Can the onset of DVD, video and multiple movie channels explain the rise of film fanaticism? Everywhere I turn people are making excuses to see films! All this time I thought my compulsion to see film after film had to do with eating popcorn but now I can see I am part of something larger, perhaps even profound… Pictures speak about our culture. Film shows how we define ourselves. It is the poetry of our time. Film spreads our messages, good and bad. It’s natural then that we would gather together and watch these images and reflect on them, commenting on what they say about us. Hence, the arrival of the latest forms of communal entertainment: Film Clubs.
John Farr began his Film Club three years ago in the basement of his house. For 8-10 Friday or Saturday evenings over the winter he held all “classic” movie nights showing films like NOTORIOUS with Cary Grant, THE APARTMENT with Jack Lemmon, A HARD DAY’S NIGHT with the Beatles and THE CONVERSATION with Gene Hackman on his 55 inch rear projection screen. John sent out a schedule and sign up sheet at the beginning of the season to 50-100 of his friends. Initially the turn out for each “movie night” would vary from 15-30 people. By the third year, the routine had caught on and John’s “movie nights” consistently had 30-35 people. He and his wife provided “booze and pizza” and everyone else brought over hors d’oeuvres, salads, desserts and conversation.
The format for the evening was simple. John introduced the film briefly and they’d watch it. The intent was “not to turn it into an academic thing” as he has an aversion to that. The idea was “just to get people intrigued” and keeps everything “accessible”. John was shocked to find his audience had no idea who William Powell was until he showed MY MAN GODFREY. Now he can sleep at night knowing that they do! And dreams do come true…At least John’s has for he has expanded his love for film and parlayed it right into “a day job,”(And it all started with a Film Club!). He recently helped bring back to life The Avon Theatre in Stamford, Conn. The Avon is a beautiful 1939 theater “built at a time when going to the movies was the highlight of the week”. Visit their website: www.avontheatre.org and join John’s “club”. They are going to open their doors with a Cary Grant festival.
Speaking of cool theaters and another Film Club...Dale and Bob Mnookin and Lia and Bill Poorvu teamed up for the first time to co-host a screening of DR.STRANGELOVE at the Brattle Theatre in Cambridge (Bill Poorvu owns the building that the Brattle is in). They combined their lists and pulled in about a hundred of their friends who came on a Sunday morning (film can be a religious experience). After watching the classic, a discussion followed where, of course, parallels were drawn between the film and the political situation today (Iraq). Many felt seeing the film was haunting in its relevance. Everyone went to Casablanca for lunch afterwards to complete the outing.
Now please don’t think every Film Club has to tie in a theatre somehow because those examples are the exception. The Mnookin’s, for example, had hosted potluck Film Club meetings at their house prior to the Brattle idea. The way those worked is that they assigned a film ahead of time. ON THE WATERFRONT, was one and a French film, THE RULES OF THE GAME, by Jean Renoir, another, and an Orson Welles film, THE THIRD MAN, another. Everyone had to see the film before coming to their house (“that was their ticket through the door”) and they brought a dish for the potluck.
Louisa McCall has irregular Film Club meetings as time and desire dictate. She and her husband had a small group of six (three couples) over to watch and discuss Lucia Small’s documentary, MY FATHER, THE GENIUS (see IMAGINE November 2002 cover story). Louisa is also involved with a FILM CLUB of mothers with daughters who watched THIRTEEN together and have plans to watch other films related to motherhood. Louisa sees film as “increasingly a vehicle for people to talk about life, like book clubs.”
Then there are process oriented Film Clubs. My husband and I have hosted two of those Film Club nights at our house. The first evening, I rented the video and we all (four couples) watched Mike Nichols’ THE GRADUATE and discussed it, analyzed it, examined the editing, paused, played, discussed, paused, played, discussed. We spent hours digging up the details. The second Film Club event was oriented towards the screenplay. Everybody (ten people) got a copy of the original SAVING PRIVATE RYAN screenplay written by Robert Rodat, the version that Steven Spielberg first saw. Then everybody got a copy of the version (of the screenplay) that got shot. Everybody made a point of seeing (if they hadn’t already) SAVING PRIVATE RYAN beforehand. Robert Rodat and his wife, Mollie Miller, came to the meeting and we all discussed the process of writing a screenplay, the constant changes, adjustments, and coping that is necessary. Our Film Club approach is more work-minded. They are not relaxing evenings. They are challenging and exhausting and you leave mumbling to yourself “what ever happened to just watching a movie for enjoyment?” I’m sorry to all of you who attended.
Averil Meyer’s Film Club was born out of their women’s book club. They make up a list of 6-10 movies, mostly independent and foreign with some Hollywood films and everyone has to see them over a month. Then they all meet for lunch at a ladies club to discuss them. Averil says that it is “pretty informal.” They’ll touch on the acting and the directing and if they liked it or not. They mainly enjoy the time together sharing ideas.
And the Film Club Award goes to…Barbara Cole Lee who started Chix Flix born out of her trip to Sundance Film Festival and her love of independent film (and her love of being with her girlfriends). Barbara holds the Chix Flix club meetings/screenings at Joe Zina’s Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline on weekday mornings every couple of months or so. There are 57 Chix on her mailing list! The Chix arrive at around 10:00 a.m. (numbers attending varying); watch a documentary that Barbara has chosen because she thinks that it is an important film to see. After the film, the Chix discuss it. Barbara provides lunch. The filmmaker is sometimes there. As Barbara says, “It is a way to be with friends. It promotes independent film. It broadens our views.”
Friends, visual poetry and popcorn, there are plenty of good reasons to start a Film Club!
Sally Fay Cottingham worked with the ABC/Hearst production team that launched A&E in NYC. She has written, produced and directed 2 shorts, PATTY’S FANTASY and WATERTALK. She has acted in major motion pictures, independent films and television.
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