Le and Jeeja Yanin credited as "assassins", though for matinees only. There are also a couple shows a day for The Spy Gone North, a slick-as-heck looking thriller from South Korea directed by Yoon Jong-bin, who did Nameless Gangster and Kundo: Age of the Rampant.

    Hindi sports drama Gold adds Fenway as well as continuing to play at Apple Fresh Pond. The latter also continues Hindi screenings of Vishwaroopam 2 in Hindi, Styameva Jayate in Hindi, Geetha Govindam In Telugu, also opening Tamil crime flick Kolamavu Kokila
  • The Brattle Theatre has 9:30pm shows of BUFF selection Good Manners from Friday to Monday (10pm on Saturday), but otherwise it's all rep stuff: They celebrate Leonard Bernstein's 100th with On the Waterfront on Friday, West Side Story on Saturday, and On the Town (on 35mm) Sunday, before going back to celebrating Rita Hayworth's Centennial with Pal Joey on 35mm Monday. Tuesday is Trash Night, and then "Heroic!" continues with a 35mm double feature of Auntie Mame & His Girl Friday on Wednesday and The Triplets of Belleville (35mm) & A Touch of Zen on Thursday.
  • "Pandas" heads back to IMAX theaters this weekend, entering the rotation at the New England Aquarium and grabbing matinee slots for a week at Jordan's and Boston Common.
  • The Coolidge Corner Theatre mostly keeps to last week's schedule, aside from finding showtimes for Puzzle in the Goldscreen. They've got a free mystery "Organic Panic" screening at midnight on Friday (I wonder if it's another one of those prints they're not supposed to have but which has been around since the 80s) and a 35mm print of Batman & Robin (because Poison Ivy is the villain) on Saturday. Monday night is the annual The Big Lebowski party, with costumes, bowling, and other goofiness along with a 35mm print. There's also a "Stage & Screen" presentation of Dear White People on Thursday.
  • It's a "Heroic!" weekend at The Museum of Fine Arts with Advanced Style (Friday), Return to Oz (35mm Friday/Saturday), Strange Days (35mm Saturday), Whale Rider (Sunday), Moana (Sunday), and the entry-in-spirit Ava (Sunday).
  • The Somerville Theatre is a 3-plex for a while, but they've still got some special programs going, with this weekend including midnights of both Summer of '84 and both John Wick movies, with the first on Friday and Chapter 2 on Saturday. Wednesday's "Play It Cool" double feature is dedicated to Raymond Chandler & Philip Marlowe, with 35mm prints of Humphrey Bogart in The Big Sleep and Elliott Gould in The Long Goodbye (which, sadly, doubles as the end of the series).

    Summer of '84 also plays at Cinema Salem on Thursday, with writer/producer Matt Leslie doing Q&A afterward.
  • Jeff Rapsis is at the Aeronaut Brewery on Sunday accompanying 1925's Clash of the Wolves, starring the original Rin Tin Tin.
  • Bright Lights doesn't official return for a month, but they will be showing Repo Man up in the Bright Screening Room at the Paramount with writer/director Alex Cox on-hand!
  • The Regent Theatre has a free double feature of "Between the Folds" and Design & Thinking on Wednesday, presented by UXPA Boston.
  • The Museum of Science is wrapping their "Summer Thursdays" series over the next couple of weeks, with Event Horizon being the last "regular" film entry in the program playing the planetarium on Thursday.
  • Joe's Free Films has particularly diverse slate for outdoor screenings this week, with multiple showings of the recent live-action Beauty and the Beast, but also the Coolidge guys hitting the Greenway with a 35mm projector for a double feature of the newly-restored Revenge of the Creature (though probably not in 3D) & The Incredible Shrinking Man, while Wednesday features Egleston Square breaking out Bird Boy: The Forgotten Children (do they know how messed up that is?) while Medford goes for Star Wars.


There for Crazy Rich Asians and The Spy Went North, probably also Alpha, will probably try and catch Night Is Short, Walk on Girl on the big screen again, and level with me, folks - do I need to watch Tokyo Raiders and Seoul Raiders before Europe Raiders?

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