On January 10 at 7:30pm, the Aero in LA will host a special screening of PARANORMAL ACTIVITY. During the film, director Oren Peli and producers Jason Blum and Steven Schneider will provide live commentary.
There will be a special fan appreciation screening of PARANORMAL ACTIVITY tonight, October 22, at the Empire 25 in NY at 12:00midnight. This event consists of a screening of the movie, as well as a free Paranormal Activity t-shirt, a free small popcorn and a free soda.
For Your Consideration is a weekly round-up of upcoming indie limited releases. The idea is to either expose you to or remind you of films that can't afford to plaster their posters on the sides of buildings or accompany your Happy Meal in toy form.
This week marks the beginning of the Oscar season rush in the independent film world, so look for more packed FYCs like this one. The two recommendations this week both revolve around looking for the truth. A Serious Man follows a man desperately seeking for some small bit of existential truth, while the alternate-reality comedy The Invention of Lying follows a man who realizes he can perfectly bend the truth. The rest of this week's major releases are courteous enough to divide themselves into two categories: the could-be-good-if-not-too-derivative and you-already-know-if-this-interests-you-or-not. Zombieland looks like it'll be original and spunky enough to step out of Shaun of the Dead's zomcom shadow, but Afterschool, being heralded as the arrival of a fresh new voice in American cinema, is really going to have to wow when it looks like a blatant tone-to-theme rip-off of the work of Michael Hanneke. Meanwhile Whip It! and Chelsea On The Rocks sit expectantly at Camp Foregone Conclusion.
A SERIOUS MAN
What: The umpteenth film from the venerable fraternal pair of Joel and Ethan Cohen, A Serious Man is the story of a Jewish professor living in a midwestern suburb in the late 60s, yearning to come to terms with his religion and his life in increasingly difficult, and bizarre modern times.
Where: LA - The Landmark, Arclight Hollywood, NY - Landmark Sunshine Cinema, Lincoln Plaza Cinemas
Why: A Serious Man is a welcome return to the more realistic vein of comedy after several slapstick affairs (see: Intolerable Cruelty, Burn After Reading, The Ladykillers). I could go on about how this is the most personal film they've every made or how refreshing it is to see a film populated completely with non-'name' characters actors, but it's the Coens, if you're not a believer of them yet, this definitely isn't the film that's going to convert you.
THE INVENTION OF LYING
What: The first feature film directed by Ricky Gervais (co-creator and star of "The Office", and "Extras"), The Invention of Lying is about a world that is seemingly the same as ours, except for the fact that the concept of lying doesn't exist. That is until one day, when Mark Bellison (Ricky Gervais) suddenly discovers the ability to lie and then proceeds to use it for his own personal gain.
Where: Wide release
Why: Although at first glance The Invention of Lying seems to be little more than a by-the-numbers magic man comedy (see: Bruce Almighty, Liar Liar, Click, etc.), early reviews suggest that it's actually a rather subversive deconstruction of the genre - which isn't too surprising given Ricky Gervais' involvement behind the camera.
There will be a free, advance screening of PARANORMAL ACTIVITY at the Landmark Sunshine Cinema in NY on September 24 at 12:00am, midnight (Thursday night, Friday morning). Seating will be provided on a first come, first served basis.
There are no tickets for this screening, a line will form outside the theater prior to showtime.
Are you tired of having to filter through a million different websites trying to find information regarding limited releases, Q&As, and advance screenings in LA and NY? The Calanander does the hard work for you and is dedicated to helping people spend more time watching movies than trying to figure out when they'll be able to. And if you're one of those people thinking "I never have that problem because I don't care about lame ass Q&As and shit!" then a) you're not very nice and b) you should learn to take advantage of opportunities presented by a big city other than mind-numbing traffic.
Just click on any link on the Calanander for more information. Don't forget to scroll to the bottom for the release dates calendar!