Ninotchka. 1939. USA. Directed bu Ernst Lubitsch
Oops! I almost left out Ninotchka. Somehow, this 1939 masterpiece slipped through the cracks. I apologize for whatever inconvenience this violation of my self-imposed chronology may cause, although I don’t think the Prime Directive has been threatened.
In Heaven There Is No Beer? 1984. USA. Directed by Les Blank
Sally Berger interviews documentary filmmaker Les Blank on the occasion of his MoMA film retrospective Les Blank: Ultimate Insider
Bye Bye Birdie. 1963. USA. Directed by George Sidney
As a regular contributor to Inside/Out, I endeavor to bring topics related to MoMA’s Department of Film and cinema history to you, the reader. I am always interested in talking and writing about films, debating their aesthetic merits, content, form, performances—and I am also very curious to know which films my colleagues across the Museum are seeing, and why.
Air Force. 1943. USA. Directed by Howard Hawks
These notes accompany the screenings of Howard Hawks’s </i>Air Force</a> on June 22, 23, and 24 in Theater 3.</p>
Howard Hawks’s Air Force and John Ford’s They Were Expendable are the cream of a very abundant crop of Hollywood World War II films.
Transylvanian International Film Festival
To many of us who love the idea of vampires and Dracula, the notion of a Transylvanian International Film Festival (TIFF) sounds like something dreamed up by Mel Brooks, funny and weird. But surprise, this festival in Cluj, a city—at once medieval, Austro-Hungarian, and modern—of about 350,000 by the foothills of the Carpathian mountains, not only celebrated its 10th anniversary this week, but is a knockout of a film festival.
Native Land. 1942. USA. Directed by Leo Hurwitz, Paul Strand
These notes accompany the screenings of Leo Hurwitz and Paul Strand’s </i>Native Land</a> on June 15, 16, and 17 in Theater 2.</p>
For a number of reasons, I had some hesitation about including Native Land in our series. First of all, with two directors, it tends to undermine the argument that film art is a medium with a single primary creator.
Prelude to War. 1942. USA. Directed and produced by Major Frank Capra
These notes accompany the screenings of Frank Capra’s </i>Why We Fight</a> WWII propaganda films on June 8, 9, and 10 in Theater 3.</p>
Because everyone went to the movies during World War II, the American government found the film industry to be more helpful in propagandizing the populace than at any time before or since. Americans were movie-mad and generally believed whatever they saw at the local theater.
The Loveless. 1982. USA. Written and directed by Kathryn Bigelow, Monty Montgomery
Casablanca. 1942. USA. Directed by Michael Curtiz
These notes accompany the screenings of Michael Curtiz’s </i>Casablanca</a> on June 1, 2, and 3 in Theater 1.</p>
In a recent Internet posting, the Writers Guild of America chose Casablanca as the greatest screenplay of all time. The list of 101 titles included only two foreign films—Renoir’s Grand Illusion and Fellini’s 8 1/2—worth including. I don’t know how people find time for such insipid silliness, but they do.
French-Caribbean filmmaker Euzhan Palcy (b. Martinique, 1958) creates politically engaged work exploring themes of race, gender, and social justice from a decidedly feminist perspective. She has written, produced, and directed over 15 fiction features and documentaries since 1983, when her first film, Rue Cases-Nègres (Sugar Cane Alley) won a Silver Lion award at the Venice Film Festival. The director came to The Museum of Modern Art for the opening of her first U.S. career retrospective, Filmmaker in Focus: Euzhan Palcy</a>, (in the MoMA theaters through May 30) and spoke with us about her earliest recollections of filmgoing; her experience as a black woman in the film business; her breakthrough debut; and such signature films as A Dry White Season
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