The first of these is the old-fashioned Secretariat, which is surely one of the feel-good movies of the year. Horse racing has long been a favorite subject for audiences and the genre—which includes such stellar examples as Seabiscuit, The Black Stallion and National Velvet for starters—now has the true story of the miraculous racing stallion Secretariat joining them. Diane Lane plays Penny Chenery, the daughter of a horse breeder (Scott Glenn) whose mind is slowly slipping away. Penny is married with two small children living far from the horse-racing farm of her childhood but, against her brother’s wishes and bucking her husband’s authority (this being the late ’60s, after all), she decides to keep the farm going. She wins a promising colt in a coin toss with billionaire Ogden Phipps (James Cromwell) and with the aid of a colorful, recalcitrant trainer (John Malkovich) and her father’s tart-tongued secretary (Margo Martindale), bets that the horse can be the first to take the Triple Crown in decades. Along the way, of course, Penny will inadvertently strike a blow for feminism by bringing a lot of class, sass and feminine graciousness to the male dominated sport.
Lane, who continues to be one of the movies most naturalistic and pleasing leading ladies, turns in yet another nuanced performance, which—given the story’s locale and time period—is as much about her carefully tailored clothes and upswept, Pat Nixon hairdo as it is about the character’s inherent independent spirit. Although the trajectory of the underdog becoming triumphant is as old as time itself, director Randall Wallace manages to stage the races with enough new gimmicks (slow-motion shots, point-of-view angles, etc.) to keep your heart racing at the outcome. The expert supporting cast—topped by the miraculous Martindale—and a sea of schmaltzy strings courtesy of music composer Nick Glennie-Smith, all help make Secretariat a very pleasurable movie.
Lee Daniels, the out director-producer extraordinaire of Precious, is presenting one of the year’s most original indies, Prince of Broadway, which is playing an exclusive engagement at Pipers Alley. The film follows Lucky (Prince Adu), an illegal immigrant and street hustler of knock-off designer goods, working out of the storefront of a shop owned by Levon (Karren Karagulian). Lucky is adept at his work but when an ex-girlfriend dumps a baby in his lap, demanding that he take responsibility and disappearing, Lucky’s world is turned upside down. Director Sean Baker, who scripted (along with Darren Dean) an outline for the improvised dialogue, shoots much of his film on the fly, and you’re right in the heart of the action. The commingled feel of the streets of New York—the excitement, energy and danger—are all very palpable and the unknown cast does wonders with the gritty, emotionally stirring material. Prince of Broadway crackles with the vitality of the early Cassavetes movies (not surprising, given its improvisational nature) and Baker is certainly a filmmaker to watch.
Similarly moving (but for very different reasons) is A Film Unfinished, a heartbreaking documentary by Yael Hersonski, who narrates. Hersonski’s film presents a long-forgotten reel from an unfinished Nazi propaganda movie shot in the packed Warsaw ghetto in May 1942; the truth was supposedly that the regime forced their Jewish prisoners to enact a series of humiliating scenes—often multiple times—perhaps in the belief that in doing so they would curry favor with their jailers. Nothing of the sort, of course, happened and soon after these heartbreaking images were recorded, the majority were sent to the death camps. Hersonski’s movie includes survivors who are photographed as they watch and react to the footage as well as a reconstruction of an interrogation of the only identified cameraman who worked for the SS. The resulting movie is beyond powerful.
Psycho—the story of the murderous, cross-dressing Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins, in his penultimate role) and director Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 horror masterpiece—is turning 50 and the Music Box, 3733 N. Southport, is bringing the classic back into theatres for one week beginning Friday, Oct. 8. Everything about this creepy, unforgettable film—from the stellar performances of Perkins, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles, et al; the stunning black-and-white cinematography; and, of course, Bernard Herrmann’s shrieking strings—still has the power to shock and entertain.
Psycho will also screen (at 7:45 a.m.!) as part of this year’s Music Box Massacre, the annual 24-horror movie marathon from film impresario Rusty Nails; the event is scheduled for Oct. 9-10 and will partially benefit the HIV/AIDS agency Vital Bridges. The line-up this year includes the queer-infused Fright Night, Rabid, Pet Sematary, The Wolfman (Lon Chaney, Jr. version), Theatre of Blood and others, including Killer Klowns from Outer Space, directed by the Chiodo brothers (who will attend). The Chiodos will also be present for a Friday, Oct. 8, screening of Team America (they constructed the puppets and oversaw the animation), the twisted and hilarious feature from South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. Presented by the Onion; www.musicboxtheatre.com
Film notes:
—Two More Classics: The Gene Siskel Film Center, 164 N. State, is presenting “Busty Bombshells,” an aptly titled double dose of ’50s glamour with screenings of 1953’s Gentlemen Prefer Blondes starring Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell and 1956’s The Girl Can’t Help It starring Jayne Mansfield and a host of ’50s rock-n-roll acts. Though each film is being screened separately (10/8-10/14 at various times), the Siskel is offering a discount for those purchasing tickets to both movies. www.siskelfilmcenter.com
—Speaking of Sexy Dames: A sneak-preview, shortened version of Red Tremmel and Gwen Lis Locke’s forthcoming documentary Exotic World and the Burlesque Revival will be screened as part of Decibelle Film Night: Objects & Personification on Oct. 15 at Chicago Filmmakers, 5243 N. Clark. The evening, presented by the Decibelle Music & Culture Festival, will include a variety of cutting-edge short films that will focus on transgender issues. The screenings begin at 8pm. www.decibelle.org
Check out my archived reviews at www.windycitytimes.com or www.knightatthemovies.com. Readers can leave feedback at the latter website.