Paul Newman: A Life in Film
The Sting January 3 & 4
George Roy Hill, 1973, 129m
In the Chicago of the 1930s, Johnny Hooker's partner, is fatally wounded by a victim of one of their scams who turns out to be powerful syndicate boss Doyle Lonnegan. Eager for revenge, Johnny takes a tip from his dying partner and seeks out mutual friend Henry Gondorff, a consummate master of the long con. The labyrinthine plot, involves a fake bookie joint, a very persistent FBI agent, a bunch of corrupt cops, and one shifty dame.
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof January 10 & 11
Richard Brooks, 1958, 108m
This is the classic cinematic version of Tennessee Williams's breathtaking play about a crazed southern family torn apart by greed. Larger-than-life patriarch Big Daddy lays dying, and the members of his brood clamor for the inheritance. Paul Newman is Brick, the alcoholic son struggling in the shadow of his powerful father, and Elizabeth Taylor is Maggie, Brick's lingerie-clad temptress of a wife who will do anything for the love of her cold husband.
The Hustler January 17 & 18
Robert Rossen, 1961, 134m
An arrogant and amoral hustler haunts pool rooms to get a crack at bringing down Minnesota Fats. When he starts to have real feelings for a woman, he's faced with a dilemma. Academy Award Nominations: 9, including Best Picture; Best Director; Best Actor, Paul Newman; Best Adapted Screenplay.
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid January 24 & 25
George Roy Hill, 1969, 110m
This 1969 Western encapsulates the genre, with dramatic chase scenes on horseback through breathtaking landscapes, daring robberies of banks and trains, true comradery between cowboys who would risk their lives for one another, and copious amounts of renegade charm. Butch Cassidy is the smart, savvy leader of The Hole in the Wall Gang, and his sidekick the Sundance Kid ranks among the best shooters the West has known.
Cool Hand Luke January 31 & February 1
Stuart Rosenburg, 1967, 126m
In this classic Southern prison drama, social misfit Lucas "Luke" Jackson is incarcerated for a petty crime and sentenced to a chain gang. Luke is a sullen and laconic young man whose cool defiance of the sadistic warden and bullying inmates earns him the title "Cool Hand Luke." But as the prisoners' respect for Luke grows into hero worship, he finds that he must risk everything in order to live up to their expectations.
Somebody Up There Likes Me February 7 & 8
Robert Wise, 1956, 114m
This adaptation of boxer Rocky Graziano's autobiography chronicles the middleweight champion's life from his underprivileged, extremely difficult childhood through his juvenile delinquency and his ultimate climb to the top of his profession, achieved with courage and dignity. Paul Newman made his mark with this film, uncannily portraying Graziano.
Special Valentine's Day Presentation
Casablanca February 14 & 15
Michael Curtiz, 1942, 102m
Colorful characters abound in Casablanca, a waiting room for Europeans trying to escape Hitler's war-torn Europe. Humphrey Bogart plays Rick Blaine, an American whose café is the gathering place for everyone from the French Police to the black market to the Nazis. When his long-lost love, Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman), surfaces in Casablanca with her Resistance leader husband, Victor Laszlo, Rick is pulled into both a love triangle and a web of political intrigue.
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