Hey folks, welcome back to Little Big Screen: On the Big, Big Screen, where film columnist Benjamin McElroy recommends five screenings happening at Iowa’s independent movie theaters. Keep scrolling for the full list of this month’s big screenings.
The Night of the Hunter (1955)
Directed by Charles Laughton
Des Moines threw a parade for The Night of the Hunter before anyone else, literally and figuratively. The film’s producer, a Waukee boy by the name of Paul Gregory, held the world premiere downtown at the old Paramount Theatre on July 26, 1955. There was a public procession, attended by 45,000-something people, and in my head, I can see the LOVE and HATE floats on either side of Fifth and Grand.
Elsewhere, the film, and the spooky beauty of its sound-staged expressionism, flopped. But Des Moines would end up on the right side of history; 70 years later, when The Night of the Hunter again appears on one of the city’s marquees, the film is considered a classic as stone-cold as Citizen Kane or Casablanca.
The Varsity Cinema, Des Moines, Wednesday, Sept. 3, 7 p.m.
Akira Kurosawa: A Retrospective (1949-1962)
Directed by Akira Kurosawa
New 4K restorations of Kurosawa’s films are finally making their way to America, and no, Iowa isn’t getting the flyover treatment. All four Kurosawa films screening at FilmScene — Stray Dog (1949), Throne of Blood (1957), Yojimbo (1961) and Sanjuro (1962) — are being seen in the U.S. for the first time. But they’ll only be in Iowa City for a week.
FilmScene, Iowa City, Friday, Sept. 5, showtimes TBA
Dirty Harry (1971)
Directed by Don Siegel
In his last letter to the San Francisco Chronicle, the Zodiac Killer couldn’t help but include a comment on The Exorcist. It’s proto-edgelord bullshit, because of course it is, calling the film “the best saterical comidy [sic].” (Unlike the quality criticism you can expect from me every month.) But what the Zodiac never mentioned, not once, was Dirty Harry, a real-time reaction — and made-up ending — to the murders he was still in the middle of. I’m not sure what this means for his identity, but I mean, it’s gotta mean something.
The Iowa Theater, Winterset, Thursday, Sept. 25, 7 p.m.
One Battle After Another (2025)
Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson
Not even Amber Waves could get me to download Fortnite. But I do welcome the One Battle After Another x Fortnite collab — which, I guess, makes Leonardo DiCaprio’s bathrobed revolutionary playable for a limited time — because it can only mean one thing: Anderson was given a shit-ton of money to make his first action movie. I can’t wait to see what he does with all those dollars.
The Fleur Cinema and The Varsity Cinema, Des Moines, open Sept. 26, showtimes TBA
Wings of Desire (1987)
Directed by Wim Wenders
If you’re anything like me, you may be made uncomfortable by such sincere appreciation for, well, life. But this is a film that must be seen to be believed in. By the end, I felt as if I’d walked up to one of those winged murals, posed for a photo in front of the feathery things and maybe even liked it a little bit.
FilmScene, Iowa City, Saturday, Sept. 28, 7:30 p.m.
More screenings this month:
DES MOINES
Sun, Sep 7, Nurse Unseen w/ Q&A, Varsity Cinema
Opens Sep 9, Monty Python and the Holy Grail w/ Audience Interaction, Varsity Cinema
Wed, Sep 10, Special Showing: Georgia O’Keeffe: The Brightness of Light, Fleur Cinema
Fri, Sep 12, Midnight showing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show w/ Live Shadowcast, Fleur Cinema
Wed, Sep 17, Eno w/ recorded director introduction, Varsity Cinema
Thu, Sep 25, Strange Journey: The Story of Rocky Horror, Varsity Cinema
Tue, Sep 30, MANHATTAN SHORT Film Festival, Varsity Cinema
IOWA CITY
Fri, Sep 5, 7 p.m., He Never Dies: Kalil Haddad Shorts with Haddad in person, FilmScene
Sat, Sep 6, 3:30 p.m., Stories of Community, FilmScene
Sat, Sep 6, 7:30 p.m., FilmScene in the Park: Men in Black, FilmScene
Sat, Sep 6, 10 p.m., The Hole Bijou After Hours, FilmScene
Sun, Sep 7, 3:00pm., Join or Die w/ Club Fair in the lobby, FilmScene
Tue, Sep 9, 6:30 p.m., Beautiful Boy presented w/ Community & Family Resources, FilmScene
Wed, Sep 10, 7 p.m., The Seven-Per-Cent Solution w/ dialogue with screenwriter Nicholas Meyer, FilmScene
Thu, Sep 11, 7 p.m., New Wave, FilmScene
Sat, Sep 13, 3:30 p.m., Found in Translation: Stories of African Immigrants in Iowa, FilmScene
Sun, Sep 14, 4 p.m., Bhangaar (Obsolete), FilmScene
Sun, Sep 14, 7:30 p.m., Naked Acts, FilmScene
Tue, Sep 16, 7 p.m., UPA! A Spring in Athens w/ director Santiago Giralt dialogue, FilmScene
Thu, Sep 18, 7 p.m., If That Mockingbird Don’t Sing, FilmScene
Sep 20, 21 & 25, various times, Black Beauty, FilmScene
Sat, Sep 20, 7:10 p.m., FilmScene in the Park: It Happened One Night, FilmScene
Thu, Sep 25, 7 p.m., Cinefamilia: Mexican Short Films, FilmScene
Tue, Sep 30, 7:00 p.m., One Hand Don’t Clap, FilmScene
QUAD CITIES
Thu-Sat, Sep 4-6, 7:45 p.m., Clueless, The Last Picture House
Thu-Sat, Sep 18-20, 7:15 p.m., La La Land, The Last Picture House
Thu-Sat, Oct 2-4, 7 p.m., Get Out, The Last Picture House
Thu-Sat, Oct 23-25, 7 p.m., Friday the 13th, The Last Picture House
Thu-Sat, Oct 30-Nov 1, 7 p.m., Halloween III: Season of the Witch, The Last Picture House
