NYC premiere
“The desire to go back in time has been a part of humanity from the beginning. This film is the closest we could get to returning to a special time in our lives – revisiting a halcyon moment in our emotional memory as one of our experiential pinnacles.” – Jason Axel Summers, co-director
Teaming up with Dead Moon in 2001 to shoot the cult hit documentary Unknown Passage: The Dead Moon Story was a transformative adventure for filmmakers Summers and Kate Fix. They created a lifelong bond with all three members of the band, which continues to this day with the sole survivor, Toody Cole.
Shot in 2001 on tour in Europe and the US, with a days-long visit to the famous Cole home, the original film left little opportunity to allow for full-length song performances, as hearing from Andrew Loomis, Fred & Toody Cole often overlapped with concert footage. This new film revisits the performances that Jason & Kate captured on those tours, most of it never presented to the world until now. We also see fun and interesting footage of a less formal nature, just hanging out and traveling with the band. This film is meant to be an extension of Unknown Passage, and the desire is to provide a window back in time for fans of Dead Moon, both old and new.
Unlike many artists, there is no curtain to pull back and peer behind: they always were and are that face they presented as artists to the world. Their earnestness is undeniable, and their electrifying performances and connection with audiences drove them to the summit of the rock ‘n roll pantheon.
Starring: Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Ken Watanabe, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes, Gary Oldman, Cillian Murphy, Morgan Freeman
A young Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) travels to the Far East, where he’s trained in the martial arts by Henri Ducard (Liam Neeson), a member of the mysterious League of Shadows. When Ducard reveals the League’s true purpose — the complete destruction of Gotham City — Wayne returns to Gotham intent on cleaning up the city without resorting to murder. With the help of Alfred (Michael Caine), his loyal butler, and Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman), a tech expert at Wayne Enterprises, Batman is born.
Warning: Images are not from the movies we’re showing. Trust us, you can’t imagine what we’re showing!
Ferocious and feral, this movie hits the ground running and never lets up. A relentless cops and robbers chase flick from early ’90s Hong Kong, it sees one of its great crime directors turn in his most muscular movie before heading out for Hollywood. Based on a real life case and shot on the actual locations where it took place, it’s as simple and straightforward as a bullet to the brain, but the trio of actors at its core turn it into something else. Star turns from one of Hong Kong’s most iconic actor/producers, one of its great cinematic bad guys, and one of its best and most under-rated actresses playing his girlfriend give this movie a heart that beats 500 times per minute. It’s never been on blu ray and it rarely gets played on the big screen so this is your chance to catch this crimecore classic.
Starring: John Goodman, JP Karliak, Rihanna, Natasha Lyonne, Nick Offerman, Hannah Waddingham, Kurt Russell, Billie Lourd, Amy Sedaris, Octavia Spencer, Sandra Oh, Dan Levy, Nick Kroll, James Corden, Alex Winter
When Papa Smurf (John Goodman) is mysteriously taken by evil wizards, Razamel and Gargamel, Smurfette (Rihanna) leads the Smurfs on a mission into the real world to save him. With the help of new friends, the Smurfs must discover what defines their destiny to save the universe.
Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Benicio Del Toro, Sean Penn, Regina Hall, Teyana Taylor, Chase Infiniti
Bob is a washed-up revolutionary who lives in a state of stoned paranoia, surviving off-grid with his spirited and self-reliant daughter, Willa. When his evil nemesis resurfaces and Willa goes missing, the former radical scrambles to find her as both father and daughter battle the consequences of their pasts.
Starring: Bob Odenkirk, Connie Nielsen, Christopher Lloyd, Sharon Stone, Colin Hanks, Michael Ironside
Workaholic assassin Hutch Mansell takes his family on a much-needed vacation to the small tourist town of Plummerville. However, he soon finds himself in the crosshairs of a corrupt theme-park operator, a shady sheriff, and a bloodthirsty crime boss.
Starring: Rady Gamal, Ahmed Abdelhafiz, Osama Abdallah, Adel Abdulsalam, Dana Abed
Beshay – a man cured of leprosy – has never left the leper colony in the Egyptian desert where he has lived since childhood. Following the death of his wife, he finally decides to go in search of his roots. With his meagre possessions strapped to a donkey cart, he sets out. Quickly joined by Obama, the Nubian orphan he has taken under his wing, Beshay will cross Egypt and confront the world with all its sorrows, its hardships and moments of grace, in his quest for a family, a place to belong, a little humanity…
Starring: Sayu Suzukawa, Akari Takaishi, Taisei Kido, Yui Aragaki
Totsuko is a high school student with the ability to see the ‘colors’ of others. Colors of bliss, excitement, and serenity, plus a color she treasures as her favorite. Kimi, a classmate at her school, gives off the most beautiful color of all. Although she doesn’t play an instrument, Totsuko forms a band with Kimi and Rui, a quiet music enthusiast they meet at a used bookstore in a far corner of town. As they practice at an old church on a remote island, music brings them together, forming friendships and stirring affections. Will they discover their true ‘colors’?
Featuring the Anime After Dark Raffle, one lucky guest will win a pair of Friday passes to AnimeNYC 2025
Starring: Henry G. Sanders, Kaycee Moore, Charles Bracy, Angela Burnett, Eugene Cherry, Jack Drummond
4K restoration
Charles Burnett’s cinematic masterpiece Killer of Sheep, magnificently restored in 4K with sparkling picture and sound, is one of the crown jewels of the Black indie filmmaking movement known as the L.A. Rebellion. The film evokes the everyday trials, fragile pleasures, and tenacious humor of blue-collar African Americans living in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles in the 1970s. Burnett made it on a minuscule budget with a mostly nonprofessional cast, combining keen on-the-street observation with a carefully crafted script.
The story centers on Stan (Henry Gayle Sanders), a slaughterhouse worker battling exhaustion and disconnected from his wife, his children, and himself. Stan and his neighbors struggle just to get by, let alone get ahead. Only the kids, leaping from roof to roof, seem to achieve a mobility that eludes their elders. Burnett’s film focuses on everyday life in Black communities in a manner rarely seen in American cinema – combining lyrical elements with a starkly neorealist, documentary-style approach that combines deep nuance with riveting simplicity. Burnett once said of the film, “[Stan’s] real problems lie within the family, trying to make that work and be a human being. You don’t necessarily win battles; you survive.”
Starring: Tawny Kitaen, Brent Huff, Zabou Breitman, Bernadette Lafont, Jean Rougerie, Roland Amstutz
Ever wondered what it would look like if the director of Emmanuelle made an Indiana Jones movie? Look no further than Gwendoline, a sexy adventure movie starring Tawny Kitaen (pre-Whitesnake music videos) as the titular heroine who gets swept up in an unpredictable journey. Captured and sold into slavery, she is rescued by the burly Willard (a hunky Brent Huff) only to continue to face tribulations including treacherous terrain, bizarre rituals, and an all-female warrior clan ruled by a cruel queen (Bernadette Lafont). Based on a BDSM-themed comic, Gwendoline has incredible costumes and settings, and plays like a horny version of classic serial adventure films.
