Calendar: Nov. 28-Dec. 4, 2025
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!
11/22: Chase Todd (producer/actor, CHASE AND SHEP SUE KEVIN SMITH, Earth-217 Studios, Villa Grove/Savoy, IL)
11/28: Robert Patrick Stern (cinematographer, GOLDEN MEADOW, PWM Films, Chicago, IL)
11/28: Ryan Mitchelle (editor, A ROYAL CHRISTMAS TAIL, Hybrid LLC, Woodland Hills, CA)
12/3: Bryan Wendorf (programmer/artistic director, Chicago Underground Film Festival, Chicago, IL)
12/3: Greg Woods (publisher, The Eclectic Screening Room, Toronto, Canada)
FIELD REPORT DU HQ | From Wherever It May Be Said
We trust that you were able to enjoy the holiday with the right people and, now, it’s time for the rest of the weekend. Some of us have to go back to work. Some of us have a shit-ton to do that doesn’t involve leisure. Some of us just want to sneak to a movie house for a spell between all the other things…
Instead of going through and analyzing the Calendar listings – it’s Disney and WICKED and a Chambana Film Society show on Sunday afternoon and the annual Normal Theater seasonal marathon and newer Christmas perennials, we just figured out, instead of a Robert Redford tribute today at the Fischer Theatre – we’ll be catching up on the news impacting our area venues. First, a former AMC Showcase location in Mattoon that closed down earlier this year has been revived by the VIP Cinemas chain as reported last month by WAND-TV; you can head over today if you live in the area as they are up and running with the current first-run crowdpleasers. That said, VIP customers should watch their local schedules for once-a-day showings of fare that is put out by smaller distributors, such as the heist-and-gangsters action flick WILDCAT with Kate Beckinsale, Charles Dance, and Alice Krige that is opening today at Mattoon.
Also in October, the volunteers who are working on a restoration and fundraising plan to reopen the Heart Theatre in downtown Effingham put in a little extra love to create a charming Heart float for the city’s annual Halloween parade; you can see the result, complete with Beauty and the Beast, on Facebook.
Now with the Harvest Moon Twin Drive-in back open in Gibson City for their annual “Hot Chocolate & Holiday Movies” schedule, it’s a good time to bring up a recent article about the precarious position of their industry. Run by Smile Politely in early October as the Harvest Moon’s regular season was winding down and written by Max Pociask, it is not the usual feel-good piece on the miracle of an operating drive-in within a reasonable driving distance from Champaign-Urbana. This one lauds the overall communal experience in terms of spending a night at the Harvest Moon while punching the gut a bit with a reality check – at risk is the health of many an American small town and business, including the remaining hardtops, due to the consolidation of agricultural production by corporations and the continual shafting of the needs of rural farmers whose livelihood affects everyone and everything around them.
On a more positive note, the Golden Ticket Cinemas chain has arrived in Illinois and set up shop in a former multiplex building on the east side of Bloomington, opening their “Ale House” concept to the public on Friday, October 17. An article by WGLT lists the amenities that would be available to customers including bottomless popcorn and a “self-pour beer wall;” movie fare is the expected as you can see below in the Calendar, although they do manage to get Netflix releases such as KNIVES OUT 3 and JAY KELLY unlike our other exhibitors, so the personal luxury (and upcharge?) is the main distinction here.
Back to the Fischer for a moment, we’re glad to see the movies make a comeback in their scheduling even if the Redford fête did not pan out. Recently, they’ve hosted the teen-produced film CROSSMARK, made plans to celebrate the one hundredth birthday of Dick Van Dyke with a program next weekend, and agreed to another indie screening at the end of 2025 that we’ll talk about on CUBlog in a couple of weeks. Don’t just attend our venues for kicks, dearest viewers, make good use of them like the Fischer. Cheers.
IMAGERY DU C-U | Picturing Our Scene on the Screen
Had your fill yet? Apparently, neither have we at MFHQ Deux. Talking turkey about weird movies with our dinner guest, Confidential agent Don of the D/L, we landed on the topic of a new Dracula love triangle feature from France that was directed by Luc Besson (THE FIFTH ELEMENT) and also the new Romania-lensed farce based on the legend of Vlad the Impaler from director Radu Jude. Then, Ye Ed remembered that a Killer Tomatoes sequel was set in France. (Indeed, we’re still not sure how it transpired in that head of his.) So, he found a clip online to prove its existence to Don, which turned out to be the opening scene in KILLER TOMATOES EAT FRANCE! from the vintage of 1992, and said clip happens to cut off after this aerial shot of our villains, including the great John Astin, getting away in…
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Are. You. Kidding. And yet, does it not make perfect sense in the nonsensical scheme of a Killer Tomato movie? Miraculously, EAT FRANCE was the fourth (but still the last) release in an improbable franchise (although a brand-new fifth entry is sprouting as we speak) and, sure enough, “Garcia’s Pizza in a Pan” is listed in a thank-you block during the end credits crawl. We’d love to know how this came about, even if it was just the producers of the movie buying the rights to stock footage that Garcia’s owners Ralph Senn and Joe Ream previously had shot for them to promote their business. It’s too bad the chain has been consolidated to a single store in west Champaign off of Mattis Avenue, but it’s apparently the scale that Senn and Ream want to work with after more than fifty years of being “The Flying Tomato Brothers.”
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Here is an article with vintage photographs from 2021 when the News-Gazette interviewed the partners and University of Illinois alumni about their long history as restaurateurs, and a more recent YouTube vignette with Senn where he describes how they make their trademark pizza slices. Many of us will always have memories of stopping at a Garcia’s, in particular the labyrinthine wonder that resided in the shadow of Watterson Towers near the Illinois State University campus in Normal and the similar location that used to be on Green Street in Campustown, as well as looking up while out and about during a weekend in the C-U to see the Garcia’s balloon quietly pass overhead. It was always a treat and we knew exactly who it was advertising. Hopefully, they will hold the Killer Tomatoes on our next order…
p.s. The Garcia’s balloon appears for a few brief shots in the movie, while a jovial Astin and his rubber ghoulies are snacking on a pizza pie that is clearly not from our beloved Brothers. We found an online rip and skimmed through it to be sure; seems that KILLER TOMATOES EAT FRANCE! and its predecessor, KILLER TOMATOES STRIKE BACK!, have not made an official jump to streaming even if you can enjoy a bushel of clips on the official “Attack of the Killer Tomatoes” channel. Dang it, a Gutbuster and a movie does sound good on this Tomato Red Friday … but which movie should we pick? Decisions, decisions!
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LOCAL FILMS & EVENTS | Support Your Media Storytellers
@ Phoenix Savoy 16 + IMAX, Savoy, IL
Chambana Film Society* presents “The Savoy Arthouse” feat. THE LADDER w/filmmaker Q&A (11/30, 3 p.m.)
NOW PLAYING | Champaign-Urbana Area
@ AMC Champaign 13, Champaign, IL
ETERNITY, TERE ISHK MEIN* (in Hindi with English sub), ZOOTOPIA 2 (animation), NOW YOU SEE ME: NOW YOU DON’T, PREDATOR: BADLANDS, RENTAL FAMILY, THE RUNNING MAN, SISU: ROAD TO REVENGE, WICKED: FOR GOOD (11/28 on), ), AMC “Screen Unseen” (mystery movie) (12/1, 7 p.m.), FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY’S 2, JUJUTSU KAISEN: EXECUTION (animé) (12/4 on) *single screenings daily
@ Phoenix Savoy 16 + IMAX, Savoy, IL
ETERNITY, ZOOTOPIA 2 (animation), NOW YOU SEE ME: NOW YOU DON’T, NUREMBERG, PREDATOR: BADLANDS, REGRETTING YOU, RENTAL FAMILY, THE RUNNING MAN, SISU: ROAD TO REVENGE, WICKED: FOR GOOD (11/28 on), Indian cinema: REVOLVER RITA (in Tamil with English sub; 11/28, 2 p.m.), TERE ISHK MEIN (in Hindi with English sub; 11/28-11/29), and ANDHRA KING TALUKA (in Telugu with English sub; 11/28-12/3), “WWE Survivor Series: WarGames” (11/29, 6 p.m., simulcast), ANOTHER SWEET CHRISTMAS (faith film) (11/30, 4 p.m.; 12/1, 7 p.m.), THE HOLIDAY (11/30, 3 & 7 p.m.; 12/3, 7 p.m.), The Metropolitan Opera: Arabella (12/3, 12 & 5:30 p.m., recorded), WEDDING CRASHERS (12/4, 4 & 7 p.m.), AKHANDA 2: THAANDAVAM (in Telugu with English sub), FIVE NIGHTS AT FREDDY’S 2 (12/4 on)
@ The Virginia Theatre, Champaign, IL
Mix 94.5 and Rewind 92.5 present ELF (11/29, 1 & 7:30 p.m.)
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 Fischer Theatre, Danville, IL
“Doorbusters & Blockbusters” feat. ELF (11/28, 3 p.m.) and NATIONAL LAMPOON’S CHRISTMAS VACATION (11/28, 6 p.m.) (Free or donation)
@ Golden Ticket Cinemas Ale House, Bloomington, IL
ZOOTOPIA 2 (animation), JAY KELLY, NOW YOU SEE ME: NOW YOU DON’T, PREDATOR: BADLANDS, THE RUNNING MAN, WAKE UP DEAD MAN: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY, WICKED: FOR GOOD (11/28 on)
@ The Harvest Moon Twin Drive-in, Gibson City, IL
ZOOTOPIA 2 (animation) (Screen 1), THE GRINCH (animation) (Screen 2) (11/28-11/29)
@ The Lorraine Theatre, Hoopeston, IL
WICKED: FOR GOOD (11/28-11/30)
@ The Normal Theater, Normal, IL
MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS, IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE (11/28), THE POLAR EXPRESS (animation), WHITE CHRISTMAS, NATIONAL LAMPOON’S CHRISTMAS VACATION (11/29), A CHRISTMAS STORY, ELF, HOME ALONE (11/30), BATMAN RETURNS (12/1), THE SANTA CLAUSE (12/2), JINGLE ALL THE WAY (12/3), HOME ALONE (12/4)
BACK OPEN! @ The Onarga Theatre, Onarga, IL
ZOOTOPIA 2 (animation) (11/28-11/30)
@ The Princess Theatre, Leroy, IL
ZOOTOPIA 2 (animation) (11/26-11/30)
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, Screen Magazine, and the Chicago Reader.
COMING SOON | Area-wide Events
CANCELLED 11/28
‘Reel Talk with Chuck and Pam’ presents “Remembering [Robert] Redford”
feat. THE STING, THE WAY WE WERE, THE NATURAL w/Chuck Koplinski & Pam Powell
@ The Fischer Theatre, Danville, IL, 12-9 p.m.
12/6
FischerFest presents “Celebrating the Life & Legacy of Dick Van Dyke”
feat. national premiere of DICK VAN DYKE: 100 CELEBRATION
@ The Fischer Theatre, Danville, IL, 5 p.m. doors, 6:30 p.m. program
12/7
FischerFest presents “Celebrating the Life & Legacy of Dick Van Dyke”
feat. BYE BYE BIRDIE, THE COMIC, MARY POPPINS w/Chuck Koplinski
@ The Fischer Theatre, Danville, IL, 11 a.m.-9 p.m.
4/3-4/10, 2026
28th annual Wisconsin Film Festival, Madison, WI
4/9-4/12, 2026
36th Onion City Experimental Film Festival, Chicago, IL
COMMUNITY & CAMPUS SERIES | Champaign-Urbana area
Chambana Film Society presents “The Savoy Arthouse”
@ Phoenix Savoy 16 + IMAX, Savoy, IL, 3 p.m. unless noted otherwise
12/7: HUNDREDS OF BEAVERS; 12/14: SONG SUNG BLUE (2008); 12/21: LOCKE; 12/28: “Short Docs” program
Illini Union Board presents “Fall 2025 Weekend Films”
@ Pine Lounge, 1st floor, Illini Union, UIUC, Urbana, IL, 7 p.m. Fri. & Sat, free w/i-card
12/5-12/6: CAUGHT STEALING
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Compiled by Jason Pankoke.
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“Calendar du C-U”
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