Calendar: November 22-28, 2024
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.
~~~~~
MILESTONES | Happy Birthday to You!
11/28: Ryan Mitchelle (editor, A ROYAL CHRISTMAS BALLET, Hybrid LLC, Woodland Hills, CA)
11/28: Robert Patrick Stern (cinematographer, CURSE OF THE SIN EATER, Samuel Goldwyn Films, Los Angeles, CA)
FIELD REPORT DU HQ | From Wherever It May Be Said
Just in time for the gift-giving season, Facebook adverts-in-disguise have been appearing over the last week or so for a few “personality-and-a-movie” special events that are coming to the area next year, so we might as well Report on them in case you or your loved ones would have the itch to attend. On the afternoon of March 16, the McAninch Art Center at the College of DuPage in west suburban Glen Ellyn will play host to “John Waters: A Live Director’s Screening & Commentary of Hairspray,” at which the Baltimore legend will kvetch lovingly about his sweet 1988 musical comedy. A week later on March 22 at the Peoria Civic Center in Peoria, fans can drop plenty of peanuts to enjoy “The Princess Bride: An Inconceivable Evening with Cary Elwes” and join the veteran actor, who played “Westley” in Rob Reiner’s arch and funny 1987 skewering of fantasy and swashbuckling tropes, in the moment. And a year from now on October 10, the Bloomington Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Bloomington will ask their patrons to vote for “Napoleon Dynamite Live,” a screening that will feature cast members Jon Heder (“Napoleon”), Jon Gries (“Uncle Rico”), and Efren Ramirez (“Pedro”) riffing on their 2004 surprise hit. We guess this is a thing, now? Waters has made special event appearances over the years, and we’re sure they’ve been totally worth it, while the “Napoleon” gang recently brought their three-man jam to the Egyptian Theatre up north in DeKalb over the summer, so it isn’t new for them. We weren’t kidding about the peanuts, either. It will cost the following to attend: $62-$72 for HAIRSPRAY and Waters, $24-$49 for NAPOLEON DYNAMITE and Team Pedro, and $29-$89 on up to a $159 VIP option for THE PRINCESS BRIDE and Elwes. If the cost added to dinner, travel, and possible lodging are worth it to you, have at it.
IMAGERY DU C-U | Picturing Our Scene on the Screen
We turn from the nostalgia for cult classics that still received a boost from Hollywood and made $80 million combined at the US box office to the here-and-now of two local indies stretching their legs as best they can and a surprise live performance the gorehounds will lap up. First, John Isberg’s FINAL SUMMER will be screened again at Day of the Dead Chicago, taking place this weekend at the Crown Plaza O’Hare in Rosemont, during the film festival portion on November 23 at 4 p.m. with costar Bishop Stevens in attendance. Then, Ash Hamilton and company’s F’D: TALES FROM THE END TIMES will be given its actual, for-real, red-carpet premiere at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Illinois Theater of Jacksonville, a town where some of the filming took place for the sci-fi/horror anthology. And finally, nothing says Xmas quite like Claudio Simonetti’s Goblin, a modern iteration of the Italian prog-goth outfit that famously composed the soundtracks for numerous horror and giallo films by the likes of Dario Argento, Michele Soavi, Luigi Cozzi, and George A. Romero; they will play their last North American “Ultimate Anthology” gig of the year on Saturday, December 14, at the Canopy Club in Urbana, of all places. The tour name is due to the show being a pastiche of Goblin’s screen work and other compositions recorded over their career. C-U doesn’t get esoteric live performance connected to the cinema very often, so, don’t miss it!
~~~~~
LOCAL FILMS & EVENTS | Support Your Media Storytellers
@ Phoenix Savoy 16 + IMAX, Savoy, IL
Chambana Film Festival* screening series feat. THE HOBBY (11/24, 4 p.m.)
NOW PLAYING | Champaign-Urbana Area
@ AMC Champaign 13, Champaign, IL
BONHOEFFER (faith film), GLADIATOR II, WICKED, THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER (faith film), HERETIC, RED ONE, SMILE 2*, VENOM: THE LAST DANCE, WE LIVE IN TIME, THE WILD ROBOT (animation) (11/22 on), Studio Ghibli Fest: POM POKO (animé) (11/24, 3 & 7 p.m., English dub; 11/26, 7 p.m., in Japanese with English sub) and THE TALE OF THE PRINCESS KAYUGA (animé) (11/25, 7 p.m., English dub; 11/27, 7 p.m., in Japanese with English sub), MOANA 2 (animation) (11/26 on) *single screenings daily
@ Phoenix Savoy 16 + IMAX, Savoy, IL
BONHOEFFER (faith film), GLADIATOR II, WICKED, THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER (faith film), CONCLAVE, HERETIC, A REAL PAIN, RED ONE, VENOM: THE LAST DANCE, THE WILD ROBOT (animation) (11/22 on), The Metropolitan Opera: Tosca (11/23, 12 p.m., simulcast), ELF (11/24, 3 & 7 p.m.; 11/27, 7 p.m.), Studio Ghibli Fest: POM POKO (animé) (11/24, 3 & 7 p.m., English dub; 11/26, 7 p.m., in Japanese with English sub) and THE TALE OF THE PRINCESS KAYUGA (animé) (11/25, 7 p.m., English dub; 11/27, 7 p.m., in Japanese with English sub), MOANA 2 (animation) (11/26 on)
@ Pine Lounge, 1st floor, Illini Union, UIUC, Urbana, IL
Illini Union Board presents BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE (11/22-11/23, 7 p.m., free w/i-card)
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL
Illinois Public Media presents “The Arthouse Experience Film Series” feat. RUSHMORE (11/22, 7 p.m.)
Events featuring locally produced movies are marked with an asterisk (*). Additional “Now Playing” and “Coming Soon” listings appear after the jump!
~~~~~
NOW PLAYING | The Cities Beyond
@ The Avon Theater, Decatur, IL
GLADIATOR II, WICKED, CONCLAVE (11/21-11/24)
@ Clintonia Eagle Theater, Clinton, IL
BONHOEFFER (faith film), GLADIATOR II, WICKED, THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER (faith film), RED ONE (11/22 on)
@ Crescent Cinemas, Pontiac, IL
WICKED, RED ONE (11/22 on)
@ The Fischer Theatre, Danville, IL
THE POLAR EXPRESS (animation) (11/22, 7 p.m.), NATIONAL LAMPOON’S CHRISTMAS VACATION (11/28, 7 p.m.)
@ The Harvest Moon Twin Drive-in, Gibson City, IL
“Hot Chocolate & Holiday Movies” feat. THE POLAR EXPRESS (animation) (Screen 1), NATIONAL LAMPOON’S CHRISTMAS VACATION (Screen 2) (11/22-11/23)
@ Marcus Bloomington Cinema + IMAX, Bloomington, IL
BONHOEFFER (faith film), GLADIATOR II, WICKED, THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER (faith film), RED ONE, VENOM: THE LAST DANCE, THE WILD ROBOT (animation) (11/22 on), The Metropolitan Opera: Tosca (11/23, 12 p.m., simulcast), Studio Ghibli Fest: POM POKO (animé) (11/24, 3 & 7 p.m., English dub; 11/26, 7 p.m., in Japanese with English sub) and THE TALE OF THE PRINCESS KAYUGA (animé) (11/25, 7 p.m., English dub; 11/27, 7 p.m., in Japanese with English sub), MOANA 2 (animation) (11/26 on)
@ The Normal Theater, Normal, IL
RUDY (11/22-11/23), PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES (11/23-11/24)
@ The Onarga Theatre, Onarga, IL
RED ONE (11/22-11/24)
@ The Princess Theatre, Leroy, IL
HERE (11/22-11/24)
@ VIP Lincoln Grand 6, Lincoln, IL
ARMOR*, GLADIATOR II, WICKED, THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER (faith film), RED ONE (11/22 on)
NOW PLAYING | Midwest
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. And for northern Illinois industry news, be sure to read Reel Chicago and Screen Magazine.
COMING SOON | Area-wide Events
12/14
Claudio Simonetti’s Goblin “Ultimate Anthology” tour (film music of Argento, Romero, etc.)
@ The Canopy Club, Urbana, IL, 7 p.m. doors, 8 p.m. show
2/15/25
3rd annual CU International Film Festival*
@ Spurlock Museum of World Cultures, UIUC, Urbana, IL
3/27-3/29/25
2025 Big Muddy Film Festival*
@ The Varsity Center, Carbondale, IL
4/3-4/13/25
35th Onion City Experimental Film Festival, Chicago, IL
4/23/-4/25/25
25th Roger Ebert’s Film Festival*
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL
5/29-6/2/25
The Chambana Film Festival
@ TBA, Champaign-Urbana, IL
COMMUNITY & CAMPUS SERIES | Champaign-Urbana area
Chambana Film Festival* screening series
@ Phoenix Savoy 16 + IMAX, Savoy, IL, 4 p.m.
12/29: documentary shorts incl. FACING THE FALLS
Illini Radio Group presents “Rewind 92.5 Movie Series”/“Mix 94.5 Throwback Thursdays”*
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL, 7 p.m.
12/5: FRIDAY*
Illini Union Board presents “Fall 2024 Weekend Films”
@ Pine Lounge, 1st floor, Illini Union, UIUC, Urbana, IL, 7 p.m. Fri. & Sat, free w/i-card
12/6-12/7: HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS
Illinois Public Media presents “The Arthouse Experience Film Series”
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL, 7 p.m.
12/14: ROBOT DREAMS (animation)
The News-Gazette Film Series
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL, 1 & 7 p.m.
11/30: THE WIZARD OF OZ; 12/7: IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE
Roger Ebert Center for Film Studies* event series
@ Knight Auditorium, Spurlock Center for World Cultures, UIUC, Urbana, IL
12/5: GREMLINS screening
~~~~~
Compiled by Jason Pankoke.
~~~~~
“Calendar du C-U”
© 2024 Jason Pankoke/C-U Blogfidential
[T −143]