The August dog days find the Castro Theatre with a full slate of great repertory cinema, notably a mini-tribute to tough-guy noir star Robert Mitchum.
"Sing-Along Mary Poppins" (1964) The book by P.L. Travers, about a perfect nanny who arrives in a 1910-era London home to serve and inspire an English family, was a favorite childhood read for Walt Disney's daughters. The result was this Julie Andrews star vehicle. Caution for Sing-Along ticket prices and audience members unleashing vocals. (8/3-6)
"Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" (1958) Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman in their prime are Tennessee Williams' star-crossed Southern couple "Maggie the Cat" and one-time gridiron-hero hubby, who live with the disapproval of "Big Daddy" (Burl Ives).
"The Beguiled" (1971) Little-seen Civil War-era drama from collaborators Clint Eastwood and Don Siegel. Eastwood is a wounded soldier recuperating in a rundown Southern mansion. The presence of this hunk sparks jealousy among the manse's young women. With Geraldine Page and Elizabeth Hartman. (both 8/9)
"Some Like It Hot" (1959) This B&W treat from Billy Wilder & I.A.L. Diamond opens in a Prohibition speakeasy as two starving musicians (Jack Lemmon & Tony Curtis) flee a mob hit.
"Hedwig and the Angry Inch" (2001) John Cameron Mitchell & Stephen Trask present the hilarious misadventures of an East German teen (Mitchell) whose life behind the Berlin Wall ends with a botched sex-change. Stateside, Hedwig stalks his ex-boyfriend Tommy (Michael Pitt). (both 8/10)
"Thunder Road" (1958) Mitchum is an illegal booze-runner trucking his hooch across the mountains of North Carolina.
"Mad Max" (1979) Mel Gibson is on the road in a brutal future-shock society. (both 8/11)
"Out of the Past" (1947) Mitchum's gas-station jockey goes up against a mob boss (Kirk Douglas) at the behest of the big guy's lying tramp girlfriend (Jane Greer).
"The Friends of Eddie Coyle" (1973) Mitchum is a stoolie whose betrayals are about to reap a body count. (both 8/12)
"The Night of the Hunter" (1955) Perhaps Mitchum's greatest role, as a malevolent preacher fresh out of prison who murders the widow of his ex-cellmate and terrorizes his two young children. Co-stars Lillian Gish. Poetic B&W cinematography, celestial pacing. Script by screenwriter legend James Agee. Closeted Charles Laughton's lone directorial credit.
"Cape Fear" (1962) Director J. Lee Thompson's edgy thriller about a straight-laced lawyer (Gregory Peck) facing retribution from an ex-con bent on revenge (Mitchum). Tension beautifully enhanced by Bernard Hermann score. (both 8/13)
"The Burbs" (1989) Youthful Tom Hanks teams up with Carrie Fisher and Bruce Dern as Joe Dante gives suburban paranoia a black-humor twist.
"Get Out" (2017) Sophisticated African American horror-fest from comic Jordan Peele. A newly engaged black man is aghast when he visits his white girlfriend's parents and off-kilter younger brother. (both 8/14)
"Purple Rain" (1984) Superstar Prince's legacy comes with contributions from music-biz heavyweights.
"The Bodyguard" (1992) Whitney Houston teams with Kevin Costner, as a pop star's human shield. Includes mega-hit "I Will Always Love You." (both 8/16)
"A Clockwork Orange" (1971) Stanley Kubrick's incendiary treatment of an Anthony Burgess dystopian novel, starring Malcolm McDowell, shows how difficult it is to guard against a modern nihilistic movement.
"Straw Dogs" (1971) Sam Peckinpah's violent masterpiece stars Dustin Hoffman as an American math wiz visiting England. Local toughs invite retaliation after messing with his wife (Susan George). (both 8/17)
"The Fifth Element" (1997) An odd Bruce Willis sci-fi trip that should be approached with caution.
"Starship Troopers" (1997) Gay comic actor Neil Patrick Harris is the main draw in this take on sci-fi pioneer Robert Heinlein's novel directed by Paul Verhoeven. (both 8/18)
"The Goonies" (1985) Reagan-era teen flick from the pen of "Gremlins'" creator Chris Columbus.
"Weird Science" (1985) Bill Paxton directs teen hotties Anthony Michael Hall and Ian Michael Smith, two pushy geeks hunting for muff via their home science lab. So-so Frankenstein spoof may offend today's anti-bullying sensibility. (both 8/19)
"Rebecca" (1940) Hitch helmed this Best Picture winner based on Daphne du Maurier's 1938 novel. Young bride (Joan Fontaine) moves into a mansion haunted by her new hubby's (Laurence Olivier) dead wife.
"Marnie" (1964) Tippi Hedren gets involved with a slippery aristocrat (Sean Connery) as he helps her recover from an unusual life of crime. Underrated Hitchcock, from his last decade of work. Co-starring one final Bernard Hermann score. (both 8/20)
"Wonder Woman" (2017) This latest superhero spins out of a small island paradise via the glass ceiling and the gender gap. Director Patty Jenkins pulls together stellar cast: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Robin Wright, David Thewlis. (8/21-22)
"Monterey Pop" (1968) Two years before Woodstock, this comparatively modest event showed how the Summer of Love generation partied. Showcase for the Mamas and Papas, Simon and Garfunkel, Janis Joplin, Otis Redding and Jimi Hendrix.
"Easy Rider" (1969) This buddy road-movie marked American movies' shift from the Beats to the Hippies as official underground heroes. Biker pals Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper seek the freedom of the open road but meet with redneck justice instead. They're upstaged by Jack Nicholson as a dashing hobo/lawyer. (both 8/23)
"Nightmare on Elm Street" (1984) This Wes Craven horror masterpiece was the big-screen debut of Johnny Depp, then 21.
"Phantasm" (1979) Two brothers (Michael Baldwin, Bill Thornbury) go prowling through a cemetery at night. Not for all tastes. (both 8/24)
"The Spy Who Loved Me" (1977) As Bond, the suave Roger Moore (TV's "The Saint") makes a great foil for a bad guy who dreams of an underworld kingdom.
"Moonraker" (1979) Globe-trotting Bond episode best-remembered for John Barry's score. (both 8/25)
"Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" (1984) Child slavery, black magic and human sacrifice are themes in this second Indy caper.
"Raiders of the Lost Ark" (1981) Harrison Ford and Karen Allen star in the first of the Spielberg/Lucas comic-book franchise.
"Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" (1989) River Phoenix appears in the opening act as the young Indy, shows how the older Indy (Ford) develops into an action hero. (all 8/27)
"Dazed and Confused" (1993) Richard Linklater delivers a hilarious party-down spin on the last day of high school, 1976. Sublime mid-70s soundtrack (Aerosmith, Kiss, Black Sabbath, Foghat) seals the deal on this Austin flashback classic.
"Everybody Wants Some!!" (2016) Combining his soundtrack knack (80s bands Devo, The Sugarhill Gang) and yen for youth baseball, Linklater follows a college pitching prospect thru a summer of daytime diamond action and nighttime parties. (both 8/30)
"Lawrence of Arabia" (1962) David Lean's 7-Oscar-winning drama returns in 70mm. Full-blooded four-hour epic makes use of every large-scale trick to examine modern history's harshest, still-relevant lessons. Peter O'Toole provides chilling insights into Lawrence's dual nature: a charming prince of a man whose possibly homo proclivities conceal a dark nature that frightened even some of Britain's top brass. (8/31-9/4)