SoCal classic movies, March 20-27: ‘Days of Heaven,’ ‘Rockford Files,’ Noir City and more
Classic films, film festivals, event screenings, restorations and revivals
Welcome to the latest edition of TV or Not TV’s curated guide to classic movies, events and revivals, film festivals and more screening in LA and OC this week. I’m Matt Cooper, former listings coordinator for the Los Angeles Times’ Calendar.
Roll ’em!
‘Showgirls’ It’s Elizabeth Berkley vs. Gina Gershon to see who rules the Las Vegas Strip in Paul Verhoeven’s over-the-top, mature-audiences-only 1995 drama. Kyle MacLachlan also stars. Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, David Geffen Theater, Ted Mann Theater, 6067 Wilshire Blvd., L.A. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 20. $5-$10. academymuseum.org
‘Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’ The Beatles’ landmark 1976 album serves as the basis for this star-studded 1978 fantasy musical. With Peter Frampton, the Bee Gees, George Burns, et al. Alamo Drafthouse, 700 W. 7th St., downtown L.A. 7:15 p.m. Wednesday, March 20. $18. drafthouse.com
‘Vulnerable Innocence’ Strategies for protecting children and teens from online sexual exploitation are explored in a special one-day-only screening of Charlene Doak-Gebauer and Nancy Lynch’s 2021 documentary. Laemmle Monica Film Center, 1332 2nd St., Santa Monica. 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 20. Free; RSVP at eventbrite.com
‘Lust, Caution’ All is fair in love and espionage in the NC-17 version Ang Lee’s steamy 2007 erotic thriller set in China during WWII. With Tony Leung and Tang Wei. New Beverly Cinema, 7165 Beverly Blvd., L.A. 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday, March 21-22. $10, $13; advance purchase recommended. thenewbev.com
‘The Ruling Class’ with ‘The Odd Job’ A salute to Peter Medak includes the British filmmaker’s darkly comic 1972 cult classic, starring Peter O’Toole as an aristocrat who thinks he’s Jesus Christ, followed by the 1978 comedy starring Monty Python’s Graham Chapman as a depressed man who hires a killer to put him out of his misery. American Cinematheque at the Aero Theatre, 1328 Montana Ave., Santa Monica. 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 21. $8, $13. americancinematheque.com
Noir City 2024 Down-on-their-luck detectives, double-crossing dames and other denizens of the dark end of the street get their moment in the spotlight in a 25th anniversary edition of this annual showcase featuring nearly two dozen classic and lesser-known films noir including “Kiss of Death,” “La Bête Humaine” and “Nightmare Alley.” American Cinematheque at the Egyptian Theatre, 6712 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood. Various dates and times, March 22 thru 31. $15, $20. americancinematheque.com
‘Salomé’ with Live Score by Sarah Davachi The new LGBTQ-themed film series “The Sewing Circle: Sapphic Icons of Early Hollywood” kicks off with Charles Bryant’s racy 1922 silent melodrama adapted from Oscar Wilde’s one-act drama about the biblical temptress (Alla Nazimova). Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, David Geffen Theater, 6067 Wilshire Blvd., L.A. 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 22. $5-$10. academymuseum.org
‘Days of Heaven’ Richard Gere, Brooke Adams and Sam Shepard form a romantic triangle in Terrence Malick’s dreamlike 1978 drama set in turn-of-the-last century Texas and featuring a score by the great Ennio Morricone; part of the “From Canvas to Screen” series. Norton Simon Museum, 411 W. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena. 4:30 p.m. Saturday, March 23. Included with museum admission ($15, $20; students, active-duty military and ages 18 and younger, free). (626) 449-6840. nortonsimon.org
‘Design for Living’ Gary Cooper, Miriam Hopkins and Fredric March form a romantic triangle in Ernst Lubitsch’s pre-Code 1933 rom-com, with the filmmaker’s daughter Nicola Lubitsch on hand to introduce the film and talk about her father’s career. Old Town Music Hall, 140 Richmond St., El Segundo. 2:30 p.m. Saturday, March 23. $10, $12. (310) 322-2592. oldtownmusichall.org
‘The Intruder’ A salute to legendary B-movie director and producer Roger Corman continues with this 1962 drama starring William Shatner as an outside agitator looking to stir up racial tensions in a small Southern town. Presented in 35mm. American Cinematheque at the Los Feliz 3, 1822 N. Vermont Ave., Los Feliz. 10 p.m. Saturday, March 23. $8, $13. americancinematheque.com
‘My Man Godrey’ with ‘Twentieth Century’ This double bill of classic screwball comedies pairs Gregory La Cava’s 1936 romp starring Carole Lombard and William Powell with Howard Hawks’ 1934 laugher starring Lombard and John Barrymore. Presented in 35mm. New Beverly Cinema, 7165 Beverly Blvd., L.A. 6:30 and 8:35 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, March 23-24. $10, $13; advance purchase recommended. thenewbev.com
‘The Rockford Files: Isaac Hayes “Gandy and Rockfish” Trilogy’ It’s a real blast from the past as the UCLA Film & Television Archive screens three classic episodes of the L.A.-set 1970s-era TV starring James Garner as an ex-con turned private and guest starring Isaac Hayes as our hero’s former cellmate. Hammer Museum, Billy Wilder Theater, 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood. 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 23. Free; no advance reservations; first come, first served. cinema.ucla.edu
‘Singin’ in the Rain’ Gene Kelly is all wet in this classic 1952 MGM musical co-directed by Kelly and Stanley Donen and co-starring Debbie Reynolds and Donald O’Connor. Vidiots Eagle Theatre, 4884 Eagle Rock Blvd., Highland Park. 7 p.m. Saturday, March 23. $9-$12. vidiotsfoundation.org
‘La Strada’ A naive young woman (Giulietta Masina) goes on the road with a brutish street performer (Anthony Quinn) in Federico Fellini’s masterful 1954 black-and-white fable. In Italian with English subtitles. Presented in 35mm. American Cinematheque at the Los Feliz 3, 1822 N. Vermont Ave., Los Feliz. 1 p.m. Sunday, March 24. $8, $13. americancinematheque.com
‘Love in the Afternoon’ The film series “Arthouse 101: The New Wave” continues with Eric Rohmer’s Paris-set 1972 exploration of marriage and infidelity. With Bernard Verley, Françoise Verley and Zouzou. In French with English subtitles. The Frida Cinema, Calle Cuatro Plaza, 305 E. 4th St., Santa Ana. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 26. $12. thefridacinema.org
‘West Side Story’ Natalie Wood and Richard Beymer play star-crossed lovers on the mean streets of New York City in co-directors Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins’ 1961 film adaptation of the Leonard Bernstein musical based on Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet.” The Art Theatre of Long Beach, 2025 E. 4th St., Long Beach. 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 26. $9-$12. (562) 438-5435. arttheatrelongbeach.org
‘Anatomy of a Murder’ James Stewart plays a former district attorney hired to defend a husband on trial for killing the man he claims sexually assaulted his wife in Otto Preminger’s classic 1959 courtroom drama; with Lee Remick and George C. Scott. Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, David Geffen Theater, 6067 Wilshire Blvd., L.A. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 27. $5-$10. academymuseum.org