Film Exhibition in Baltimore (May 2009)

As usual, the Senator dominates the month's news. An article in the Sun newspaper claimed that the City now owns the theater (there is no online link to be found to the article, which I read). The Senator claims that this is not true, and there is an important meeting of some kind going on at the Senator this evening to "set the record straight," as it were. This sad situation is beginning to remind me of the title of a recent Iraq War documentary. In the meantime, continue to enjoy Beatles films, digitally projected, until somebody puts a padlock on the place.

The Rotunda, assumed dead, has returned under new management. One could go there this very evening and see a first-run movie. This new management is not affiliated with the Senator, but the film times and other information is available at the Senator's website for some reason.

The Charles theater hosted the 2009 Maryland Film Festival, which was a successful and enjoyable weekend by all accounts. It was odd not to be caught up in my yearly weekend of cinema immersion, but I am glad to hear that all went well, and hope to be there next year.

Despite this high point, it does seem like the Charles has had trouble finding its next Slumdog Millionaire. This is typical at this time of the year for the theater, but it is always the cause of some hand-wringing, especially since the Landmark Harbor East still finds a way to squeeze in indie crowd-pleasers between screenings of every single popular mainstream Hollywood film. Oh well...

Films Viewed (April 2009)

Everlasting Moments
Thieves Like Us
Conan the Barbarian (w/commentary)
Adventureland
Ladies and Gentleman, the Fabulous Stains
Charade
Dernier Maquis
The K-Swift Story
California Split
Sin Nombre
Frogs
Ann Everton Videos, volume two
Buffalo Bill and the Indians

Key
The Charles
The Senator
The Landmark Harbor East
Other (DVD, This-TV, Video Americain)
Total: 12 features, 1 collection of short films (8 in theaters)

Notes: All in all, a pleasingly diverse month, with some new adventures.

I rented a film for the first time with the sole intention of watching it with commentary. To listen to a seemingly drunk Ah-nold and director John Milius wax poetic about their muscle-bound classic is indeed something to hear.

Against my better instincts I went to the Senator see an old classic long on the list. The place was depressing, drafty, and drab. It could have been my personal opinions coloring the experience, but there is no doubt that someone forgot to turn the heat on.

It was good to catch Dernier Maquis, a fascinating take on the experiences of working class Muslims in France, at the Charles as part of their Cinemateque Francais series. This monthly screening series continues on into June, ending with another film I want to see, Captain Ahab. The Charles also allowed me to see more Altman films, many for the first time, and the sublime Everlasting Moments, which was like a hearty filmic meal, what Berlin Alexanderplatz could have been without all that cold intellectual calculation. What would I do without that place?

I guess I would watch more this-tv. This new digital variant of WBFF is a true 21st century shlockfest, playing anything they can digitze in its vast catalog of holdings. It is odd to see a truly goofy eco-horror flick like Frogs digitally re-mastered and crystal clear, but it also a break from the static of typical cable film channel programming.

Of course, tomorrow begins the 2009 Maryland Film Festival, and this year's schedule looks as top-notch as ever. For the first time since I began attending the festival ten years ago, I am looking at a weekend without the possiblity of attending screenings due to various obligations I cannot break. For recommendations, I would point towards Eric Hatch and Skizz Cyzyk's insider's guides (with trailers), and highly encourage you to get down there and see some movies. Screen one for the Cineaste!

Film Exhibition in Baltimore (April 2009)

Well, needless to say, the Senator's dramatic finale continues to unfold. Unlike a Hollywood drama, no one following this story is going to walk out of the theater with any kind of satisfying resolution. The most recent development is that the auction has been canceled, as Baltimore city works on plans to acquire the theater. In the meantime, the owner continues to show classic films and do what he does best these days. Eventually, it seems that the Senator will be added to Baltimore city's vast collection of vacant properties. Let's hope they do something with this one.

But perhaps to be concerned with such matters is old-fashioned of me. I have spent some time exploring what may be the future for lovers of film recently. One way looks forward and another way looks to the past.

Apparently, there are people on this here Interweb that collect and trade ultra-rare films. In doing so, they allow those who are let into their circles see some of the most sought-after and obscure films out there. Via a friend of a friend, I have been lent such a film, and look forward to viewing it on some bleak afternoon soon. It is both illicit and firmly in the gray area of copyright control, two things I enjoy a great deal. As the vaults get emptied out during DVD's long, languorous swandive, these anonymous traders fill in the blanks. Let's hope they don't keep company with the Pirate Bay gang.

In another development, I stumbled upon a private video library that is trading films on an honor system to those that which to see them. This bodes well for the future. As the video stores slowly die, it is clear that Netflix cannot satisfy all comers. It is a reality that films go in and out of print, some never making it to digital realm at all. As we move into the post-object culture, it is nice to see something analog happening that harkens back to the beginning of the entire concept of the library. Ben Franklin would approve, I think.

And, finally, the entire roster for the 2009 Maryland Film Festival should be up and running. It looks like another great year for the fest, and I look forward to partaking in what the festival has to offer. See you there!

Films Viewed (March 2009)

The International

Another State of Mind

Heavy Traffic

The Big Lebowski

Watchmen

The Class

Brewster McCloud

I Love You, Man

Waltz with Bashir

Rumble Fish

Two Lovers

The Secret of the Grain

42nd Street Forever, Volume Three

The Long Goodbye

Gomorrah

Ghostbusters

Key

The Charles

The Senator/The Rotunda

The Landmark Harbor East

Other (The Zodiac, Some Dude's Personal Library, Video Americain)

Total: 15 features, 1 collection of trailers (12 in theaters/spaces)

Notes: In local news, the Senator's impending 4/20 auction seems more and more like a reality. Despite claims that he would declare bankruptcy and forestall the auction, the owner of the Senator, in his most recent public remarks, appears to have given up the ghost. The Senator is showing a slate of seemingly random classic movies until the auction and selling every conceivable scrap and tittle in a very depressing yard sale/auction taking place in the lobby. Check it out if you want to say goodbye.

In suburban multiplex news, the Muvico Egyptian 24 became the Cinemark Egyptian 24 seemingly overnight. I am doing some reasearch into what this means, if anything. I believe I was mistaken on some things in an earlier draft of this post. My apologies. I did discover this, which does not seem like a promising sign. More later, after some more research.

But isn't the above all fodder for my Film Exhibition in Baltimore posts? True. I did see some movies recently.

The Altman retrospective has rolled on at the Charles, allowing me to see several of his highly-recommended films for the first time. I also had the opportunity to enjoy some highly touted festival films during their brief runs at the Charles. I engaged in a private film lending library for the first time, and am still sitting on a rare film I borrowed from a friend that was downloaded from the Internet. I will write more about these new frontiers in my next post.

It was fun to attend a screening of a fondly-remembered comedy from my childhood at the Zodiac. I hope the practice continues and that the opportunities to see film in Baltimore continue to diversify, despite the economic cold front coming at us from all sides.

Film Exhibition in Baltimore (March 2009)

It seems only logical to spend this post ruminating on the loss of the Senator. As of this writing, the Rotunda Cinemateque has closed its doors, the Senator is scheduled to be auctioned on April 20th, and all sorts of people are pointing fingers, making plans, and trying to figure out what is next. The entire affair is sad and messy. No clear second act has emerged to follow the seventy years of continuous operation of the Senator as a movie house.

These events give me pause to reflect on my scant year or so of keeping this weblog. I created Charm City Cineaste to chronicle film exhibition in Baltimore following the opening of the Landmark Harbor East. It is interesting to think back on that time (Fall 2007) and see how things have changed.

When the Landmark Harbor East opened, the Senator's owner seemed very pleased. Having fought long and hard with first the Loews chain (now subsumed by AMC) and then The Charles over the Senator's right to show the No. 1 movie in America at all times, it looked like clearance was finally going to go the Senator's way. At the time, many people were concerned that the Charles would close it doors once it lost the ability to show the indie mega-hits that were the theater's bread and butter. I assumed that things were going to change in a big way in Baltimore, and that, soon enough, my second home would be in serious trouble.

Instead, Baltimore has lost it's premiere showcase. The patient on life support had died. The Senator has hit the bricks. The recent economic decline, usually a boon for movie houses, was the knockout punch.

Say what you will about the last minute effort to form a non-profit (as I know I did), Baltimore has lost three movie screens, making my weekends and afternoons less interesting. I can no longer park on the street that runs alongside the Senator (a spot I discovered during Star Wars re-issue mania), catch dinner at Saigon Remembered, browse Daedalus, and go see something I want to see. I can no longer enjoy the roomy air conditioned echoplex that is the Rotunda, browse the Amazing Spiral (formerly Comics Kingdom), conduct some cell phone/electronics business at the Radio Shack and go see something on my list. The March movies this month will be the last time for the foreseeable future that the Senator and the Rotunda will appear, and the list is poorer for it.

Despite my air of jaded resignation, losing the Senator and the Rotunda hurts. I will miss both places.

In more upbeat news, the Charles soldiers on, and was doing a brisk business this recent rainy weekend based on my own personal observation. Despite the economic collapse and the foreshortening of the condo projects in the Harbor East development, there is no news on any problems at LHE or in Cuban-land that I have heard. Perhaps now that three have become two, there will be peace in the valley. Of course, if the Charles buys the Senator at auction and suddenly has a clearance-free screen, I imagine this blogger will have a lot to type about.

Films Viewed (February 2009)

Gran Torino
White Dog
American Teen
Wendy and Lucy
A Woman is a Woman
Defiance
Vivre Sa Vie
Coraline (in 3D)
Pierrot le Fou
Made in U.S.A.

Key
The Charles
The Senator/ The Rotunda
The Landmark Harbor East
Other (Video Americain, Suburban Multiplex)
Total: 10 (7 in theaters)

Notes: A quick month in which I only managed to catch a few things.

I meant to trumpet Medicine for Melancholy at some point during its recent run, but it was a "one week wonder," and has already closed at the Charles. I advise a rental when it is released on DVD, if you have not already caught it.

Che has made it into a second week at the Landmark. I hope to find the four plus hours required to see this two-part film, despite the tepid reviews. The clock is clearly running on that opportunity.

It is sad to consider a future in which there is no Senator or Rotunda to attend. Some who are planning on bidding on the theater at the impending auction wish to continue showing films there, including the owner of the Charles. It is interesting to consider the possibilities and limitations of having one (perhaps three) screens outside of the clearance zone of the Landmark. Could this be the beginning of a "two party system" in Baltimore film exhibition?

The Charles' bumpy run through Godard concluded with Made in U.S.A., an eliptical, messy film with moments. It was good to have the chance to see it at all, and the series was, overall, illuminating and enjoyable. The Charles revival series is now engaged in a multi-month Robert Altman retrospective.

All in all, a slow month, with some great opportunities and some truly enjoyable 3D filmgoing experiences. The Oscar films have lost steam quickly as they have headed to DVD, and the strange gap between this season and the dawm of the Summer blockbusters is being bridged by a wierd little film called Watchmen. More on that soon. I will try to time my next update to some fresh news on that impending seismic shift.

The Senator Theater is Going To Close

Well, what has seemed grimly inevitable is now, apparently, a reality. The theater will close soon and will be sold at auction in a few weeks. For more, see an article here.