Coming soon to an artsy-fartsy blog near you

June 11:  Tonight's open thread is underway here.

Revised, Tuesday afternoon.

New feature will get underway next week.

Lance Mannion's Wednesday Night at the Movies.

Starting next Wednesday, June 11, and for the four Wednesdays after that I'll be hosting an open thread over at newcritics devoted to each one of the five Oscar nominees for Best Picture for 1967:  The Graduate, In the Heat of the Night, Bonnie and Clyde, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, and Doctor Dolittle.  I was going to leave that last one off my list, but our favorite film blogger the Siren insisted I include it.  She swears it holds up a lot better than you'd think.  We'll see.

I chose these movies just because they're the subject of Mark Harris' Pictures at a Revolution, so I heartily recommend reading the book as a great backgrounder for the discussions.  No way, though, am I assinging it as homework.  These threads are meant to be fun, as if we were all just talking about a movie we'd just seen together at a coffee shop after the show and definitely not as if we'd all just watched it in class.

My plan is to open the threads at 10 PM EDT each Wednesday and we'll just start chatting away as if we'd all just finished watching the movie.  Of course it won't be necessary to actually watch the film just before.  It won't even be necessary for you to have watched the film recently---or at all---to join in.  Clearly, though, I'm hoping folks will watch the movie (re-watch for a lot of us) in the week leading up to that Wednesday's open thread.

So...here's my tentative schedule for the threads:

June 11:  The Graduate.

June 18:  In the Heat of the Night.

June 25.  Doctor Dolittle.

July 2.  Guess Who's Coming to Dinner.

July 9.  Bonnie and Clyde.

(Schedule revised from this morning based on suggestions by Ralph Hitchens and SF Mike.  Saving Bonnie and Clyde for last, besides letting us end with a bang---sorry, couldn't resist.---finishes us off with the movie that had the most influence on movies for the next ten years.)

Let me know what you think of the list and the schedule and if you already have some points in mind you'd like the discussions to touch on.

If this goes well I think it will become a permanent fixture at newcritics, although we'll probably start rotating the hosting chores.  The Siren may not remember or may wish to forget but she's already volunteered to take on the next set of movies.

So, there you go.  Add The Graduate to your Netflix queue or buy it from Amazon or download it from somewhere or run out to your local video store or public library ASAP.  Please join in even if you can't watch the movies beforehand.

Now showing at newcritics:

The Siren's look at three movies about the Titanic.  She likes all of them, including you know which one.

Jason Chervokas' Bo Diddley Goes to Heaven.

Mrs Peel's review of the play Port Authority, "Three Irishmen Walk Into a Ferry Waiting Room."

And NCYWeboy's rave review of the Sex and the City movie, Diamonds On The Soles Of Her Shoes.

Comments

[Michael Rebain]

I purchased this book (on Amazon.com, natch!) after reading your previous post and want to thank you for bringing it to my attention. I know everybody hates assigned reading, but I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in either films or the Sixties. I especially loved the entire discussion of the Production Code and its eventual replacement by the the MPAA's rating system.

[Ralph Hitchens]

Recommend you focus on the first three and take July off. Neither of those last two is in the same league as the others.

[sfmike]

No, Ralph, you need all five to grok the moment in time. Still, I'd start with the worst and end with the best, which means starting with "Doctor Dolittle" and "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" (you can choose which is worst) and continuing with your top three. "Bonnie and Clyde" is definitely the best. I remember learning a valuable lesson from the Academy Awards that year, which is "the best movie/candidate usually isn't, and that's how life works."

[Victoria]

I'm in, for June anyway. Book ordered.

[Campaspe]

I whaaat? I volunteered for what? No way man. My own late father once told me the unofficial US Army motto was "don't never volunteer for nothing." I wasn't THAT tipsy. Was I?

Doctor Doolittle works now mainly as nostalgia for that type of filmmaking. I haven't seen it in years so if I am going to subject you to it I guess I should re-watch myself, maybe with the kids.

[Ben]

I'm looking forward to the In the Heat of the Night post. In retrospect it may be just an above-average buddy cop movie, but both Steiger and Poitier really brought their A games.

[James Wolcott]

You know who's in Bonnie & Clyde?

Estelle Parsons.

You know who I saw on the subway tonight?

Estelle Parsons!

How's that for a cowinkadinky?

It's almost eerie.

[Kit Stolz]

Should be interesting...I forgot that "The Graduate" was nominated...but remember actually enjoying "Dr. Doolittle."

'Course, I was only ten at the time.

[andrewstras]

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