Page 83 – Establishing Shot

In Memoriam: Tommy Rall (1929-2020)

Posted on October 8, 2020 by Michaela Owens

Tommy Rall was a man who defied gravity. Whether executing impossibly fast twirls, nimbly leaping through the air, or doing a series of stunningly intricate tap steps, Rall proved to be one of the best dancers Hollywood would ever see. And yet he never became the star he deserved to be.

On October 6, at the age of 90, Rall died of congestive heart failure while recovering from heart surgery. An irreplaceable talent from the Golden Age of Hollywood, I’ve been in love with his work ever since he took my breath away in Kiss Me, Kate many years ago. Although his filmography is small, the impact of Rall’s dancing is so momentous that I was frustrated to discover that, as I’m typing this, no obituaries have yet been written for him. This really didn’t sit right with me, so I wanted to offer my own tribute to the man whose artistry has never failed to make me giggle with delight. (Yes, giggle.) (more…)

Marcel Duchamp: One Degree of Separation

Posted on October 5, 2020 by Establishing Shot

Guest post by Nanette Esseck Brewer, The Lucienne M. Glaubinger Curator of Works on Paper at IU’s Eskenazi Museum of Art.

The French-American modernist Marcel Duchamp (1887–1968) didn’t attend Indiana University or teach at the school and as far as I know never even visited Bloomington during his lifetime; nevertheless, IU has several important connections to the noted artist and theorist, who is the subject of October’s Art and a Movie featured presentation, Marcel Duchamp: The Art of the Possible (2020). The first connection is the Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art’s unusually impressive holdings of his work, while the second is through the artist’s personal relationship with IU Ruth N. Halls Professor of Fine Arts Emeritus Robert Barnes. (more…)

Monthly Movie Round-Up: September

Posted on September 30, 2020 by Establishing Shot

One Sings, the Other Doesn't — *One Sings, the Other Doesn’t*

Every month, A Place for Film brings you a selection of films from our group of regular bloggers. Even though these films aren’t currently being screened at the IU Cinema, this series reflects the varied programming that can be found at the Cinema and demonstrates the eclectic tastes of the bloggers. Each contributor has picked one film that they saw this month that they couldn’t wait to share with others. Keep reading to find out what discoveries these cinephiles have made, as well as some of the old friends they’ve revisited.
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The Complete Films of Agnès Varda: A Love Letter to a Legend

Posted on September 28, 2020 by Aja Essex

Image for The Complete Films of Agnes Varda

For full transparency: I was sent this box set by Criterion for review. I’d like to think this hasn’t impacted my thoughts on this set, but I thought people should know before they read more.

There are figures in art whose image, mannerisms, and reputation are as recognizable and notable as the art they create. Your Andy Warhols. Your Stephen Kings. Your Alfred Hitchcocks. People whose work are ingrained in both culture and popular culture at large. Yet, even though they themselves are not directly the subjects of their work, they are as iconic as the things they create. Within the arthouse cinema world, figures such as these certainly exist and even manage to crossover into the mainstream. Werner Herzog’s server visage has had him do work as an actor, and his oft-imitated cadence and narration style are parodied constantly, even by the man himself. French New Wave director Jean-Luc Godard stands as the poster boy for general moviegoers’ image of French filmic self-seriousness.

To the left of this circle of recognizable creatives stands Agnès Varda, a petite, energetic woman with a bowl cut dyed around the outer edges, encasing the bullseye of her naturally grey hair. In the documentary The Beaches of Agnès, she says, “I’m playing the part of a little old lady. Plump and talkative.” It’s a documentary being filmed around the time of her 80th birthday and at this point in her career (and her life as a whole) she knows moviegoers may be more familiar with her image and playful demeanor than they are with her own work. (more…)

Thank You, Jon

Posted on September 24, 2020 by Jesse Pasternack

Founding director of Indiana University Cinema Jon Vickers — Founding Director of Indiana University Cinema Jon Vickers

At the end of this month, IU Cinema will be saying goodbye to our founding director, Jon Vickers. His presence and leadership will be sorely missed, but we will forever be grateful for everything he has done to make IU Cinema the place for film. The following is a tribute written by regular blog contributor Jesse Pasternack.

I’ve known Jon Vickers since my first tour of IU’s campus. I had moderated filmmaker panels at the Traverse City Film Festival and, eager to do the same thing at the IU Cinema (an institution that I wrote about on the essay portion of my college application), sent him an email containing footage from my moderating.

I was standing with my parents by the Hoagy Carmichael statue when I suddenly heard a voice: “Excuse me, but I think I recognize your son.” It was Jon. That was the week that he was overseeing the visits of Meryl Streep and Roger Corman to campus. He had just said goodbye to Streep and had 5-10 minutes of free time before he had to drive to the airport to pick up Corman. Instead of relaxing in his office, he used all of that free time to give my parents and me a tour of the Cinema. Jon also invited me to attend a private master class that the legendary Corman gave to IU students. By the end of that visit, I had a large bag of IU Cinema swag from Jon and Associate Director Brittany Friesner and a burning desire to be involved with the Cinema in any way that I could. (more…)

The Undeniable Power of Come and See

Posted on September 21, 2020 by Jesse Pasternack

Why do people watch Come and See (1985), Russian director Elem Klimov’s film about a young man trying to survive World War II in what is now Belarus? The events of the film are so disturbing that they age its teenage protagonist Flyora and turn his hair white. The images that Klimov, his co-writer Adamovich, and director of photography Aleksei Rodionov created were considered so disturbing that Klimov noted in an interview that ambulances had to come to theaters in Russia and Hungary to take away disgusted viewers. Why, then, should people watch such a film, especially in dark times such as ours? (more…)