Last night was fabulous!
Boss Radio and I arrived an hour early for the 7:30 screening of
Bugsy Malone, and chatted with several other movie enthusiasts (read:geeks) while we waited in line.
When we got in, we snagged seats in the third row (right in front of Mike White - it was a veritable who's who of cool nerds). Edgar came out to introduce the movie and said, "To the people who ask, 'Why are you showing movies that I could watch on DVD?' I reply: Fvck you.'" He was right - there was something about seeing a movie like
Bugsy Malone in a packed theater that you just could never get at home on a comfy couch. After the movie, he showed a music video that he'd directed a half-dozen years ago that pays homage to
Bugsy Malone (the Bluetones "After Hours"), and then he welcomed Paul Williams, who talked about
Bugsy Malone, and a little about
Phantom of the Paradise.
Then we watched
Phantom. It was a brand-new print and it looked fantastic. Other than the mediocre sound system at the New Beverly, I don't think I could have expected a better presentation anywhere.
Edgar and Paul came back to talk more and take a few questions, before they announced the (surprise!) third movie in the "double feature". It was
Ishtar, which also features songs by Mr. Williams. Edgar explained that he couldn't have listed it as a favorite film, since he'd never seen it before. He also didn't want to introduce it, and decided to give the microphone to a true
Ishtar fan, Quentin Tarantino. Quentin shared the story of the first time he saw the movie and even regaled us with his interpretation of one of the songs from the movie.
Unfortunately (for me, at least), the third movie didn't get started until after 1:30 a.m., so we split after the first 20 minutes or so. I plan to pull out my DVD this week sometime, though the crowd certainly would have made for a more fun experience.
This Wednesday:
Flash Gordon and
Danger: Diabolik with guests Timothy Dalton, Joe Dante, and maybe even Diabolik himself: John Philip Law.
See you there!
