Thursday, December 8, 2016

Movies for January 2017: La La Land and Loving

Please note that we will start at 7PM (instead of 7:30PM) starting in January 2017.

Steve is hosting in January and the movies to see are:

La La Land (2016)

A jazz pianist falls for an aspiring actress in Los Angeles.

Director: Damien Chazelle
Writer: Damien Chazelle
Stars: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, Rosemarie DeWitt

Loving (2016)

The story of Richard and Mildred Loving, an interracial couple, whose challenge of their anti-miscegenation arrest for their marriage in Virginia led to a legal battle that would end at the US Supreme Court.

Director: Jeff Nichols
Writer: Jeff Nichols
Stars: Ruth Negga, Joel Edgerton, Will Dalton 


Wednesday, November 23, 2016

Movies for December 2016: Moonlight and Hunt for the Wilderpeople

Carl is hosting in December and the movies to see are:

Moonlight (2016)

A timeless story of human connection and self-discovery, Moonlight chronicles the life of a young black man from childhood to adulthood as he struggles to find his place in the world while growing up in a rough neighborhood of Miami.

Director: Barry Jenkins

Writers: Barry Jenkins (screenplay), Tarell McCraney (story by) (as Tarell Alvin McCraney)

Stars: Mahershala Ali, Shariff Earp, Duan Sanderson

Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016)

A national manhunt is ordered for a rebellious kid and his foster uncle who go missing in the wild New Zealand bush.

Director: Taika Waititi

Writers: Taika Waititi (screenplay), Barry Crump (based on the book by)

Stars: Sam Neill, Julian Dennison, Rima Te Wiata

Friday, October 14, 2016

Movies for November 2016: The Accountant and The Infiltrator

Don is hosting for November and the movies to see are:

The Infiltrator (2016)

A U.S. Customs official uncovers a money laundering scheme involving Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar. 

Director: Brad Furman 
Writers: Ellen Sue Brown (screenplay) (as Ellen Brown Furman), Robert Mazur 
Stars: Bryan Cranston, John Leguizamo, Diane Kruger 

The Accountant (2016)

As a math savant uncooks the books for a new client, the Treasury Department closes in on his activities and the body count starts to rise.
 
Director: Gavin O'Connor 
Writer: Bill Dubuque 
Stars: Ben Affleck, Anna Kendrick, J.K. Simmons 

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Movies for October 2016: Young Frankenstein and Sully

Jon is hosting for October and the movies to see are:

Young Frankenstein (1974)

An American grandson of the infamous scientist, struggling to prove that he is not as insane as people believe, is invited to Transylvania, where he discovers the process that reanimates a dead body. 

Director: Mel Brooks  

Writers: Gene Wilder (screen story and screenplay),  Mel Brooks (screen story and screenplay), Mary Shelley (minor assistance) 

Stars: Gene Wilder,  Madeline Kahn,  Marty Feldman, Terri Garr, Kenneth Mars 

Important: Fathom Events is promoting a special showing of Yong Frankenstein on Wednesday, October 5th at the Cedar Hills Crossing 16 cinema at 5PM. Jon is suggesting that those who wish to meet there to see the movie on the big screen before the meeting. Click here for details and to buy tickets.

Sully (2016)

The story of Chesley Sullenberger, who became a hero after gliding his plane along the water in the Hudson River, saving all of the airplane flights 155 crew and passengers. If this movie had been made in the 50's it would have been called "Terror in the Skies". In the 60's it would have been "The Goose is Cooked." In the 70's, Charlton Heston would have played the lead. 

Director: Clint Eastwood  

Writers: Todd Komarnicki (screenplay),  Chesley Sullenberger and Jeffrey Zaslow (based on their book "Highest Duty")

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

Movies for September 2016: Florence Foster Jenkins and Sophie's Choice

John C is hosting in September and the movies to watch are:

Florence Foster Jenkins (2016)

The story of Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York heiress who dreamed of becoming an opera singer, despite having a terrible singing voice.

Director: Stephen Frears

Writer: Nicholas Martin

Stars: Meryl Streep,  Hugh Grant,  Simon Helberg

Sophie's Choice (1982) 

A warm hearted look at family dynamics as Sophie, a carefree mom, tries to decide which brand of margarine will make her children happy. Will she choose Imperial or Parkay?

Director: Alan J. Pakula

Writers: William Styron (based on the novel: "Sophie's Choice" by),  Alan J. Pakula (screenplay)

Stars: Meryl Streep,  Kevin Kline,  Peter MacNicol

Friday, July 8, 2016

Movies for August 2016: The Deer Hunter and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Bill is hosting in August and the movies to see are:

The Deer Hunter (1978)

An in-depth examination of the ways in which the U.S. Vietnam War impacts and disrupts the lives of people in a small industrial town in Pennsylvania. 

Director: Michael Cimino  

Writers: Michael Cimino, Deric Washburn, Louis Garfinkle, Quinn K. Redeker  

Stars: Robert De Niro,  Christopher Walken,  John Cazale, John Savage, Meryl Streep

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) 

When their relationship turns sour, a couple undergoes a procedure to have each other erased from their memories. But it is only through the process of loss that they discover what they had to begin with. 

Director: Michel Gondry  

Writers: Charlie Kaufman, Michel Gondry, Pierre Bismuth  

Stars: Jim Carrey,  Kate Winslet,  Tom Wilkinson 


Wednesday, June 8, 2016

Movies for July 2016: My Own Private Idaho and The Lobster

Joe is hosting for July and the movies to see are:

My Own Private Idaho (1991)

Two best friends living on the streets of Portland as hustlers embark on a journey of self discovery and find their relationship stumbling along the way.

Director: Gus Van Sant

Writers: William Shakespeare (play),  Gus Van Sant

Stars: River Phoenix, Keanu Reeves, James Russo

The Lobster (2015)

In a dystopian near future, single people, according to the laws of The City, are taken to The Hotel, where they are obliged to find a romantic partner in forty-five days or are transformed into beasts and sent off into The Woods. 

Director: Yorgos Lanthimos  

Writers: Yorgos Lanthimos,  Efthymis Filippou  

Stars: Colin Farrell,  Rachel Weisz,  Jessica Barden

Special Guest Speaker: Dr. Mario Falsetto

Joe has arranged for a special guest to speak to us: Dr. Mario Falsetto, Professor Emeritus in Film Studies at Concordia University (Montreal) where he helped build one of the most highly regarded Cinema Departments in North America.

He received his Ph.D. from New York University in Cinema Studies where his teachers included such prominent artists and scholars as Stan Brakhage, Annette Michelson, Peter Kubelka, William Rothman, P. Adams Sitney, Manny Farber, Noel Carroll, Dusan Makaveyev, Noel Burch, William K. Everson, Ted Perry and many others.

As Professor in Film Studies at Concordia University, Falsetto developed over 20 different film courses, and is considered a specialist in avant-garde cinema, the films of Stanley Kubrick, American narrative film of the 1960s and 1970s, contemporary independent filmmakers, and key film auteurs, including Gus Van Sant, Federico Fellini, David Lynch, Martin Scorsese, John Cassavetes, and many others.

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Movies for June 2016: Elvis & Nixon and Palio

Nic is hosting for June and the movies to see are:

Elvis & Nixon (2016)

The untold true story behind the meeting between the King of Rock 'n Roll and President Nixon, resulting in this revealing, yet humorous moment immortalized in the most requested photograph in the National Archives. Co-written by Princess Bride star Cary Elwes.

Director: Liza Johnson  

Writers: Joey Sagal, Hanala Sagal, and Cary Elwes  

Stars: Michael Shannon,  Kevin Spacey,  Alex Pettyfer

Now showing at The Living Room Theatres

Palio (2015)

Twice a year the Italian city of Siena goes crazy for the oldest horse race in the world: the Palio. Not your average race: strategy, bribery and corruption play as much a part as the skill of the riders.  

Director: Cosima Spender  

Writers: John Hunt,  Cosima Spender 

Available on YouTube:



Monday, April 11, 2016

Movies for May 2016: The Young Victoria and Sicario

Dean is hosting in May and the movies to see are:

The Young Victoria (2009)

A dramatization of the turbulent first years of Queen Victoria's rule, and her enduring romance with Prince Albert.

Director: Jean-Marc Vallée

Writer: Julian Fellowes

Stars: Emily Blunt,  Rupert Friend,  Paul Bettany


Sicario (2015)

An idealistic FBI agent is enlisted by a government task force to aid in the escalating war against drugs at the border area between the U.S. and Mexico. 

Director: Denis Villeneuve

Writer: Taylor Sheridan

Stars: Emily Blunt,  Josh Brolin,  Benicio Del Toro 

Tuesday, March 15, 2016

Films for April 2016: Race and Creed

Bill G will host in April 2016 and the movies to see are:

Race (2016)

Jesse Owens' quest to become the greatest track and field athlete in history thrusts him onto the world stage of the 1936 Olympics, where he faces off against Adolf Hitler's vision of Aryan supremacy.

Director: Stephen Hopkins

Writers: Joe Shrapnel,  Anna Waterhouse

Stars: Stephan James,  Jason Sudeikis,  Eli Gore


Creed (2015)

The former World Heavyweight Champion Rocky Balboa serves as a trainer and mentor to Adonis Johnson, the son of his late friend and former rival Apollo Creed.

Director: Ryan Coogler

Writers: Ryan Coogler (story & screenplay),  Aaron Covington (screenplay)  Sylvester Stallone (characters)

Stars: Michael B. Jordan,  Sylvester Stallone,  Tessa Thompson

Sunday, February 7, 2016

March 2015 Movies: Hail, Caesar! and Brooklyn

Bob will host for March and the movies to see are:

Hail, Caesar! (2016)

A Hollywood fixer in the 1950s works to keep the studio's stars in line. 

Directors: Ethan and Joel Coen  

Writers: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen  

Stars: Josh Brolin, George Clooney, Alden Ehrenreich, Ralph Fiennes, Scarlett Johansson, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDormand, Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill

Brooklyn (2015)

An Irish immigrant lands in 1950s Brooklyn, where she quickly falls into a romance with a local. When her past catches up with her, however, she must choose between two countries and the lives that exist within. 

Director: John Crowley  

Writers: Nick Hornby (screenplay),  Colm Tóibín (novel)

Stars: Saoirse Ronan,  Emory Cohen,  Domhnall Gleeson 


Monday, January 18, 2016

Movies for February: The Big Short and The Hateful Eight

We will meet at Ted's house at 7:30 on Wednesday February 3rd to review the following movies. (Note: Joe Robinson has strongly suggested we also all try to see The Revenant for discussion at this meeting.)

The Big Short (2015)


Four denizens of the world of high-finance predict the credit and housing bubble collapse of the mid-2000s, and decide to take on the big banks for their greed and lack of foresight.

Director: Adam McKay
Writers: Charles Randolph (screenplay), Adam McKay(screenplay), Michael Lewis (book)

Stars: Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling


The Hateful Eight (2015)

In the dead of a Wyoming winter, a bounty hunter and his prisoner find shelter in a cabin currently inhabited by a collection of nefarious characters.

Director: Quentin Tarantino
Writer: Quentin Tarantino
Stars: Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Jennifer Jason Leigh