January 1 - 7
Comedy Week

It's a New Year. And that Transit Strike wasn't funny. And it's too cold for drama right now. So, we thought we'd begin with comedy. And then we asked around for people's favorite comedies and it turns out that this is a very difficult question.

Either it's been overplayed (Monty Python, Woody Allen, etc); or it's not as funny as it might have been since you're no longer 14 years-old (American Pie, Caddyshack, etc); or it's bad funny (Showgirls, Troy, etc); or it's kind of Urban Outfitters funny (Napoleon Dynamite, The Royal Tannenbaums, etc); or it's combo drama/comedy funny (Station Agent, Sideways, etc) or it just hasn't been released (The Aristocrats).

Either and any way. We're screwed trying to screen funny movies. So. This is what we came up with. And if you don't think Pootie Tang is funny, then you should probably just skip the whole week.

Sunday, January 1
For the very first day of the year 2006 we salute Richard Pryor. And while we could screen one of his many films, we think his stand-up is more essential and certainly more integral to his life and times.

7pm
Richard Pryor: Live and Smokin'(1971) 48 minutes
Shot in a New York nightclub, very early in his career. This is the blueprint.

8pm
Richard Pryor: Live in Concert (1979) 78 minutes
With Huey Newton in the audience, this is probably Pryor at his stand-up peak.

10pm
Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip (1982) 82 minutes
Filmed after his freebasing accident, Pryor reckons with mortality, talks with god and continues his mastery of the profane life.

admission: FREE
no reservations necessary, except for parties of 8 or more.

Tuesday, January 3
Two 4 Tuesdays:
Chris Rock: Never Scared vs. Richard Pryor: Live in Concert
On Tuesdays we show 2 films at once that have some relation to each other; whether by subject, title, actors, or total whimsy. Each film is shown on two screens each. And we switch the soundtrack between each seating. So. If you'd like to watch a specific film come to the screening with that Audio playing and the other film will play in your periphery as it enters your subconscious.

Tonight we offer Chris Rock and Richard Pryor simultaneously:

6pm Chris Rock: Never Scared Audio
8pm Richard Pryor: Live in Concert Audio
10pm Chris Rock: Never Scared Audio

Chris Rock: Never Scared (2004) 80 minutes
This was Chris Rock's most recent HBO special. It's probably the best stand-up concert we've seen since his last HBO special.

Richard Pryor: Live in Concert (1979) 78 minutes
With Huey Newton in the audience, this is probably Pryor at his stand-up peak, just before a very bad freebasing accident.

admission: FREE
no reservations necessary, except for parties of 8 or more.

Wednesday & Thursday, January 4 & 5
7:30pm
The Jerk (1979) 80 minutes
Long before Cheaper By The Dozen 2, Steve Martin was simply a jerk.

10pm
Pootie Tang (2001) 70 minutes
Did anybody see this in the theater when it was released? It has since become a "comedy cult classic". It certainly is one of the best comedy films of the '00s. And the last time we showed it, the people went wild. So we'll show it 4 times this week, just so everyone has a chance to see Pootie, Biggie Shorty, Bob Costas and the multiple roles of Chris Rock. Shot mostly in and around our ever-changing neighborhood.

admission: FREE
no reservations necessary, except for parties of 8 or more.

Friday & Saturday, January 6 & 7
7:30pm
Duck Soup (1933) 68 minutes
Some say it's the Marx Brothers at their greatest. Others say Animal Crackers or Horse Feathers. We just like ducks more than horses or crackers.

We will also screen some Three Stooges shorts because we've heard that they are beloved in Italy and we want to know why.

10pm
Pootie Tang (2001) 70 minutes
Did anybody see this in the theater when it was released? It has since become a "comedy cult classic". It certainly is one of the best comedy films of the '00s. And the last time we showed it, the people went wild. So we'll show it 4 times this week, just so everyone has a chance to see Pootie, Biggie Shorty, Bob Costas and the multiple roles of Chris Rock. Shot mostly in and around our ever-changing neighborhood.

admission: FREE
no reservations necessary, except for parties of 8 or more.