Calendar: September 8-14, 2023
Our movie and media Calendar appears every Friday/Saturday on C-U Blogfidential and caters to the downstate region anchored by Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, USA.
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MILESTONES | Happy Birthday to You!
9/14: Jason Huls (filmmaker, THAT DAMNED YELLOW RAINCOAT, Ten Wing Media, Chicago, IL)
9/14: Kimberly Conner (filmmaker, LIPSTICK, Predestined Arts & Entertainment, Springfield, IL/Los Angeles, CA)
9/14: Tim Cain (entertainment reporter, Decatur Herald & Review/Lee Enterprises, Decatur, IL)
PASSINGS | You Will Be Missed
8/17: Ellen McDowell, 99 (subject, JIMMY IN SAIGON, Peter McDowell Productions, Los Angeles, CA)
FIELD REPORT DU HQ | From Wherever It May Be Said
Approximately every three weeks, I try to convince myself to announce on Facebook that we’re not issuing a Calendar for the week and it would be the first time in several years we would not issue a Calendar. And then, I somehow muster just enough interest to issue a Calendar anyway. You don’t get a Report this week, unfortunately. That’s the compromise. May have to do it again, so you know. Cheers.
CONFIDENTIAL ALMANAC | Dates in Film Culture History
85 Years Ago … Saturday, September 10, 1938: After assuming ownership of several movie theaters in the Champaign-Urbana market including the Park, Colonial, and Princess, the largest local project for the La Salle, IL-based Alger Brothers chain comes to fruition in partnership with A.J. Balaban of Chicago. The Co-Ed Theater, located on Green Street within easy walking distance of the University of Illinois and an underserved campus population, opens its doors this afternoon to host a full house for its grand opening show that includes news reels, a Betty Boop cartoon, and the comedic First National/Warner Bros. feature WOMEN ARE LIKE THAT starring Kay Francis and Pat O’Brien. This venue differs from the existing Alger properties in that it is their first theater built from the ground up, despite incorporating basic infrastructure that was already present on the north side of the block between Sixth and Wright streets, and it will premiere the best in first-run fare while the others bring back second-run attractions “at popular prices,” as described in The Art Theater by Perry Morris, et al. Chicago architectural firm Monberg & Wagner drew up the plans to accommodate 900 seats in an Art Moderne setting, accented by UI-inspired plaques and an orange-and-blue lighting scheme, while the William C.F. Kuhne Company of Rantoul erected the structure as detailed in numerous reports by the News-Gazette and Courier newspapers. The Co-Ed would briefly close between 1958 and 1959 after Edward and Howard Alger decided to leave the exhibition business, selling it to Kerasotes Theatres along with most of their other locations. [R]
LOCAL FILMS & EVENTS | Support Your Media Storytellers
FINAL SUMMER* U.S. Streaming Release: Tuesday, September 12, via Cardinal XD, Burbank, CA/Front 76 Films/The Line Film Company, Champaign/Chicago, IL
@ The Orpheum Theater, Champaign, IL
“Diet” Dark History and Horror Convention (9/9, 11 a.m.-8 p.m.)
@ Spurlock Museum of World Cultures, UIUC, Urbana, IL
Roger Ebert Center for Film Studies* “Welcome Event” feat. faculty film screening (9/14, 7 p.m.)
NOW PLAYING | Champaign-Urbana Area
@ AMC Champaign 13, Champaign, IL
JAWAN (in Hindi with English sub), MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING 3, THE NUN II, BARBIE, BLUE BEETLE, BOTTOMS, ELEMENTAL (animation)*, THE EQUALIZER 3, GRAN TURISMO, NO MORE BETS (in Mandarin with English sub), OPPENHEIMER, STRAYS, TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM (animation) (9/8 on), PERFECT BLUE 25th anniversary (animé) (9/10, 2:30 p.m.; in Japanese with English sub), A HAUNTING IN VENICE (8/14 on) *single screenings daily
@ Phoenix Savoy 16 + IMAX, Savoy, IL
BOTTOMS, MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING 3, THE NUN II, BARBIE, BLUE BEETLE, THE EQUALIZER 3, GRAN TURISMO, THE HILL, MEG 2: THE TRENCH, MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – DEAD RECKONING, PART ONE, OPPENHEIMER, STRAYS, TALK TO ME, TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM (animation) (9/8 on), UFC 293: Israel Adesanya vs. Sean Strickland, more (mixed martial arts) (9/9, 9 p.m., simulcast), THE TERMINATOR (9/10, 3 & 7 p.m.; 9/13, 7 p.m.), CHRISTINE 40th anniversary (9/10, 4 & 7 p.m.; 9/13, 7 p.m.), AFTER EVERYTHING (9/13, 7 p.m.)
@ Illini Union, UIUC, Urbana, IL
Illini Union Board presents “Fall 2023 Weekend Films” feat. SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE (animation), Pine Lounge, 1st floor (9/8-9/9, 7 p.m.; free w/i-card)
@ Redbox (streaming), Champaign-Urbana, IL
BLUE JEAN, KOKOMO CITY, MOON GARDEN, OLDBOY (2003), STRAYS, more! (9/5 on) Online rentals
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL
No movies this week!
Events featuring locally produced movies are marked with an asterisk (*). Additional “Now Playing” and “Coming Soon” listings appear after the jump!
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NOW PLAYING | The Cities Beyond
@ The Avon Theater, Decatur, IL
MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING 3, THE NUN II, SOUND OF FREEDOM (9/8-9/10)
@ The Fischer Theatre, Danville, IL
PEE-WEE’S BIG ADVENTURE (9/9, 2 & 7 p.m.)
@ The Harvest Moon Twin Drive-in, Gibson City, IL
SCOOBY-DOO, HAUNTED MANSION (Screen 1), THE NUN II, TALK TO ME (Screen 2) (9/8-9/9)
@ The Little Lorraine, Hoopeston, IL
Private parties and “Family Movie Packs”
@ The Normal Theater, Normal, IL
Coalescence Theatre Project presents “I Love Rock and Roll” air guitar competition & fundraiser (9/8, 7:30 p.m.), LABYRINTH (9/9-9/10)
@ The Onarga Theatre, Onarga, IL
Closed for business until November.
@ The Princess Theatre, Leroy, IL
BARBIE (9/8-9/10)
@ The Route 66 Drive-in Theater, Springfield, IL
THE EQUALIZER 3, GRAN TURISMO (Screen 1), THE NUN II, MEG 2: THE TRENCH (Screen 2) (9/8-9/9)
NOW PLAYING | Midwest
@ ACX Harper Theater/Gene Siskel Film Center, SAIC, Chicago, IL
30th Chicago Underground Film Festival, Chicago, IL (9/13-9/17) Information
For detailed and curated listings of Chicago-area film presentations and related events, please visit the fine folks at Cine-File and subscribe to their definitive “Cine-List” weekly blast.
COMING SOON | Area-wide Events
9/16
FIELDS OF GOLD* Midwest premiere
@ Lincoln Square Theatre, Decatur, IL, 7 p.m.
9/21-10/8
41st Reeling: The Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival, Chicago, IL
9/23
Route 66 Film Festival presents “Get Your Flicks on Route 66” showcase
@ Hoogland Center for the Arts, Springfield, IL, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., free
9/26
DVD release: GEORGE HARRISON: A BEATLE IN BENTON, ILLINOIS* 60th anniversary edition
+ MVD Visual, Pottstown, PA
10/5-10/15
32nd Heartland International Film Festival, Indianapolis, IN
10/2
SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE Live in Concert
@ State Farm Center, UIUC, Urbana, IL, 7 p.m.
10/11-10/22
59th Chicago International Film Festival, Chicago, IL
10/28
Small Press Fest 2023
@ Lincoln Square Mall, Urbana, IL, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
11/3-11/3
22nd Route 66 Film Festival, Springfield, IL (virtual)
11/9-11/19
32nd Whitaker St Louis International Film Festival, St. Louis, MO
12/2
Krampusnacht Freeky Film Festival*
@ Phoenix Savoy 16 + IMAX, Savoy, IL
NEW! 3/2/24
CU International Film Festival*
@ Spurlock Museum of World Cultures, UIUC, Urbana, IL
NEW! 4/17-4/20/24
24th Roger Ebert’s Film Festival*
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL
COMMUNITY & CAMPUS SERIES | Champaign-Urbana area
Illini Radio Group presents “Rewind 92.5 Movie Series”/“Mix 94.5 Throwback Thursdays”*
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL, 7 p.m.
9/28: I WANNA DANCE WITH SOMEBODY* “sing-a-long” edition; 10/5: THE ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW; 11/16: PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES*, 12/21: DIE HARD
Illinois Public Media presents “The Arthouse Experience Film Series”
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL, 7 p.m.
9/15: GREENER PASTURES; 10/6: ROSENCRANZ AND GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD; 12/1: SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK
Illini Union Board presents “Fall 2023 Weekend Films”
@ Pine Lounge, 1st floor, Illini Union, UIUC, Urbana, IL, 7 p.m. Fri. & Sat, free w/i-card
9/15-9/16: INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY; 9/22-9/23: BARBIE; 9/29-9/30: OPPENHEIMER; 10/6-10/7: HAUNTED MANSION; 10/13-10/14: TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES: MUTANT MAYHEM; 10/20-10/21: MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – DEAD RECKONING, PART ONE; 10/27-10/28: INSIDIOUS: THE RED DOOR; 11/3-11/4: GRAN TURISMO; 11/10-11/11: STRAYS: 11/17-11/18: BLUE BEETLE; 12/1-12/2: THE EQUALIZER 3
The News-Gazette Film Series
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL, 1 & 7 p.m.
9/16: THE MALTESE FALCON; 10/14: NORTH BY NORTHWEST; 11/25: NATIONAL LAMPOON’S CHRISTMAS VACATION; 12/2: IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE
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Compiled by Jason Pankoke.
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