Fourth Friday Family Film Fest

Drop us an email at movies at spencercreekgrange dot org for a list of this year’s films.

May 2010

We conclude our 2009/2010 film series with Vincente Minnelli’s An American in Paris (1951).  Gene Kelly stars as a GI who’s stayed in Paris after the war to study painting.  He falls in love with Leslie Caron, who’s engaged and feels obligated to marry her fiancee, despite her attraction to Kelly.  From this simple plot, director Vincente Minnelli used lavish color, costumes and sets to make one of the most critically acclaimed musicals ever.  “Minnelli’s musicals are the most elegant and polished of the MGM musicals,” says Jeanine Basinger, “and his flair for camera movement, elaborately constructed long takes, and richly styled backgrounds contribute much to the film.”   And then there’s the music, which has permeated the consciousness of Americans whether they’ve seen the film or not.  Twenty-two Gershwin tunes were used, including “Embraceable You”, “I Got Rhythm” and “Our Love Is Here to Stay”, which debuted in the movie.  An American in Paris received an impressive six Academy Awards, competing directly with two other popular films  (A Streetcar Named Desire and A Place in the Sun).

April 2010

This month we’ll be featuring Emma (1996), a period film set in rural England in the 1880’s. Pretty, clever, and just a little self-satisfied, Emma Woodhouse lives in style with her widowed father in the village of Highbury. When her beloved governess, friend and confidante leaves to marry their neighbor, Emma is faced with a great gap in her life–and a great dilemma: how to help others lead a life as perfect as her own. She is so devoted to meddling in the romantic lives of others that she may just miss her chance to learn about love firsthand. Ultimately, Emma finds her matchmaking efforts foiled, but her hopes fulfilled. Starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeremy Northam, Toni Collette, Greta Scacchi and Alan Cumming.  Directed by Douglas McGrath. Her role as Emma won Paltrow critical acclaim, particularly for her impeccable English accent.  The film also earned an Academy Award for Best Musical or Comedy Score.  Based on the novel by Jane Austen, first published in December 1815.

March 2010

This month’s film will be The General (1927) starring Buster Keaton.  Considered by many to be the greatest of all silent films, The General is filled with hilarious sight gags and perfectly timed stunt work, a masterpiece of dead-pan comedy.

Union soldiers have stolen The General, a Confederate train manned by Johnnie Gray, who was unable to enlist in the Confederate army because he is needed as an engineer.  The Union plans to use the train to supply its soldiers in a sneak attack against the Confederates.  But now it’s up to Gray and his love, Annabelle Lee, to reclaim The General, recross enemy lines, and warn the Confederates.

The General was based on a real incident during the American Civil War when a posse of northern soldiers hijacked a confederate train and a lone southern engineer found himself fighting the lot of them alone.

February 2010

This Friday’s film will be Meet me in St Louis (1945) starring Judy Garland, Margaret O’Brien, Mary Astor, Lucille Bremer, Tom Drake, Leon Ames, Marjorie Main, June Lockhart, and Joan Carroll.

Meet Me in St. Louis is a romantic musical film released by MGM in 1944 which tells the story of four sisters living in St. Louis at the time of the Louisiana Purchase Exposition World’s Fair in 1904. The film was directed by Vincente Minnelli, who met his future wife, Judy Garland, on the set. In the film, Garland debuted the standards “The Trolley Song” and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” which became hits after the film was released. It was the second-highest grossing picture of the year, only behind Going My Way.