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An assortment of classics, contemporary gems, and film seminars for the movie lovers
The September 2021 repertory movie roundup
Stephen Silver
As summer turns into fall, there are still plenty of opportunities to see great older movies in the theater or outdoors. Here's a list of what you can expect from repertory cinema in the Philadelphia area this September.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Bartram’s Garden, 5400 Lindbergh Blvd.
Wednesday, September 1, 7:45pm
One of the best animated films of the past decade, this 2018 adventure made it clear that anybody can be Spider-man. Into the Spider-Verse, directed by the trio of Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman, will show outdoors on the evening of September 1 as part of the Movies in the Park series at Bartram's Garden. (Update Sept. 1: This event has been postponed due to the weather forecast. Look for a rain date in a future post.)
Casablanca
Bryn Mawr Film Institute, 824 Lancaster Ave., Bryn Mawr
September 1-9, times vary
“Of all the gin joints…in all the world…" One of the greatest films of all time is director Michael Curtiz's 1942 drama about a nightclub owner (Humphrey Bogart) and his old flame (Ingrid Bergman) and how their love doesn't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world. Casablanca is showing at Bryn Mawr Film Institute through September 9. On September 1, Paul McEwan, PhD, will give a seminar about the film as part of the institute’s Cinema Classics Seminar series.
The Big Lebowski
Ambler Theater, 108 East Butler Ave., Ambler
Thursday, September 2, 7pm
The Dude is back in Ambler for another showing of the Coen Brothers' 1998 cult classic. The film, which follows hippie-gone-to-seed Jeffrey Lebowski through a Raymond Chandler-esque mystery, will show at the Ambler Theater.
Evil Brain from Outer Space
Betsy Ross House, 239 Arch St.
Friday, September 3, 7:45pm
This oddly titled 1964 horror anti-classic, which was spliced together from several different pre-existing Japanese films, will show on September 3 at the historic Betsy Ross House. The $5 admission fee includes a tour of the house.
Back to the Future
Ambler Theater
Saturday, September 4, and Thursday, September 9, 7pm
One of the signature films of the 1980s, Robert Zemeckis's sci-fi adventure will get a pair of showings in early September as part of the Ambler Theater's Hollywood Summer Nights series.
Donnie Darko
PFS Drive-In at the Navy Yard, Admiral Peary Way and League Island Boulevard
Tuesday, September 7, 8pm
Director Richard Kelly's 2001 sci-fi oddity, starring a young Jake Gyllenhaal in the title role and a very scary bunny, is getting a 20th anniversary outdoor screening.
La La Land
Markward Playground, 400 South Taney St.
Friday, September 10
The Damien Chazelle-directed musical starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone, which was named the Best Picture of 2016 for about two minutes before it was dethroned in favor of the movie below it on this list, will get an outdoor showing September 10 at Markward Playground in Fitler Square.
Moonlight
Bryn Mawr Film Institute
Tuesday, September 14, 6:30pm
Barry Jenkins's gorgeous 2016 drama about three different phases in the life of a young Black boy in Miami won the Oscar for Best Picture that year. It's now the subject of a Cinema Classics Seminar at Bryn Mawr Film Institute September 14. Paul Wright, PhD, of the Department of English at Cabrini University will lead the seminar. BMFI will announce additional showtimes for the film itself in early September.
Spartacus
Philadelphia Film Center, 1412 Chestnut St.
Wednesday, September 15, 7pm
"I am a Spartacus!" Stanley Kubrick's 1960 Roman epic starring Kirk Douglas will get a showing at the Philadelphia Film Center this month. The film, also starring Laurence Olivier, Tony Curtis, and Peter Ustinov, will be presented in 4K glory.
A League of Their Own
Clark Park, 4301 Chester Ave.
Friday, September 17, 7pm
Penny Marshall's 1992 comedy, which is to this day the highest-grossing baseball movie of all time, told the story of an all-female professional baseball team during World War II, managed by a drunken ex-ball player (Tom Hanks). The film stars Geena Davis and Lori Petty as feuding sisters. The screening comes as part of the University City Districts Movies in Clark Park series. Avoid the clap, Jimmy Dugan.
The Holy Mountain
PFS at the Bourse, 400 Ranstead St.
Fridays, September 17 and 24, 9pm
The 1973 exercise in surrealism from director Alejandro Jodorowsky will get a pair of local showings at the PFS at the Bourse as part of the Film Society's new After Hours series. It's one of the first repertory showings since the Bourse was revived.
Duck Soup
Colonial Theater, 227 Bridge St., Phoenixville
Sunday, September 19, 1:30pm
The Marx Brothers' masterpiece, from 1933, tells the story of a man who suddenly becomes dictator of a country called Freedonia.
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
The Abington Art Center, 515 Meetinghouse Rd., Jenkintown
Wednesday, September 22, 7:30pm
The Ambler Yards, 300 Brookside Ave., Ambler
Thursday, September 23, 7:30pm
If you're like me, you've probably seen Ferris Bueller's Day Off as many times as you've seen any other movie. But have you seen John Hughes's 1986 teen comedy (starring Matthew Broderick as the titular big man on campus) outdoors?
Black Panther In Concert
The Mann Center, 5201 Parkside Ave.
Saturday, September 25, 8pm
The beloved 2018 Marvel film directed by Ryan Coogler and starring the late Chadwick Boseman was shown outdoors more than once this summer throughout Philadelphia. On September 25, it's getting the concert treatment at the Mann Center. The film will be shown with musical accompaniment by the Mann Center Festival Orchestra playing Ludwig Göransson's score, which won both an Oscar and a Grammy.
2001: A Space Odyssey Seminar
Bryn Mawr Film Institute
Wednesday, September 29, 6:30pm
Stanley Kubrick's 1968 head-scratching masterpiece, which traces thousands of years of life on Earth as marked by a series of mysterious monoliths, will be the subject of a Cinema Classics Seminar from BMFI. The seminar will be taught by author and film critic Christopher Long.
The Red Kimona
The Lightbox Film Center, 401 South Broad St.
Wednesday, September 29, 8pm
The Lightbox Film Center is celebrating National Silent Movie Day September 29 with a rare showing of Dorothy Davenport Reid's 1925 film The Red Kimona, which tells the story of a small-town girl who finds herself accused of murder. Lightbox describes as a "landmark 'social conscience' film from the silent era."
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