The Return of The American Film Theatre
July 26 – August 1, 2002

photo: a delicate balance

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In 1973, producer Ely Landau launched a very ambitious project known as The American Film Theatre. Landau’s idea was to bring the cream of contemporary drama to the screen: the films would be made by A-list directors with the best actors, and audiences far from Broadway would get a chance to see them on a subscription basis. And he pulled it off. Triumphantly.

We’re pleased to be able to bring six highlights of The American Film Theatre back to the big screen where they belong. We’ll be opening with a new print of Arthur Hiller’s version of Robert Shaw’s THE MAN IN THE GLASS BOOTH starring Maximilian Schell, whose performance was nominated for an Academy Award. Followed by Albee’s ferocious A DELICATE BALANCE with Katharine Hepburn (also nominated for an Oscar) and Paul Scofield, directed by Tony Richardson; Brecht’s GALILEO, directed by Joseph Losey; John Osborne’s LUTHER, with Stacy Keach in the lead and Judi Dench in a supporting role; Harold Pinter’s THE HOMECOMING, with many cast members from the original production, directed by Sir Peter Hall; and a towering version of O’Neill’s THE ICEMAN COMETH directed by John Frankenheimer, with a dream cast including Lee Marvin, Robert Ryan, Fredric March and Jeff Bridges.

Please join us as we celebrate the return of The American Film Theatre.

THE HOMECOMING
Peter Hall, U.K., 1973; 111m
Cyril Cusack, Ian Holm, Michael Jayston, Vivien Merchant, Terence Rigby and Paul Rogers repeat their brilliant performances from the original 1965 production of Harold Pinter’s masterpiece, perfectly staged by Sir Peter Hall. Jayston is the son returning home with his wife (Merchant). They find the family nest buzzing with anger and ill feelings, a small colony of creatures — father (Rogers), Uncle (Cusack) and brothers (Holm and Rigby) — who can never get out of the terrible, cozy maze we call "family." A towering achievement in the theater, and a great film. "I often find myself seeking solace from this film. Its poetry and twisted sense of compassion and humor have assuaged many moments of despair and confusion. Other people have religion. I have my copy of THE HOMECOMING." — Atom Egoyan
Fri July 26: 1 & 9:30
Sun July 28: 4
Mon July 29: 9

LUTHER
Guy Green, USA, 1974; 112m
Stacy Keach gives a sensational performance as Martin Luther, the 16th-century Augustinian monk whose protests against the Roman Church triggered a religious, political and even social reconfiguration of Europe that historians today call the Reformation. A fascinating interpretation of one of European history’s most controversial figures, based on John Osborne’s play, the film traces the steps in Luther’s development from an awkward, troubled young seminarian to the leader of a continent-wide movement, comparing throughout his original feelings with the extraordinary turn of events for which so many held him personally responsible. The uniformly excellent cast features Patrick Magee, Hugh Griffith, Judi Dench and Robert Stephens.
Fri July 26: 3:30
Sat July 27: 6
Mon July 29: 4

THE MAN IN THE GLASS BOOTH
Arthur Hiller, USA, 1975; 117m
We’re very pleased to open our special series of highlights from Ely Landau’s The American Film Theater with a new print of one of its most acclaimed productions. Adapted from the stage play by actor Robert Shaw, the film is the story of one Arthur Goldman, a wealthy, well-established Jewish businessman living in a marvelous penthouse apartment in New York City. One day, Goldman is abducted by Israeli agents, brought to Israel, and accused of actually being a Nazi murderer responsible for thousands of deaths. But who is he, really? Rather than "open up" the theatrical settings of the film to include period re-creations or documentary footage, director Arthur Hiller instead chose to focus on the subtle and exquisite interplay among his superb cast in the present, led by the great Maximilian Schell in his Academy nominated performance as Goldman and featuring Lois Nettleton, Luther Adler and Lawrence Pressman. A deeply moving study of guilt and memory, and one of the most probing films about the Shoah.
Fri July 26: 6:15 (with director Arthur Hiller in person!)
Sat July 27: 8:30
Mon July 29: 6:30

THE ICEMAN COMETH
John Frankenheimer, USA, 1973; 239m
Eugene O’Neill’s 1946 play is to American drama what Moby Dick is to American literature. Terrifyingly vast in scope and length, courting danger at every moment, all but unmanageable. When a production comes off as beautifully as this one, the effect is soul-stirring. John Frankenheimer’s instincts were sharpened during his early days in live TV drama, and he’s the perfect director to bring THE ICEMAN COMETH to the big screen. And what a cast! Lee Marvin, playing the most ambitious role of his career, is Hickey, the salesman who arrives in the waterfront saloon and dismantles the pipe dreams of its layabout regulars. Bradford Dillman is Willie — in Pauline Kael’s words, "you can almost taste the actor’s joy in the role." A young Jeff Bridges is Parritt. And the best performances are given by two of American cinema’s greatest actors, Fredric March (in his last performance) as Harry Hope, and a dying Robert Ryan (in his penultimate screen appearance) as the old anarchist Larry. As Kael rightly wrote, Ryan "is so subtle he seems to have penetrated to the mystery of O’Neill’s gaunt grandeur."
Sat July 27: 1 (with 10m break)
Sun July 28: 6:30 (with 10m break)

A DELICATE BALANCE
Tony Richardson, USA, 1973; 132m
Edward Albee’s 1966 play about a Connecticut couple whose "delicate balance" is thrown off forever by the arrival of two friends is even more relentless and punishing than Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? It received a definitive rendition in this 1973 film directed by Tony Richardson. Katharine Hepburn (whose performance was nominated for an Academy Award) and Paul Scofield are Agnes and Tobias, and they work miracles together. This is truly one of Hepburn’s last great performances. No less impressive are Joseph Cotten and Betsy Blair (the onetime Mrs. Gene Kelly) as the disruptive Harry and Edna. With equally exceptional work from Lee Remick as Agnes and Tobias’ troubled daughter Julia and Kate Reid as the alcoholic in-law. A true tour de force.
Sun July 28: 1
Tue July 30: 8
Wed July 31: 5
Thurs Aug 1: 8

GALILEO
Joseph Losey, U.K., 1975, 145m; video
Before Joseph Losey left Hollywood to escape the blacklist, he directed the Broadway premiere of Bertolt Brecht’s Galileo — in 1947, starring Charles Laughton. His 1975 film version with Topol in the starring role is as passionate and precise a rendering of the play, one of Brecht’s greatest, as one could possibly hope for. With Edward Fox as the Inquisitor, Michel Lonsdale as the Pope, John Gielgud as the old Cardinal, John McEnery and Tom Conti as Galileo’s erstwhile allies, and Margaret Leighton as a lady of the court. "Mr. Losey knows exactly what kind of ‘filmed theater’ he wants to achieve, and how to achieve it." — Vincent Canby
Tue July 30: 5
Wed July 31: 8
Thurs Aug 1: 5

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