Nitehawk Cinema’s October 2014 slate is unsurprisingly full of the spooky and scary. But that’s not all they’ve got going on this month. Here’s a look at what will be playing in October.
The current films playing at Nitehawk are The Skeleton Twins, The Zero Theorem, Bjork: Biophilia Live, and The Two Faces of January. Later this month, Whiplash, Listen Up Philip, and Birdman will open.
Once again, there is a monthly theme for most of the midnight screenings (Friday & Saturday) and brunch screenings (Saturdays & Sundays), which is Final Girl. It kicked off last month and rolls right through October, promising plenty of thrills, scares, and a healthy dose of blood. At midnight, you can see Scream (10/3 & 10/4), the harrowing French thriller High Tension (10/10 & 10/11), all-time classic Halloween (10/10, 10/11, AND 10/12), OG indie horror Texas Chainsaw Massacre (10/17 & 10/18), and Italian giallo master Dario Argento’s Suspiria (10/24 & 10/25). At brunch, there’s another giallo The Girl Who Knew Too Much (10/4 & 10/5), the sure to be wild Spider Baby (10/11 & 10/12), a film with a scene that sounds so intense I can barely read about it Eyes Without a Face (10/18 & 10/19), and Roman Polanski’s Repulsion (10/25 & 10/26).
If you are looking for some kid-friendly scares, there are a few spooky screenings for the whole family, too. They’re creepy, they’re kooky, and they’ll be gracing the brunch screens on 10/4 & 10/5…that’s right, I’m talking about The Addams Family. The following week (10/11 & 10/12), Monster House plays.
One last Halloween event that merits special attention is Nitehawk’s second annual “A Nite to Dismember.” Starting at midnight on Halloween, five films, all horror sequels, will be screened. It’s quite a slate: Evil Dead II, The Bride of Frankenstein, Friday the 13th: Part 2, Dracula: Prince of Darkness, and Return of the Living Dead. According to the website, “There will also be horror shorts, inspired montages, giveaways, trivia, and a costume contest plus breakfast in the morning. Hosted by Fangoria’s Sam Zimmerman and Nitehawk’s Kris King!”
Also screening at midnight:
- Re-Animator (10/3 & 10/4): Both a horror film fitting for the Halloween season and the latest installment of the Nitehawk Nasties series.
- Pulp Fiction (10/17 & 10/18): Perhaps an aftershock from last month’s 1994 series, and likely added after the Film Feast version sold out both its nights. Whatever the reason, it’s awesome to have the chance to catch this amazing film on the big screen.
Also screening at brunch:
- The latest Spoons, Toons, and Booze (10/18 & 10/19) is unsurprisingly devoted to Halloween toons, but is already sold out.
- A Bucket of Blood (10/25 & 10/26): Another double dip of Halloween & Nitehawk regular series, this time Art Seen. It’s a Roger Corman flick that combines murder, comedy, and clay.
Lastly, here are the special event screenings for the month:
- Style Wars (10/7): 1983 film devoted to NYC’s burgeoning graffiti and hip-hop scenes, part of the Music Driven series. The producer will be in attendance for a Q&A afterwards.
- Dr. Butcher, MD (10/9): Part of the Deuce series, which captures the spirit of 42nd Street when it was gritty and full of movie houses. Hell of a title.
- The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (10/12): Here’s a special event. As part of an effort devoted to securing this film’s place in the repertory pantheon, the film will play and Casey Affleck (Robert Ford) will be there to do a Q&A. More info.
- Pulp Fiction (10/14 & 10/15): Nitehawk offers great food at all of its screenings, but every now then, they have to take it to the next level with their Film Feasts. These inspired events combine dishes that tie to the movie and are served at specific times with themed drink pairings. How awesome! Unfortunately, these are sold out, but you can catch Pulp Fiction that weekend (details above).
- The King of Comedy (10/16): This Martin Scorsese film pairs Robert DeNiro and Jerry Lewis but reverses their expected roles, with DeNiro as the delusional comedian and Lewis as the straight man. The author of Martin Scorsese: A Retrospective will be on hand to introduce the film and sell his book.
- All the President’s Men (10/28): The final entry of the Journalists in Film series. Dustin Hoffman, Robert Redford, the Watergate scandal. Need I say more?
- The Lodger (10/30): Alfred Hitchcock is right at home in October and the master of mood, making it a great pairing with the Live Sound Cinema series. Morricone Youth will provide the score to one of Hitchcock’s earliest works.
That’s all of it for October – as of press time, at least. My two picks from what I’ve seen are Pulp Fiction (one of my all-time favorite films) and Halloween. My three picks of what I’d like to see are Birdman, The Assassination of Jesse James, and The King of Comedy (I’m kind of a sucker for screenings with Q&A’s or speakers, as well as Michael Keaton, though all these films have enough reason to see them on their own). If you are a horror fan, you really ought to check out a few of these films, it’s quite a range. There are ticket links throughout the post. Happy viewing!