HIGH-DEF Hitch Film Fest: Alfred Hitchcock Classics in HD at Wilmette Theatre

Aug. 18, 2011 - PRLog -- THE WILMETTE THEATRE PRESENTS: HIGH-DEF HITCH FILM FEST--ALFRED HITCHCOCK CLASSICS IN HD
Festival Sponsor: The Big Picture Home Theatre Co., Wilmette   www.thebigpicturestore.com


HI-DEF HITCH FILM FEST: ALFRED HITCHCOCK CLASSICS IN HD
Presented for the first time in history on the big screen in high definition, a series of classic films by the Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock. If you’ve only seen these films on television, you owe it to yourself to see them as they were originally intended, bigger than life.
ALL TICKETS $10

VERTIGO (1958):  “Vertigo” creates a dizzying web of mistaken identity, passion and murder after an acrophobic detective (James Stewart) rescues a mysterious blonde (Kim Novak) from the bay.  The film received mixed reviews upon initial release, but has garnered acclaim since and is now frequently ranked among the greatest films ever made, and often cited as a classic Hitchcock film and one of the defining works of his career.
Friday, September 16 at 7pm    
Wednesday, September 21 at 7pm  


THE BIRDS (1963): Vacationing in northern California, Alfred Hitchcock was struck by a story in a Santa Cruz newspaper: “Seabird Invasion Hits Coastal Homes.” From this peculiar incident, and his memory of a short story by Daphne du Maurier, the master of suspense created one of his strangest and most terrifying films. The Birds follows a chic blonde, Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren), as she travels to the coastal town of Bodega Bay to hook up with a rugged fellow (Rod Taylor) she’s only just met. Before long the town is attacked by marauding birds, and Hitchcock’s skill at staging action is brought to the fore. Beyond the superb effects, however, The Birds is also one of Hitchcock’s most psychologically complicated scenarios, a tense study of violence, loneliness, and complacency.
Friday, September 16 at 9:30pm  
"THE BIRDS" sponsored by Raven and Dove, Wilmette  www.ravenanddove.com

REAR WINDOW (1954): James Stewart stars as a wheelchair bound photographer who spies on his neighbors from his apartment window and becomes convinced one of them has committed murder. The film is considered by many filmgoers, critics and scholars to be one of Hitchcock's best.  The film received four Academy Award nominations and was ranked #42 on AFI's 100 Years…100 Movies list and #48 on the 10th-anniversary edition. In 1997, Rear Window was added to the United States National Film Registry.
Saturday, September 17 at 7pm  
Wednesday, September 21 at 4:30pm    


PSYCHO (1960): Alfred Hitchcock’s “Psycho” is one of the most shocking films of all time. Named #1 on the AFI’s 100 Years…100 Thrills list, this notorious film has become a cultural phenomenon and features one of the most iconic scenes in film history – the famous “shower scene.” Join the Master of Suspense on a chilling journey as an unsuspecting victim (Janet Leigh) visits the Bates Motel and falls prey to one of cinema’s most notorious psychopaths – Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins).
Saturday, September 17 at 9:30pm  


THE TROUBLE WITH HARRY (1955):  A busman’s holiday for Alfred Hitchcock, this 1955 black comedy concerns a pesky corpse that becomes a problem for a quiet, Vermont neighborhood. Shirley MacLaine makes her film debut as one of several characters who keep burying the body and finding it unburied again. Hitchcock clearly enjoys conjuring the autumnal look and feel of the story, and he establishes an important, first-time alliance with composer Bernard Herrmann, whose music proved vital to the director’s next half-dozen or so films. But for now, The Trouble with Harry is a lark, the mischievous side of Hitchcock given free reign.
Sunday, September 18 at 5pm  


TORN CURTAIN (1966):  “Torn Curtain” was Alfred Hitchcock’s 50th film and signals a return to the espionage-romance theme the director showcased in such films as “Secret Agent” and “The Man Who Knew Too Much”. Hitchcock created a distinct look for the film subduing lighting and gauzing the lens to give a more natural less studio-produced feel. Notably it was the strength of studio influence that contributed another change in the look of the film relative to most Hitchcock pictures casting leads that departed from traditional Hitchcock types. Paul Newman and Julie Andrews both at the heights of their popularity when the film was released anchor this cold war spy thriller. An American scientist (Newman) attends a convention in Copenhagen with his fiance-assistant (Andrews). While there she picks up a message meant for him and is drawn into a complex web of espionage behind the Iron Curtain that he had intended to face alone. Her presence throws all his plans into disarray and the two lovers discover too late that it’s easier to get in than to get out again. In one of the film’s most memorable scenes Hitchcock shows his audience just how difficult murder can be when opposed by the will for survival.
Sunday, September 18 at 7pm  
Tickets available online at www.wilmettetheatre.com or call Box Office at 847-251-7424

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