HEIGHTS 2022 CELEBRATION OF CINEMA

The Heights Theater’s year-long Celebration of Cinema, now in its 8th year, brings an incredible slate of classic motion pictures to Twin Cities moviegoers. This year, owner Tom Letness is bringing Disney’s “Fantasia”, which has not been seen on local screens for decades, the 45th anniversary of “Star War”s, the 50th anniversary of the Duluth-made thriller “You’ll Like My Mother” (filmed at the notorious Glensheen Mansion!), and more obscure classics like “Dr. X”, among many others. All films will start with a half hour of music from the Heights’ Mighty Wurlitzer.

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE?

Aug. 15, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

Capitalizing on the decades long rivalry between the two stars, director Robert Aldrich crafts a psychologically fraught horror film that opened the floodgates for older actresses to reveal, and revel in, their dark sides. Playing the child star of the title, Bette Davis unleashed her inner Medusa, and Crawford is her ideal foil as the wheelchair bound sister Blanche. The gloves are off, the claws are sharpened, and hair (and blood) will fly in this, the culminating battle between two actresses whose loathing for each other knew no bounds.


THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI

April 4, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

DIGITAL CINEMA PRESENTATION

David Lean was already well known throughout the world as a director of beautiful and romantic films, typically based on cozy theatrical productions. But he burst onto the scene as a master of the epic with the multiple Academy Award winner THE BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI. Trapped in a Japanese POW camp in Burma, obsessive British Lieutenant Colonel Nicholson (Alec Guinness, in an Oscar-winning role) wants order and a strict adherence to the rule of law, so much so that he is blind to the Japanese commander's request to build the eponymous bridge--an act that Nicholson believes follows the rule of law and will instill discipline on his men, while ignoring the fact that it will help the enemy. Meanwhile, American Commander Shears (William Holden) escapes the same camp, eventually leading a commando force to return and destroy Nicholson's engineering miracle. At once a gorgeous, sweeping epic, director Lean's experience with intimate romances also brings us close to the pain, suffering, and even humor of the men who survive the POW camp. Not to be missed on the big screen!


THE BIG LEBOWSKI

April 18, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

DIGITAL CINEMA PRESENTATION

St. Louis Park's favorite sons, Joel and Ethan Coen, have never been funnier in this send up of 1960's counterculture, noir cinema, Busby Berkeley, and bowling. Jeff Bridges plays "the Dude", or "The Little Lebowski", who discovers that an assault on him was intended for the Big Lebowski, a wealthy man whose very young wife has been kidnapped. Or not... no one can quite tell in this insanely labyrinthian (and hilarious) plot. With a stellar cast that includes John Goodman, Julianne Moore, and the great (and missed) Philip Seymour Hoffman, "The Big Lebowski" is a daft, convoluted, and utterly hilarious comedy.

DCP courtesy Universal Pictures.


CASABLANCA in 35MM

Aug. 29, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

BONUS SCREENING ADDED Tuesday August 30th, our Monday August 29th screening is SOLD OUT!

35MM PRESENTATION

80 years ago, of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, Ilsa walked into Rick's, captivating moviegoers still reeling from America's sudden entry into World War II. A picture studded with the best stars and character actors, witty and memorable lines, a crowd pleaser in absolutely the best sense of the term, Casablanca is a masterpiece by almost every standard. Not to be missed on the big screen in 35mm!

35mm print courtesy Warner Bros.


YOU'LL LIKE MY MOTHER

June 27, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

DIGITAL CINEMA PRESENTATION

A very pregnant Francesca (Patty Duke) travels from LA to Duluth to meet the mother of her deceased husband (and father of her unborn child). There she meets the brittle and creepy Mrs. Kinsolving (Rosemary Murphy), who takes an instant loathing of the poor woman. When a blizzard traps Francesca at Kinsolving's creepy mansion, the young woman is trapped. And things are about to get much worse when the psychotic Kenny arrives (Richard Thomas, John Boy from "The Waltons")! Shot completely on location at the Glensheen Mansion in Duluth in the winter of 1971, this is a chance to see Glensheen as it was when Elisabeth Congdon still lived there. To Glensheen devotees and local cinema buffs, this Gothic old dark house suspense film is a must-see.

Digital presentation courtesy Universal Pictures.


"LAWRENCE OF ARABIA" IN 70MM

July 17, 2022, 1 p.m.

THIS SCREENING IS SOLD OUT!

70MM PRESENTATION

One of the greatest motion picture epics of all time returns to The Heights in the glory and magnificence of 70MM making this a must see film event!

Due to his knowledge of the native Bedouin tribes, brilliant and flamboyant British Lieutenant T.E. Lawrence (Peter O'Toole) is sent to Arabia to find Prince Faisal (Alec Guinness) and serve as a liaison between the Arabs and the British in their fight against the Turks.

70mm print courtesy Sony Pictures.


MOULIN ROUGE! in 35MM

May 16, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

Loosely based on an Alexandre Dumas novel, inspired by Bollywood and featuring music from Madonna, Cole Porter, Nirvana, David Bowie, Elton John, Labelle, Moulin Rouge! is like no music before or since, an instant classic that has delighted--and confounded--critics and audiences since its arrival in 2001. The story of an English poet at the turn of the last century, slumming in Paris (Ewan McGregor) and trying to write, who falls in with the bohemians... and falls madly in love with the star courtesan of the Moulin Rouge, Satine (Nicole Kidman). This kaleidoscopic fantasy was a box office smash, nominated for eight Academy Awards.


THE MAGNIFICENT AMBERSONS in 35MM

May 2, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

35MM PRESENTATION

Despite being cut by over 40 minutes without Welles' permission, The Magnificent Ambersons is still one of the masterpieces of Cinema and perhaps Orson Welles greatest film. Based upon booth Tarkington's 1918 novel, The Magnificent Ambersons tells the poignant multi generational story of a spoiled young heir (Tim Holt) to a decaying family fortune who comes between his widowed mother (Dolores Costello) and the man she has always loved (Joesph Cotten). This is not to be missed on the big screen in 35mm!

35mm print courtesy Warner Bros.


STAR WARS: A NEW HOPE

May 30, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

THIS SCREENING IS SOLD OUT!

"A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away..." So begins Star Wars, and films and filmgoing would never be the same again. Everyone knows the story of young Luke Skywalker, the Rebel Alliance vs. the Empire, Darth Vader, Han Solo, but how many have the privilege of seeing this classic on the big screen, where it dazzled awestruck moviegoers 45 years ago. George Lucas, a fan of classic cinema, borrowed heavily from classic serials and masterpieces like The Searchers and Errol Flynn adventures and made something unbelievably new. We're inundated with this franchise now, in cinemas and TV screens, so witnessing where this universe began is like seeing the Big Bang firsthand.

We will be screening the 1997 version of STAR WARS, which is the only version that is authorized to be shown by Lucasfilm and The Walt Disney Co

DCP courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures


DOCTOR X in 35MM

June 13, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

NEW DIGITALLY RESTORED 35MM 2 COLOR TECHNICOLOR PRINT!

Daily World reporter Lee Taylor is chasing the story of a lifetime: a serial killer is prowling the streets of New York, butchering and cannibalizing victims under a full moon. Evidence points to the mysterious Doctor Xavier, but there are other suspects as well. Soon, all the suspects including a deranged one-armed man_retreat to a seaside estate where some of the most lunatic plot twists carry viewers along to an astounding conclusion. This pre-Code thriller is batty and fun in equal measure, and its eye-popping Technicolor make it a giddy entertainment.

35mm print courtesy The UCLA Film and Television Archive


THE PARENT TRAP

July 11, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

DIGITAL CINEMA PRESENTATION

Sharon McKendrick and Susan Evers (both played by Haley Mills) hate one another. Meeting at summer camp, their identical appearance makes them instant rivals, playing tricks on counselors and one another. As punishment, they're forced to room together, and there they discover they're actually twins, separated at birth when their parents divorced. A plan is hatched they'll get the same haircut and switch places in order to finally meet the other parent and maybe, just maybe, reunite the couple! Minneapolis native David Swift directed this charming film, which was an enormous box office hit for Disney, thanks in no small part to Haley Mills' incredible performance.

DCP courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures


MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL

Aug. 1, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

THIS SCREENING IS SOLD OUT

DIGITAL CINEMA PRESENTATION

The battle with the Black Knight. The Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog. The Knights who say "Ni!" The Trojan Rabbit, Castle Anthrax, Sir Robin the Not-Quite-So-Brave-as-Sir-Lancelot... these are but a few of the classic bits in what is unquestionably Monty Python's most popular film in the States. This crass and witty send-up of the King Arthur legend is an episodic romp through filthy olde England, and has been adored and quoted again and again and again by Python fans since its release almost fifty years ago.


FANTASIA

Sept. 19, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

THIS SCREENING IS SOLD OUT!

DIGITAL CINEMA PRESENTATION

The third full-length feature film from Walt Disney, "Fantasia" was clearly his most ambitious film at that point, and that ambition almost destroyed the studio. Essentially a series of six animated music videos of great pieces of classical music (with Mickey Mouse as Dukas' Sorcerer's Apprentice being perhaps the most famous) all conducted by the great Leopold Stokowski. An army of over a thousand animators labored on the production, a new surround-sound technology (Fantasound) was created, and the result is a breathtaking and joyous appreciation of music and storytelling. "Fantasia" has not been screened in Minnesota this century, so don't miss this rare event.


ED WOOD

Sept. 26, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

DIGITAL CINEMA PRESENTATION

Young Ed Wood (Johnny Depp) is struggling to make his movies in a Hollywood indifferent to his genius. Baffled, Wood persists in trying to get "I Changed My Sex!", "Bride of the Atom", and "Plan 9 from Outer Space" made films too visionary for studios to produce. Or so he believes, but, as we all well know, Ed Wood was the epitome of the awful artist, his cringeworthy films so bad they have to be seen to be believed. But he managed to make some crazy friends, whom he cast in his dogs, namely Bela Lugosi (Martin Landau, who won an Oscar for his role), the Amazing Criswell (Jeffrey Jones) and Vampira (Lisa Marie). Tim Burton's affectionate bio-pic balances perfectly an admiration for Wood's very limited talents without being patronizing or overly serious.

DCP courtesy of Walt Disney Pictures


LA LA LAND

Nov. 10, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

DIGITAL CINEMA PRESENTATION

This contemporary musical classic returns to the Heights Theater. Mia (Emma Stone), a struggling actress, meets Seb (Ryan Gosling), a struggling jazz pianist, and the pair fall in and out and in and out of love, all the while navigating their perilous careers in modern day Los Angeles. "La La Land" charmed audiences worldwide. Winner of the Academy Award for Best Director, Best Actress and Best Picture (for about five minutes).

DCP courtesy of Lionsgate


THE SEVENTH SEAL (DET SJUNDE INSEGLET) in 35MM

Oct. 10, 2022, 7:30 p.m.

When speaking of classic art-house cinema, all conversations begin with Ingmar Bergman's The Seventh Seal. Bergman's black-and-white masterpiece follows the exploits of world-weary knight Antonius (Max von Sydow) and his cynical squire, Jons (Gunnar Bj rnstrand), as they return from the violence and folly of the Crusades to a world made insane by avarice, lust and plague. Upon meeting the Angel of Death (Bengt Ekerot), Antonius engages in a fateful game of chess, an image oft copied and parodied, but never surpassed. You may think you know "The Seventh Seal", but it can only be truly appreciated on the silver screen, and on 35mm.

35mm courtesy of Janus