Thinking Outside the Multiplex in Indiana (October 19, 2012)

by HELEN GEIB

With lots of Halloween-related horror film programming around the state, the expected variety at the cinemas that regularly appear in this space, and the Heartland Film Festival in Indianapolis, there’s a very, VERY full schedule on the repertory circuit this week.

TOTM in IN Near-Term Scheduling News: Good news folks, Mike volunteered to fill in while I’m busy with my trial. As a parting gift, “next week and beyond” is atypically comprehensive.

Note: For trailers, cast and crew, and suchlike follow the title link to the movie’s official website. For showtimes and directions for the non-multiplex venues, follow the links under “Outside the Multiplex” in the sidebar.

OPENING THIS WEEK IN LIMITED RELEASE

Little Red Wagon- In an Indiana exclusive, this feel good family movie starts today at the AMC Indianapolis 17. From the movie’s official site: “LITTLE RED WAGON is based on the inspirational true story of eight-year-old Zach Bonner on his quest to change the world with nothing more than his beat-up red wagon and a blazing spirit of philanthropy. When Zach sets out to help homeless children in America in the wake of Hurricane Charley, by walking from his house in Tampa, Florida to the White House, he must overcome bureaucrats and blisters and capture the hearts of his fractured family and the entire nation.”

The Other Dream Team- “The Other Dream Team is the story of the 1992 Lithuanian Olympic basketball team, a group of trailblazing athletes who won the bronze at the Barcelona Olympics and left an indelible mark on the history books.” The documentary opens at the Landmark’s Keystone Art Cinema in Indianapolis.

Student of the Year- This Bollywood rom-com starts today at the Republic Theaters Georgetown 14 in Indianapolis. It doesn’t appear to have an official site aside from its Facebook page, which is what the title link will take you to.

V/H/S- “Bringing together some of the top filmmakers in the game today, this wickedly conceived horror anthology sends the viewer through a gauntlet of suspense, terror, shock, and downright brutality—instantly distinguishing itself from a sea of lackluster found-footage horror flicks.” V/H/S- which also doesn’t seem to have an official site aside from its Facebook page, so that’s where the title link leads- starts today at the Cinema Center in Fort Wayne.

THEATRICAL HOLDOVERS (AND “RE-OPENINGS”)

Arbitrage- Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon, and Tim Roth head the high-profile cast of this thriller about a duplicitous financier. As the website summary puts it, “Will he make it out before the bubble bursts?” Arbitrage returns to the state for an engagement at the Yes Cinema in Columbus.

English Vinglish- The new Bollywood comedy English Vinglish is the comeback film of Sridevi, a popular star in Tamil and Bollywood films of the ’80s and ’90s. The playful title is a reference to her housewife character’s adventures in learning English. In a fun fact, the teaser trailer featuring Sridevi reading the movie’s Censor Certificate in character (i.e., in broken English) was a YouTube hit. Its “last few shows” time for the movie at the Republic Theaters Georgetown 14 in Indianapolis.

Liberal Arts- “When his favorite college professor invites him to campus to speak at his retirement dinner, Jesse [writer-director Josh Radnor] jumps at the chance. He is prepared for the nostalgia of the dining halls and dorm rooms, the parties and poetry seminars; what he doesn’t see coming is Zibby (Elizabeth Olsen)—a beautiful, precocious, classical-music-loving sophomore.” Liberal Arts holds over at the Landmark’s Keystone Art Cinema in Indianapolis.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower- “A funny and touching coming-of-age story based on the beloved best-selling novel by director Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a modern classic that captures the dizzying highs and crushing lows of growing up.” It holds over at the Landmark’s Keystone Art Cinema in Indianapolis, Rave Jefferson Pointe 18 in Fort Wayne, Rave Metropolis 18 in Plainfield, Regal Village Park 17 in Carmel, Cinemark Movies 14 in Mishawaka, Showplace Cinemas East in Evansville, Goodrich Theaters Hamilton 16 in Noblesville, and at three AMCs: Bloomington 11, Indianapolis 17, and Schererville 12.

Sleepwalk with Me- “Comedian Mike Birbiglia brings his hilarious semi-autobiographical story—already an off-Broadway smash and a best-selling book—to the screen as writer/director/star in his cinematic debut. Occasionally commenting ruefully on the action (“Remember: you’re on my side!”), Birbiglia plays alter-ego Matt Pandamiglio, a struggling stand-up comedian avoiding commitment with his long-time girlfriend.” It holds over at the Cinema Center in Fort Wayne and the Landmark Keystone Art Cinema in Indianapolis.

FESTIVALS, REPERTORY SCREENINGS, AND MORE

State Wide/North-Central

There are three, count ‘em three nights of Fathom Events movie showings this week. Tapping into today’s headline news, Tuesday is the new documentary The Levi Effect about cyclist Levi Leipheimer and the Lance Armstrong team doping scandal; the film will be preceded by an introduction by Leipheimer and followed by a recorded panel discussion.

In seasonal offerings, Wednesday is the presentation of classic horror film double feature Frankenstein and its sequel The Bride of Frankenstein, part of the TCM Event Series. The next night offers a different kind of horror when the Rifftrax crew takes on Birdemic. Check the Fathom website for the list of participating theaters.

If you live in striking distance of a Goodrich Quality Theater, you can see the original Halloween on the big screen on the evenings of October 25 and 30. Also, Monday night is the next installment of the Goodrich’s bi-monthly fall documentary series, environmental activist movie Last Call at the Oasis; showtimes are 5 and 7. Visit the Goodrich’s website for a list of participating theaters.

Indianapolis and Central Indiana

The annual Heartland Film Festival started yesterday and runs through the 27th; showings are at the AMC Castleton Square 14 and AMC Traders Point 12. Follow the link for the schedule and descriptions of the films and short film programs.

Poltergeist is the weekend movie at the Artcraft Theatre in Franklin; shows today and tomorrow at 2 and 7:30.

The penultimate movie in the Keystone Art Cinema’s seasonal midnight movie series is Beetlejuice, with shows today and tomorrow.

On Wednesday, the Irving Theater will have a double feature of the original The Invisible Man and its sequel The Invisible Man Returns as part of the Irvington Halloween Festival; tickets are just $5, $3 for kids under 12. I haven’t seen the sequel, but The Invisible Man is a good movie and great fun.

The next movie in the Indy Film Fest’s music-themed fall series is Just Like Being There. “In the gig [concert] poster community, artists such as Daniel Danger and Jay Ryan prove that creating this artwork is a way of life, more than just a career. These artists are at the forefront of an expansion of the gig poster genre.” Showing Thursday at the State Museum IMAX Theater at 7.

Southern Indiana

Documentary about Detroit Detropia has one showing a day today through Sunday and Chicken with Plums has one show today and tomorrow at the IU Cinema in Bloomington. Also showing this week: tonight at midnight is Beyond the Black Rainbow; tomorrow afternoon is a home movie short program; documentary Unprecedented: The 2000 Presidential Election is Sunday evening; documentary Project Nim is Monday; Lilya 4-Ever, a hard-hitting Swedish drama about human trafficking, is Tuesday; and the 1941 race film Blood of Jesus is Thursday, preceded by an introduction.

Also in Bloomington, the annual Dark Carnival Film Festival is tomorrow and Sunday at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater. “Dark Carnival is a celebration of horror, featuring live entertainment, merchandise vendors, special guests and film screenings. It’s a different show every year, and Dark Carnival events have included outdoor drive-in film screenings, costume contests, dance parties, sideshows, horror hosts, filmmaking seminars, burlesque dancers, live fire shows and more!” Visit the festival’s webpage for the full lineup, which includes a pre-festival showing of the recent indie horror movie Found tonight at Bear’s Place.

And also in Bloomington, 2 Days in New York, Stars in Shorts, and Side by Side have a few shows in the Ryder film series this weekend.

Columbus’ Yes Cinema will have three shows this week (today, tomorrow, and Wednesday) of The Shining. For a non-horror alternative, the Yes is starting a four month classic film series (one movie a month) with Rear Window, playing tomorrow and Sunday.

In other non-horror movie news, Footloose (the original) will be shown tonight at 7 at the Strand Theatre in Shelbyville. And back to horror movie news, the community festival “Shelbyville Screams” includes a movie component tomorrow at the Strand.

Northern Indiana

The Artist has a final showing at the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center tonight in South Bend. On Tuesday, the Classic 100 series continues with 42nd Street, one of the big three Busby Berkeley showcase musicals. The intriguing “From Street to Screen: A Festival of North African Film” starts Thursday with the double feature of Free Men, set in the black market of Nazi-occupied Paris, and contemporary road movie Le Grand Voyage.

Tomorrow at the Cinema Center in Fort Wayne is the “Braineaters Ball:” “Get spooky with Cinema Center’s Fright Night celebration. The Braineaters’ Ball offers a horrifyingly good mix of fun for all ages!” The program includes movies, food, costume prizes, a “macabre art gallery” and more. Admission is free (except for the regularly scheduled 9:15 showing of the new omnibus horror movie V/H/S, which is $5). The Center also has a couple of special screenings this week: the great 1970s political drama The Candidate on Sunday at 2 and Polish drama The Winner, the next movie in the Sister Cities series, on Wednesday evening at 7 (the latter is preceded by a reception at 6).

The Cinematheque for All repertory series in West Lafayette continues with the English drama Tyrannosaur (2011), directed by Paddy Considine. Screenings are Wednesday nights on the Purdue campus; fall season lineup.

NEXT WEEK AND BEYOND

The weekend movie at Franklin’s Artcraft Theater next week is The Ghost and Mr. Chicken. The Artcraft returns to its regular bi-monthly schedule of non-horror classic films in November with Mr. Smith Goes to Washington on the 9th and 10th.

Also next weekend but in Indianapolis, the KAC’s seasonal midnight movie series finishes up with Troll 2. As of writing, the Landmark’s website lists historical drama Simon and the Oaks, a big critical and popular hit in its native Sweden, for next Friday.

Tuesday the 30th, the new indie mockumentary War of the Worlds: The True Story will have a one-night-only showing at the Georgetown 14 at 7. It sounds like a lot of fun and I’ll be sorry to miss it. As of now at least, this is the only Indiana theater signed up.

Also on the 30th, at 8 at the Irving Theater is “Halloween Zombie Bash,” with special guest Sammy Terry to emcee. There will be a double feature of Hell Walks the Earth and Darksyde: Hell Walks the Earth II (funny how there are sequels to movies you’ve never heard of…), a zombie costume contest, “and much more.”

Coming up at the IMA, A Clockwork Orange will be shown on Halloween in the Toby. A documentary on the Arab Spring’s effect on artists in Egypt, The Noise of Cairo, will screen in the DeBoest Lecture Hall on Saturday, November 3 at 1. A second documentary, Koran By Heart, is scheduled for the DeBoest on November 17 at 1. Lastly, the annual Indianapolis LGBT Film Festival is November 9-11 and hosted partly at the Toby; check the festival’s website for updates (the lineup hasn’t been announced yet).

The Indy Film Fest’s fall series plays through November with Moulin Rouge on the 1st and California Solo on the 15th; both shows at 7 at the State Museum.

In Bloomington, the coming soon list at the IU Cinema includes classic horror double feature Bride of Frankenstein and Freaks on the 27th and the new horror-comedy Juan of the Dead on the 29th. The Cinema’s Clair Denis retrospective starts on November 4 with Chocolat and runs through the 11th, ending with a screening of White Material. (The still for this section is from Denis’ mesmerizing Beau Travail.) On November 10 at 7, Denis will give a talk in the Jorgensen Guest Filmmaker Lecture Series. Following close on the heels of the Denis program is a four-film Walter Salles series that starts on the 14th. Salles is speaking in the Jorgensen Lecture Series on the 15th at 3.

Moving north, Notre Dame’s DeBartolo is showing The Blob on Sunday, October 28 at 3; it’s recommended for ages 7 and up. Ah, the sad comedown of yesterday’s scary movies…. The Testament of Dr. Mabuse, Fritz Lang’s last movie in Germany before his emigration, is Tuesday the 30th. Chicken with Plums continues its tour of the state with several shows at the DeBartolo the weekend of the 9th.

Also in November, the Goodrich Quality Theaters fall documentary series continues with Booker’s Place on the 12th and Side By Side on the 26th. I can personally vouch for Side By Side, a fascinating compilation of interviews with leading filmmakers- in and out of Hollywood and representing several generations and multiple crafts- about the ongoing transition from film stock to digital media.

Expanding to state wide news, the last movie in the Fathom TCM Event series is To Kill a Mockingbird on November 15. “In honor of the film’s 50th Anniversary, join TCM Weekend Daytime Host Ben Mankiewicz and step behind the scenes to hear stories about what it took to turn Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize Winning novel into a movie and why Gregory Peck felt it was a role he couldn’t pass up. Ben will also share select interviews from the TCM Archives featuring key people involved in the production.”

Films and events scheduled for next Friday:

The Ghost and Mr. Chicken at the Artcraft

Moonrise Kingdom at the DeBartolo

Sylvia Plath Symposium Film Program and In a Glass Cage at the IU Cinema