Sup film lovers? We’ve got some new things and old things for you this week, as usual. But this time around even our new film selections have a heavy gaze toward the past, whether it’s a 93-year-old woman who still reigns as a style sultan for women of all ages or a Mexican film that looks like it could have been made by Jean Luc Godard in 1968. Time is elastic y’all we know but stop wasting it sitting in front of your laptop and shell out a few bones to support your local independent Cini Mini and see reels on the big screen. It’s worth it, believe us.
The Man Who Fell to Earth
You’ve probably seen this at least once and maybe are crazy like us and have seen it countless times. But it’s seriously doubtful any of those private depressing laptop viewings will compare to seeing The Man Who Fell to Earth on the big screen at BAM as part of RadioLoveFest. The discussion after the film will probably be equally as rad. John Schaefer from WNYC (nerd alert!) will be speaking with philosopher, talking bald skull with a goatee Simon Critchley who published a book last year of critical essays on the songs of David Bowie. Thursday May 7th at BAM: $16 general admission
Iris
Filmmaker Albert Maysles, the dude behind some amazing stuff like Grey Gardens and Gimme Shelter, is 87 years old but still at it in the documentary film game. And you might say that he’s found a kindred spirit in his latest subject, Iris Apfel, the 93-year-old walking fashion legend who honestly is too old for us to have any idea how long she’s held the position of sassy clothing queen who is instantly recognizable whether you’re fancy enough to attend things like museum galas or you crack open the New York Times once in a while. Her exhibition at the Met, or rather the role her closet played in 2005’s Rara Avis: Selections from the Iris Apfel Collection, pretty much solidified her status as New York City royalty.
Thank heavens she’s actually a giant weirdo–hence “rare bird–” who keeps it mega real. Yeah, yeah we know this is like old school, old money Upper West Side New York– otherwise known as Yawn City, but Iris has actually done a lot of really cool stuff as an outspoken feminist. She claims to have never been pretty and insists that looks aren’t important, that style and above all happiness trump physical appearance. And consider she claims to have been the first woman to wear jeans. Where would we be without her? Thursday May 7th through Tuesday May 12th at Film Forum: $13 non-member
The Manipulator
We generally trust Spectacle Theater’s excellent and above all wacky and weird curatorial decisions, so along with us you’re going to have to just take their word for it that Mickey Rooney’s performance in The Manipulator is up there with some of the best acting feats of our time. You heard right. “Certain performances are for the ages. They transcend the actor and place the role into a realm of their own,” Spectacle writes. “That’s exactly what you’ll get from Mickey Rooney in The Manipulator.”
Now you might take this as a challenge or perhaps you’ll accept it as dogma but either way we’re intrigued. The plot is typical slasher fodder, though maybe with some Hollywood inside jokes to boot, as a whacked-out makeup guy BJ Lang kidnaps Carlotta. He confines her to a warehouse full of creepy props and costumes, where he forces her to play the part of Lady Roxane from 19th-century play, Cyrano de Bergerac. BJ of course casts himself as Cyrano. In the play, the two characters are locked in a love triangle, so we’re almost sure someone casting themselves as the third, Christian, might emerge to douse Cyrano aka BJ in gasoline or something equally horrifying. Sunday May 10 (5 pm), Sunday May 17th (7:30 pm), Sunday May 24th (7:30 pm), Wednesday May 27th (7:30 pm) at Spectacle Theater: $5 at the door
Gueros
Troubled teenager is sent away by his mother to live with his father. He ends up crammed inside a depressing apartment block building with half-brothers who bully him and no apparent father figure in sight. You’d think this kid would be living big knocking back 40s and getting into trouble with his pals, but he’s a teenager so of course everything takes on the dramatic lens of tragedy coupled with comic interludes. The film itself has a throwback vibe, it’s black and white and in many ways reminiscent of ’60s New Wave cinema French and otherwise. Wednesday May 20th through Tuesday June 2nd at Film Forum: $13 non-members