Hey there Chicago area DG fans! As usual, it’s looking like a packed week ahead for theatrical showings of some prime Daily Grindhouse material, ranging from a film noir classic to the return of RIKI-OH! And be sure to comment below for your chance to win tickets to the Midnight screening of Jim Van Bebber’s amazing THE MANSON FAMILY and the debut of his new short GATOR GREEN!
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10
We’ve got two great treats for you on Wednesday! First up, check out the Portage Theater at 7:30 where the Northwest Chicago Film Society will be showing Ida Lupino’s classic 1953 flick THE BIGAMIST in 35mm!
From their release:
Perpetually typecast as a noir floozy, Ida Lupino knew that the only way to see serious social dramas on screen was to make them herself. Forming a small production company with her husband Collier Young, Lupino embarked on a series of topical films. All had exploitation-ready storylines, but Lupino and Young took a more guarded, liberal approach to their material. By the time of The Bigamist, Lupino and Young had divorced and remarried other people, but continued their business relationship. Poignantly, The Bigamist stars both Lupino and Young’s new wife, Joan Fontaine, as two very different poles of femininity. Arch career woman Fontaine just can’t provide the domestic comfort that her husband Edmond O’Brien desires, leaving the wannabe family man to seek affection from earthy hostess Lupino. Not wanting to hurt either woman, bigamy emerges as O’Brien’s most humane option. The Bigamist has developed a subterranean reputation through poor-quality prints and bootleg videos, but thanks to UCLA’s sterling restoration, it’s resurrected as an impossibly sensitive treatment of the constraints of gender and society in the ’50s.
For more info, check out the theater’s page here!
If that’s not enough for you, Everything is Terrible!’s Wednesday Rewound series continues, as usual hosted by the lovely and talented Katie Rife! This week’s entry is EVILSPEAK, the best film starring Clint Howard ever made that did also not feature The Ramones! EVILSPEAK is essentially a CARRIE rip-off, but with Clint Howard and computers and Richard Moll and– er, why don’t I just let EiT sell it to you:
You could make the case that EVILSPEAK (1981) is a CARRIE ripoff: Our hero, Stanley Coopersmith (Clint Howard), is such a pathetic loser that even his teachers can’t help but pick on him. But the military academy that is the site of Coopersmith’s torment has a secret history of black magic and Satanic sacrifice, and it’s Coopersmith who’s going to have the last laugh.
Sounds familiar. But does CARRIE have a demonic computer named E.S.T.E.B.A.N. who thirsts for human blood? Does CARRIE have Clint Howard brandishing a flaming sword? Does CARRIE have a scene involving wild boars and a lady in the shower that will make even the most seasoned gorehound squirm? EVILSPEAK has all of these things, along with that unmistakable early ’80s ambience that is manna from heaven for horror fanatics.
EVILSPEAK 1, CARRIE 0.
The show starts at 10:30 PM at the Logan Theater! And believe me, it’s worth staying out for. Check out their Facebook page here!
FRIDAY, APRIL 12
The big news on Friday is the return to Chicago of Jim Van Bebber’s THE MANSON FAMILY, to be preceded by his new short GATOR GREEN! We spoke to Van Bebber about both films here, and there’s no excuse not to come out to the Logan Theater for the midnight showing. Here’s a trailer so you’ll know what you’re in for, if you’ve never seen it and have just been waiting for the chance to see it on the big screen:
As a special bonus, you can win tickets to the event by posting below! Be sure to include your e-mail — one winner will be drawn on Thursday to receive a pair of tickets to the event!
That night will also host the Chicago premiere of Ernesto Díaz Espinoza’s BRING ME THE HEAD OF THE MACHINE GUN WOMAN, courtesy of the Chicago Cinema Society! The flick’s been kicking ass at festivals across the nation, so we’re glad to see it landing a theatrical screening in town!
Here’s the lowdown:
Santiago Fernandez is an aimless young man content with spending hours on the couch playing Grand Theft Auto and fantasizing about an exciting life of crime and gun fights. By night he DJs at a club owned by ruthless Argentinian kingpin Che Longana. One evening, Santiago finds himself trapped in a bathroom stall as Longana holds a secret meeting to make known his offer of $300 million pesos for the head of Machine Gun Woman, an ex-girlfriend turned hitwoman who has it out for him. When he is discovered eavesdropping on the conversation, Santiago’s only choice to avoid being executed is to lie, claim he knows Machine Gun Woman and offer to bring her in. When he is given 24 hours to make good on his claim, Santiago’s life turns into a violent video game of its own complete with missions, guns, sexy women and brutal violence.
This wild neo-grindhouse thriller from the director of MANDRILL, MIRAGEMAN and THE ABCs OF DEATH segment “C” is for CYCLE has been a hit on the festival circuit, garnering raves from festivals such as Fantastic Fest, Glasgow Fright Fest, and the Rio Grind Festival.
The film shows one night only at the Patio Theater at 10 PM — check out their Facebook page here!
SATURDAY, APRIL 13
The Chicago Cinema Society strikes again with a screening of RIKI-OH: THE STORY OF RICKY at the Patio Theater! I shouldn’t have to re-introduce RIKI-OH to the readers of DG, but suffice to say it’s a batshit experience every self-respecting cult film fan needs to bow down before every once in a while. And hell, here’s a trailer:
Seriously, if that doesn’t get your blood pumping, you may be on the wrong site. Best of all, the 10 PM screening will be preceded by BIO-COP, the new short from Astron-6, the madmen behind the jaw-dropping FATHER’S DAY!
And just in case you want your evenings to go to eleven, THIS IS SPINAL TAP is showing midnight Friday and Saturday at the Music Box! With all of these shenanigans going on, there is seriously no excuse for not fully immersing yourself in grindhouse goodness this weekend if you live in the Chicago area. Unless you’re a terrible person or something.
– Paul Freitag-Fey
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Toss in the Chicago Critics Film Fest… Christ this weekend is packed. Sucks that the movies I most want to see at CCFF conflict w/RIKI-OH. But no way I’ll miss that… plus BIOCOP?? No way. Looking forward to The Manson Family!
Just saw Evil Speak tonight..Coopersmith! Where’s your hat?…Can’t wait to see Manson Family and Gator Green!