Black-and-white classics this weekend on Mount Pony
photo courtesy Library of Congress
THE MARX BROS: Chaos reigns in “A Night at the Opera” from 1935, playing Thursday night in Culpeper
The Library of Congress Packard Campus reaches way back into its Culpeper film archives this weekend for a classic trio of black-and-white screenings on Mount Pony.
Thursday night at 7:30 it’s the unmatched Marx Brothers in the musical comedy “A Night at the Opera” (MGM, 1935). Leave it to Chico, Groucho and Harpo to turn a prim and proper thing like opera into utter chaos.
Groucho’s character, Otis B. Driftwood, had the right idea when he declared, “And now, on with the opera. Let joy be unconfined. Let there be dancing in the streets, drinking in the saloons and necking in the parlor.” Indeed. Look for the lovely Kitty Carlisle (1910-2007) of “To Tell the Truth” fame and her performance of “Alone” with Allan Jones. 1 hour and six minutes.
The Friday Night Foreign returns Friday night with a French selection: “Bob le Flambeur” (Mondial, 1956). It means he’s a high roller. Everyone owes Bob (Roger Duchesne) something and it’s probably an understatement to say he’s the king of cool. And yet Bob has a dark past as a bank robber and an even darker addiction to gambling. Needing cash, he plans one last job and it all falls apart.
The climax of “Bob le Flambeur,” inspiringly directed by Jean-Pierre Melville, involves a twist so surprising that Roger Ebert said it “approach(es) cosmic irony.” Oh mon. 1 hour 38 minutes, English subtitles.
The Saturday silent matinee at 2 p.m. in the Mount Pony Theater is a live-action version of “Peter Pan” (Paramount, 1924), released nearly three full decades before the Walt Disney one.
The story’s the same though: all about a little boy who doesn’t want to grow up. Based on the children’s classic by J.M. Barrie with accompaniment by house musician Andrew Simpson. 1 hour and 45 minutes.
Movies in the theater at the LOC Center for Audiovisual Conservation on Mount Pony screen Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted.
This weekend:
Thursday night “A Night at the Opera” (MGM, 1935)
Friday night “Bob le Flambeur” (Mondial, 1956) - French with English subtitles
Saturday, 2 p.m. “Peter Pan” (Paramount, 1924) – silent with live music by Andrew Simpson
Reservations: Mon-Fri 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. one week in advance at (540) 827-1079 ext. 79994.
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