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Racing through the streets of Paris making food deliveries on his bicycle, Guinean immigrant Souleymane (Abou Sangare) is struggling to stay afloat. In two days, he has to report for an asylum application interview, where he must plead his case to an immigration officer (Nina Meurisse) who will determine his future in France. As he rides, he repeats his story. But Souleymane is not ready. Drawing inspiration from Cristian Mungiu’s 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days and evoking the humanist films of the Dardennes, Boris Lojkine’s urgent, propulsive third feature never leaves Souleymane’s side in a deeply affecting account of the daily trials and

The war in Ukraine may no longer dominate the U.S. headlines, but the brutal fight for freedom continues — and brave filmmakers are risking everything to tell the world what’s really happening on the front lines.Oscar-winning Ukrainian filmmaker Mstyslav Chernov, who won Best Documentary Feature for his 2023 Academy Award-winning film 20 Days in Mariupol, returns with his powerful new documentary 2000 Meters to Andriivka. This gripping film captures the intense 2023 battle to drive Russian forces out of the small village of Andriivka, Ukraine.Listen to an interview with Chernov on Inside the Arthouse. He will also participate in an in-person Q&A

The latest episode of Inside the Arthouse features a luminary of the American indie, art house, and repertory exhibition scene, Bruce Goldstein. From the ITA website:At Inside the Arthouse, we love discovering bold new voices and emerging filmmakers. But there's something uniquely rewarding about revisiting a classic—whether it's an old favorite or a legendary film you've always meant to watch. And seeing these films on the big screen in a real movie theater is the way they were meant to be experienced.Repertory cinema in the U.S. has faced its share of challenges, from the rise of home video and streaming to rising urban real estate costs. Many

Sophie Brooks's subversive new romantic comedy Oh, Hi!, co-written with lead actress Molly Gordon, follows a new couple (Gordon and Logan Lerman) whose weekend road trip takes a crazy turn. Drew Taylor of The Wrap wrote that the film "zigs where you think it’ll zag, weaponizing that knowledge and using it to subvert expectations." Kristy Puchko of Mashable called the film a "comedy as current and enthralling as it is outrageous. And by rights, it should prove Gordon is a star."Inverse just posted the following interview with Brooks headlined "How Oh, Hi! Finds the Humanity in Millennial Misery."Q: This film came together in the thick of COVID

Laemmle Theatres and the Anniversary Classics Series present a 40th Anniversary screening of the delightful comedy 'Desperately Seeking Susan,' which teamed Rosanna Arquette and pop star Madonna in her first acting role. This was a feminist movie ahead of its time in many ways, with women holding most of the important positions behind the camera as well as on screen. The original screenplay was written by Leora Barish, and the film was directed by Susan Seidelman as her first mainstream movie after her low-budget hit 'Smithereens' had established her as a filmmaker to watch. The movie was produced by Midge Sanford and Sarah Pillsbury, two

Little, Big and Far follows an Austrian astronomer as he begins reevaluating his life and work. He ascends a Greek mountaintop in search of a sky dark enough to reconnect with the stars.“Jem Cohen’s wondrous, expansive Little, Big, and Far…. A reminder to seize solitude amid the bustle of everyday existence, to be quiet and still, to look up and consider the universe.” ~ Isaac Feldberg, RogerEbert.com"Jem Cohen brings the same meditative elegance and intellectual curiosity he did to Museum Hours (2012) with his stargazing new feature, again using the cinematic form to patiently interrogate ways of seeing and being." ~ New York Film Festival

This week we're opening the new drama Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight at the Royal. We'll expand the engagements to all but one of our our other venues around L.A. County the following week. Laemmle Theatres president Greg Laemmle saw the film and loved it so much he was able to secure an interview with the filmmaker/co-star, Embeth Davidtz on his and Raphael Sbarge's podcast Inside the Arthouse. He wrote the following to introduce the episode:"As part of producing Inside the Arthouse, we see a lot of movies. And while many are compelling and well-made, naturally some of them stand out. Of all the films we've seen so far this year, Don't Let's

In concert with the the Art House Convergence, the nationwide coalition of independent exhibitors that connects, amplifies, and advocates for its community, Laemmle Theatres is pleased to celebrate Art House Theater Day (AHTD) this July 24 by screening four fabulous films curated by this year's ambassadors, filmmakers Sean Baker and Samantha Quan:Sean Baker's Tangerine (2015) at the NoHo, Lily Tomlin's The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe (1991) at the Monica Film Center, Céline Sciamma's Tomboy (2011) at the Glendale, and Studio Ghibli's Whisper of the Heart (2006) at the Claremont.Taken together, the four beautifully

The staff members at your local arthouse -- they're generally as unique as the films they show, and thank God for that. Because without their disregard for corporate uniformity, the experience of going to the cinema would not have that distinctive quality that makes each visit unique.In the latest episode of Inside the Arthouse, hosts Greg Laemmle and Raphael Sbarge get to talk with Roger Christensen, a longtime movie theater employee who spent the last part of his 40-plus year career as the locally famous, beloved, and hilarious general manager of the Sunset 5 in West Hollywood. At a time when that venue was the hottest arthouse west of the

We have been playing the Neon-released Stephen King adapatation The Life of Chuck at two of our theaters since mid-June and are expanding it to three more venues this Friday because the film, as they say, has legs. It's a charmer and a sleeper. "Telling the story of Chuck’s life in reverse chronology, the film is a big, bold crowd-pleaser, complete with a showstopping dance number featuring [Tom] Hiddleston and Annalise Basso. But it’s also startlingly personal, as we learn about Chuck’s childhood being raised by his grandparents Albee (Mark Hamill) and Sarah (Mia Sara). The deceptively simple drama takes a look at the unexpected legacy we leave

Based on Alexandra Fuller’s memoir of the same name, Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight captures the childhood of eight-year-old Bobo on her family farm in Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) at the end of the Zimbabwean War for Independence in 1980. Growing up in the midst of this long running war, Bobo internalizes both sides of the struggle. Conflicted by her love for people on opposing sides, she tries to make sense of her life in a magical way. Through her eight-year-old gaze we witness Rhodesia’s final days, the family’s unbreakable bond with Africa, and the deep scars that war leaves on survivors.Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight writer-director

As we approach 2025's midway point, we are about to open one of the year's finest films, the locally produced Familiar Touch. A sampling of critics' encomiums is below. Writer-director Sarah Friedland and star Kathleen Chalfant will participate in Royal Q&A's after the 7:30 P.M. shows on June 27 & 28; at the Town Center following the 12:50 P.M. show on June 29; and at the Glendale after the 4:30 P.M. show on June 29. Lydia Storie, Director of Culture Change at Caring Across Generations, will moderate the June 27 screening. You can also catch Friedland and Chalfant's interview on the latest episode of Inside the Arthouse.*“Familiar Touch is a film

This Friday we are proud to open TATAMI, the acclaimed collaboration between Iranian and Israeli filmmakers. Some plaudits from top American film critics:"A superb example of pop cultural translation that freshens up the clichés of the sports corruption thriller and gives the actors and filmmakers a chance to flex their considerable skills." ~ Matt Zoller Seitz, RogerEbert.com"The mounting tensions of these moving parts — and steely performances by Mandi and Amir — make for an engrossing thriller fueled by female rage." ~ Beatrice Loayza, New York Times"Despite its urgent political engagement, TATAMI never forgets to be a gripping watch." ~

In August 2017, in the lead-up to national elections, Jacinda Ardern unexpectedly became New Zealand’s opposition party leader. She had just turned 37. Two frenetic months later, she was Prime Minister. Just before the final vote was in, she discovered she was pregnant. She would become only the second head of state in history to give birth while in office.Ardern quickly became one of the most recognizable leaders in the world. She drew global attention from people craving a sensitive and compassionate approach to the critical issues of our time. In private, she struggled with being a mother and proving herself to a public skeptical of women’s

Lions Gate Films and Laemmle Theatres are pleased to present the new comedy-drama from the writer and producer of I, Tonya, Everything's Going to Be Great.In honor of Father's Day, be the first to see Everything's Going to Be Great starring Bryan Cranston and Allison Janney on June 15 at the Monica Film Center and Town Center. The 3:20 P.M. screening in Santa Monica and the 3:00 P.M. screening in Encino are "Buy One, Get One Free" screenings. Offer good online and in person at the box offices.ABOUT THE FILM: There’s no business like show business — for Buddy and Macy Smart (Emmy-winner Bryan Cranston and Oscar-winner Allison Janney) that means an

THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH 70th Anniversary – Marilyn Monroe classic comedy screens at Laemmle’s historic Royal Theatre on June 25.Laemmle Theatres and the Anniversary Classics Series present the 70th anniversary of THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH (1955), which features one of the signature pop culture images of the 20th century and of its star, Marilyn Monroe (standing astride a subway grate while her skirt billows up to her shoulders). Billy Wilder produced, directed, and, with George Axelrod, cowrote the film version of Axelrod’s smash Broadway comedy about marital infidelity. It provided a prime vehicle for Monroe. The film screens one night only, Wednesday

A huge hit last weekend in New York, we're excited to open the comedy Bad Shabbos this Friday at the Royal and Town Center with expansion runs planned around L.A. County in the subsequent weeks. The film follows David and his fiancée, Meg, who are about to have their parents meet for the first time over a Shabbat dinner. Things get far more complicated because of an accidental death (or murder?). With Meg's Catholic parents due any moment, the family dinner soon spirals into a hilarious disaster.The following Bad Shabbos screenings will feature in-person introductions or Q&A's: Thursday, June 5 at the Royal w/director Daniel Robbins, producer Adam

Thirty years after her mother’s death, photographer Rachel Elizabeth Seed discovers her mother’s work — more than 50 hours of interviews with the greatest photographers of the 20th century, including Henri Cartier-Bresson, Lisette Model, Gordon Parks, Cecil Beaton, William Albert Allard, Brian Lanker, Cornell Capa, Bruce Davidson and Eliot Porter. When Rachel threads in the audio reels and presses play, she hears her mother’s voice for the first time since she was a baby. Sheila Turner-Seed, a daring, world-traveling journalist ahead of her time, died suddenly of a brain aneurysm when Rachel was just 18 months old. Moved to uncover more of what

Join us for The Last Twins Q&A’s at Laemmle Royal on Thursday, June 19th at 7:30 P.M. with filmmakers Perri Pelt & Matthew O’Neill, and Judith Richter, who is a participant in the film; Jonathan Jacoby will moderate; and at Laemmle Town Center on June 20th at 5:20 P.M. with the filmmakers and Judith Richter; and June 21st at 7:30 P.M. with Judith Richter and Dr. Nancy Segal moderating the discussion.

Laemmle Theatres' weekly series of fresh international films, Worldwide Wednesdays! Most are newer obscure films that we want to bring to a broader L.A. audience, screening in multiple venues all over L.A. County so cinephiles will not have to schlep to a single location. The films, however, come from many thousands of miles away! Screenings are Wednesday evenings with encore showings on Saturday and Sunday mornings.PERFECT ENDINGS June 4, 7 & 8. After a decade-long relationship ends, filmmaker João finds himself at a crossroads in both his personal and professional lives. While trying to break into the film industry, he ends up directing amateur

Laemmle Theatres and the Anniversary Classics Series present a 25th anniversary screening of 'Croupier,' the sleeper hit that helped to save the specialized movie business during a dry period at the beginning of the 21st century. Mike Hodges, the director of the British crime thriller 'Get Carter' with Michael Caine, had his most acclaimed film since then when he directed 'Croupier.'Clive Owen, who had mainly appeared in British television dramas before this, rose to full-fledged movie stardom as a result of this movie. He plays an aspiring writer who takes a job at a casino where he juggles a few romantic relationships and also has to contend

The Los Angeles Center of Photography (LACP) @ Laemmle NoHoThe World’s Greatest: Photography On and Off StagesArtists: Candace Biggerstaff, Ryder Collins, Thouly Dosios, David Hanes-Gonzalez, Kevin Salk Curator: Dr. Rotem Rozental, Executive Director and Chief Curator, LACPOpening reception: May 29, 6:00 to 8:00 P.M.; walk-through with Candace Biggerstaff, Thouly Dosios, David Hanes-Gonzalez and Dr. Rotem Rozental at 6:30pm. Free and open to the public, follow this link to RSVP.The World’s Greatest: Photography On and Off Stages marks the second collaboration between LACP and the Laemmle Theatres, organizing exhibitions and public programs around

June 12, 7:30 P.M. at the Laemmle NoHo:This screening of A PHOTOGRAPHIC MEMORY is co-presented by Video Consortium with a Q&A to follow featuring filmmaker Rachel Elizabeth Seed, co-writer/editor Christopher Stoudt, and special guest, moderated by Video Consortium organizer Lauren Mahoney.*June 14, 10:00 A.M. at the Laemmle Monica Film Center: This screening of A PHOTOGRAPHIC MEMORY is co-presented by From the Heart Productions and Authentic Global Film Awards, with a Q&A to follow moderated by Variety film critic Carlos Aguilar, featuring director Rachel Elizabeth Seed in conversation with producer Ana Lydia Monaco and additional special guest

Winner of the Camera d’Or at the 1979 Cannes Film Festival, the sui generis Northern Lights marks one of the most moving and committed works of political cinema from the late 1970s. Dramatizing the formation of the populist Nonpartisan League in North Dakota in the mid-1910s, Northern Lights captures the plight of immigrant Dakotan farmers as they toil and struggle against the combined forces of industry and finance. Amid this paroxysm of class tension, two young lovers find themselves swept up in the tide. Shot on location (on grain-rich black-and-white 16mm) in the dead of winter and featuring an astonishing cast of non-professional actors, this

Named after the famous New York Daily News headline “Ford to City: Drop Dead,” Drop Dead City is the first documentary to focus on the New York City fiscal crisis of 1975, an overlooked episode in urban American history that saw that city of eight million people come face to face with bankruptcy.The film is an immersive ticking-clock drama built entirely from archival 16mm footage interspersed with present eyewitness interviews, and propelled by a great soundtrack drawn from 1970s radio as it follows a year in the life and near death of this iconic city. Laemmle Theatres opens the film May 22 at the NoHo and May 23 at the Monica Film Center and

There are movies. There is cinema. And then there is auteur cinema. All are best experienced theatrically, but the last category, in particular, necessitates the big screen, the darkness, the audience of strangers. Next week, we are thrilled to once again unveil Ran, the 27th film by legendary Japanese director Akira Kurosawa (Rashomon, Seven Samurai, Hidden Fortress).In its epic scale, stylistic grandeur and tragic contemplation of human destiny, Ran (literally, “chaos” or “turmoil”) brings together the great themes and gorgeous images of the director’s life work. A brilliantly conceived meditation on Shakespeare’s King Lear crossed with Japan’s

If you are in need of some escapism that piques rather than insults your intelligence, we strongly recommend the new French rom-com Jane Austen Wrecked My Life. We open it May 23 at the Royal and May 30 at all but one of our other theaters. (Its writer-director, Laura Piani, is interviewed on the latest episode of Inside the Arthouse.)Variety's Chief Film Critic Peter Debruge perfectly captures the film's charms in his review, whose subhead reads "Laura Piani’s splendid debut balances reality with the effervescent charm of vintage swooners."Debruge's review is worth quoting at length:"A diet of romantic literature is a recipe for disappointment in

They “alchemized pain and misfortune into profound art.” ~ Jessica Baxter, Hammer to Nail"She just loved sex."It’s not the first laugh of surprise in I Know Catherine, the Log Lady, and it isn’t the last. The tone of the film — lively, fast-paced, underscored with original jazz and blues, and always embracing the absurdity of life — might seem a contrast to it’s subject.Beginning its weeklong run in Glendale this Friday, May 9, I Know Catherine tells the story of what it took for Catherine Coulson to film her final scenes as the Log Lady for David Lynch and Twin Peaks, the Return. Just after The Return was announced, Coulson, in her 22nd year

Starring and written and directed by Iair Said, Most People Die on Sundays is about grief, but it's also funny, outrageous, surprising, and utterly unique, with a deadpan tone that recalls Jim Jarmusch movies. We follow the protagonist David as he returns home to Argentina for his uncle's funeral. Said has a sui generis quality of classic screen comics like Buster Keaton and Jacques Tati, and the rest of the cast plays off him perfectly. A sensation when it premiered in the Acid Section at Cannes, Most People Die on Sundays is a comic gem that we're thrilled to open this Friday at the Royal and Town Center. (Check out Said's interview on the

Next week we're opening the latest film from veteran Danish director Bille August, best known for Pelle the Conqueror, The Best Intentions, The House of the Spirits and dozens more."He spoke to Variety about The Kiss, his enduring interest in the complexity of human beings, book-to-screen adaptations, and his belief in the big screen experience."Loosely based on Stefan Zweig’s novel Beware of Pity and transposed from an Austrian to a Danish setting, The Kiss is a romantic drama set in 1913. The helmer has reunited with A Fortunate Man’s lead Espen Smed, cast as cavalry officer trainee Anton. Introduced to Baron von Løvenskjold’s daughter Edith, a