Special notes for this year’s playlist: in celebration of ten years in Cinema Rex, one film was chosen from each of the past nine years to be re-shown this year. These films are indicated as such, with the original write-ups for these film being used again. Also, Rex was gracious enough to allow each of his department heads to show a special film of their choosing, these are marked as John, Eric and Michael’s picks.
Creature from the Black Lagoon
NR—1954—79 min.
dir. Jack Arnold w/Richard Carlson, Julia Adams, Richard Denning
2002 Write-Up: Adventure finds itself deep in the Amazon jungle in this classic monster movie that defined a genre and ‘spawned’ two sequels. A recent, unofficial Rex poll indicated many of you have never seen this historic film, so here’s your chance to see it in style.
Hero
PG-13—2002—99 min.
dir. Yimou Zhang w/Jet Li, Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Maggie Cheung, Ziyi Zhang
2005 Write-Up: By far the best cinematography in Cinema Rex this year, you won’t want to miss the beautiful and vibrant scenery, costumes, and sets. But the action will leave you speechless as the tastefully done martial ballet tells a classic story of heroism and self-sacrifice. If you go to the Masquerade, make sure to catch this feature’s encore showing on Sunday.
Death Proof
R—2007—114 min.
dir. Quentin Tarantino w/Kurt Russell and some other people
Kurt Russell in a Tarantino film? It’s like Rex has died and gone to heaven. You may wish you never met Stuntman Mike, but you’ll be glad you saw this down-n-dirty half of last year’s Grindhouse.
Run Lola Run
R—1998—81 min.
dir. Tom Tykwer w/Franka Potente, Moritz Bleibtreu
2003 Write-Up: Rex has been waiting for a good excuse to show this amazing German film for years and the time travel theme has finally given him the chance. Fast paced, intelligent, cleverly written and with great music, this film is a real treat. Afterwards you can debate with Rex whether this movie has anything to do with time travel.
Trailer Park with Rob and Daren
See what the future holds as Rex dishes out trailers for hot upcoming releases, as well as some independent shorts with footage and commentary from Guests Robert Meyer Burnett and Daren Dochterman.
300
R—2007—117 min.
dir. Zack Snyder w/Gerard Butler, Lena Headey, David Wenham, Dominic West
2008 Write-Up: With all the films from past years, employee picks, special guest events, and of course Kurt Russell, Rex wanted to pick at least one film to represent year 10. So here’s to you Frank Miller; Rex would tip his hat to you if his arms could reach that high.
The Matrix
R—1999—136 min. (this showing closed captioned)
dir. Larry & Andy Wachowski w/Keanu Reeves, Lawrence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss
2000 Write-Up: Last year’s best sci-fi film and the inspiration for CONvergence 2000’s theme. We just had to show it. If you never experienced it in a theater, you never experienced it. (Psssst, if you still haven’t seen it, slip in quietly. We won’t tell.)
The Golden Compass (with Vincent Truitner)
PG-13—2007—113 min.
dir. Chris Weitz w/Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Dakota Blue Richards
Come see the film version of the first installment in the geek favorite “His Dark Materials” book series. Returning Guest of Honor and CGI artist Vincent Truitner will introduce the feature, discussing his work on the film.
Star Wreck: In The Pirkinning
NR—2005—103 min.
dir. Timo Vuorensola w/a bunch of other foreigners
2006 Write-Up: It sounds like the setup to a bad joke: what do you get when you make a Star Trek-Babylon 5 crossover parody fan film in Finland? But it’s for real: this feature length movie not only has wonderful production values, it’s just darn funny. This is one of Rex’s featured fan films. If you only see one film in Cinema Rex this year, this should be it!
Star Trek: The Motion Picture-Director’s Cut (with live commentary by Andrew Probert, Daren Dochterman and Robert Meyer Burnett)
PG—1979—136 min.
dir. Robert Wise w/William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley
Come to Cinema Rex for an intimate viewing of the first Star Trek film as Andrew Probert, Daren Dochterman and Robert Meyer Burnett do a live commentary track. Andrew will discuss his experiences working on the film as a production designer, while Daren and Rob will talk about their work on the DVD release.
Emily Hagins Shorts
Last year’s guest of honor, “Horror Teen-Queen” Emily Hagins, is back with a few film shorts and a preview of her current film project. A must-see event!
Amélie
R—2001—122 min.
dir. Jean-Pierre Jeunet w/Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz
Eric’s Pick: A shy, geeky Parisian dreamer lives her life teetering on the line between fantasy and reality. While technically not sci-fi or fantasy, this off-beat French romance has gorgeous cinematography, sly humor and a fantastical feel that makes it a geek favorite. I’m thrilled that Rex has given me the chance to show one of my favorite films of the last decade.
The 48 Hour Film Project
Every year many filmmaking teams across the nation compete in a contest to produce a short film from start to finish in 48 hours. Rex presents previous year’s 48 Hour Film Project submissions in the sci-fi and fantasy genres.
Barbarella: Queen of the Galaxy
PG—1968—98 min.
dir. Roger Vadin. w/Jane Fonda.
2001 Write-Up: Oooh la la! It’s a comic book. It’s weird. It’s French. It’s Jane Fonda. Barbarella’s got quite an aspect ratio, and she’s, like, *completely letterboxed*, if you know what we mean…That’s right, come see Jane Fonda get 2.35’d all over Rex’s 10 foot screen!! WOW!!!
Rob and Daren’s Vault
Ok, seriously folks… you want to be here for this. Guests Robert Meyer Burnett and Daren Dochterman have lots of fun, rare short stuff to show you. Rex knows what some of it is, but he ain’t talking. Just come. You won’t regret it.
Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie (with Trace Beaulieu)
PG-13—1996—73 min.
dir. Jim Mallon w/Trace Beaulieu, Michael J. Nelson, Jim Mallon, Kevin Murphy
Most geeks were excited when MST3K made the jump from TV to the big screen and this film did not disappoint. Join Guest of Honor Trace Beaulieu as he talks about his work with MST3K and hopefully answers the question, “Just how the heck is your last name pronounced, anyway?”
Star Wars (with Peter Mayhew)
PG—1977—121 min.
dir. George Lucas w/Peter Mayhew, Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Sir Alec Guinness
Sure, you’ve all seen Star Wars over and over… but how many times with Chewbacca? Come and join Rex for a special screening of this legendary movie with our very special Guest of Honor Peter Mayhew introducing the film.
Dracula: Pages From a Virgin’s Diary
NR—2002—73 min.
dir. Guy Maddin w/The Royal Winnepeg Ballet
2004 Write-Up: The Dracula tale, as you have never seen it before! This is a black & white silent film with a ballet troupe for a cast. Beautifully transposing the Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s interpretation of Bram Stoker’s classic vampire yarn from stage to screen, Maddin has forged a sumptuous, erotically charged feast of dance, drama and silent film techniques. Add to this a lush score and red and green accents hand painted directly on the film and you have an amazingly unique cinema experience. You just can’t miss this one.
THACO
NR—2008—about an hour
dir. Bill Stiteler w/Aaron Kesher, Jon Olsen, Derek Washington, Neil Gaiman
When three 30-something geeks wait for their perpetually late friend, a gaming session is spent dissecting how RPGs have warped their lives. Is reality really better than fantasy? And what do you need a thirty-sided die for? Based on the sell-out hit play from the 2005 Fringe Festival, THACO has been completely revamped for the screen, containing new material and a cameo appearance by Neil Gaiman.
Strange Days
R—1995 —145 min.
dir. Kathryn Bigelow w/Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis, Tom Sizemore
1999 Write-Up: One of the great SF films of the decade! Come see this cyber-punkish James Cameron-esque film that has been greatly overlooked by the fan community. After the movie, stay and watch scenes that were deleted from the original theatrical release.
Moulin Rouge
PG-13—2001—127 min.
dir. Baz Luhrmann w/Nicole Kidman, Ewan McGregor, John Leguizamo, Jim Broadbent
John’s Pick: Every year as we’re setting up the tech in Cinema Rex I play several special features from the DVD release (I had a religious experience when I first saw this film). And I always said to myself if there is ever any year when Rex would let me choose a film this would be the one. Well that day is finally here. Thanks Rex!!!
The Descent
R—2005—99 min.
dir. Neil Marshall w/Shauna Macdonald, Natalie Mendoza, Alex Reid
2007 Write-Up: The first installment of the Neil Marshall double feature focuses on a “girls’ night out in the wilderness.” Almost two films in one, a group of women first must face the challenges of spelunking in a vast but claustrophobic cave complex. Then they must face another unexpected challenge. Ultimately they must face themselves.
Legend
G—1985—114 min.
dir. Ridley Scott w/Tom Cruise, Mia Sara, Tim Curry
Michael’s Pick: A young man of the forest must stop the Lord of Darkness from destroying daylight and marrying the woman he loves. Never did the phrase “a beautiful film” have more relevance than in this wonderful piece of adult fantasy. Certainly it is a film that children could relate to and enjoy but it’s also a deeper film with a host of reflective ideas and magical concepts. What IS the Lord of Darkness? What is the significance of the unicorns? What becomes of the innocence we leave behind in childhood? Thanks for letting me get this one on The Rex Big Screen!
Free Enterprise (with live commentary by Robert Meyer Burnett and Daren
Dochterman)
R—1998—114 min.
dir. Robert Meyer Burnett w/William Shatner, Eric McCormack, Rafer Weigel
Rex is very pleased to present Guests Robert and Daren as they introduce and comment on this film made by, for and about the sort of people who have living rooms full of action figures. This hilarious geek-fest is an absolute must-see for fans of Star Trek, Logan’s Run, and William Shatner.
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