CINEMATECA

José Luis’ Pick and Tip

The Pick: Edward James: Builder of Dreams

He created over 36 extraordinary concrete structures, some over 100 feet high, at a personal cost exceeding five million dollars. Born into extreme wealth and luxury (he was rumored to be the bastard son of King Edward VII), he turned his back on the rigid aristocratic circles of Edwardian England, and befriended, supported and collaborated with fledgling artists who would become household names in later years. Those artists included Salvador Dali, Leonora Carrington, René Magritte, Kurt Weil, Bertolt Brecht, George Balanchine, Aldous Huxley, Man Ray and Sigmund Freud. Although he has been called “A legend among the legendary,” few people recognize his name or know of his artistic accomplishments. Beautiful cinematography, a piece you’ll never forget, I highly recommend watching this movie, but also going to Xilitla, where this extraordinary jewel sits.

The Tip

Important: In order to provide the best viewing experience, the show times for some movies may be adjusted to accommodate their length. Be sure to check the schedule carefully. I also want to remind you of our new ticket price: 50 pesos and discount cards buy 12 shows for 450 pesos.

Starting Monday, after 11am, buy your tickets in advance for any movie or show of the week. If you have a discount card, collect your pass to assure you a seat; don’t take the risk of being locked out...Nos vemos en el Cine.

You want to receive this info by email? Write to José Luis at alephamour@hotmail.com. 

Thank you. 



Edward James: Builder of Dreams
Monday, October 15 at 3pm
Wednesday, October 17 at 6:30pm
Art Documentary, 
English with Spanish subtitles, 60 minutes
Director: Avery Danzinger
This film takes you on an extraordinary journey into the world of the Surrealists as the life and accomplishments of the surrealist collector, poet, and architect Edward James unfolds. For the last 20 years of his life, aided by 40 full-time laborers and craftsmen, he built Las Pozas in Xilita, one of the biggest and yet least known architectural monuments of the twentieth century, dedicated to Surrealism and hidden in the jungles of Mexico.



Expresión en Corto Festival Award Winner
Lost and Found in Mexico
Monday, October 15 at 5pm 
Documentary, English, 53 minutes.
Writer/ Director /Producer: Caren Cross
The illusion of the American dream is challenged in this portrait of ex-pats in San Miguel de Allende who discovered that some vital things were missing in their prior lives. While many Mexicans are leaving families behind and risking their lives to cross the border to a better life, this film focuses on the Americans who have decided to cross the border in the other direction - for a simpler life. In Caren Cross’s documentary we meet ex-pats of varying ages who have given up ‘the good life’ in the USA for a home in Mexico that provides more than money can buy. Happy to live with less, among a people they respect and admire, these ex-professionals and executives explain why they have left family and friends behind to live in a country where crowded malls and Blackberries have been replaced by books, art and casual conversations. 



Masters of Flamenco (2005)
Wednesday, October 17 at 5pm
Thursday, October 18 at 7pm
World Dance, Spanish, 
Black and White, 50 minutes
Cast: Maria Alba, Ramon de los Reyes, 
Carmen Suárez, Pastora de Ronda.
This vibrant compilation of vintage television footage illustrates why flamenco dance became all the rage in the United States in the 1960s.  An intensely passionate dance, flamenco is difficult to master but exhilarating to watch, as evidenced in these vivacious performances from Pepita and Goyo Reyes, Pepa Reyes and Cruz Luna, Maria Alba, Carmen Suarez, Pastora de Ronda and many more flamenco artists who thrilled the audiences of the mid-1960s.



Vintage Specials
Stormy Weather (1943)
Thursday, October 18 at 5pm
Friday, October 19 at 5pm
Director: Andrew Stone
Cast: Lena Horne, Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, 
Cab Calloway, Fats Waller, Ada Brown.
Classic Movie Musicals, 
English with Spanish subtitles, 78 minutes.
Lena Horne, Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, Cab Calloway and Fats Waller star in this 1940s musical comedy that’s light on plot line but brimming with sensational song and dance numbers by the top African-American performers of the day. Highlights include Horne’s soulful “Stormy Weather,” Robinson’s lively stepping to “African Dance” and Waller’s “Ain’t Misbehavin’.” Dooley Wilson, Ada Brown and the Nicholas Brothers round out the talented cast.



Night After Night (1932)
Friday, October 19 at 7pm
Classic Vintage, English, 70 minutes.
Directed by Archie Mayo
Cast: George Raft, 
Constance Cummings, Wynne Gibson, Mae West, Alison Skipworth, Roscoe Karns, Louis Calhern
Night After Night is a star vehicle showing George Raft in top form as yet another noble tough guy with connections to the underworld. It’s structured around a couple of days in a high-class NYC speakeasy; in 1932 Prohibition was still the law, but the movies didn’t take it any more seriously than the public did. Raft’s ex-pugilist has ambitions for a classier future and takes lessons from Alison Skipworth’s slumming teacher lady, while fending off bitter dame Wynne Gibson. The movie has an undeserved reputation as a bore, as it generates quite a bit of interest; Constance Cummings’ good girl is enchanted by Raft’s dangerous world and reacts sensually when he faces down a pistol confrontation: “You’re a pirate!” she exclaims. She doesn’t want him to be more refined. Almost everyone knows her famous opening line by heart: Hatcheck girl: Goodness, what beautiful diamonds!, Maudie: Goodness had nothing to do with it, dearie.