It’s gotta be short and sweet this week…We’ll start with Three Dollar Bill Cinema’s The Way Gay Sing Along at Central Cinema next Thursday, March 4th at 7 and 10pm. It’s the perfect early weekend treat for karaoke lovers and for those of us who enjoy watching people karaoke. This installment features video favorites from the 70’s and 80’s including Queen, Elton John, Cher, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Erasure, Morrissey, Culture Club and The Weather Girls…Three Dollar Bill claims that it will be “Raining Men up in this theater!”….Better bring a big umbrella and the jumbo pack of condoms…
For a different kind of performance film, head to SIFF on Monday, March 1st at 7pm for a sneak peak screening of Seattle filmmaker Lynn Shelton’s installment for the MTV series $5 Cover: Seattle, a series devoted to examining the lives of 13 local bands including Maldives, Tea Cozies, The Lights, Moondoggies, and Sean Nelson. (You might remember this was filmed last August; there were casting calls for background people for the shoot). Shelton, who won acclaim last year for her film Humpday, will be in attendance with many members of the cast and crew and many members of the bands in the film. Check it out at the SIFF Cinema underneith McCaw Hall at Seattle Center.
Finally, film nerds are raving about The Red Riding Trilogy now playing at Northwest Film Forum. It’s a three part, British, originally made for television series of films focusing on the hunt for the Yorkshire Ripper.
This acclaimed British trilogy is a condensed version of David Peace’s quartet of cult-noir novels. While largely a fictionalized account of the Yorkshire Ripper’s murderous rampage against women and young girls in the 1970s and ‘80s, the films effectively mix fact and fiction while exploring police corruption and the modern city’s seedy underbelly. Each film was made with a different director, but Tony Grisoni, known in part for his work with Terry Gilliam, adapted and wrote all three. After screening on British TV, the trilogy has become a unlikely darling of the festival circuit, and negotiations are already underway for an American remake directed by Ridley Scott.
The films play in repretory now through March 4th. Looks like a must see for fans of gritty, modern crime stories like The Wire or The Sopranoes. Check it out.
-Michael Strangeways
About the Author: Michael Strangeways
