Los Angeles Cinema Calendar - April 2019*clockwise from top left: TO DIE LIKE A MAN (João Pedro Rodrigues, 2009), BEAU TRAVAIL (Claire Denis, 1999), SOY CUBA (Mikhail Kalatozov, 1964), TROPICAL MALADY (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2004)April Highlights:4/1 - 4/29: The New Beverly Cinema continues to program its most exciting films during the weekdays for some reason! This month, the comfortably unemployed or conveniently "sick" among us can enjoy a series of "Notable Films of 1999" each Monday at 2:00PM! Revisit one of the great years of American cinema with recent classics like
THE MATRIX, MAGNOLIA, EYES WIDE SHUT, and more!
4/1 - 4/7: The 21st annual Noir City festival returns to the Egyptian Theatre this month, showcasing nightly double features of rare and classic noir cinema. Some highlights this year include
TOUCH OF EVIL, ELEVATOR TO THE GALLOWS, I WANT TO LIVE!, and
BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK. 4/1 - 4/7: In celebration of his newest film,
PETERLOO, the Aero will be screening a few nights of Mike Leigh double features. The legendary English director will be at the theater for tonight's Peterloo screening, and you can catch his earlier greats like
NAKED, LIFE IS SWEET, SECRETS & LIES, and more, throughout the weekend.
4/5 - 4/27: The Secret Movie Club continues its absolutely excellent programming at the Vista this month - in one weekend you can see two iconic queer films -
MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO and
ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER and even a matinee of
SEVEN SAMURAI. Later in the month, you can catch Hayao Miyazaki's
NAUSICAA OF THE VALLEY OF THE WIND, Robert Altman's classic neo-noir
THE LONG GOODBYE, another Kurosawa masterpiece
THRONE OF BLOOD, and then Pam Grier in
COFFY... all on 35mm!
4/11 - 4/14: The TCM Film Festival celebrates its tenth year showcasing classic cinema with big-name guests at big-ticket prices! If you can swallow the $20 per screening ticket fee or even pony up for a festival pass, there is a lot of great stuff to be seen this year. Highlights include Robert Altman's masterpiece
NASHVILLE with a slew of amazing guests (Lily Tomlin! Jeff Goldblum! Screenwriter Joan Tewkesbury! And STILL MORE!), Anthony Mann's amazing
WINCHESTER '73, a screening of
ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK with John Carpenter and Kurt Russell in person,
A WOMAN UNDER THE INFLUENCE with the legendary Gena Rowlands in person, and a handful of 35mm Nitrate film projections of underseen classic Hollywood cinema!
4/12: Catch a rare screening of Apichatpong Weerasethakul's beautiful
TROPICAL MALADAY on 35mm at the Hammer thanks to the Outfest UCLA Legacy Project Screening Series.
4/12 - 4/14: The French auteur Claire Denis gets a long-overdue mini-retrospective this weekend at the Aero Theatre! Denis herself will be there to kick things off with a double feature of
CHOCOLAT and
WHITE MATERIAL (both on 35mm) on Friday, plus a screening of her masterpiece
BEAU TRAVAIL Saturday afternoon, also on film. Deep divers will want to stick around Saturday and Sunday night for two more excellent double features!
4/14 - 4/21: SOY CUBA (I Am Cuba), the epic 1964 Russian-Cuban propaganda film directed by Mikhail Kalatozov, has rightfully received a 4K Restoration and it will screen for several nights at the Downtown Independent. If you haven't seen this film, it's an absolute must see - especially on the big screen.
4/15: One more must-see happening at the Downtown Independent this month is Performance and Death in Queer Portuguese Cinema: A Screening of João Pedro Rodrigues’ 2009 film
TO DIE LIKE A MAN on 35mm - and thanks to USC sponsoring the event, Rodrigues will be there in person for a conversation after the film. Also... it's free! Claim your ticket now!
4/26: If you missed it during its initial run because of a bias against cartoons or superhero movies, The Montalban's Rooftop Movies series is giving you a second chance to catch
SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE, one of the most visually exciting, form-expanding animated films in years, on the big screen -- the way it absolutely ought to be seen!
4/28: The Autry Museum of the American West continues its sparse but excellent monthly programming looking at the "Weird West" with a screening of 1969's
THE VALLEY OF GWANGI, a Ray Harryhausen mash-up of cowboys and... stop-motion dinosaurs? Sign us the heck up.
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