Do you love the Summer Nights film series, but just can’t stand the heat? Enjoy classic movies, but hate to watch them at home? Are you a movie lover or a casual film fan? Well, we’ve got something just for you.
This winter, the IMA will debut Winter Nights, a counterpart to the IMA’s popular Summer Nights film series. Winter Nights will feature classic films with familiar names. All films will be screened in the IMA’s Tobias Theater (aka The Toby) which will open this fall. (Which means…unlike Summer Nights, the IMA will provide the seats AND climate control.)
Below are some of the films that you will get to see this winter on The Toby’s big screen:
- The Maltese Falcon (dir. John Huston, 1941, 101 mins, B & W)
- La Dolce Vita (dir. Federico Fellini, 1960, 180 mins, B & W)
- The Bank Dick (dir. Edward F. Cline, 1940, 72 mins B & W)
- Blade Runner: The Final Cut (dir. Ridley Scott, 1982, Color)
- The General (dir. Clyde Bruckman and Buster Keaton, 1927, 75 mins, B & W) with live accompaniment by the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra.
- Lolita (dir. Stanley Kubrick, 1962, 152 mins, B & W)
BUT THAT’S NOT ALL FOLKS! Back by popular demand – the IMA’s Film Poll. We want to know what you want to see. Polls close on July 18 and at that time the movie that has the most vote in each one of the categories below will be chosen for the 2009 Winter Nights Series. You can vote as often as you like, so vote every 15 minutes, every day or just once. It’s up to you, my friends!
Here are the categories:
AntiWestern/Revisionist Western/Acid Western (January 2)
AntiWestern, Revisionist, Acid. Call ‘em what you will, but these counter-culture Westerns favor realism over romanticisim.
Vote for your favorite. Giddyup!
- Unforgiven (dir. Clint Eastwood, 1992, 131 mins) (26%, 22 Votes)
- The Magnificent Seven (dir. John Sturgis, 1960, 128 mins) (21%, 18 Votes)
- High Noon (dir. Fred Zinnemann, 1952, 85 mins) (18%, 15 Votes)
- Searchers (dir. John Ford, 1956, 119 mins) (18%, 15 Votes)
- The Wild Bunch (dir. Sam Peckinpah, 1969, 145 mins) (17%, 14 Votes)
Total Voters: 84
Loading ...Rough & Tumble Action Epic (January 30)
Nothing beats a great car chase. Except maybe deception, betrayal, gunfights, escapes and explosions. But no, nothing beats a great car chase.
Pick your favorite rough and tumble action epic.
- • The Seven Samurai (dir. Akira Kurosawa, 1954, 200 mins ) (29%, 23 Votes)
- • The Great Escape (dir. John Sturges, 1963, 172 mins) (29%, 23 Votes)
- • Desperado (dir. Robert Rodriguez, 1995, 106 mins) (25%, 20 Votes)
- • Enter the Dragon (dir. Robert Clouse, 1973, 110 mins) (13%, 10 Votes)
- • The Boss (dir. Fernando di Leo, 1973, 100 mins) (4%, 3 Votes)
Total Voters: 79
Loading ...French New Wave (February 6)
In true esprit de francais, New Wave directors snubbed their noses at classical cinema by experimenting with unique editing and narrative styles.
Too bad you can only pick one of these cinematic gems. Ah, c’est la vie.
- • Breathless (dir. Jean Luc Godard, 1960, 90 mins, B & W) (28%, 19 Votes)
- • The 400 Blows (dir. Francois Truffaut, 1959, 99 mins, B & W) (25%, 17 Votes)
- • Love in the Afternoon (dir. Eric Rohmer, 1972, 90 mins, Color) (25%, 17 Votes)
- • The Lovers (dir. Louis Malle, 1958, 90 mins, B & W) (10%, 7 Votes)
- • Jules et Jim (dir. Francois Truffaut, 1962, 105 mins, B & W) (12%, 7 Votes)
Total Voters: 67
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July 4th, 2008 at 10:20 am
This is a great film lineup – not a weak one in the bunch. The film situation in Indianapolis is pretty bleak, and having something like this at the IMA is a big win for the city.
July 4th, 2008 at 10:25 am
By the way, if you’re proposing the Great Escape, a worthy film in its own right, you might consider instead La Grande Illusion, the Jean Renoir masterpiece from which it drew inspiration. In fact, you could do a lot worse than an entire Jean Renoir retrospective.
One idea the IMA might want to explore is putting together a full fledged film operation. Something like Chicago’s Gene Siskel Film Center (run by the School of the Art Institute of Chicago). There is a huge unfilled void in the local market for classic, new, and foreign cinema of high quality that is unfortunately likely not commercially viable outside of the Landmark style flicks. The IMA has the institutional gravitas to pull this off.
July 11th, 2008 at 5:54 am
We are insanely excited about this! Thank you IMA. Hopefully, these films will start a bit earlier than the summer ones (since you aren’t waiting for dusk). We are so grateful to see so many older classics!
July 11th, 2008 at 10:00 am
I agree with Urbanophile; I think the Toby should be developed into a distinct destination that is open regularly. I, personally, would like to eventually see more contemporary films shown at the Toby such as “Frida” or “Le Fabuleux destin d’Amélie Poulain”. In any case, I am very excited about the Toby.
July 14th, 2008 at 12:06 pm
How about films like Zorro with Tyron Powers or Robin Hood with Errol Flynn>
July 15th, 2008 at 6:23 pm
There is much to say on the merits of film, and I certainly don’t count myself enough of a film buff to gainsay any of the comments here, but I do know the tobias theatre and film projection is only a fraction of what the space could do.
I’m hoping that the IMA includes some performance art in their season.
July 16th, 2008 at 9:20 am
M$, you’re right on. The IMA program team is also planning some out-of-the-box concerts…like the premiere event in The Toby (Fri. Nov. 21), a collaboration with International Violin Competition of Indianapolis that will include sounds generated from paper and rocks.
Tatsuya Nakatani (http://www.prohiphop.com/2008/02/tatsuya-nakatan.html) is another performer who may come to The Toby in January. Also, how about this artist who makes Viewmasters (remember those?) for the entire audience: http://www.vladmaster.com/.
Bring on the performance art ideas…
July 17th, 2008 at 7:08 pm
this might be the greatest thing to happen to the beleagured film community around here in a long time. vote for the lovers…because, frankly, even for french films, those others are a tad overplayed.
September 2nd, 2008 at 12:19 am
I’ve just moved from Ft. Worth-Dallas this summer. I’m a 40+ “cinephile,” and can’t wait to see these films (some for the first time). I’d love to see a full film program!
My father was into film the way some men are into baseball. He was taking me to foreign films by age 14. The only way to educate folks about “good” film is to show it to them, and then discuss it. Let’s do it!