REEL COOL 
Sponsors
of the October
Film
Club- American
Splendor October 2008
This
Month’s Newsletter:
- Letter from our new Managing
Director,
- October Film Club- American
Splendor (2003)
- ICA- R.
Crumb Exhibition
- International House- Crumb
(screening)
- Philly in Film Bus Tour
- PFS Members Discounts- Unique
Offers
- Painted Bride- Greg Giovanni
Big Messy Retro Fest
- International House
screening discount (year-round!)
- 941 Theater screening
discount (year-round!)
- Bistro Romano dining
discount
- Electile Dysfunction: Inside the Business of
American Campaigns
- Other Events across the City
- James
Castle: Portrait of an Artist
- US Sports Film Festival
- Exhumed Films: 24-Hour
Horror-thon
- 941 Theater: Horror Double Feature
- International House: An
Evening with Jack Stevenson
Greetings from the
Managing Director
Hello PFS Members,
My name is
Eric Bresler
Managing Director
267.765.9700
If you would like to learn more
about
PFS Film Club
Like a Book Club… where the books read to you!
Each month, the Philadelphia Film
Society offers its members a chance to engage like-minded cinephiles in a
film-centric discussion. We choose one
film to watch, pass around discussion topics to get the mind turning during viewing,
and meet at the month’s end for a lively and engaging discussion.
This month’s film is American Splendor (2003), starring Paul
Giamatti and Hope Davis.
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0305206/
Throughout the month, all TLA
Video locations will be renting and selling this film, as well as all selected
Additional Viewing titles, to all PFS members at
a discount.
Our sponsors for the month are International House and Institute of Contemporary Art.
Through December 7, ICA is hosting a FREE exhibit on Robert Crumb, the famous
Philadelphia-native Underground Comix artist who was instrumental in helping
Harvey Pekar launch his American Splendor comic series.
International
House, in
conjunction with ICA, is hosting a FREE Screening of Terry Zwigoff’s 1995
documentary Crumb on Wednesday, October 22nd
at 7pm. The screening will be preceeded
by a FREE tour of the Crumb gallery.
ICA and
Ihouse Present:
Whenever Wednesday: Tour: R. Crumb
October 22 @
Associate Curator Jenelle Porter sorts
through the themes and ideologies critical to Crumb’s work—social satire, sex,
blues and jazz, mind-altering substances, autobiography—and traces the
development of his ultimate achievement and most important legacy: a
wide-ranging, if critically suspicious, humanity.
Whenever Wednesday: Film: Crumb
October 22 @
Terry Zwigoff’s acclaimed 1995 biography
documenting the life and times of the comix pioneer
R. Crumb, featuring interviews with his family and ex-girlfriends, provides an
insightful peek into the psychological sources of the legendary cartoonist’s
paranoid, cynical, and subversive graphic art.
International House is located at
3701 Chestnut Street.
Find more information on PFS Discounts to
International House film programming further on in this newsletter!
For a complete listing of all International
House screenings and events, click here!
They will be
hosting our month-end Discussion Group for the Film Club (date to be announced).
For information on
For more information on the Film Club, as well as this month’s discussion
topics, TLA Video locations and discounts, and more, click here!
Philly in Film Bus Tour
A “Fun”draiser!
The Philadelphia Film Society, in
cooperation with Citibank,
Cordially
invites you to join us in contributing towards the future of
Saturday, October 25 •
Departure Point: Citibank
Bus Tour Departure •
Citibank Reception •
The Philly in
Film Bus Tour! is a unique and entertaining experience that offers guests an unprecedented
look into our great city’s many flirtations with fame.
A 52-seat luxury bus equipped with flat-screen televisions will take
guests on a journey through
All the while, your knowledgeable and friendly tour guide will give you
the true story behind these unforgettable moments!
Some of the films included in the tour are:
The Sixth Sense
12 Monkeys
Trading Places
Invincible
…and of course, Rocky
(In fact, while the entirety of the tour takes place in the comfort and
luxury of the bus, patrons will have
the opportunity to get off the bus at the Philadelphia Museum of Art for a
traditional Philly thing--a Rocky Run!)
The tour will depart from Citibank, promptly at
Enjoy a Film on Citi!
At the reception, any patron who opens a new Citibank Consumer Checking
account (with a minimum deposit of $100) will receive a $25 American Express
Gift Card, which can be used to make your next purchase from TLA Video (4th
St, between South and Lombard or online), or anywhere that accepts American
Express.
(For your convenience, a Citibank Representative will be available
the day of the Film Tour to answer your questions and open accounts)
Special Thanks to our Sponsors:
For more
information on the Bus Tour, or to purchase tickets, click here!
PFS Members Discounts
Updated Monthly—As WE get them, YOU get them!
The Painted Bride
Greg
Giovanni Big Messy Retro-Fest, Part 1
October 31 –
November 8 | $25
After twenty years of leading underground performance art in Philadelphia, Greg
Giovanni will be recognized with a two-week retrospective at the Bride. In this
retrospective, Philly’s best companies and dramatists reinterpret four
exceptionally riotous works in a festival of voices that stands testament to
one versatile artist.
Friday, October 31 & Saturday, November
7pm
Friday and Saturday, November 7 &
7pm
Exclusive to PFS Members
Exchange your ticket stub from a previous Big Messy show and receive a
20% discount on a following Big Messy show. (Phone
orders and walk-up only. Not to be combined with any other Bride offer
or Bride membership discount.)
For show time and
ticket information: www.paintedbride.org
| 215.925.9914
International House
Members of the
To redeem this offer, simply show your PFS
Membership Card when you purchase your tickets at the International House box
office.
For a complete
listing of all International House screenings and events, click here!
941 Theater
Members
of the
Specializing in genre and activist-related film and video, Northern
Liberties’ premiere screening room (
To redeem this offer, simply show your PFS Membership Card when you
purchase your tickets at the theater.
For a complete listing of all 941 Theater screenings and events, click here!
Bistro Romano
Throughout the month of October, all members
of the Philadelphia Film Society are entitled to a 15% dining discount at Bistro Romano!
Situated in an 18th century granary in the
heart of historic Society Hill, Bistro Romano has been delivering quality service, culinary excellence and value
since 1988. Renowned for their regional Italian Cuisine, Bistro Romano has been selected as a "Best
of Philly" restaurant.
To redeem this offer, simply present your PFS
Membership Card to the wait staff before you ask for the bill.
Bistro Romano is located at
To see
their complete menu, or for information on their dinner theater or piano bar,
click here!
Electile Dysfunction:
Inside the Business of American Campaigns
Electile Dysfunction, which premiered at the 17th
Philadelphia Film Festival on April 9, 2008, and was produced by Philadelphia
locals Joe Barber and Mary Patel, pulls
the curtain back on the campaign process and gives an insider’s look at the
master-minds, the trickery and the money that have come to define American
politics and elections.
The film’s distributor,
Cinema Libre Studio, is offering a special purchase
discount for members of the Philadelphia Film Society. Through November 15, all PFS members can
purchase this film with $5 off, when they order through Cinema Libre’s online store.
To redeem this
benefit, PFS members must type in a PFS-specific code during check-out. This code has been emailed direct to each PFS
member.
If any member has
not received the code, they can email me a request for the code; I guarantee a
prompt reply.
For more information on Electile Dysfunction or to purchase the film, click here!
Help Support
The Philadelphia Film
Society, a Non-Profit organization, relies upon the generosity of its
supporters to continue to provide the exceptional year-round services its
members and patrons have come to expect. While our two major film events-the Philadelphia Film
Festival and the Philadelphia International Gay and Lesbian Film Festival -
take less than a combined month out of any year, there are months of
preparation and planning required to organize and execute such large and
all-encompassing events.
In addition to the two Film
Festivals, the Philadelphia Film Society also provides Free Preview Screenings
year-round for its membership. PFS is also constantly building relationships
with other film organizations and learning institutions in the Greater
Philadelphia region, in order to provide our members with discounts and event
information pertaining to the Greater Philadelphia film world.
Activities like these take
time and funding, and PFS gratefully acknowledges the major role its members
and donors play in keeping our organization strong.
To make a
fully tax-deductible donation to the
These people
recognize a good deal when they see one!
Wilkommen! Bienvenue! Welco
PFS
gratefully acknowledges all new and returning cast
Producer: Katherine Kalogris-Cipriano
Director: Deborah Jackson
Screenwriter:
Stewart Eisenberg
Best
Boys/Best Girls:
Student: Yijiun Chen
Keep Your Reel Love Alive!
Are you enjoying your PFS membership?
Relishing the opportunity to see major studio films before their
official release dates? Basking in the
admiration of family, friends, and co-workers who consider you a film
oracle? Don’t let your PFS Membership
expire. Renew today and keep your reel
love alive!
Joining or renewing couldn’t be easier.
Contact our Membership Coordinator,
Thanks
for Playing a Starring Role!
The
James Castle: Portrait of an Artist
The world premiere of James Castle: Portrait of an Artist took place on
The Philadelphia Museum of Art will host an
exhibition on the life and works of James Castle from October 14-January 4,
containing some 275 drawings, color wash pieces, handmade books, and
constructions. The
exhibition will be accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue with essays
exploring the various aspects of Castle's diverse modes of work. James Castle: Portrait
of an Artist, a 53-minute film by Jeffrey Wolf, produced by the
Foundation for Self-Taught American Artists, will be shown in the exhibition
and packaged with the book. The film will be shown daily in its entirety in the
exhibition space at the Museum, every hour on the hour (free with admission).
Film Festival
The Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival is a new festival to be held
There are currently over a dozen Asian
American Film Festivals across the nation; some of the most prominent ones (
For a complete listing of screenings and events, click here.
From October 23-26,
Designed to intersect that particular place
in American culture where entertainment and sporting events coincide, this new
festival will be a celebration of sports films past and present. The audience will range from traditional film
festival attendees to sports enthusiasts.
There will be a combination of new and classic sports films, panel
discussions, VIP parties, memorabilia, and awards ceremonies. More importantly, this festival aims to be
distinguished by its interactive participation of attendees in Festival events,
often with the Festival’s films’ actors and athletes.
For more information on this festival, click here.
Exhumed Films
24-Hour Horror-Thon!
Sat, Nov 1- Sun, Nov 2 • 11am-11am
International House • 3701
Chestnut St
Because you demanded it! Exhumed Films
presents the second annual 24 Hour Horror-thon: a full 24 hour marathon of
nonstop horror mayhem! We'll start at noon on Saturday and go straight through
until noon on Sunday. To add an element of fun and surprise, the lineup of
films is being kept secret--people who come to the show will only find out what
the features are as they unspool onto the screen. The show will be a
combination of some of the biggest horror titles of the last 30 years or so
mixed with some really rare gems. Plus tons of classic trailers, shorts, and
other oddities. Last year's show was a sell-out event, so be sure to buy
tickets in advance through TicketWeb! Can Exhumed top last year's line-up? Can
you stay awake for the entire 24 hours? Be here on November 1st to find out!
**Please note, due to the theater's
renovation, DO NOT bring tents, sleeping bags or folding chairs. There is
no room for these items in the new space and they will not be allowed in the
theater. Thank you, International House Philadelphia
$20 general admission; in advance at
TICKETWEB and 866-468-7619 or
one hour before showtime (cash only).
941 Theater
Sat
Oct 25th – Horror Double Feature + Zombie Pub Crawl–
Northern Liberties’ newest screening house
presents a full evening of Halloween treats!
Meet up with our local zombie population at 941 for the Northern
Liberties Zombie Pub Crawl from 6:30 – 7:45pm (zombie attire encouraged) and
then head back to the theater at 8pm for back-to-back screenings of the
interactive horror/trivia hybrid hit Slumber
Party Slaughterhouse and the “1980 cult classic” Isle of the Damned as well as a live performance from San
Francisco’s zombie dance troupe the Living Dead Girlz! Hip, Halloween madness!
For more information on 941 Theater, click here!
International House
An
Evening with Jack Stevenson - Know Your Enemy: An American War-Propaganda
Retrospective and Haxan: Witchcraft Through the Ages
Wednesday,
October 15 •
Jack Stevenson is an American living in
Know
Your Enemy: An American War-Propaganda Retrospective
Seen with modern eyes, these films are by turns hilarious, frightening and in
some cases still extremely effective. In light of the current war in
Der Fuhrer’s Face
dir.
Jack Kinney, US, 1942, 16mm, 8 mins, color
Produced by Walt Disney Studios and starring Donald Duck as
an average citizen suffering the brutal deprivation and endless indoctrination
of Hitler’s
Education
for Death: The Making of the Nazi
dir.
Also produced by Walt Disney Studios, Education for
Death is considered one of the most brutal propaganda cartoons of the era.
Young Hans is educated to become a merciless soldier. As he is exposed to
Hitler youth and the Nazi culture, Hans’ value of human life decreases.
Hitler’s actual voice is used in a torchlight rally scene.
Your Job in
dir.
Frank
One
of the most angry and bitter films of the war was co-written by Theodore Geisel (Dr Seuss) and shown to American soldiers occupying
a just-defeated
Our Job in
dir.
Frank
This companion piece to Your Job in Germany was
aimed to educate US occupying forces about the true nature of their
just-defeated Japanese enemy. Describing the Japanese as unwitting dupes
manipulated by the power-mad warlord class who used the Shinto religion to
"stir up ancient nightmares, ancient hatred and up from
Survival Under Atomic Attack
An attempt to convince us that nuclear war is
"survivable", this American Civil Defense film demonstrates how easy
it is to survive an atomic attack (turn off stove, close curtains and hide in
the basement). "If the Japanese had known what we know now, thousands of
lives would have been saved." A disturbing artifact of
the times, absurd and campy but ominous.
Red
Nightmare
dir.
George
Typical American Jerry
Donavon awakens to find his small town turned Communist overnight. His wife is
frigid, the kids threaten to report him to the authorities and the church is
now a
followed at
Haxan: Witchcraft Through
the Ages
dir.
Benjamin Christensen,
This macabre
masterpiece stands as the most extreme and controversial work of silent cinema
– and one of the most visionary. A perennially revived cult
favorite that still manages to enchant modern viewers. The work of
obsession created in mysterious circumstances, its Danish director Benjamin
Christensen led a life that was almost equally as mysterious.
Purchase your tickets in person at the International House box office
to take advantage of the PFS Members Discount!
To purchase tickets online, click here!