When The New Beverly announced the lineup of films chosen by Stuart Gordon for his week of programming (beginning Friday, January 15th), most of the titles seemed totally out of character for the man who bone-sawed his way into our consciousness with the 1985 horror classic RE-ANIMATOR. Okay, Edmund Goulding's sleazy carny noir NIGHTMARE ALLEY made sense, but why the hell was it paired with Frank Perry's John Cheever-inspired THE SWIMMER? Where's the connective tissue? Is there connective tissue?
The always insightful Dennis Cozzalio of Sergio Leone and the Infield Fly Rule recently chatted with Gordon, and it sounds like the double-features are sort of haphazardly paired. NIGHTMARE ALLEY, THE SWIMMER, IRREVERSIBLE, TRUE GRIT, A.I. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE and AMADEUS: THE DIRECTOR'S CUT... these are just six of Gordon's favorite movies; if one film happens to echo another, it'll be completely unintentional. So the fun will be in trying to figure out how each of these movies jibe with the director's utterly demented sensibilities. Perhaps there's more TRUE GRIT in FROM BEYOND than I initially thought.
It all kicks off tomorrow (Friday) night with NIGHTMARE ALLEY at 7:30 PM, followed by the rarely-screened THE SWIMMER at 9:40 PM (both of which will play on Saturday as well). For the brave, there will be a third feature at midnight: Gaspar Noe's IRREVERSIBLE - which is not only my favorite film of the past decade, but, according to Cozzalio's interview, the movie that nearly brought Gordon to blows with Mena Suvari. IRREVERSIBLE may be too much for many viewers, but if you think you can handle the unpleasantness, you'll be rewarded with one of the most memorable filmgoing experiences of your life (which can't really be replicated at home).
For the rest of the schedule, check out the New Beverly's official site. I'll definitely see you there for A.I. (my #15 movie of the previous decade) on Monday.
