SFMOMA

Rep Clock

Andrew Lam
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0

 

Schedules are for Wed/27-Tues/2 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features are marked with a •. All times are p.m. unless otherwise specified.

 ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6. “Deep Leap Microcinema:” “Zaum/Beyonsense” and work by Jesse Malmed, Fri, 8. “Other Cinema:” War of the Gargantuas (Honda, 1966), Ishiro Honda tribute with Japanese monster movie clips, Sat, 8.

CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $7.50-10. “15th Berlin and Beyond Film Festival,” Wed-Thurs. Visitwww.berlinbeyond.com for complete schedule and tickets ($10-11.50). •Fahrenheit 451 (Truffaut, 1966), Fri, 3:10, 7, and The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms (Lourie, 1953), Fri, 5:20, 9:10. “Mark Huestis Presents:” Poltergeist (Hooper, 1982), noon, 7:30, 9. With star JoBeth Williams in person at first two shows; 7:30pm show also features a pre-show performance. “Matinees for Maniacs: Monsters Are Coming to Town!:” •Something Wicked This Way Comes (Clayton, 1983), Sun, 2:30, and Escape to Witch Mountain (Hough, 1975), Sun, 4:30.

CELLSPACE 2050 Bryant, SF; www.sfindie.com. Free (donations to benefit CellSpace appreciated). “Eli Roth’s Midnight Movie Marathon:” The Thing(Carpenter, 1982), Sat, noon; Zombie (Fulci, 1979), Sat, 2; The Vanishing (Sluizer, 1988), Sat, 3:45; Pieces (Simon, 1982), Sat, 6; The Wicker Man(Hardy, 1973), Sat, 7:45; Who Can Kill a Child? (Serrador, 1976), Sat, 9:30; Eraserhead (Lynch, 1977), Sat, 11:45; Suspiria (Argento, 1977), Sun, 1:30am; Cannibal Holocaust (Deodato, 1980), Sun, 3:15am; Evil Dead (Raimi, 1981), Sun, 5:15am; Audition (Miike, 1999), Sun, 7am; Torso (Martino, 1973), Sun, 9am.

CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.50-10.25. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest (Alfredson, 2009), Oct 29-Nov 2, call for times. “Global Lens 2010:” Becloud (Bicecci, 2010), Wed, 6:45; The Night of Truth(Nacro, 2004), Wed, 9; Masquerades (Salem, 2008), Thurs, 6:45; The Shaft (Zhang, 2008), Thurs, 8:45. Inside Job (Ferguson, 2010), call for dates and times. Leaving (Corsini, 2009), Oct 29-Nov 3, call for times. My Dog Tulip (Fierlinger and Fierlinger, 2009), Wed-Thurs, call for times. Straight to Hell Returns (Cox, 2010), Mon, 7:15. With Alex Cox in person.

EMBARCADERO One Embarcadero Center, Promenade Level, SF; www.sffs.org. $12.50. “French Cinema Now:” Copacabana (Fitoussi, 2010), Thurs, 6:45 and Fri, 9:30; Rapt (Belvaux, 2009), Thurs, 9:30 and Mon, 9:15; Irène (Cavalier, 2009), Fri, 5 and Sat, 1:45; Love Like Poison (Quillévéré, 2010), Fri, 7 and Sun, 9:15; Sisters (Faucher, 2009), Sat, 3:45 and Sun, 6:45; The Princess of Montpensier (Tavernier, 2010), Sat, 6:30 and Sun, 3:45; A Real Life (Leonor, 2009), Sat, 9:30 and Tues, 6:30; Two in the Wave (Laurent, 2009), Sun, 1:30; Hidden Diary (Lopes-Curval, 2009), Mon, 6:30 and Tues, 9:15; Certified Copy (Kiarostami, 2010), Nov 3, 7, 9:15.

HUMANIST HALL 390 27th St, Oakl; www.humanisthall.org. $5. The Cove (Psihoyos, 2009), Wed, 7:30.

JACK LONDON SQUARE East lawn, Oakl; www.jacklondonsquare.com. Free. “Waterfront Flicks:” Twilight (Hardwicke, 2008), Thurs, 7:30.

MECHANICS’ INSTITUTE 57 Post, SF; (415) 393-0100 (reservations required). $10. “CinemaLit: Apocalypse Noir:” Night of the Demon (Tourneur, 1958), Fri, 6.

PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, www.bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. “Alternative Visions:” “Photographic Memory: Bay Area Student Experimental Film Festival 2010,” Wed, 7:30. “Readings on Cinema:” Safety Last (Newmeyer and Taylor, 1923), Thurs, 7. “Days of Glory: Revisiting Italian Neorealism:” Chronicle of Poor Lovers (Lizzani, 1954), Fri, 7; La Terra Trema (Visconti, 1948), Sat, 7; Miracle in Milan (De Sica, 1951), Sun, 4. “Shakespeare on Screen:” Macbeth (Welles, 1948), Fri, 9:05. “Left in the Dark: Portraits of San Francisco Movie Theatres,” slide show presentation with photographer R.A. McBride and readings with contributors to Left in the Dark, Sat, 5. “Drawn From Life: Comic Books and Graphic Novels Adapted:” Swamp Thing (Craven, 1982), Sun, 7:30.

RED VIC 1727 Haight, SF; (415) 668-3994. $6-10. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (Wright, 2010), Wed-Thurs, 7, 9:20 (also Wed, 2). Winnebago Man(Steinbauer, 2010), Fri-Sat, 7:15, 9:15 (also Sat, 2, 4). The Room (Wiseau, 2003), Sat, midnight. Planet Terror (Rodriguez, 2007), Sun-Mon, 7:15, 9:15 (also Sun, 2, 4). The Kids Are All Right (Cholodenko, 2010), Nov 2-3, 7:15, 9:30 (also Nov 3, 2).

“ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW” Clay, 2261 Fillmore, SF and Albany, 1115 Solano, Albany; www.landmarktheatres.com. $9.50-10. The 1975 Jim Sharman musical plays at both theaters Fri, midnight (also Sat, midnight at the Clay).

ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $5-9.75. “SF DocFest,” Wed-Thurs. Program information at www.sfindie.com.Larry Wessel’s Iconoclast: Boyd Rice (Wessel, 2010), Mon, 7. “Halloween Spooktacular:” •The Man From Planet X (Ulmer, 1951), Fri, 6:35, 9:30, and The Creature With the Atom Brain (Cahn, 1955), Fri, 8; •Corruption (Hartford-Davis, 1968), Sat, 2:30, 6:15, 9:45, and The Brood (Cronenberg, 1979), Sat, 4:15, 8; •Straight to Hell Returns (Cox, 2010), Sun, 3:15, 7, 9, and Searchers 2.0 (Cox, 2004), Sun, 5. Alex Cox in person at Sunday shows.

SAN FRANCISCO MUSEUM OF MODERN ART 151 Third St, SF; www.sfmoma.org. $5. “Witches!”: •Season of the Witch (Romero, 1973) andSuspiria (Argento, 1977), Thurs, 7.

VARIETY SCREENING ROOM 582 Market, SF; (650) 724-5544, www.unaff.org. Free. “United Nations Association Film Festival:” Strange Birds in Paradise: A West Papuan Story (Hill-Smith), Wed, 4; Kites (Dzianowicz), Wed, 5:25; “Panel Discussion: Images That Provoke,” Wed, 6:45; Secrets of the Tribes (Padilha), Wed, 8; The Rage of Images (Scharf and Duregger), Wed, 9:40.

VIZ CINEMA New People, 1746 Post, SF; www.vizcinema.com. $10. “Mizoguchi and His Muse: Kinuyo Tanaka,” Wed-Tues, check website for schedule.

VORTEX ROOM 2961 16th Sf, SF; www.sfcinema.org. $10. “Remembering Dennis Hopper:” Night Tide (Harrington, 1961) with “The Wormwood Star” (Harrington, 1955), Wed, 7:30. YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; (415) 978-2787, www.ybca.org. $6-8. “Muppet History 201: Rarities from the Henson Vault,” Thurs, 7:30 and Sat, 2.

 

 

Picks

Andrew Lam
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0

 

WEDNESDAY 27

THEATER

West Side Story

West Side Story is back. Directed by Arthur Laurents, author of the original 1957 script, this rendition of the classic Romeo and Juliet story via 1950s New York City brings fresh life to the rivaling Jets and Sharks and Tony and Maria’s forbidden love. Musical favorites in Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim’s legendary score include “Tonight,” “America,” “Maria,” “I Feel Pretty,” and “Somewhere.” Jerome Robbins’ spirited dynamic choreography is as much a part of the magic as the story and music. See why West Side Story has captivated audiences for decades when its tour hits San Francisco. (Emmaly Wiederholt)

Through Nov. 28

Showtimes vary, $30–$99

Orpheum Theater

1192 Market, SF

1-888-SHN-1799

www.shnsf.com


THURSDAY 28

FILM

“Witches!”

This year’s Halloween-y new releases, Paranormal Activity 2 and Saw 3D (the seventh entry in that undying series), may not be enough to satisfy your need for horror. Luckily, SFMOMA administers a double dose, starting with 1973’s Season of the Witch, an early George Romero film, about a housewife who becomes enmeshed in witchcraft. The must-see, though, is 1977’s Suspiria, in which an American ballet student travels to Germany to attend a new school where sinister goings-on are as common as pointe shoes. Directed by Dario Argento, the film is a Technicolor nightmare and an essential addition to the season. Read on for more Halloween movie revivals, including an additional Suspiria screening. (Ryan Prendiville)

7 p.m., $5 (free with museum admission)

Phyllis Wattis Theater

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

151 Third St., SF

(415) 357-4000

www.sfmoma.org

FILM

“French Cinema Now”

A week before presenting a run of Olivier Assayas’ 330-minute cine-event, Carlos, the San Francisco Film Society hosts its annual sampling of Gallic small wonders. “French Cinema Now” welcomes a few familiar faces (Isabelle Huppert in Copacabana, Catherine Deneuve in Hidden Diary, one of Guillaume Depardieu’s last performances in A Real Life), along with auteur turns from Bertrand Tavernier (The Princess of Montpensier) and Alain Cavalier (Irène). Closing night brings Certified Copy, in which Abbas Kiarostami, like Hou Hsiao-hsien before him, calls upon Juliette Binoche for his French twist. If early reviews are any indication, the Iranian filmmaker remains intimately concerned with epistemology in spite of the change in scenery. (Max Goldberg)

Through Nov. 3

Showtimes vary, $12.50

Embarcadero Center Cinema

One Embarcadero Center, Promenade Level, SF

www.sffs.org

DANCE

“Performing Diaspora: Devendra Sharma”

During last year’s Performing Diaspora, Devendra Sharma’s Mission Suhani proved to be a major hit. Inspired by the tradition of arranged marriages dowries, it put a light-hearted twist on what has become a controversial though deeply embedded cultural practice. Mission charmed with the wit of its dramatization of this tale about greed, betrayal, and sweet revenge. It is performed by Nautanki Theater, a company of amateurs and professionals residing in Fresno. Nautanki is a North Indian folkloric style, half musical theater, half dance that has migrated to the Central Valley and, clearly, seems to be thriving within the local Indian community. (Rita Felciano)

Thurs/28–Sat/30, 8 p.m.; Sun/31, 3 p.m.,

$19–$24

CounterPULSE, SF

1310 Mission, SF

1-800-838-3006

www.counterpulse.org


FRIDAY 29

MUSIC

Ray Parker Jr.

With an instantly recognizable tune and shout along opportunities galore (“Who ya gonna call?”), the “Ghostbusters” theme song likely brings back a flood of fun memories for anybody who grew up in the 1980s or is a fan of the hit movie and much-played music video. Written and performed by Ray Parker Jr., the tune has had a life of its own ever since it was unleashed on audiences more than 25 years ago. Spirits should be high at tonight’s concert as Parker is sure to resurrect his biggest hit, just in time for Halloween. Bustin’ makes me feel good! (Sean McCourt)

8 p.m., $59

Claremont Hotel, Club, and Spa

41 Tunnel Road, Berk.

(510) 843–3000

www.claremont-hotel.com

MUSIC

Acid King

I’m usually not a huge fan of weddings, but imagine this mythical union: L7 and Sleep joined in holy heavy matrimony, spitting out a bell-bottomed babe with a book titled Say You Love Satan in hand. Overlay this with indigo, fog, fuzz, a killer Hawkwind cover (the first song ever, it is said, to feature the word “parallelogram”), and dreamy female vocals dripping with distortion and demonic dew and doom. D-d-duhhh! This show is a no-brainer: formed back in 1993, Acid King is seminal SF stoner metal. Catch this rare local appearance on the heels of their Australian tour. C’mon, don’t be a plain ol’ square, be movin’ like a parallelogram. (Kat Renz)

With Thrones and Christian Mistress

9:30 p.m., $10

Hemlock Tavern

1131 Polk, SF

(415) 923-0923

www.hemlocktavern.com

THEATER

Failure 2 Communicate

Jaime has a traumatic brain injury limiting his impulse control. Loomis is autistic and particularly sensitive to touch. How they and other students navigate the high school environment is the premise of Valeria Fachman’s new play Failure 2 Communicate. At a high school for students with severe behavior disorders, emotional disturbances, and learning disabilities, teachers develop strong relationships with difficult students, eventually empowering the students to change their lives. This world premiere from Performers Under Stress — a local physical theater company committed to exploring challenging content — ultimately addresses disability and how we cope. (Wiederholt)

Through Nov. 14

Fri.–Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun, 2 p.m., $20

Garage Theater

975 Howard, SF

www.pustheatre.com

DANCE

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago

Why Hubbard Street Dance Chicago? First, fabulous performances; second, it’s a modern dance company that is not a one-choreographer deal; third, it boasts an international repertory we might never see otherwise (they were the first Twyla Tharp entrusted pieces to after she disbanded her own troupe). Further proof of reason No. 3: Spanish choreographer Nacho Duato just disbanded his own ensemble; Hubbard is bringing his baroque music box piece Arcangelo. When Dance Theater of the Netherlands visited last, it had been 22 years. Now Hubbard is bringing a Jirí Kylián work, 27’52”. What’s more, Hubbard promotes from within. The Bay Are premieres of Deep Down Dos and Blanco are the creations of Company dancer and choreographer in residence Alejandro Cerrudo.(Felciano)

Through Sat/30

8 p.m., $32–$68

Zellerbach Hall

Bancroft at Telegraph, UC Berkeley, Berk.

(510) 642-9988

www.calperformances.org

COMEDY

“SF Sketchfest Presents: The Return of Tony Clifton”

When was the last time you saw a real zombie? Rumor has it that Tony Clifton is Andy Kaufman returned from the dead. (Hey, Jesus did it.) Just make sure you don’t mention the late comedian to Clifton; he’s notoriously touchy about the subject. In any case, Clifton is touring with his “Katrina Kiss-My-Ass Orchestra” as community service after being charged with disorderly conduct in New Orleans. Not only do proceeds benefit Comic Relief, but at each show one lucky ticket holder “will get to spend one night at Dennis Hof’s Moonlight Bunny with Mr. Clifton paying for the hooker of the winner’s choice.” Whoever he is, he’s still classy. (Prendiville)

Through Sat/30

8 p.m., $30.50

Cobb’s Comedy Club

915 Columbus, SF

(415) 928-4320

www.cobbscomedyclub.com

 

SATURDAY 30

FILM/EVENT

Poltergeist

Everyone remembers Carol Anne (“They’re heeeere!”) and Tangina (“This house is clean!”), but Poltergeist diehards know the heart of the 1982 horror classic is JoBeth Williams’ Diane Freeling, the kind of mother who’d crawl up a rope into purgatory to save her youngest child. (She also smokes weed and has a pretty awesome swimming-pool scene alongside several grinning corpses.) Clear your building-houses-over-graveyards-schedule; this Mark Huestis-produced event features an onstage interview with Williams, plus an array of entertainments, from a Carol Anne look-alike contest to a Poltergeist-inspired (creepy clowns? Creepier trees? Maggot-y steaks? Dead parakeets?) fashion show. (Cheryl Eddy)

7:30 p.m. (also noon, with Williams Q&A; 9 p.m., film only), $6–$30

Castro Theatre

429 Castro, SF

(415) 621-6120

www.castrotheatre.com

FILM

“Eli Roth’s Midnight Movie Marathon”

Programmed by horror filmmaker Eli “Bear Jew” Roth, this SF Indiefest event offers nearly 24 hours of Halloween delights. Though drop-ins are welcome, this event is clearly structured to cater to true fiends who’ll sit tight for the whole dirty dozen, with dinner and breakfast breaks thoughtfully sprinkled throughout. Your descent into weak-kneed terror begins at noon with John Carpenter’s 1982 The Thing (highlight: blood-testing scene), and continues, in order, with Lucio Fulci’s 1979 Zombie (zombie vs. shark underwater fight); 1988’s The Vanishing (Dutch version, not Nancy Travis-starring remake); 1982’s Pieces (chainsaw-sploitation); 1973’s The Wicker Man (Nic Cage-free original); 1976 Spanish chiller Who Can Kill a Child?; in-a-row essentials Eraserhead (1977), Suspiria(1977), Cannibal Holocaust (1980), and The Evil Dead (1981); Miike Takashi’s delightfully violent Audition (1999); and 1973 giallo Torso. Brain-scrambling awesomeness. (Eddy)

Noon, free (donations to benefit CellSpace appreciated)

CellSpace

2050 Bryant, SF

www.sfindie.com

 

SUNDAY 31

“Matinees for Maniacs”

If you’re not too hung over from all the booze, hard drugs, or candy corn you gobbled down the night before, come check out this double-dip of spooky Disney classics on Halloween afternoon. First up is Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983), the Ray Bradbury-based tale of a demonic circus ringleader. (Haven’t thought about it for years, but in hindsight, it maaaaay just have something to do with my irrational fear of the circus.) Next up is Escape to Witch Mountain(1975). Unfortunately, or actually, perhaps very fortunately, this original version doesn’t star Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson or include a song by Miley Cyrus like the 2009 reboot does. (Landon Moblad)

2:30 p.m., $11

Castro Theatre

429 Castro

(415) 621-6120

www.thecastrotheatre.com

 

TUESDAY 2

MUSIC

Gary Numan

Gaining some initial recognition as the singer and leader of Tubeway Army with their single “Down In The Park,” Gary Numan’s success exploded with the release of his 1979 solo record The Pleasure Prinicipal, which featured the hit single “Cars.” Inspiring untold New Wave, industrial, and goth bands with his sound and look over the ensuing years, Numan has been enjoying a resurgence of late, and has found himself on stage with groups such as Nine Inch Nails as a special guest. Tonight he’ll be performing his debut album in its entirety; expect it to be delivered with an extra dose of seasoned edginess when this icon hits the stage. (McCourt)

8 p.m., $27.50

Fillmore

1805 Geary, SF

(415) 346-6000

www.thefillmore.com 

The Guardian listings deadline is two weeks prior to our Wednesday publication date. To submit an item for consideration, please include the title of the event, a brief description of the event, date and time, venue name, street address (listing cross streets only isn’t sufficient), city, telephone number readers can call for more information, telephone number for media, and admission costs. Send information to Listings, the Guardian Building, 135 Mississippi St., SF, CA 94107; fax to (415) 487-2506; or e-mail (paste press release into e-mail body — no text attachments, please) to listings@sfbg.com. We cannot guarantee the return of photos, but enclosing an SASE helps. Digital photos may be submitted in jpeg format; the image must be at least 240 dpi and four inches by six inches in size. We regret we cannot accept listings over the phone.

 

 

Rep clock

David Talbot
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0

Schedules are for Wed/20–Tues/26 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features are marked with a •. All times are p.m. unless otherwise specified.

ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6-10. “Fifth ATA Film and Video Festival: Human Nature,” Thurs, 8; “Lo-Fi Future,” Fri, 8. “PXL This 19,” toy camera film festival, Sat, 8:30. For related events visit www.laughtears.com/PXL-THIS-19.html. “ATA and Alternative Tentactles Present:” •The Widower (1999) and Terminal City Richochet (1990), DVD and CD release double feature, Sun, 7.

CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $7.50-10. I Am Love (Guadagnino, 2009), Wed, 2, 4:30, 7, 9:20. The Kids Are All Right (Cholodenko, 2010), Thurs, 2:30, 4:45, 7, 9:10. “15th Berlin and Beyond Film Festival,” Oct 22-28. Visit www.berlinbeyond.com for complete schedule and tickets ($10-11.50).

CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.50-10.25. 36 (Marchal, 2005), Wed-Thurs, 6:30, 9. Inside Job (Ferguson, 2010), Oct 22-28, call for times. My Dog Tulip (Fierlinger and Fierlinger, 2009), Oct 22-28, call for times.

HUMANIST HALL 390 27th St, Oakl; www.humanisthall.org. $5. The Whale Warrior: Pirate for the Sea (Colby, 2009), Wed, 7:30.

MECHANICS’ INSTITUTE 57 Post, SF; (415) 393-0100 (reservations required). $10. “CinemaLit: Apocalypse Noir:” Dead of Night (Cavalcanti, Crichton, Dearden, and Hamer, 1945), Fri, 6.

PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, www.bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. “Radical Light: Alternative Film and Video in the San Francisco Bay Area:” “1969-79,” Wed, 7:30. “Elegant Perversions: The Cinema of João César Monteiro:” Come and Go (2003), Thurs, 7; The Hips of J.W. (1997), Sun, 7. “Days of Glory: Revisiting Italian Neorealism:” The Bicycle Thief (De Sica, 1948), Fri, 7 and Sat, 6:30; Bitter Rice (De Santis, 1949), Fri, 9. “Shakespeare on Screen:” King Lear (Kozintsev, 1970), Sat, 8:30; Antony and Cleopatra (Heston, 1972), Sun, 4.

RED VIC 1727 Haight, SF; (415) 668-3994. $6-10. Stingray Sam (McAbee, 2009), Wed, 2, 7:15, 9:15. Winter’s Bone (Granik, 2010), Thurs-Sat, 7:15, 9:25 (also Sat, 2). The Girl Who Played With Fire (Alfredson, 2010), Sun, 2, 5, 8 and Mon-Tues, 7:30.

ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $5-9.75. “SF DocFest,” through Oct 28. Program information at www.sfindie.com.

SAN FRANCISCO MUSEUM OF MODERN ART 151 Third St, SF; www.sfmoma.org. $5. “San Francisco Cinematheque Presents:” “Private Lives: Beth Custer Ensemble and the Films of Alexander Hammid,” Thurs, 7; My Grandmother (Mikaberidze, 1929), with the Beth Custer Ensemble, Thurs, 9.

VICTORIA THEATER 2961 16th St, SF; www.peacheschrist.com. $20. “The Peaches Christ Experience in 4D:” All About Evil (Grannell, 2010), Thurs-Sun, 8. With the Midnight Mass Players.

VIZ CINEMA New People, 1746 Post, SF; www.vizcinema.com. $10. “Ozu and His Muse: Setsuko Hara,” Late Spring (1949), Wed, 4:30; Early Summer (1954), Wed, 7:15 and Thurs, 4:30; Tokyo Twilight (1947), Thurs, 7:15. “Taiwan Film Days:” Monga (Doze, 2010), Fri, 6:15 and 9:40; Let’s Fall In Love (Wu, 2009), Sat, 1:30 and Sun, 4:10; Seven Days in Heaven (Liu and Wang, 2009), Sat, 4 and Sun, 9:10; Hear Me (Cheng, 2009), Sat, 6:40; Tears (Chen, 2009), Sat, 9:30 ansd Sun, 6:40; No Puedo Vivir Sin Ti (Dai, 2009), Sun, 2.

YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; (415) 978-2787, www.ybca.org. $6-8. “Sing! The Music of Sesame Street,” Thurs, 7:30; Sun, 2. “San Francisco Jewish Film Festival Presents: Tough Guys: Images of Jewish Gangsters in Film:” Straight is the Way (Sloane, 1934), Sun, 2.

Rep clock

David Talbot
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0

Schedules are for Wed/13–Tues/19 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features are marked with a •. All times are p.m. unless otherwise specified.

ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6-15. “Pow! Pow! Pow! Art Festival 2010,” live performance, video installations, and more, Thurs, 8. “Immigrant Film Festival,” Fri, 7 and Sat-Sun, 3. “Other Cinema:” Space, Land and Time: Underground Adventures with Ant Farm (Federici and Harrison, 2010), Sat, 8:30. “Next! And Attention Deficit Gift: A 99 Hooker Screening,” Sun, 8. “Electroacoustic audio-visual improvisations” with Bill Hsu, Gino Robair, and John Shiurba, Tues, 8.

CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $7.50-10. Where the Boys Are (Levin, 1961), Wed, 2:30, 4:45, 7, 9:15. Connie Francis in person to introduce 7pm show. “14th Annual Arab Film Festival:” Masquerades (Salem, 2008), Thurs, 7:30. This event, $20; for more info, visit www.arabfilmfestival.org. “Midnites for Maniacs: Don’t Get Bit … By Big Mouths:” •Fright Night (Holland, 1985), Fri, 7:15; An American Werewolf in London (Landis, 1981), Fri, 9:30; and The Evil Dead (Raimi, 1981), Fri, 11:45. “Connie Francis: The Legend Continues,” live concert with full orchestra, Sat, 8. Presented by the Rrazz Room; visit www.cityboxoffice.com for tickets ($49-99). “Montgomery Clift Double Feature:” •From Here to Eternity (Zinnemann, 1953), Sat, 2:30, 7, and Wild River (Kazan, 1960), Sat, 4:50, 9:15.

CERRITO 10070 San Pablo, El Cerrito; www.rialtocinemas.com. $7. “Cerrito Classics:” Rosemary’s Baby (Polanski, 1968), Thurs, 7:45.

CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.50-10.25. “Mill Valley Film Festival,” Wed-Sun. Program information at www.mvff.com. 36 (Marchal, 2005), Oct 18-21, 6:30, 9.

DELANCEY STREET SCREENING ROOM 600 Embarcadero, SF; www.modjeskawomantriumphantmovie.com. Free ($5-10 suggested donation). Modjeska: A Woman Triumphant (Myszynski), Sun, 3.

FORBIDDEN ISLAND TIKI LOUNGE 1304 Lincoln, Alameda; www.forbiddenislandalameda.com. Free. “Forbidden Thrills: Half N’ Half Halloween Horrors:” •Werewolf in a Girl’s Dormitory (Heusch, 1961), and The Manster (Breakston and Crane, 1959), Mon, 7:30.

GRAND LAKE 3200 Grand, Oakl; (510) 452-3556. $10. Enemies of the People (Lemkin and Sambath, 2009), Wed, 4:30, 7:15, 9:30.

HUMANIST HALL 390 27th St, Oakl; www.humanisthall.org. $5. Sharkwater: The Truth Will Surface (Stewart, 2006), Wed, 7:30.

LUMIERE 1572 California, SF; www.landmarkafterdark.com. Free. “Monthly Anime:” “Sengoku Basara,” Thurs, 7.

MECHANICS’ INSTITUTE 57 Post, SF; (415) 393-0100 (reservations required). $10. “CinemaLit: Apocalypse Noir:” Matinee (Dante, 1993), Fri, 6.

PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, www.bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. “Radical Light: Alternative Film and Video in the San Francisco Bay Area:” “1961-71,” Wed, 7:30; “Stories Untold,” Sat, 6; “The Exotic Erotic,” Sat, 8:30; “Procession of the Image Processors,” Sun, 6:30. “Shakespeare on Screen:” Chimes at Midnight (Welles, 1966), Thurs, 7; Romeo + Juliet (Luhrmann, 1996), Sun, 4. “Days of Glory: Revisiting Italian Neorealism:” Bellissima (Visconti, 1953), Fri, 7; Miracle in Milan (De Sica, 1951), Fri, 9:10. “Home Movie Day:” “Film Check-In,” Sat, 11am; “Home Movie Day Screening,” Sat, 1. Metropolis (Lang, 1926), Tues, 7.

PIEDMONT 4186 Piedmont, Oakl; www.landmarktheatres.coom. $8. The Room (Wiseau, 2003), Sat, midnight.

RED VIC 1727 Haight, SF; (415) 668-3994. $6-10. Dr. Strangelove (Kubrick, 1964), Wed-Thurs, 7:15, 9:15 (also Wed, 2). Cropsey (Zeman and Brancaccio, 2009), Fri-Tues, 7:15, 9:15 (also Sat-Sun, 2, 4).  

ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $5-9.75. Exit Through the Gift Shop (Banksy, 2010), Wed-Thurs, 9:15. Grant Morrison: Talking With Gods (Meaney, 2010), Wed, 9:30 and Thurs, 7. Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin’ About Him?) (Scheinfeld, 2010), Wed, 7, call for times. “SF DocFest,” Oct 14-28. Program information at www.sfindie.com.

SAN FRANCISCO MUSEUM OF MODERN ART 151 Third St, SF; www.sfmoma.org. $5. “Jordan Belson: Films Sacred and Profane,” Thurs, 7.

SAN FRANCISCO PUBLIC LIBRARY Koret Auditorium, 100 Larkin, SF; www.sfpl.org. Free. “Beyond Manny and Marcos: A Showcase of Far-Out Filipino American Films and Theater,” Sat, 3-5:30.

VIZ CINEMA New People, 1746 Post, SF; www.vizcinema.com. $10. “Ozu and His Muse: Setsuko Hara,” Early Summer (1954), Fri, 4:30 and Sat, 3:15; Late Autumn (1960), Sat, 12:15, Sun, 6, and Mon, 4:30; Late Spring (1949), Sun, 12:15 and Tues, 715; Tokyo Twilight (1947), Sun, 2:30 and Mon, 7:15.

YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; (415) 978-2787, www.ybca.org. $6-8. “Jim Henson and Friends: Inside the Sesame Street Vault,” Thurs, 7:30 and Sat, 2. “San Francisco Jewish Film Festival Presents: Tough Guys: Images of Jewish Gangsters in Film:” Little Caesar (LeRoy, 1931), Sun, 2.

Rep Clock

David Talbot
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0

Schedules are for Wed/6–Tues/12 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features are marked with a •. All times are p.m. unless otherwise specified.

ARK 221 221 11th St, SF; www.cinemaorgy.com. $3. "BYOF Cinema Orgy!," Wed, 8.

ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6. San Francisco Cinematheque presents: "Recent Documentary (Light Captured/Divisions Recorded)," Wed, 7:30. "Other Cinema:" So Wrong They’re Right (Forster and Sutherland), Sat, 8:30.

CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $7.50-10. •Psycho (Hitchcock, 1960), Wed, 2:45, 7, and Dressed to Kill (De Palma, 1980), Wed, 4:50, 9:05. Inception (Nolan, 2010), Thurs, 2, 5, 8. •Let the Right One In (Alfredson, 2008), Fri, 7, and Antichrist (von Trier, 2009), Fri, 9:15. "Out Loud Comedy and Arts Festival," Sat. Visit www.outloudcomedy.com for information and tickets ($25-45). "Scary Cow Indie Film Co-Op’s 12th Film Festival," Sun, 3. Program information at www.scarycow.com.

CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.50-10.25. Fresh (Joanes, 2010), Wed-Thurs, call for times. Film Portraits By Christopher Felver: Cecil Taylor (Felver, 2006), Wed, 7. "Mill Valley Film Festival," Oct 7-17. Program information at www.mvff.com.

EMBARCADERO One Embarcadero Center, promenade level, SF; www.sffs.org. $12.50. Earth Made of Glass (Scranton, 2010), Thurs, 7. Screening followed by a panel discussion about documentary film as a form of investigative journalism.

EXPLORATORIUM McBean Theatre, 3601 Lyon, SF; www.sfcinema.org. Free with admission ($12-15). "Charles and Ray Eames: A Selection of Short Films," Sat, 2. "Charles and Ray Eames: A Powers of Ten Cinema Celebration," Sun, 10am and 4pm.

HUMANIST HALL 390 27th St, Oakl; www.humanisthall.org. $5. The End of the Line, Wed, 7:30.

MECHANICS’ INSTITUTE 57 Post, SF; (415) 393-0100 (reservations required). $10. "CinemaLit: Apocalypse Noir:" The Day the Earth Caught Fire (Guest, 1962), Fri, 6.

ODDBALL FILMS 275 Capp, SF; (415) 558-8117, info@oddballfilm.com. $10 (RSVP required as seating is limited). "The Sensitive 70s: Empathetic Self-Help and Social-Problem Films from the Disco Decade," Sat, 8:30.

PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, www.bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. "Radical Light: Alternative Film and Video in the San Francisco Bay Area:" "1953-60," short films, Wed, 7:30. "Elegant Perversions: The Cinema of João César Monteiro:" Hovering over Water (1986), Thurs, 7; God’s Wedding (1999), Sat, 8:10; Snow White (2000), Sun, 6:10. "Days of Glory: Revisiting Italian Neorealism:" Shoeshine (De Sica, 1946), Fri, 7; Days of Glory (Various directors, 1945), Fri, 8:50; Under the Sun of Rome (Castellani, 1947), Sun, 4. "Shakespeare on Screen:" Throne of Blood (Kurosawa, 1957), Sat, 6.

RED VIC 1727 Haight, SF; (415) 668-3994. $6-10. Fresh (Joanes, 2010), Wed-Thurs, 7:15, 9:15 (also Wed, 2). Donnie Darko (Kelly, 2001), Fri-Sat, 7, 9:40 (also Sat, 2, 4:30). Toy Story 3 (Unkrich, 2010), Sun-Tues, 7;15, 9:15 (also Sun, 2, 4).

ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $5-9.75. Exit Through the Gift Shop (Banksy, 2010), Wed-Thurs, 9:15. Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin’ About Him?) (Scheinfeld, 2010), Wed-Thurs, 7, call for times. "Art Institute of California-SF Student Film Festival," Thurs, 6. Grant Morrison: Talking With Gods (Meaney, 2010), Oct 8-14, call for times.

SAN FRANCISCO BUDDHIST CENTER 37 Bartlett, SF; www.sfbuddhistcenter.org. $5. Aparajito (Ray, 1955), Fri, 8:30.

SAN FRANCISCO MUSEUM OF MODERN ART 151 Third St, SF; www.sfmoma.org. Free. "City Symphonies," Tues, noon.

SAN FRANCISCO PUBLIC LIBRARY Koret Auditorium, 100 Larkin, SF; www.sfpl.org. Free. "Bioneers Moving Image Festival," Sat, 11am-5pm.
VIZ CINEMA New People, 1746 Post, SF; www.vizcinema.com. $10. Redline (Koike, 2010), Oct 8-14, check website for times.
YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; (415) 978-2787, www.ybca.org. $6-8. "San Francisco Jewish Film Festival Presents: Tough Guys: Images of Jewish Gangsters in Film:" Murder, Inc. (Balaban and Rosenberg, 1960), Sun, 2. Solaris (Tarkovsky, 1972), Sun, 4:30.

Practiced distance

Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
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0
Practiced distance

arts@sfbg.com

FILM The first time I met Paul Clipson, we quickly discovered that we shared an intense regard for Nicholas Ray’s On Dangerous Ground (1952). I had just seen material that would become Clipson’s short film Union at a San Francisco Cinematheque screening a few days prior and found that its psychically charged shift from rural to urban spaces reminded me of the Ray movie (specifically, a single dissolve as Robert Ryan’s character drives back into the city). Union belongs to a different species of cinema, of course. It’s shot on Super 8 and 16mm, wordless, with a narrative situation (a girl running) refracted as pure kinesis. As became apparent talking with Clipson, however, his deep knowledge of film history is attuned to texture rather than taxonomy. The second time I watched Union, I realized that On Dangerous Ground was just a convenient name for the deeper, more elusive sense of recognition it stirred in me.

Since that first meeting, I have seen Clipson project films on a billowing screen under the stars; in the squat confines of the Café Du Nord for the On Land music festival, where his work expanded several performances; and on the sides of a dome structure atop Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. There have been more traditional screenings as well, though Clipson’s eclectic live projections are drawing attention — he’s fresh back from a brief European tour and will be featured in New York’s Views from the Avant-Garde this weekend. Before then, he’ll present a ranging survey of his recent efforts at SFMOMA, where he works as head projectionist.

The shifting context of live collaborations and crystallized short subjects is crucial to understanding Clipson’s work, and so "The Elements" will feature both: a suite of finished films sandwiched between projections with frequent collaborator Jefre Cantu-Ledesma and an ensemble, Portraits. An open frame of performance is a crucial catalyst for the searching lyricism of Clipson’s cinematography. He shoots frequently, building long reels to run with the music. Clipson refers to these unrehearsed dives as his research.

The camera style is at once impressionistic in its technique and boldly graphic in its compositions, haunted by familiar visual forms that, loosed from conventional perspective, are revealed to carry unexpected resonances and rhythms. What do we see? A million suns, made multiple by the surface of water and the curve of the camera lens; neon signs; flitting vertical obstructions; telephone wires; vegetation; intimate, handheld disclosures of vast distances; architectural surfaces. As with Joris Ivens’ early shorts, Clipson’s films register the city in its minor variations. Within the frame, a storm of vision emerges of superimpositions, dissolves, rack focus, zooms, and the interlacing of color and black-and-white stocks. It often seems that the objects he films are bringing the camera into focus and not the other way around.

When I ask about this, Clipson says, "I’ve found that the pulpy intensity of the Super 8 film decides the subject matter in a way. It’s like the film is in your brain telling you to shoot this or that — you can just imagine the luster." The intuitive nature of his in-camera montage meshes well with the aural landscapes of the live performances; a floating minimalism prevails. As a former member of Tarantel and co-steward of the Root Strata label, Cantu-Ledesme has been Clipson’s primary point of entry to this musical world. Speaking over the phone, he notes their easy camaraderie: "Once Paul is in the moment of filming, he’s just really responding to what is happening on the other side of the lens … and at least when I’m playing by myself, I try to have that same attitude."

In concert, the physical waves of sound and Clipson’s disembodied images are rich soil for a trance. It’s only in the concentrated shorts, however, that one finds the full extension of Clipson’s lyricism. The elliptical Sphinx on the Seine (2008) is still my favorite. Only eight minutes long, its shots seem to trace a voyage. We see the golden gleam of the sun as reflected by criss-crossing railways and snaking waterways, the shadow-world of a sidewalk, a phantasmal vision of Mount Fuji. Each of these lucid views slides away just as it ripens. Clipson’s collation of different cities is formally embedded in his composited images, which here appear as the fragile clues of some unknown existence. Like Sans Soleil (1983) and Mr. Arkadin (1955), two similarly itinerant films, Sphinx on the Seine evokes a tantalizing sense of placelessness.

One afternoon, both of us a little scatterbrained from a long week, Clipson and I get hung up on CinemaScope. He expresses admiration for the anamorphic framings of Ben Rivers’ I Know Where I’m Going (2009), and then draws a zigzag of appreciation between George Cukor’s 1954 A Star is Born ("The first 20 minutes"), Vincent Minnelli’s 1958 Some Came Running ("When you see it in the theater, it’s so much darker than on a television. You see shadows under people’s eyes"), and Otto Preminger’s general mastery of the form ("To me, those aren’t even compositions; they’re movements of thought"). It strikes me again and again that Clipson’s acute observations regarding film aesthetics are very much part of his creative force — yet his filmmaking doesn’t feel overcooked. Ben Rivers’ films work in a similar way: betraying a cinephile’s intimate knowledge of the medium, but out in the world all the same.

"Sometimes a few seconds of a film can live with you your whole life," Clipson tells me later that same afternoon, locating one such epiphany in the opening of Orson Welles’ Macbeth (1948): "There are all these dissolves going through the witches’ cauldron. You see a smoke circle, a storm cloud, what maybe is the surface of clouds from above, the cauldron and hands … I could just make films entirely inspired by that for 10 years because it’s so intangible, with such a beautiful, dense logic of images that resists immediate understanding." Indeed, it sounds like a Paul Clipson film.

"PAUL CLIPSON PRESENTS THE ELEMENTS"

Thurs/30, 7 p.m., $5

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art

151 Third St., SF

(415) 357-4000

www.sfmoma.org

Rep Clock

David Talbot
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0

Schedules are for Wed/29–Tues/5 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features are marked with a •. All times are p.m. unless otherwise specified.

ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6. Out of Our Minds (Stone and Auf der Mar, 2009), Sat, 4:30. “Other Cinema:” Mellodrama: The Mellotron Movie (Dilworth, 2010), Sat, 8:30.

CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $7.50-10. Metropolis: The Complete Restoration (Lang, 1927), Wed, 2, 5, 8. “Grace Kelly: Grace and Style:” •To Catch a Thief (Hitchcock, 1955), Thurs, 2:40, 7, and High Society (Walters, 1956), Thurs, 4:40, 9; •Rear Window (Hitchcock, 1954), Fri, 2:45, 7, and Dial M For Murder (Hitchcock, 1954), Fri, 4:50, 9:15.

CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.50-10.25. Howl (Epstein and Friedman, 2010), call for dates and times. Capturing Reality: The Art of Documentary (Ferrari, 2009), Thurs, 7. Fresh (Joanes, 2010), Oct 1-6, call for times. Film Portraits By Christopher Felver: Ferlinghetti (Felver, 2009), Sun, 6:30.

EMBARCADERO One Embarcadero Center, promenade level, SF; www.sffs.org. $12.50. Earth Made of Glass (Scranton, 2010), Thurs, 7. Screening followed by a panel discussion about documentary film as a form of investigative journalism.

HERBST THEATRE 401 Van Ness, SF; (415) 392-4400, www.lunafest.org. $10-75. “Lunafest,” short films by, for, and about women, Thurs, 7:30. Benefits the Breast Cancer Fund.

MECHANICS’ INSTITUTE 57 Post, SF; (415) 393-0100 (reservations required). $10. “CinemaLit: Apocalypse Noir:” The Innocents (Clayton, 1961), Fri, 6.

ODDBALL FILMS 275 Capp, SF; (415) 558-8117, info@oddballfilm.com. $10 (RSVP required as seating is limited). “The Lit Show: Rare Cinema + Live Literary Song,” with Suzy Williams and Brad Kay, Sun, 8.

PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, www.bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. “Radical Light: Alternative Film and Video in the San Francisco Bay Area:” “1946-53,” short films, Wed, 7:30. “Shakespeare on Screen:” Angelic Conversations (Jarman, 1985), Thurs, 7. “Days of Glory: Revisiting Italian Neorealism:” La Terra Trema (Visconti, 1948), Fri, 7; Teresa Venerdi (De Sica, 1941), Sat, 6:30; Paisan (Rossellini, 1946), Sun, 4.”Drawn From Life: Comic Books and Graphic Novels Adapted:” American Splendor (Berman and Pulcini, 2003), Sat, 8:30. “Elegant Perversions: The Cinema of João César Monteiro:” The Last Dive (1992), Sun, 6:30.

PRESIDIO Moraga at Arguello, SF; www.sffs.org. Free. “Film in the Fog:” The Incredible Shrinking Man (Arnold, 1957) with “The Skeleton Dance” (Disney, 1929), Sat, 5.

RED VIC 1727 Haight, SF; (415) 668-3994. $6-10. I Am Love (Guadagnino, 2009), Wed, 2, 7, 9:30. Sweethearts of the Prison Rodeo (Beesley, 2010), Thurs, 7:15, 9:30. Fresh (Joanes, 2010), Oct 1-7, 7:15, 9:15 (also Sat-Sun, 2, 4; Wed, 2).

ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $5-9.75. The Agony and the Ecstasy of Phil Spector (Jayanti, 2008), Wed-Thurs, 7. Exit Through the Gift Shop (Banksy, 2010), Wed-Thurs, 9. “McSweeney’s Presents:” “Wholphin Issue 12 Release Party,” Wed, 7; “I’m Here,” short films by Spike Jonze and more, Thurs, 7:30. Who Is Harry Nilsson (And Why Is Everybody Talkin’ About Him?) (Scheinfeld, 2010), Oct 1-7, call for times.

SAN FRANCISCO MUSEUM OF MODERN ART 151 Third St, SF; www.sfmoma.org. $5. “Paul Clipson presents the Elements,” films by Clipson with music by Jefre Cantu-Ledesma and Portraits, Thurs, 7.

SAN FRANCISCO PUBLIC LIBRARY Koret Auditorium, 100 Larkin, SF; www.sfpl.org. Free. “Amandla! South Africa During and After Apartheid:” District 9 (Blomkamp, 2009), Thurs, noon.

VIZ CINEMA New People, 1746 Post, SF; www.vizcinema.com. $10-15. Sayonara Itsuka — Goodbye, Someday (Lee, 2010), Oct 1-7, check website for times.

YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; (415) 978-2787, www.ybca.org. $6-8. “Others/Ourselves: The Cinema of Robert Gardner:” Forest of Bliss (1986), Thurs, 7:30. “Sesame Street: A Celebration:” “Sesame Street at 40: Milestones on the Street,” best-of compilation, Fri, 7:30; Sat, 2. “San Francisco Jewish Film Festival Presents: Tough Guys: Images of Jewish Gangsters in Film:” Eight Men Out (Sayles, 1988), Sun, 2.

Rep Clock

David Talbot
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0

Schedules are for Wed/22–Tues/28 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features are marked with a •. All times are p.m. unless otherwise specified.

ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6-10. "What is Life Without the Living?", experimental queer works by Luther Price and David Scheid, Thurs, 8. "Electronic Cinema," sound artists perform scores for films by experimental filmmakers, Fri, 8. "Other Cinema: The Land of the Rising Fastball," films about Japanese baseball, Sat, 8:30.

CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $7.50-10. "Janus Films Presents: Charlie Chaplin:" •Limelight (1952) with "Shoulder Arms" (1918), Wed, 1:30, 4:45, 8. "Good Vibrations Fifth Annual Indie Erotic Film Festival," film competition hosted by Peaches Christ and Dr. Carol Queen, Thurs, 8 (pre-party, 7). For additional info, visit www.gv-ixff.org. "Gavyn Awards," also known as "the Oscars of gay adult entertainment," Fri, 7. For tickets, visit www.gayvnawards.com. Metropolis: The Complete Restoration (Lang, 1927), Sat, 1:30; Sun-Tues and Sept 29, 8 (also Sept 29, 2, 5). "The Twilight Saga Marathon": •Twilight (Hardwicke, 2008), Sat, 5; New Moon (Weitz, 2009), Sat, 7:20; and Eclipse (Slade, 2010), Sat, 9:45. "The Mighty Uke Roadshow:" Mighty Uke (Coleman, 2010), Sun, 3. Also featuring a live ukelele concert (this event, $12).

CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.50-10.25. The Agony and the Ecstasy of Phil Spector (Jayanti, 2009), call for dates and times. Cairo Time (Nadda, 2009), call for dates and times. The Girl Who Played With Fire (Alfredson, 2009), call for dates and times. The Sicilian Girl (Amenta, 2008), call for dates and times. Howl (Epstein and Friedman, 2010), Sept 24-30, call for times. "The Films of My Life:" Stranger Than Paradise (Jarmusch, 1984), Thurs, 7. Presented by musician Jerry Harrison.

EMBARCADERO One Embarcadero Center, promenade level, SF; www.sffs.org. $8-20. "NY/SF International Children’s Film Festival," films for kids ages 3-18 and their families, Fri-Sun.

"FILM NIGHT IN THE PARK" This week: Creek Park, 451 Sir Francis Drake, San Anselmo; (415) 272- 2756, www.filmnight.org. Donations accepted. Wall-E (Stanton, 2008), Fri, 8. Dolores Park, Dolores at 19th St, SF; same contact and price info. The Big Lebowski (Coen, 1998), Sat, 8.

HUMANIST HALL 390 27th St, Oakl; www.humanisthall.org. $5. Six Degrees Could Change the World, Wed, 7:30.

JACK LONDON SQUARE East lawn, Oakl; www.jacklondonsquare.com. Free. "Waterfront Flicks:" Land of the Lost (Silberling, 2009), Thurs, 7:30.

MECHANICS’ INSTITUTE 57 Post, SF; (415) 393-0100 (reservations required). $10. "CinemaLit: Loves Labours: Leo McCarey Revisited:" Going My Way (McCarey, 1944), Fri, 6.

"OAKLAND UNDERGROUND FILM FESTIVAL" Various venues, Oakl; www.oakuff.org. $10. Independent and DIY films, video, and video art made in Oakland. Thurs-Fri, 5; Sat, 10am.

PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, www.bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. "Alternative Visions:" L’Age d’or (Buñuel, 1930) with "Un Chant d’amour" (Genet, 1950), Wed, 7:30. "Behind the Scenes: The Art and Craft of Cinema:" Akeelah and the Bee (Atchison, 2006), Thurs, 7:30; Hud (Ritt, 1963). With special guests in person discussing the making of each film. "Elegant Perversions: The Cinema of João César Monteiro:" Trails (1978), Fri, 7; God’s Comedy (1995), Sat, 8. "Drawn From Life: Comic Books and Graphic Novels Adapted:" Tank Girl (Talalay, 1995), Fri, 9:15; Who Framed Roger Rabbit (Zemeckis, 1988), Sun, 6:45. "Swoon: Great Leading Men in Gorgeous 35mm Prints:" Jubal (Daves, 1956), Sat, 6.

RED VIC 1727 Haight, SF; (415) 668-3994. $6-10. "Isle of Wight 40th Anniversary Film Festival: Shot and Directed By Murray Lerner:" Leonard Cohen (1970), Wed, 2, 7:15; Listening to You: The Who at the Isle of Wight (1970), Wed, 9:15; Jethro Tull: Nothing Is Easy: Live at the Isle of Wight (1970), Thurs, 7:15; The Moody Blues (1970), Thurs, 9:15; Miles Electric: A Different Kind of Blue (1970), Fri, 7; Message to Love: The Isle of Wight Festival (1970), Fri, 9:35 and Sat, 2, 7; Jimi Hendrix (1970), Sat, 4:30, 9:35. The Room (Wiseau, 2003), Sat, midnight. 8 1/2 (Fellini, 1963), Sun, 2, 5, 8; Mon, 7:30. I Am Love (Guadagnino, 2009), Sept 28-29, 7, 9:30 (also Sept 29, 2).

ROGUE ALES PUBLIC HOUSE 673 Union, SF; www.rogue.com. Free. "Barbary Coast Film Festival," original films under 15 minutes, Sun, 7:30.

ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $5-9.75. The Agony and the Ecstasy of Phil Spector (Jayanti, 2008), Wed-Thurs, Wed, 7; Thurs, 7:45. Exit Through the Gift Shop (Banksy, 2010), Wed-Thurs, 9 (also Thurs, 7). •The Long Goodbye (Altman, 1972), Wed, 7; Thieves Like Us (Altman, 1974), Wed, 9. "SF Irish Film Festival," Thurs-Sat. For program info, visit www.sfirishfilm.com. "PFFR September Sexclusive," Sun, 7. •Surviving Desire (Hartley, 1991), Mon-Tues, 7, 9:40, and Book of Life (Hartley, 1998), Mon-Tues, 8:15.

"SAN FRANCISCO LATINO FILM FESTIVAL" University of San Francisco, 130 Fulton, SF; (415) 826-7057, www.sflatinofilmfestival.org. $8-10. Lula, Son of Brazil, Sat, 7. Ichthus Gallery, 1769 15th St, SF. Same contact info and price. "Shorts Program," Sun, 6.

SAN FRANCISCO MUSEUM OF MODERN ART 151 Third St, SF; www.sfmoma.org. $10. "Return to Canyon," presented by San Francisco Cinematheque in association with the Pacific Film Archive, Thurs, 7.

SAN FRANCISCO PUBLIC LIBRARY Koret Auditorium, 100 Larkin, SF; www.sfpl.org. Free. "Amandla! South Africa During and After Apartheid:" Invictus (Eastwood, 2009), Thurs, noon.
VIZ CINEMA New People, 1746 Post, SF; www.vizcinema.com. $10-15. Detroit Metal City (Lee, 2008), Wed-Tues, 7:15 (also Wed-Fri and Mon-Tues, 5).
YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; (415) 978-2787, www.ybca.org. $6-8. "Others/Ourselves: The Cinema of Robert Gardner:" Dead Birds (1964), Thurs, 7:30; Rivers of Sand (1974), Sun, 2. "Totally Ridiculous: The Lost Films of Charles Ludlam:" The Sorrows of Dolores (Ludlam, late 70s-1987) with "Museum of Wax," Fri-Sat, 7:30; The Imposters (Rappaport, 1980), Sun, 4:30.

Party Radar: Men, Kele, Kaos

Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
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1
Party Radar: Men, Kele, Kaos

Ah, yes — the fleeting maybe yes/ maybe no of San Francisco summer has (possibly) arrived. And even if the weather doesn’t quite cooperate, at least we all feel our spirits lift and our clothing constrict. Fortunately, there are many, many parties to rip it all off at! Not literally, but why not? Besides some of the parties listed in this week’s Super Ego clubs column, here’s a few more at which you can run wild and free and hot.

MEN

The topical and too-catchy indie electro group Men, which includes super-sexy JD Samson of Le Tigre fame, is taking over the SFMOMA this evening as part of the Thursday Now Playing series. (“Radical dance music” in a big museum? Me like.)

Cool queers and friends of all stripes will get into a screening of a new project by the Ridykeulous project at 7pm and then a live performance in the Haas Atrium by Men at 9pm.

Thu/16, 6pm-9:45pm, free with admission to museum. SFMOMA, 151 Third St., SF. www.sfmoma.org

 

 

KELE

The Bloc Party leader — and out queer dream — is bringing his solo show to Mezzanine in support of new album The Boxer, and it seems he’s focussing on getting the crowd dancing. That’s alright with me! Does It Offend You, Yeah?, who put on a great show a couple years ago at Slim’s (even though everyone was at Coachella) open up with some baggy Madchester-referencing gonzo electro. 

Sat/18, 9pm, $20. Mezzanine, 444 Jessie, SF. www.mezzaninesf.com

 

 

DJ KAOS

Toothy grin for this one. Honey Soundsystem‘s great weekly Honey Sundays party has been homeless since Paradise Lounge shut its doors. Until the Honey boys find a new space, they’ve been a-roving — and it’s a great indication of how open our scene is that they’re arty-fab queer crowd is being welcomed by intelligent techno-head hosts. This week, Honey pairs with Bionic, the weekly Sunday at 222 Hyde that’s seen its fair share of roving itself, to bring in Berlin ‘s DJ Kaos, whose been pumping out quality, eclectic techno and house releases since 1991, yeesh. I can’t wait to see how this whole experiment coalesces.

Sun/19, 10pm, $5. 222 Hyde, SF. www.222hyde.com 

Our Weekly Picks: September 8-14, 2010

Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
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0

WEDNESDAY 8

DANCE

Project Thrust

Many might think the bigger the bust, the better. But when it comes to the female body, shit gets complicated. Tits are either too big, too small, too this, too that. “How, when, and why are women aware and unaware of their feminine features? When do women hide curves and when do they flaunt them? Is it difficult to sustain sexiness?” These are some of the crucial questions choreographer and dancer Malinda LaVelle — who has danced with the Foundry and is now an artist in residence at the Garage — explores with her dance company Project Thrust and its newest work, Project Bust. Whether you love or hate the twins, LaVelle’s bold and funny choreography will leave you with a profound new respect for the female form. (Katie Gaydos)

Through Thurs/9

8 p.m., $15

Garage

975 Howard, SF

(415) 518-1517

www.projectthrust.org

 

THURSDAY 9

THEATER

Jerry Springer the Opera

Time for a big, dramatic, Jerry Springer Show-style revelation: I’m the father of your baby! Uh, just kidding. Actually, I was going to say that I had to ask the Googles if The Jerry Springer Show is still on TV. And indeed, 19 seasons along, it is. Even if its zeitgeist was a few years ago, and the most scandalous stuff on the idiot box now comes courtesy of Real Housewives, there’s no excuse for any self-respecting Springer fan (oxymoron?) to miss Jerry Springer the Opera, which promises “strippers and rednecks, incest and coprophilia, Jesus, Satan, and the Virgin Mary, the Ku Klux Klan, and a lesbian dwarf.” Adventurous local company Ray of Light Theatre ushers in its 10th anniversary season with this lurid, award-winning spectacular. (Cheryl Eddy)

Through Oct. 16

Wed.–Sat., 8 p.m., $20–$36

Victoria Theatre

2961 16th St, SF

www.jerrysf.com

 

MUSIC

Apocalyptica

Thanks to Judgement Day, Grayceon, and Giant Squid, San Francisco concert-goers are familiar with the peculiar potency of heavy metal cello. Unlike those bands, however, Finland’s Apocalyptica consists entirely of cellists. Since its beginnings in 1993 (sawing out Metallica covers), the quintet (four cellos, drums) has built up a cult following and turned its talents toward writing original songs. A new album, 7th Symphony, was released Aug. 20, featuring collaborations with Dave Lombardo (strong) and Gavin Rossdale (weak). Apocalyptica’s live show, nevertheless, is not to be missed. If you’re never seen someone play a cello while standing up and headbanging — well, what’s taken you so long? (Ben Richardson)

with Dir En Grey, Evaline

8 p.m., $28

Regency Ballroom

1290 Sutter, SF

1-866-448-7849

www.theregencyballroom.com

 

FILM

“Infinite City: Cinema City”

Writer Rebecca Solnit’s “Infinite City: A San Francisco Atlas” mapmaking project has investigated butterflies, queer history, hippies, and the SF vs. L.A. rivalry. Now, and perhaps inevitably, Solnit and her collaborators turn their attention to local cinema. Tonight’s work-in-progress screening, “Housing Shadows and Projecting Fog,” includes films on film (and fog) by Andy Black and Sam Green, and Christian Bruno. Saturday’s sprawling “cinema crawl” invites the movie-minder to various theaters. Two highlights: the Roxie spreads sparkle with Pickup’s Tricks, Gregory Pickup’s 1973 profile of founding Cockette Hibiscus; and the obligatory Vertigo screening (1958) at the Vogue. (Eddy)

7 p.m., free with museum admission ($9–$18)

(Sat/11, “A Few Dream Palaces of San Francisco” cinema crawl, various venues and times)

Phyllis Wattis Theater

SF Museum of Modern Art

151 Third St., SF

(415) 357-4000

www.sfmoma.org

 

MUSIC

Coliseum

Having stormed out of Kentucky onto the national scene with 2007’s No Salvation LP, Coliseum took an abrupt left turn when it came time to write this year’s follow-up, House With A Curse. Throttling back the incendiary crust-punk crossover of their previous albums, the trio debuted a new drummer and a stately post-punk sound — its tempos, at least when compared to precedent, sound almost meditative. Despite the switch, the songwriting remains stellar, and mastermind Ryan Patterson’s throaty yowl is wielded with mastery. Joined by local troublemakers Walken on Potrero Hill’s lowest stage, the band will deploy its new bread and circuses. (Richardson)

With Burning Love, Walken, Buried at Birth

9 p.m., $8

Thee Parkside

1600 17th St., SF

(415) 252-1330

www.theeparkside.com

 

MUSIC

The Gories

Looking for some good clean fun? This ain’t the show for you. As their name suggests, garage-rock vets the Gories play dirty, sinister blues with vocals that wail about feral girlfriends, explosive girlfriends, and motorcycle heroes, intercut with harmonica blasts and impassioned, slightly insane woo-hoo!s. Formed in Detroit circa 1986 — when squares were jamming to Whitney Houston and “Addicted to Love” — the band’s sound suggests nothing about the ’80s; it’s more like the tunes you’d want to hear while drag-racing to a midnight rager in a cemetery. Singer Mick Collins went on to form the Dirtbombs, a band that’s commanded its own rightful following, and this Gories reunion gig is a rare affair indeed. Turn up early for Haunted George, a kindred lo-fi cat whose discography includes an album titled Pile O’ Meat. Have mercy! (Eddy)

With Haunted George and Nice Smile

8 p.m., $20

Independent

628 Divisadero, SF

(415) 771-1421

www.theindependentsf.com

 

FRIDAY 10

 

DANCE

Paul Laurey and Christine Bonasea

Paul Laurey grew up in the Blue Ridge Mountains of West Virginia; he was training to be a scientist when the desire to dance hit him. Christine Bonasea was born in France and also tried academia and dance. Dance won out for her as well. Now courtesy of Joe Landini’s RAW — or resident artist workshop, which offers no money but free rehearsal space — they are sharing an evening of independent choreography. Both work with excellent, equally committed fellow performers: Laurey in Pull, Push and Things that Matter with Christine Cali and Sonsheree Giles; Bonasea in the matter of things with Rosemary Hannon, Jorge Rodolfo de Hoyos, and Kira Kirsh. The thrill comes from watching good dancers taking new risks and committing themselves to new contexts. (Rita Felciano)

Through Sat/11

8 p.m., $15

Garage

975 Howard, SF

www.975howard.com

 

FILM

“Drawn From Life: Comic Books and Graphic Novels Adapted”

When it comes to adapting a work for film, some preexisting properties have proven more successful than others. Video games: bad; Jane Austen novels: better; comic books: blockbusters, even when the movie ends up sucking. There’s yet to be a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar doled out for a graphic novel or comic adaptation, but can such a breakthrough be far off? Missing from the Pacific Film Archive’s lineup are Ghost World (2001) and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (still in theaters), but as graphic novel geeks the world over await/assault news regarding the Y: The Last Man movie, there’s plenty of tiding-over afoot. Campy delight Flash Gordon (1980) kicks off the series, with Hellboy (2004), Popeye (1980), American Splendor (2003), and Wes Craven’s oft-overlooked 1982 Swamp Thing among future selections. (Eddy)

“Drawn From Life: Comic Books and Graphic Novels Adapted”

Through Oct 31, $5.50–$9.50

Pacific Film Archive

2575 Bancroft, Berk.

(510) 642-5249

www.bampfa.berkeley.edu

 

SATURDAY 11

COMEDY

Craig Ferguson

In the supposedly madcap, late-night TV landscape (see: 1996’s The Late Shift), it’s surprising that Craig Ferguson has ultimately emerged as the least traditional of them all. The Scottish comedian — accent and all — makes up jokes on the fly, curses like a sailor, and often references his past as an alcoholic, a bartender, and a punk band drummer, every night on The Late Late Show. But in sticking to his guns, Ferguson comes off as a real talent rather than a manufactured experience, and the program’s unpredictable nature is the real reason to tune in — who cares about the guests anymore? You don’t have to visit the L.A. studio to see the man work; this week he brings his wanton charm to Davies Symphony Hall. (Peter Galvin)

8 p.m., $45–$55

Davies Symphony Hall

201 Van Ness, SF

1-866-448-7849

www.ticketmaster.com

 

VISUAL ART

“Castration Myth”

So there was this artist named Rudolf Schwarzkogler who was affiliated with Viennese Actionism — a 1960s art movement that used the body as canvas and violence as paint — and in 1965 he scared the art world and discredited the avant-garde by cutting off his penis. Or so people thought; turns out it was just a friend and a filleted fish. Fast-forward 36 years to 9/11 and we have the whole world scared, the term post-avant, and not one, but two dismembered phalluses — this time for real. Is there another fish myth at stake? Seeing this exhibit of Rudolph’s “Aktion” performance photographs is one way to find out. (Spencer Young)

Through Oct. 9

6–8 p.m., free

Steven Wolf Fine Arts

2747 19th St, SF

(415) 263 3677

www.stevenwolffinearts.com

 

COMEDY

Dylan Moran

Perhaps best known to American audiences for his appearances in Shaun of the Dead and Run, Fatboy, Run, Irish comedian Dylan Moran is a huge hit in his native U.K., notably for his brilliant role as a cantankerous and drunk yet lovable book shop owner in the tragically short-lived BBC series Black Books. His live stand-up is where he’s really made his name though; biting, sarcastic, and side-splittingly hilarious observations of a variety of topics we all encounter in our day-to-day lives — along with ones that most of us presumably don’t, such as having a weekend tryst with a Smurf. (Sean McCourt)

8 p.m., $36

Marines Memorial Theatre

609 Sutter, 2nd floor, SF

(415) 771-6900

www.marinesmemorialtheatre.com

 

TUESDAY 14

 

MUSIC

Suckers

Taking equal parts David Bowie-fetishism, avant-garde pop, and the sort of world eclecticism pioneered by Paul Simon and Peter Gabriel — and recently invigorated by Yeasayer and Vampire Weekend — this Brooklyn band hits just the right measures of each to create its signature Suckers sound. While that description might lead you to believe the foursome’s sound might be aloof or reserved, its debut Wild Smile is surprisingly sunny, like a collection of the slowest dance songs. Forget the name, a sucker is the last thing you’d be for getting a ticket to this one. (Galvin)

With Menomena and Tu Fawning

Through Sun/15

8 p.m., $18

Great American Music Hall

859 O’Farrell, SF

(415) 885-0750

www.gamh.com 


The Guardian listings deadline is two weeks prior to our Wednesday publication date. To submit an item for consideration, please include the title of the event, a brief description of the event, date and time, venue name, street address (listing cross streets only isn’t sufficient), city, telephone number readers can call for more information, telephone number for media, and admission costs. Send information to Listings, the Guardian Building, 135 Mississippi St., SF, CA 94107; fax to (415) 487-2506; or e-mail (paste press release into e-mail body — no text attachments, please) to listings@sfbg.com. We cannot guarantee the return of photos, but enclosing an SASE helps. Digital photos may be submitted in jpeg format; the image must be at least 240 dpi and four inches by six inches in size. We regret we cannot accept listings over the phone.

 

Rep Clock

David Talbot
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0

Schedules are for Wed/8–Tues/14 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features are marked with a •. All times are p.m. unless otherwise specified.

ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6. "ANSWER Coalition:" Faubourg Tremé: The Untold Story of Black New Orleans (Logsdon, 2008), Thurs, 7:30. The Invisible Forest (Alli, 2008), Fri, 8.

CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $7.50-10. The Bridge on the River Kwai (Lean, 1957), Sept 10-16, 7:30 (also Sat-Sun, Wed, 1, 4:15).

CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.50-10.25. Cairo Time (Nadda, 2009), call for dates and times. The Girl Who Played With Fire (Alfredson, 2009), call for dates and times. Lebanon (Maoz, 2009), call for dates and times. Soul Kitchen (Akin, 2009), call for dates and times. The Agony and the Ecstasy of Phil Spector (Jayanti, 2009), Sept 10-16, call for times. It Came From Kuchar (Kroot, 2009), Sun, 6:30.

"FILM NIGHT IN THE PARK" This week: Old Mill Park, 300 block of Throckmorton, Mill Valley; (415) 272- 2756, www.filmnight.org. Donations accepted. Alice in Wonderland (Burton, 2010), Fri, 8. Washington Square Park, Union and Columbus, SF; same contact and price info. Amélie (Jeunet, 2001), Sat, 8.

HERBST THEATER 401 Van Ness, SF; www.groundspark.org. $10-25. Choosing Children (Chasnoff and Klausner, 1985), Tues, 6:30. Twenty-fifth anniversary screening.

HUMANIST HALL 390 27th St, Oakl; www.humanisthall.org. $5. World in the Balance: The Population Paradox, Wed, 7:30.

JACK LONDON SQUARE East lawn, Oakl; www.jacklondonsquare.com. Free. "Waterfront Flicks:" Dreamgirls (Condon, 2006), Thurs, 7:30.

MECHANICS’ INSTITUTE 57 Post, SF; (415) 393-0100 (reservations required). $10. "CinemaLit: Loves Labours: Leo McCarey Revisited:" The Awful Truth (McCarey, 1937), Fri, 6.

"9/11 TRUTH FILM FESTIVAL" Various venues; www.sf911truth.org. Sponsored by the Northern California 9/11 Truth Alliance; go to website for complete schedule. Thurs-Sun.

PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, www.bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. "Unseen Cinema:" "Revolutions in Technique and Form," Wed, 7:30. "Shakespeare on Film:" Henry V (Olivier, 1945), Thurs, 7; A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Dieterle and Reinhardt, 1935), Sun, 4. "Swoon: Great Leading Men in Gorgeous 35mm Prints:" House of Bamboo (Fuller, 1952), Fri, 7; The Hustler (Rosen, 1961), Sun, 6:30. "Drawn From Life: Comic Books and Graphic Novels Adapted:" Flash Gordon (Hodges, 1980), Fri, 9; Hellboy (del Toro, 2004), Sat, 8:45. "Berkeley Old Time Music Convention:" •I Hear What You See: The Old-Time World of Kenny Hall (Simon, 2010), and Sprout Wings and Fly (Blank, Gerrard, and Conway, 1983), Sat, 4. "Dance and the State in East Asia Conference:" Yang Bang Xi: The Eight Model Works (Yan, 2006), Sat, 6:30.

RED VIC 1727 Haight, SF; (415) 668-3994. $6-9. "SF Shorts: The San Francisco International Festival of Short Films," Wed-Sat, 7:30, 9:30 (also Fri, 5:30; Sat, 3:30, 5:30). The Karate Kid (Zwart, 2010), Sun, 2, 5, 8; Mon, 7:30. Cyrus (Duplass and Duplass, 2010), Sept 14-16, 7:15, 9:15 (also Sept 15, 2).

ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $5-11.50. The Cockettes (Weissman and Weber, 2002), Wed-Thurs, 7, 9:15. With live performances from the Thrillpeddlers’ production of the Cockettes musical Pearls Over Shanghai. The Life and Times of Allen Ginsberg (Aronson, 1984), Wed-Thurs, 7:15, 9. Agony and the Ecstasy of Phil Spector (Jayanti, 2008), Sept 10-16, 7, 9:15 (also Sat-Sun, 2:30, 4:45). Pickup’s Tricks (Pickup, 1973), Sat, 6. Part of SFMOMA’s "Cinema City" film crawl.
SAN FRANCISCO MUSEUM OF MODERN ART 151 Third St, SF; www.sfmoma.org. Prices vary. "Infinite City: Cinema City:" "Housing Shadows and Projecting Fog," work-in-progress screening, Thurs, 7. "Cinema City" continues with screenings at various SF venues. Check website for info.
SAN FRANCISCO PUBLIC LIBRARY Koret Auditorium, 100 Larkin, SF; www.sfpl.org. Free. "Amandla! South Africa During and After Apartheid:" Tsotsi (Hood, 2005), Thurs, noon.

Rep Clock

David Talbot
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0

Schedules are for Wed/1–Tues/7 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features are marked with a •. All times are p.m. unless otherwise specified.

ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $3-10. The Treatment (Lovewarz), Thurs, 7:30. Music shorts by Vincent Moon, Fri, 8. "Other Cinema Digital and Alternative Digital Domain: Kwik Gigs 66," short films, videos, and live performance, Sat, 9.

"BERNAL HEIGHTS OUTDOOR CINEMA" Various venues, www.bhoutdoorcine.org. Free. More than 65 short films and videos from local filmmakers, screened at impromptu neighborhood venues. Thurs-Sun.

CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $7.50-10. "Blonde Bombshells:" •Written on the Wind (Sirk, 1956), Wed, 2:55, 7, and Madame X (Rich, 1966), Wed, 4:55, 9; •Three For the Show (Potter, 1955), Thurs, 2, 5:35, 9:20, and Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (Tashlin, 1957), Thurs, 3:45, 7:30; My Man Godfrey (La Cava, 1936), Fri, 1, 5, 9:20, and Some Like It Hot (Wilder, 1959), Fri, 2:45, 7; •Libeled Lady (Conway, 1936), Sat, 1, 5, 9:10, and Dinner at Eight (Cukor, 1933), Sat, 2:55, 7; • The Misfits (Huston, 1961), and Platinum Blonde (Capra, 1931), Sun, call for times.

CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.50-10.25. Cairo Time (Nadda, 2009), call for dates and times. The Girl Who Played With Fire (Alfredson, 2009), call for dates and times. Lebanon (Maoz, 2009), call for dates and times. Soul Kitchen (Akin, 2009), Sept 3-9, call for times. "Everybody’s Classics": North by Northwest (Hitchcock, 1959), Sun, noon (free screening).

"FILM NIGHT IN THE PARK" This week: Creek Park, 451 Sir Francis Drake, San Anselmo; (415) 272- 2756, www.filmnight.org. Donations accepted. Sixteen Candles (Hughes, 1984), Fri, 8; Up (Docter and Peterson, 2009), Sat, 8; Avatar (Cameron, 2009), Sun, 5.

HUMANIST HALL 390 27th St, Oakl; www.humanisthall.org. $5. Avatar (Cameron, 2009), Wed, 7:30.

JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER OF SAN FRANCISCO 3200 California, SF; www.sf-interfaith.org. Free. A Village Called Versailles (Chiang), Wed, 7.

MECHANICS’ INSTITUTE 57 Post, SF; (415) 393-0100 (reservations required). $10. "CinemaLit: Loves Labours: Leo McCarey Revisited:" Ruggles of Red Gap (McCarey, 1935), Fri, 6.

PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, www.bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. "Alternative Visions: Oskar Fischinger Classics," Wed, 7:30. "Swoon: Great Leading Men in Gorgeous 35mm Prints:" In a Lonely Place (Ray, 1950), Thurs, 7; Out of the Past (Tourneur, 1947), Sat, 6:30; From Here to Eternity (Zinnemann, 1953), Sat, 8:30; Picnic (Logan, 1956), Sun, 6:45. "Shakespeare on Screen:" Hamlet (Gade and Schall, 1920), Fri, 6:30; Hamlet Goes Business (Kaurismäki, 1987), Fri, 8:40; Romeo and Juliet (Zeffirelli, 1968), Sun, 4.

RED VIC 1727 Haight, SF; (415) 668-3994. $6-9. Vertigo (Hitchcock, 1958), Wed-Thurs, 7, 9:35 (also Wed, 2). House (Obayahsi, 1977), Fri-Sat, 7:15, 9:15 (also Sat, 2, 4). The Secret of Kells (More and Twomey, 2009), Sun-Tues, 7:15, 9:15 (also Sun-Mon, 2, 4).

ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $5-11.50. "Not Necessarily Noir:" •Mickey One (Penn, 1965), Wed, 6:10, 9:15, and The Woman Chaser (Devor, 1999), Wed, 8; •Rolling Thunder (Flynn, 1977), Thurs, 6, 10, and Hardcore (Schrader, 1979), Thurs, 8. The Life and Times of Allen Ginsberg (Aronson, 1994), Sept 3-9, 7:15, 9 (also Sat-Sun, 2, 3:45, 5:30). Mogwai: Burning (Moon and La Souanec, 2010), Sat, 11. The Cockettes (Weissman and Weber, 2002), Sept 7-9, 7, 9:15. With live performances from the Thrillpeddlers’ production of the Cockettes musical Pearls Over Shanghai.

SAN FRANCISCO MUSEUM OF MODERN ART 151 Third St, SF; www.sfmoma.org. $5. "Daft Punk on Screen:" Electroma (Bangalter and De Homem-Christo, 2006), Thurs, 7.

VIZ CINEMA New People, 1746 Post, SF; www.vizcinema.com. $10. "Kurosawa On Sword Battles: Samurai Saga Vol. 2:" Throne of Blood (1957), Wed, 4:30 and Thurs, 7; The Hidden Fortress (1958), Wed, 7 and Thurs, 4.

YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; (415) 978-2787, www.ybca.org. $6-8. "Dark "Something From Nothing: Films on Design and Architecture:" Handmade Nation (Levine, 2009), Sun, 2.

Representing the reps

Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
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0
Representing the reps

FALL ARTS Here’s a list to get your started; visit the venue or organization website for even more events than could possibly fit here.

Artists’ Television Access (www.atasite.org): “Other Cinema,” the Saturday-night showcase of creatively programmed films and videos, returns Sept. 11 (www.othercinema.com); the “Electronic Cinema” series brings sound artists together with experimental filmmakers Sept. 14.

Castro (www.castrotheatre.com): “Blonde Bombshells” series (lot o’ Marilyn) Aug. 27–Sept. 5; a digital restoration of 1957 classic Bridge on the River Kwai Sept 10–16; and a Chaplin series Sept. 18–21. Jesse Hawthorne Ficks’ always-fun “Midnites for Maniacs” (www.midnitesformaniacs.com) rolls out a “Reinventing Prom” triple feature Sept. 17 (at midnight: 1982’s Zapped!).

Christopher B. Smith Rafael Film Festival (www.cafilm.org): The biggest event up north is the 33rd Mill Valley Film Festival (www.mvff.org), Oct 7-17. Other special events: the “Films of My Life” series, with Talking Head Jerry Harrison discussing Jim Jarmusch’s 1984 Stranger Than Paradise.

Clay (www.landmarktheatres.com): The Clay closes Aug. 29. Head out for Aug. 28’s midnight showing of The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), with the Bawdy Caste on hand for a live performance and Clay “funeral.”

Film Night in the Park (www.filmnight.org): Dude! Season-capper The Big Lebowski (1998) invades Dolores Park Sept. 25.

Forbidden Island (www.forbiddenislandalameda.com): Shout out to Will “The Thrill” Viharo, whose “Forbidden Thrills” double-feature-and-signature-drink series packs in some true oddities. Nov. 15’s entry is an Ed Wood tribute, with “The Angora Sweater” cocktail.

Pacific Film Archive (www.bampfa.berkeley.edu): Highlights of the fall program include “Drawn from Life: The Graphic Novel on Film” (Sept. 10–Oct. 31); and the San Francisco Cinematheque co-sponsored “Radical Light: Alternative Film and Video in the San Francisco Bay Area” (Sept. 17–March 31).

Red Vic (www.redvicmoviehouse.com): Oh, hi. Good luck trying to get a ticket for The Room (2003) with THE Tommy Wiseau in person Sept. 17–18. Other fall delights: the local theatrical premiere of Cropsey, a doc that investigates the intersection of true crime and urban legend, Oct 15–19.

Roxie (www.roxie.com): It’s a festival-a-thon, with the SF Latino Film Festival (www.sflatinofilmfestival.com) Sept 16-19 and the SF Irish Film Festival (www.sfirishfilm.com) Sept. 23–25. Don’t miss the Robert Altman miniseries, with 1977 personality-swapping epic 3 Women Sept 21.

San Francisco Cinematheque (www.sfcinematheque.org): Complete program information was unavailable at press time, but SF Cinematheque heads to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (www.sfmoma.org) for a screening of films by avant-gardist Alexander Hammid, plus live music by the Beth Custer Ensemble, Oct 21.

San Francisco Film Society (www.sffs.org): A few highlights: the NY/SF International Children’s Film Festival (Sept. 24–26); programs of films from Taiwan (Oct. 22–24), France (Oct. 23–Nov. 3), and Italy (Nov. 14–21); the San Francisco International Animation Film Festival (Nov. 11–14); and a screening of 1919 silent Sir Arne’s Treasure with accompaniment by the Mountain Goats (Dec. 14).

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (www.sfmoma.org): Picks include “The Elements” sound and film performance Sept. 30, with experimental filmmaker Paul Clipson; and the “Witches” double feature Oct. 28 with George Romero’s Season of the Witch (1973) and Dario Argento’s Suspiria (1977).

Victoria (www.victoriatheatre.org): Joshua Grannell’s horror comedy All About Evil screens at the very theater where it was filmed, Oct 21–24 — with Grannell’s alter ego, Midnight Mass hostess Peaches Christ in person (www.peacheschrist.com).

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (www.ybca.org): The maker of 1965’s Dead Birds gets his due at “Others/Ourselves: The Cinema of Robert Gardner” (Sept. 23–30); plus, check out “Totally Ridiculous: The Lost Films of Charles Ludlum” (Sept. 24–26) and “Sesame Street: A Celebration” (Oct. 1–30).

And more: Bernal Heights Outdoor Cinema (Sept. 2–5) blankets the ‘hood with free screenings (www.bhoutdoorcine.org). Good Vibrations Fifth Annual Indie Erotic Film Festival (Sept. 18–23) aims to tickles your fancy (www.goodvibes.com). The 14th Arab Film Festival (Oct. 14–24) screens films from and about the Arab world (www.arabfilmfestival.org).

Funny face, fecal face

Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
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0
Funny face, fecal face

arts@sfbg.com

FALL ARTS/HAIRY EYEBALL “New Work: R. H. Quaytman” It’s appropriate that the paintings commissioned by SFMOMA for R.H. Quaytman’s first West Coast showing were conceived in response to the museum’s own photography holdings as well as the work of SF Renaissance poet Jack Spicer. I’m curious to see what sort of conversation Quaytman’s precise, labor-intensive, and site-specific silk-screens (in “seven interrelated sizes based on the golden ratio”) stage with Spicer’s salty and spicy verse. Oct. 22-Jan. 16, 2011; San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, www.sfmoma.org.

“Masami Teraoka: The Inversion of the Sacred” Masami Teraoka built his reputation in the 1980s and ’90s on his apocalyptic ukiyo-e-style paintings, which juxtaposed topical content (AIDS, the globalization of fast food) against their faithful reproduction of an older, “traditional” aesthetic. In recent years he’s turned to Renaissance altar painting as the medium of choice to express his disgust over a whole host of new evils. His latest gilded blasphemy — a triptych that reenvisions the Last Supper as a Papal stag party in hell — encompass the ever-mounting sex abuse scandals linked to the Catholic Church and the gulf oil spill. Oct. 2-Nov.13; Catharine Clark Gallery, cclarkgallery.com.

“Tammy Rae Carland: Funny Face, I Love You” For her second solo show at Silverman Gallery, Mr. Lady Records cofounder and visual artist Tammy Rae Carland presents a suite of new work inspired by female comedians. Carland’s photographs of empty stand-up stages give off a slightly forlorn vibe, to be sure, but her anywhere clubs are also sites of possibility to laugh off gender difference as well as to laugh at it. You’ll leave in stitches. Sept. 10-Oct. 23, 2010; Silverman Gallery, www.silverman-gallery.com.

“10 Years of Fecal Face, An Anniversary Show” A decade in Internet years is a long-ass time, so three cheers to founder John Trippe and his army of global correspondents for sticking to their guns these past 10 years and creating an invaluable resource and platform for Bay Area artists and visual art fans. Tripp has pulled together a who’s who of site and Fecal Face Dot Gallery alum — David Choe, Matt Furie, and Jeremy Fish, to name a few — for this epic retrospective. Support the scene that supports you. Sept. 10-Oct. 9, 2010; Luggage Store Gallery, www.luggagestoregallery.org.

“HARVEST: what have you gathered?” Just in time for the lead-up to Thanksgiving, the North of Market/Tenderloin Community Benefit District Gallery lays out quite a spread. “Harvest” asked a diverse group of TL-based artists, “What have you gathered?” Their responses should make for an interesting snapshot of the lives that comprise a neighborhood in flux. Sept. 1–Nov. 30; 134 A Golden Gate, www.nom-tlcbd.org.

“Reclaimed: Paintings From the Collection of Jacques Goudstikker” Fact: the Nazis did many shitty things, such as taking other people’s (wealthy Jews, in particular) cultural property as their own. Such was the fate of the collection of prominent Dutch art dealer Jacques Goudstikker, who had amassed a sizable number of Northern Renaissance rarities. After much effort conservators finally repieced together the collection in 2006, and now SF gets a peek at Goudstikker’s greatest hits. And what hits they are: for starters, Hendrick Avercamp’s Winter Landscape with Iceskaters (1608) could give Breughel’s peasantry a run for their money. Oct. 29-March 11, 2011; Contemporary Jewish Museum, www.thecjm.org.

“Chris Duncan: Eye Against I” Though it takes its title from a seminal album by Washington, D.C., hardcore-legends Bad Brains, “Eye Against I” can also refer to the mind/body split one undergoes when staring down one of Chris Duncan’s refracted whirlpools of color. Fry art by way of Saul Bass is one way to think about Duncan’s carefully hued spirals of isosceles triangles, but some of the guest artists scheduled for a series of accompanying live events might provide some other ways to re-see the work. Sept. 11- Oct. 16, 2010; Baer Ridgway Exhibitions, www.baerridgway.com.

“One Night Stand: A Mills MFA Group Show” Art doesn’t come much cheaper than this. The bright-eyed and bushy-tailed talents in the 2011 Mills MFA class are selling their work for under $50 a pop. Buy now or cry later after they’ve won a SECA award and made the cover of Juxtapoz. Oct. 8, 6-9 p.m.; Branch Gallery, www.branchgallery.com.

“Cliff Hengst and Wayne Smith: New Work” Both Hengst and Smith have been longtime fixtures on the SF art scene, but their work — different as it is in tone and medium — is always refreshing. Here’s hoping Hengst unveils work in line with the small gems in his last showing at 2nd Floor Projects: news photo-sourced images of demonstrations in which everything but the protestors’ signs have been blackened out. Sept. 10-Oct. 29; Gallery 16, www.gallery16.com.

“Suggestions of Life Being Lived” This exciting group show curated by Danny Orendorff and Adriane Skye Roberts promises to live up to the dare laid down by Bikini Kill many moons ago to be “worse than queer.” Bypassing the usual identity politics-centered narratives and concerns that have defined much LGBT art practice, “Suggestions” seeks out new territory for queerness, whether it be in Kirstyn Russell’s photos of gay bars past, Jeannie Simm’s intimate study of an Indonesian maid training agency, or Chris Vargas and Greg Youman’s humorous “real life” Web sitcom Falling in Love With Chris and Greg. Sept. 9-Oct. 23; SF Camerawork, www.sfcamerawork.org.

OUT OF TOWN

Not all fall hits are in the city. Borrow some wheels and head to points north and south to check out these promising shows:

“THE GOLDEN DECADE: PHOTOGRAPHY AT THE CALIFORNIA SCHOOL OF FINE ARTS, 1945-55”

Before SF Art Institute was SF Art Institute, it was known as the California School of Fine Arts and had one of the finest photography programs in post-World War II America. Set up by Ansel Adams, the program counted such celebrated photographers as Dorothea Lange, Homer Page, and Imogen Cunningham among its illustrious faculty. Smith Anderson North in San Anselmo collects an unprecedented showing of photographers who came out of the program at the height of its fame. Sept. 14-Oct. 15; Smith Anderson North, www.smithandersonnorth.com.

“2010 01SJ BIENNIAL”

You may know the way to San Jose, but San Jose knows the way to the future. The 01SJ Biennial has grown into one of the Bay Area’s premier art events, bringing together visual artists, architects, computer programmers, and a whole host of other creative doers and thinkers and unleashing their creations and collaborations across the city, this year, with the prompt to “Build Your Own World.” Sept. 16-19; www.01sj.org.

On the Cheap listings

David Talbot
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0

On the Cheap listings are compiled by Paula Connelly. Submit items for the listings at listings@sfbg.com.

THURSDAY 26

The Bearded Gentleman Books Inc., 2275 Market, SF; (415) 864-6777. 7:30pm, free. Men have been growing and styling their facial hair for centuries. Hear facial hair expert Nick Burns read from his authoritative, detailed guide, The Bearded Gentleman: The Style Guide to Shaving Face, on 50 specific facial hair styles and how to grow and maintain them.

“On Artists and Institutions” Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 701 Mission, SF; (415) 978-2787. 6pm, free. Curators Stuart Horodner and Betti-Sue Hertz and artist Sergio de la Torre discuss the relationship between local artists and their city’s arts institutions, and the meaning of “local” in an increasingly globalized art world. RSVP required, email tlam@ybca.org.

“Seedy Side of SF” Bender’s Bar and Grill, 806 South Van Ness, SF; (415) 824-1800. 8pm, free. Check out six short silent films from Grumblefish Films that depict the darker sides of San Francisco, with slapstick humor revolving around heavy drug use, hard boozing, jerk landlords, and more from the underbelly we all know and love.

BAY AREA

007 Jack London Square, 2 Webster, Oakl.; www.jacklondonsquare.com. 7:30pm, free. Practice your double agent skills at this free showing of the newest James Bond movie, Quantum of Solace, coupled with some James Bond trivia and DVD prizes. Prepare for the night by getting a martini, shaken of course, beforehand at one of the many surrounding bars.

FRIDAY 27

BAY AREA

Eat Real Festival Jack London Square, 2 Webster, Oakl.; www.eatrealfest.com. Fri. 2pm-9pm, Sat. 10:30am-9pm, Sun. 10:30am-5pm; free. Celebrate tasty, fresh, handmade food, with a focus on food craft, street food, artisan beers, and local wines at this three day food and culture festival, where no food item will be priced over $5. There will also be DIY lifestyle demonstrations, tons of live music, films, a lit fest, a Porchlight Storytelling performance on Sunday, and more.

SATURDAY 28

Climate Change, Adaptation, and the Gowen Cypress Meet in the Presidio at the parking area at the intersection of Pacific and Walnut, SF; www.wildequity.org. 10am, free. Join Brent Plater of the Wild Equity Institute and Dr. Daniel Gluesenkamp of the Bay Area Early Detection Network for a guided tour of the Presidio’s misplaced Gowen Cypress, an endangered species that is not native to the area.

Cow Palace Farmer’s Market Cow Palace, Lower Parking Lot, 2600 Geneva, SF; 9am-1pm, free. Get some fresh and affordable produce, baked and specialty goods, live music, and more at this community farmers market, happening every Saturday through October 16.

“Regeneration Art Walk” Meet at Intersection for the Arts, 446 Valencia, SF; (415) 626-2787. Noon, free. Attend this guided art walk on Valencia street of artwork curated and created by current and previous participants in Intersection’s Leadership Training Program, exploring regeneration as an integral aspect of growth in our personal lives and communities. Meet the artists and hear about their creative process and response to the theme of regeneration.

“Wondrous Strange” SFMOMA Artists Gallery, Fort Mason Building A, Fort Mason, Marina at Buchanan, SF; (415) 441-4777. 2pm, free. Attend the closing event for the exhibit, “Wondrous Strange: A Twenty-first Century Cabinet of Curiosities,” featuring works by more than a dozen Bay Area artists and including photography, sculpture, and painting, the exhibition explores themes such as evolutionary biology and history, progress and decadence, and the carnal and the intellectual.

SUNDAY 29

“Paint Out” Presidio Officer’s Club, 50 Moraga, SF; (415) 561-5500. 11am-5pm; free, $15 to enter. All artists working in any medium are invited to participate in this California Watercolor Association outdoor painting competition, where each artist has four hours to Select a subject and paint any scene visible from the grounds of the Presidio. Each artist can exhibit one completed work to be voted on for a chance to win cash prizes.

MONDAY 30

“Pint Sized Plays” Café Royale, 800 Post, (415) 441-4099. 8pm, free. Grab a beer and enjoy a series of original short plays by local writers presented in a range of tones and styles that involve people drinking beer and end once the beer is gone. Cheers!

“Up All Night” Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF; (415) 923-0923. 7pm, free. Join in this Porchlight Storytelling Series Open Door event, where attendees are invited to tell their own five minute story about whatever it is that they were doing all night when they should have been in bed. Sign up sheet for participants will be available shortly before 7pm.

Our Weekly Picks: August 11-17, 2010

Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
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0

WEDNESDAY 11

MUSIC

Carla Bozulich’s Evangelista

Anyone who’s witnessed Carla Bozulich live knows the former Geraldine Fibbers frontperson is a true force of nature, bravely following her muse into the flatlands of Texas, onto arena-sized stages, or to the ear-scorching reaches of experimental music. For the past month, the Bay Area has been home to the artistically restless Bozulich, who says she never stays anywhere for very long. Still, this is her refuge as she writes her fourth album with Evangelista for the respected Constellation imprint — recording once again with players in Godspeed You! Black Emperor — before she heads out again. This fall, she’ll be directing and performing at a massive multiday installation-performance in Krems, Austria. Godspeed you, Ms. Bozulich, who hopes to “shake things up a bit” at her favorite old haunt, Cafe Du Nord, with guests Ava Mendoza on guitar and John Eichenseer on viola. (Kimberly Chun)

With Common Eider, King Eider

9:30 p.m., $14

Café Du Nord

2170 Market, SF

(415) 861-5016

www.cafedunord.com

 

EVENT

Henry Lee

Once a prolific Chronicler of one of the biggest media snafus in recent Bay Area memory, Henry Lee adapted and expanded his coverage of the Hans Reiser murder case for his true crime book Presumed Dead. What elevates it beyond a sensationalist paperback is Lee’s cogent reportage and willingness to think more about the unthinkable (spousicide, for one) than most would ever dare. He starts with the life of murder victim Nina Sharanova and weaves his way into the nitty-gritty of the case. Even before this summer’s publication, Lee proved himself a stalwart for local journalism — and for all the other strong stomachs out there delivering cold, hard truths. (Ryan Lattanzio)

7 p.m., free

Books, Inc.

1760 Fourth St., Berk.

(510) 525-7777

www.booksinc.net

 

THURSDAY 12

EVENT

 

“Infinite City: Right Wing of the Dove”

The release of Rebecca Solnit’s Infinite City: A San Francisco Atlas — a book that digs through the dense and dirty histories, cultures, and sites of the Bay Area with help from cartographers, artists, and writers — is preceded by a series of cartographic “live art” events at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and in the Bay Area at large. Part two of this series is a screening of In Smog and Thunder: The Great War of the Californias (2003), written and art-directed by Sandow Birk. Drawing from his own experience amid the antagonisms of these two cities, Birk satirically envisions a civil war between Los Angeles and SF, and his 100-plus artworks comically probe the ongoing geo-ideo-cultural tension. Afterward, Solnit leads a post-screening discussion on the contradictory relationship between our liberal values and local economy. That SF and LA are cultural foils is well-known. But Solnit points out, friction is being made closer to home. (Spencer Young)

7 p.m., free with museum admission ($9–$18)

SFMOMA

Phyllis Wattis Theater

151 Third St, SF

(415) 357-4000

www.sfmoma.org

 

THEATER/DANCE

Rapid Descent Physical Performance Company

Love ain’t easy. Relationships are intense, emotionally draining, and take up too much time. What then (besides cuddling) keeps us coupling up? New Zealand playwright Gary Henderson might have the answer. And thanks to choreographer Megan Finlay and her physical performance company Rapid Descent, you won’t have to go all the way to New Zealand to find out. Finlay brings Henderson’s Skin Tight to San Francisco and reworks the original script to incorporate dance as well as live music by trumpeter Aaron Priskorn. Centering around the enduring love of one couple (played by Beth Deitchman and Nathaniel Justiniano), Skin Tight exposes the visceral complexity of hostility and attachment. (Katie Gaydos)

Through Aug. 28

Thurs.–Sat., 8 p.m., $20–$35

CounterPULSE

1310 Mission, SF

www.counterpulse.org

 

ROCK

Dawes

The California Academy of Sciences, a place that puts nature on its proper pedestal, is a great venue for Dawes. The band has appreciation not just for its own musical genealogy, but also for the mysteries of the American landscape. This folk rock quartet, helmed by the Goldsmith brothers, saw Americana anew on the debut album North Hills, undoubtedly a nod to that small-town Louisiana region. The songcraft recalls the harmonic pastures of Crosby, Stills, and Nash. Like a pair of Levis, Dawes’ faded wear-and-tear is contrived — yet it feels genuine, and that’s what counts. A song like “Take Me Out Of The City” gives a microcosmic view of the band’s guitar-plucking, straw-gnawing aesthetic. (Lattanzio)

6 p.m., $12

California Academy of Sciences

55 Music Concourse Dr., SF

(415) 379-8000

www.calacademy.org

 

MUSIC

Reverend Horton Heat

It may be hard to believe, but the rockabilly juggernaut that is the Reverend Horton Heat will be hitting the 25 year mark soon — and as fans of the Texas trio know, the band’s strong suit is its live show. So in fitting fashion, it has decided to celebrate its upcoming milestone by filming a live set in our fair city’s legendary music venue, the Fillmore, for a special release next year. Although the band will be sure to touch on material from its latest album, Laughin’ and Cryin’ With The Reverend Horton Heat, expect Jim Heath, Jimbo Wallace, and Paul Simmons to dig into their back catalog for some oldies and goodies as well. (Sean McCourt)

With Split Lip Rayfield, Hillstomp

9 p.m., $25

Fillmore

1805 Geary, SF

www.thefillmore.com

 

FRIDAY 13

EVENT

Terry Zwigoff

On Aug. 10, there were two things of utmost importance you should’ve celebrated: National S’mores Day and the arrival of Terry Zwigoff’s 1995 documentary Crumb on Criterion Collection DVD. Zwigoff, personal hero of many (including myself), will be at Amoeba to sign copies of that new release plus his 1985 film Louie Blue, also slated for Criterion treatment. Blues musicians Frank Fairfield and Blind Boy Paxton will accompany, which fits the bill since Zwigoff has made the blues and its many subgenres a focus of his films. He probably saw some of himself in Seymour, the LP-loving and lovable schlub in Ghost World (2001), just as he understood artist R. Crumb’s grotesque genius. (Lattanzio)

6 p.m., free

Amoeba Music

1855 Haight, SF

(415) 831-1200

www.amoeba.com

 

COMEDY

Bobcat Goldthwait

Although he is perhaps most initially recognizable for his high-pitched, scratchy voice and wacky mannerisms from his appearances in 1980s movies and comedy specials, Bobcat Goldthwait is a man of many talents. From his breakout acting roles in flicks, including the Police Academy series, to his live album Meat Bob, to directing his first film Shakes The Clown in 1991, the versatile performer has had an ever-expanding resume. He even opened for Nirvana on its 1993 U.S. tour. Last year saw the release of his critically acclaimed film World’s Greatest Dad, and his newest project is directing a U.K. musical production based on the Kinks’ Schoolboys in Disgrace album. Be sure to catch the hilarious — and busy — man live on stage while you can. (McCourt)

Through Sat/14

8 p.m. and 10:15 p.m., $20.50

Cobb’s Comedy Club

915 Columbus, SF

(415) 928-4320

www.cobbscomedyclub.com

 

SATURDAY 14

MUSIC

Stone River Boys

Although their recent debut album Love On The Dial was born in the midst of enduring personal tragedies, the Stone River Boys created a collection of inspiring tunes that meld country with a host of other roots rock influences. Featuring guitarist Dave Gonzalez (the Paladins and the Hacienda Brothers) and singer Mike Barfield (the Hollisters), the group came together a couple of years ago while the two were trying to help raise money for friend and fellow musician Chris Gaffney’s cancer treatments. “Gaff” passed away before the benefit tour could begin, but the resulting music is a fitting tribute, carrying the torch and keeping the infectious spirit of their friendship alive. (McCourt)

With Carolyn Wonderland, Mother Truckers

9 p.m., $15

Slim’s

333 11th St., SF

(415) 255-0333

www.slims-sf.com

 

SUNDAY 15

MUSIC

Dan Sartain

How did a lip-stachioed rocker from Birmingham, Ala., become the poster child for the garage roots revival? Well, he didn’t really; Jack White already had that crown. But years of paying tribute to the gods of garage and blues eventually landed Sartain on a tour with the White Stripes in 2007 — the subsequent 7-inch release for White’s Third Man label now seems like your textbook well, of course! facepalm moment. The pair’s aesthetics of “garage-a-billy” with a Morricone spaghetti western tinge are invariably complementary. And although it may seem a disservice to all the time Sartain put into his sound before this epic meeting of minds, you have to admit there are worse career maneuvers than being linked to Jack White. (Peter Galvin)

With Leopold and His Fiction, Twinks

9 p.m., $8

Hemlock Tavern

1131 Polk, SF

(415) 923-0923

www.hemlocktavern.com

 

MUSIC

Rasputina

Fourteen years on from the advent of Rasputina’s cello-goth-lite musical stylings on Thanks for the Ether, the trio is touring behind its latest record Sister Kinderhook. Vocalist-songwriter-cellist Melora Creager is the only remaining original member (in fact, the band’s lineup has even changed since recording the album, with percussionist Catie D’Amica stepping down). Rasputina seems to be maintaining its historical fascination here — the album’s embroidered cover anachronistically purports that it was “wrought by Rasputina circa 1809.” They’re well-matched with supporting act Larkin Grimm, a skilled practitioner of weird folk and one-time member of Dirty Projectors whose riveting life story incorporates being born into a cult, studying at Yale, and spending time in Thailand and Guatemala. (Sam Stander)

With Larkin Grimm

8 p.m., $16

Great American Music Hall

859 O’Farrell, SF

(415) 885-0750

www.gamh.com

 

MONDAY 16

EVENT

Alison Gopnik

UC Berkeley psychology and philosophy professor Alison Gopnik is responsible for groundbreaking work exploring the ways young children think and learn. She’ll be reading from her latest book, The Philosophical Baby, just a few blocks from Berkeley campus. A Chronicle bestseller, the book continues to delve into developmental psychology for new insight into some momentous topics (it is, after all, subtitled What Children’s Minds Tell Us About Truth, Love, and the Meaning of Life). Heavy subject matter, to be sure. But since it’s also about babies, you can temper those overwhelmingly deep thoughts with cuteness and chortling. Oh, and an inborn template for the scientific method, apparently. (Stander)

7:30 p.m., free

Pegasus Books Downtown

2349 Shattuck, Berk.

(510) 649-1320

www.pegasusbookstore.com

 

TUESDAY 17

EVENT

“Idiolexicon”

It’s changed over the years, for better and for worse, but the Bay Area is still a hospitable place for poets. Just look at the newly opened café-performance space Rancho Parnassus. According to its website, RP’s goal is “to get the abundant untapped talent around Sixth Street working together.” Toward this end, the venue is hosting an installment of the “Idiolexicon” series, with readings from local poets Carrie Hunter, Della Watson, and Jessica Wickens. All three are billed as experimental, but their work also bears more than a hint of high-modernist influence. Watson’s unconventional syntax is reminiscent of Gertrude Stein, while Hunter’s “Kine(sta)sis” evokes Poundian Imagism. On the page, it’s all pretty effective stuff. Come to the reading, and you can decide how it plays live. (Zach Ritter)

7 p.m., free

Rancho Parnassus

132 Sixth St, SF

(415) 503-0700

www.idiolexicon.com 


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The yellow wallpaper

Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
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0
The yellow wallpaper

arts@sfbg.com

HAIRY EYEBALL New York City construction workers at the World Trade Center site recently unearthed an 18th-century ship hull. More interesting is that scientists believe that the structure was part of the massive landfill that extended lower Manhattan further into the Hudson River. You don’t have to read too deep to hit on the symbolism of this story, even if the occurrence at its center isn’t so uncommon in a city as densely developed and old as New York (see the 1991 discovery of a 200-year old African burial ground, also in lower Manhattan). Beneath the site where the Twin Towers fell lies further wreckage, older ruins. Nothing is ever truly gone. What lies buried will eventually surface. The present is always haunted by the past.

The same could be said of the art world, which has recently been holding some flashy curatorial séances of its own. Two exhibits don’t necessarily make a trend, but the Berkeley Art Museum’s current “Hauntology,” recently reviewed in this paper, and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Musuem’s ongoing exhibit “Haunted: Contemporary: Photography/Video/Performance,” both summon the specters of late-1980s academic theory (Derrida in name and word, in the case of BAM’s show) in their selection of works that address the unseen yet felt presences — aesthetic, historical, political — floating amid the present.

You can also add “Now, It’s About What You Can’t See” to the list, although this group show at Triple Base Gallery of paintings, drawings, and installations is not as enthralled by its organizing principle — what is absent may not be forgotten — as the previously mentioned exhibits are to critical theory and now-old debates around appropriation in photography. As Triple Base’s statement declares, though the artists vary by age and medium, their works, “provide faint shadowy traces of moments to imagine what once existed and hint at an ever-evolving history.”

The faintest traces belong to Rachel E. Foster’s wall installation, which is practically invisible from certain angles. Only by moving back and forth in front of the surface does the repeatedly painted word “ghost” emerge from the seemingly contiguous white field of the gallery’s wall. As in her older works involving text, here, Foster cleverly collapses medium and message, using a representational strategy to bring a word’s meaning to life. In this case, the word “ghost” becomes just that.

Unfortunately, it’s hard not to read Foster’s installation as a commentary on the small group of Eleanor Kent’s early oil paintings, which are hung on the same wall. Inspired by her life in Noe Valley in the 1960s when she was still associated with the Bay Area Figurative movement, Kent’s small-scale domestic scenes — her son playing, a couple talking over dinner — aren’t by themselves elegiac. But Foster’s apparitional wallpaper imbues Kent’s facelessness figures and rough outlines with an air of loss that might not be present otherwise.

Wallpaper is put to different use in Mara Baldwin’s How to remember where you put something, the sharpest and most moving articulation of the show’s preoccupation with absence and memory. Baldwin, it appears, has removed and rehung a large section of old wallpaper. The yellowish pattern of red and yellow flowers has faded with age, as revealed by two brighter rectangles near the section’s center that suggest the spaces where perhaps art or photos had once been hung (curiously, no nail holes are visible). But looking closer, you realize that the paper in the less-faded sections is not the same paper at all, but a continuation of the wallpaper’s design in watercolor.

The piece’s two painted sections aren’t simply indexes for what’s gone missing (which may not have even existed in the first place). Executed by Baldwin’s steady, patient hand, the painted sections also draw attention to what they are intended to replicate: the banal, mass-produced wallpaper that surrounds them. By flattening background and subject, Baldwin makes painting the aid to memory of the piece’s title, while also suggesting that “putting on a new coat of paint” always involves some form of erasure. Chechu Alava’s soft-focus portrait of a sylph-like young woman in a slip is more conventionally ghostly, but not nearly as haunting as Foster’s hidden graffiti or Baldwin’s yellow wallpaper.

 

MORE TOPOGRAPHICS

As I wrote two columns ago in my review of the multi-gallery show “They Knew What They Wanted,” the George Eastman House’s 1975 exhibit “New Topographics” — currently hanging in a reassembled version at SFMOMA — continues to cast its shadow over contemporary art and curatorial practice, particularly where landscape is concerned.

“Land Use,” at Oakland’s Swarm Gallery, could easily be a satellite to both exhibits. Bill Mattick’s color photographs documenting the ecological cost of urban and industrial development in Southern California are the closest relatives to the grim indictments of such “New Topographic” participants as Joe Deal, Robert Adams, and Lewis Baltz. Chris Sicat’s pieces of reclaimed wood “colored in” with soft graphite pencils are less successful as sculptures than as documents of the artist’s attempts to work within natural form of his materials. Sculptor Reenie Charrière takes a similar tack with manmade waste, aggregating the plastic bits that don’t make it to the recycling center into playful, biologic forms.

NOW, IT’S ABOUT WHAT YOU CAN’T SEE

Through Aug. 29

Triple Base

3041 24th St., SF

(415) 643-3943

www.basebasebase.com

LAND USE

Through Sept. 12

Swarm Gallery

560 Second St, Oakl.

(510) 839-2787

www.swarmgallery.com

On the cheap listings

David Talbot
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0

On the Cheap listings are compiled by Paula Connelly. Submit items for the listings at listings@sfbg.com.

WEDNESDAY 28

System Administrator Appreciation Party DNA Lounge, 375 11th St., SF; (415) 626-1409. 6pm, free. It’s System Administrator Month and Open DNS is celebrating by inviting overworked system administrators to a networking, RnR party featuring music, stiff drinks, and the company of other hard working people who spend 24 hours a day keeping the world’s networks up and running.

THURSDAY 29

David Choe SFMOMA, Atrium, 151 3rd St., SF; www.sfmoma.org. 6:30pm, free. Meet gallery and street artist David Choe while he signs copies of his new book, a selection of images narrated by Choe throughout the book including graffiti, murals, paintings, sketchbook pages, photographs, toys, t-shirts, collages, and artwork.

SATURDAY 31

“Am I Illegal? /Am I Endangered?” Time Zone Gallery, 717 Leavenworth, SF; www.timezonesf.com. 7pm, free. Attend the opening reception for a new exhibit from Arizona artist Mike Frick titled, “Am I Illegal?,” and local artists Amelia Lewis titled, “Am I Endangered?.” Frick explores issues related to the recent immigration legislation and Lewis questions whether humans are endangered.

Indonesia Day Union Square, Powell at Geary, SF; www.indodaysf.com. 11am-4pm, free. Featuring traditional and contemporary Indonesian dance and music performances from various Indonesian islands, most notably Bali, Java, Sulawesi, Sumatra and Kalimantan, with well known singers, dancers and musicians from Indonesia joined by local performers. Indonesian cuisine from local restaurants will be available.

Laborfest Closing Party Nap’s 3, 3152 Mission, SF; www.laborfest.net. Celebrate the last day of the month long festival that promoted the legacy of labor issues past and present throughout our San Francisco community. Featuring live performances by the Angry Tired Band, AT&T, and more.

Renegade Craft Fair Fort Mason Center Festival Pavilion, Buchanan at Beach, SF; www.renegadecraft.com. Sat.-Sun. 11am-7pm, free. Attend this craft, art and design, DIY spectacular featuring over 250 indie-crafters selling and exhibiting their wares all weekend, workshops, DJs from Amoeba Music, cash bar, and more.

SUNDAY 1

BAY AREA

Oakland Museum First Sunday Oakland Museum of California, 1000 Oak, Oakl.; www.museumca.org. 11am-5pm, free. Check out the newest exhibit, “Pixar: 25 Years of Animation,” with over 500 works from Pixar artists, including drawings, paintings, and sculptures illustrating the creative process behind computer animated films. Or browse the museums permanent collection with art, design, historical collections, and natural sciences area.

For Lit, Talks, and Benefits listings, visit the Pixel Vision blog at www.sfbg.com/pixel_vision.

According to Matthew

Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
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According to Matthew

It is an understatement to say that the work of Matthew Barney elicits strong reactions. Critics have alternately hailed him as “the most important American artist of his generation” (that’s the New York Times’ Michael Kimmelman) and complained of his art’s Wagnerian grandiosity, needless inscrutability, pretentiousness, and icy perfection (“loveless” was one of the words the San Francisco Chronicle’s Kenneth Baker used to describe “Drawing Restraint 9,” Barney’s 2006 show at SFMOMA).

As someone whose initial infatuation with Barney’s work is increasingly tempered by skepticism, I think there is truth to both camps. You’ll be able to deliver — or perhaps revise — your own verdict at the Roxie Theater, which is presenting all 7.5 hours of the epic Cremaster Cycle (1995-2002), Barney’s five-part, officially-never-gonna-be-available-on-commercial-DVD magnum opus. The theater is also screening De Lama Lâmina, Barney’s near hour-long 2004 film, in which he collaborates with a Brazilian Carnaval krewe to orchestrate a performance aboard a float in Salvador da Bahia’s annual parade.

Barney’s art becomes increasingly frustrating and seductive the longer one attempts to decode its carefully staged and indisputably visually stunning pageantry, which encompasses death metal covers of Johnny Cash, the esoteric intricacies of Masonic symbolism, Busby Berkeley-style revues in football stadiums, androgynous water sprites, and the complex biology of sexual differentiation in the fetus (the series is named after the muscle that controls the descent of the testes). The one constant is Barney’s display of his body: frequently nearly-nude, but more often subject to some physically demanding ordeal or engaged in an athletic feat.

As Daniel Birnbaum astutely observes in Artforum, “Barney is a believer in ‘the meaning of meaning.'” Which is to say, nothing is done just for show in Barney’s world, even if the systems of meaning he draws upon — developmental biology, Celtic mythology, Mormonism, minimalist sculpture — are themselves enclosed within, and at times frustratingly occluded by, his art’s glossy packaging and Hollywood-level production values. It’s hard not to ask: what does it all mean? But the question easily gets lost within the Cremaster Cycle‘s lavishly appointed echo chambers.

That said, Barney’s art offers no shortage of beautiful moments and otherworldly imagery. His universe encompasses elegance (Aimee Mullins as a gorgeous cheetah woman in Cremaster 3) and horror (the conception scene early on in Cremaster 2). Whether or not all this beauty is truth is still up for debate.

 

THE ODD COUPLE

Robert Koch Gallery is currently home to quite the odd couple. From the 1960s to 1985, Czech artist Miroslav Tichy, formerly a painter, took thousands of surreptitious pictures of women in his hometown of Kyjov using various homemade cameras made from whatever was on hand: cardboard tubes, wood, sanded Plexiglass lenses.

The photographs — creased, badly printed, all in soft focus — are as dreamy as they are creepy: Tichy often cropped off the heads of his unknowing subjects (many of whom are in swimwear), leaving their identities anonymous while reducing them to bared legs and torsos. Despite their aura of timelessness, you feel dirty looking at Tichy’s photos. It’s hard, though, not to keep staring.

Plenty of isolated gams appear in the work of Hungarian artist Foto Ada, also at Koch, but the effect is far less sinister. Ada (maiden name, Ada Ackermann, married name, Elemérné Marsovsky) created her remarkable photo-collages from the late 1930s through World War II, clipping magazine and newspaper images of soldiers, Hollywood starlets, and industrial landscapes into sharp and humorous comments on the accelerated culture of her time. The Nazis, in particular, gets theirs: Hitler and Goebbels converse in skeleton-filled catacombs, appropriately oblivious to the death that surrounds them.

THE CREMASTER CYCLE PLUS DE LAMA LÂMINA

July 30– Aug. 8, $5–$9.75

Roxie Theater

3117 16th St., SF

(415) 863-1087

www.roxie.com

MIROSLAV TICHY + FOTO ADA

Through Aug. 21, free

Robert Koch Gallery

49 Geary, SF

(415) 421-0122

www.kochgallery.com

 

Our Weekly Picks: July 21-27, 2010

Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
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0

WEDNESDAY 21

MUSIC

Nobunny

There’s no telling where Justin Champlin, clad in tighty-whiteys and a bunny mask, got his rabbit obsession, though Bunnicula comes to mind. Known for his stage antics, the Nobunny leader — and sole member, really, if you exclude the backing musicians shuffling in and out — is something of a rock ‘n’ roll animal classified in the punk rock phylum (or garage rock class). Love Visions (2008), with homages like “Chuck Berry Holiday,” produced catchy tracks faster than a rabbit could procreate. Champlin’s histrionics, and even messier sound, recall the Ramones or more recently, Hunx and His Punx. (Ryan Lattanzio)

With Spits, Scumby, and Carolyn the DJ

9 p.m., $12

Bottom of the Hill

1233 17th St., SF

(415) 621-4455

www.bottomofthehill.com

 

THURSDAY 22

FILM

Five Easy Pieces

A few years after creating wannabe-pop group the Monkees, Bob Rafelson wrote — along with Carole Eastman — and directed 1970’s Five Easy Pieces. Like Easy Rider (1969), it’s a man-is-a-lonely-island-unto-himself picture starring Jack Nicholson and the squalid splendor of the American landscape. Bobby leaves his affluent family for the life of an oil rigger, but what he finds are consequences both understated and overwhelming. Nominated for four Oscars, Pieces is not an easy film. Like the literature of Cormac McCarthy or Hemingway, it’s biblical, masculine stuff. Yet for all its ruggedness, it has a bittersweet side worth noting for Laszlo Kovacs’ muted cinematography, as well as the weepy country tunes of Tammy Wynette. (Lattanzio)

7 p.m., $5.50–$9.50

Pacific Film Archive

2575 Bancroft, Berk.

(510) 642-5249

www.bampfa.berkeley.edu

 

VISUAL ART

“Wondrous Strange: A Twenty-First Century Cabinet of Curiosities”

The medieval notion of a cabinet of curiosities or Wunderkammern holds great fascination to this day, even though a room filled with animal bones, coins, and unmarked pottery shards would seem a fairly undisciplined display format for scientific artifacts at this point. But if the Wunderkammern is academically anachronistic, the folks at SFMOMA Artists Gallery still find it a useful vehicle for conveying art and culture. The opening of “Wondrous Strange” will feature a time traveler costume contest, burlesque performance by the Burley Sisters, and music from the Grannies. The opening ceremonies will also extend to the nearby Long Now Foundation (also in Fort Mason’s Building A), where interested parties can check out their prototypes for the 10,000 Year Clock. (Sam Stander)

Through Aug 28

5:30 p.m., free

SFMOMA Artists Gallery

Bldg. A, Fort Mason Center

Marina at Laguna, SF

(415) 441-4777

www.sfmoma.org

 

FILM

Behind the Burly Q

While relatively tame by today’s standards, burlesque was once perceived as a scandalous art form. Featuring comedians, strippers, and satire, burlesque threatened conservative views about sex and sought to undermine accepted social norms. Even though vaudeville-inspired acts have recently made a nostalgic comeback, their roots remain widely misunderstood. Director Leslie Zemeckis’ documentary Behind the Burly Q goes straight to the source to uncover more than just pasties. By interviewing many of the women and men who starred and worked in the industry, Zemeckis traces the often overlooked history of American burlesque and honors all those who managed to use a g-string as a political weapon. (Katie Gaydos)

Thurs/22-Sat/24, 7:30 p.m.;

Sun/25, 4 and 6 p.m., $6–$8

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

701 Mission, SF

(415) 978-2787

www.ybca.org

 

FRIDAY 23

MUSIC

Cynic

Along with most of the rest of his band, Cynic guitarist Paul Masvidal avoided an awkward ’90s-metal swan song by disappearing into the jazz scene. Suddenly, in 2006, Masvidal and his main collaborator, drummer Sean Reinert, resurfaced with a renewed sense of purpose, and the release of 2008’s Traced in Air ushered in an era of relentless touring that saw the prog-metallers quickly reestablish their towering reputation. This summer’s Decibel-sponsored headlining tour features the band playing its 1993 classic Focus in its entirety, so prepare for Mixolydian assault. (Ben Richardson)

With Intronaut, Dysrhythmia

8 p.m., $17

Slim’s

333 11th St., SF

(415) 255-0333

www.slims-sf.com

 

DANCE

Carmina Burana: Revisited

For a few years, choreographer Enrico Labayen disappeared from the local radar screen. He now has reemerged with an ambitious full-evening work based on two rituals from opposing sides of the planet. Turns out that Labayen, an early member of Alonzo King’s LINES Dance Company who also has 15 years’ experience as an independent choreographer, spent the intervening years in his native Philippines to study the matriarchal aspects of its culture that have long fascinated him. His new Carmina Burana: Revisited delves into Carl Orff’s raucous reimagining of Medieval European Christianity for a work that explores the choreographer’s own memory of Tadtarin, a Philippine ritual that celebrates femininity. (Rita Felciano)

Fri/23-Sat/24, 8 p.m.; Sun/25, 7 p.m., $30

Dance Mission Theater

3316 24th St., SF

(415) 273-4633

www.brownpapertickets.com

 

MUSIC

Grouper

Portland, Ore.’s Liz Harris, who records and performs ambient drone music as Grouper, has composed a new piece specifically for the Berkeley Art Museum, which incorporates video as well as tape music and live instrumentation. This continues the “L@TE: Friday Nights @ BAM/PFA” series’ dedication to avant-garde performance. Previously, L@TE has brought in such luminaries as Terry Reilly and the Residents; later this summer the series features sometime Grouper collaborator Jamie Stewart of Xiu Xiu. Grouper’s premiere of “SLEEP” will be preceded by music from Eugene Petrushansky, who plays early music on a harpsichord of his own construction, an interesting juxtaposition and perhaps fitting complement to Harris’ intense soundscapes. (Stander)

7:30 p.m., $5

Berkeley Art Museum, Gallery B

2625 Bancroft, SF

(510) 642-0808

www.bampfa.berkeley.edu

 

SATURDAY 24

EVENT

Tori Spelling

The Oxygen Network — the equivalent of an unclaimed baggage room for celebrities past their prime — still airs Tori and Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood, where Tori Spelling can be seen redecorating her house or renewing her vows (eep!) But unlike most stars in the dreary constellation of reality TV, Spelling actually isn’t that dumb. With a resume longer than the New York Times best seller list she topped in 2008, she’s the ultimate media mogul. In her new book, uncharted terriTORI, she returns to the Narcissus pool of sTORI Telling with some fresh anecdotes like her bout with H1N1 and her life as a Twit. Err … I mean, a Tweeter. (Lattanzio)

7 p.m., free

Books, Inc.

2251 Chestnut, SF

(415) 931-3633

www.booksinc.net

 

DANCE/MUSIC

“Salsa on the Fillmore”

Why watch Dancing With the Stars when you can dance under the stars? All right, the summer fog might not stay away long enough for us to actually see any stars, but thanks to dance festival “Salsa on the Fillmore,” we can safely say, for once, a night in SF will be hot and sweaty. Forget bar hopping in the Mission. With open dance floors and live music at Yoshi’s, Rasselas Jazz Club, Sheba Piano Lounge, and 1300 on Fillmore, it’s time to go rumba hopping! Start off the night at Fillmore Center Plaza with free salsa lessons by Bay Area Latin dance instructors Juan Gil and Rebecca Miller, and live music by Los Bolores. (Gaydos)

7 p.m.–2 a.m., free–$25

Fillmore between Eddy and Geary, SF

(808) 352-4315

www.salsaonfillmore.com

 

MUSIC

Bay Area Rockin’ Solidarity Labor Chorus

If you have any affinity at all for the American labor movement, these are depressing times. All that populist energy generated in the wake of 2008’s financial meltdown seems to have been wasted on fruitless antigovernment paranoia, while essential state services are being eliminated nationwide, taking thousands of union jobs with them. Those sympathetic to the cause of social justice can be forgiven for not feeling much like singing. On the other hand, nothing rabble-rouses like a good anthem, and no movement ever got far on despair. The Bay Area Rockin’ Solidarity Labor Chorus realizes this, and is presenting, as part of the Bay’s yearly LaborFest, a program of union songs old and new, celebrating victories won and anticipating those still to come. (Zach Ritter)

7 p.m., $5

ILWU 34 Hall

801 Second St., SF

(415) 648-3457

www.laborfest.net

 

SUNDAY 25

MUSIC

Queensryche

Queensryche and burlesque. On the one hand, it’s a completely arbitrary juxtaposition, akin to, say, “submarines and kumquats.” On the other, it makes perfect sense. The veteran Seattle prog-metal act have always had a flair for the theatrical, the lushly orchestrated, the ever-so-slightly over the top. And during a break in the recording of its new album, the band decided to really go for broke, setting out on the road with the “world’s only adults-only rock show,” featuring contortionists, trapeze artists, jugglers, and other delights. If you’ve been waiting your entire life to combine scantily clad women and immaculately composed concept albums, wait no longer. (Richardson)

8 p.m., $40

Regency Ballroom

1290 Sutter, SF

(415) 673-5716

www.theregencyballroom.com

 

MUSIC

Bomba Estéreo

While our government issues frantic safety advisories to Colombia-minded travelers, Locumbia ticks out a merry beat toward a perch atop South America’s creative culture heap. Medellín, Bogotá, Chico Trujillo, the via-L.A. party tunes of Very Be Careful — this a land where you festivate like you mean it, even if a decades-long battle between the guerrillas and army rages in the hinterlands. Lucky for media-boozled us: the international tour. Bomba Estéreo mixes hawt psychedelic cumbia beats with Caribbean folkloric sound and enough echo to qualify as a dance group. Speaking of dance group — start one under the Stern Grove green at the group’s free show. (Caitlin Donohue)

  With Jovanotti

2 p.m., free

Sigmund Stern Grove

Sloat and 19th Ave., SF

(415) 252-6252

www.sterngrove.org

 

TUESDAY 27

MUSIC

Obits

The album cover for Obits’ I Blame You claims it is “Xtra Compressed for Maximum Listener Fatigue,” and, while 41 minutes doesn’t seem like such a short album these days, the music itself has a tight, claustrophobic intensity that really good garage rock delivers so well. Lead guitarist Rick Froberg, formerly of Hot Snakes and Drive Like Jehu, journeys through all manner of rock in those 41 minutes, skewing the familiar sounds of surfer twang and post-punk into a nonstop groove that leaves the listener just as breathless as the cover promises. Obits knows you don’t have to break any musical barriers to crack a few eardrums. (Peter Galvin)

With Night Marchers and Moonhearts

9 p.m., $14

Bottom of the Hill

1233 17th St, SF

(415) 621-4455

www.bottomofthehill.com

 

EVENT

“Visions of the Gameocalypse”

In a world where gaming is “no longer just for kids!” or nerds, and where major members of the artistic establishment (cough-Ebert-cough) take up arms against the perceived aesthetic immaturity of videogames for no good reason, it would do us all a little good to get a firmer grasp on how computerized gaming has developed. Jesse Schell, CEO of Schell Games and author of The Art of Game Design: a book of lenses, will be presenting his thoughts on the “social, cognitive, and technological trends” in gaming. We can only hope the event’s gloomy title, “Visions of the Gamepocalypse,” is tongue-in-cheek, though it definitely implies a refreshingly futurist approach to games. (Stander)

7:30 p.m., $10

Novellus Theater

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

700 Howard, SF

(415) 978-2787

www.ybca.org 


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Group think

Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
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0
Group think

arts@sfbg.com

HAIRY EYEBALL “Calder to Warhol,” San Francisco Museum of Modern Art’s giant introductory survey of the Fisher collection, isn’t the only big summer show happening right now. With its wanted poster-style flyer design and a menacing title that could have come from a hardboiled paperback, “They Knew What They Wanted” is an exquisite corpse of a group show, pieced together and then strewn across town by four artists at four different galleries: Shannon Ebner at Altman Siegel, Robert Bechtle at John Berggruen, Katy Grannan at Fraenkel Gallery, and Jordan Kantor at Ratio 3.

Allusions to criminality aside, the artists/curators of “They Knew What They Wanted” would more likely be found on the forensics team than the wrong side of the law. All are steely observers whose art could broadly be said to share a focus on the dynamics of surveillance at work within postwar portrait and landscape photography, particularly photography that looked at what was booming outside of America’s urban centers. Although Grannan is the sole photographer in the group, Ebner’s temporary installations of handmade signage placed in public settings — which she then photographs in black and white — and Bechtle and Kantor’s photo-based oil paintings also fall under the sign of the photography.

It’s not surprising then that multiple pieces by each of the curators can be found across all four galleries, as well as certain names (Lee Friedlander, Miriam Böhm, Trevor Paglen, and Ed Ruscha in particular) whose work shares an aesthetic affinity with that of the curators. This form of cross-gallery display gives “They Knew What They Wanted” a cohesion that is often rare in group shows, while still not being so insular as to make it hard to differentiate each artist-curator’s own aesthetic sense.

Bechtle’s selections offer the least surprises, summoning the same post-1960s Western suburban milieu evoked by his photorealistic paintings of driveway-bound vintage cars. After a few rounds of viewing, though, Robert Adams’ vintage snaps of Colorado ‘burbs, Friedlander’s skewed takes on small town architecture, Isca Greenfield-Sanders’ aquatint etchings of backyard swimmers, and Tom McKinley’s oils of cool modernist interiors start to add up to the visual equivalent of tract housing.

Ebner and Kantor’s picks are more interior-minded than the mainly street-level and exterior scenes crowding John Berggruen. They also veer the furthest from each artist’s own work. For example, Sol LeWitt’s blink-and-you’ll-miss-it painted electrical wall plate at Altman Siegel is just a few Home Depot aisles away from Rachel Whiteread’s stainless steel castings of light switches over at Ratio 3. Back at Altman Siegel, Fletcher Benton’s 1983 bronze tennis racket, “Adjustable Racket for Short Heavy Hitters,” leans dejectedly in a corner, in wait for a yard sale that will never come. Grannan’s grab bag at Fraenkel is the most photo-heavy, and her selection ventures furthest — with mixed success — from the thematic territory staked out by Bechtle, Ebner, and Kantor.

In a way, Ebner, Bechtle, Grannan, and Kantor have beat SFMOMA to the punch. The museum is set to restage the landmark 1975 photography exhibit “New Topographics: Photographs of a Man-Altered Landscape” — which presented dispassionate documentation of parking lots, construction sites, and other forms of ex-urban development — at the end of the month. But for a sustained exploration of the meteor-like impact of “New Topographics” on the photography and painting that followed in its wake, one couldn’t ask for a better art historical crash-course than “They Knew What They Wanted.” *

 

THEY KNEW WHAT THEY WANTED

Through July 31, free

John Berggruen Gallery

228 Grant, SF

(415) 781-4629

www.berggruen.com

Through Aug. 7, free

Altman Siegel Gallery

49 Geary, SF

(415) 576-9300

www.altmansiegel.com

Through Aug. 13, free

Ratio 3

1447 Stevenson, SF

(415) 821-3371

www.ratio3.org

Through Aug. 21, free

Fraenkel Gallery

49 Geary, SF

(415) 981-2661

www.fraenkelgallery.com

On the cheap listings

David Talbot
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On the Cheap listings are compiled by Paula Connelly. Submit items for the listings at listings@sfbg.com.

WEDNESDAY 14

Make Beer in Your Basement Bazaar Café, 5927 California, SF; (415) 831-5620. 7pm, free. Learn to make your own beer to both save money and get invited to more parties. Home brewer Caleb Shaffer presents an overview of the beer brewing process, complete with explanations on technique, equipment, and ingredients.

Vive le Film! Hotel Rex, 562 Sutter, SF; www.disposablefilmfest.com. 8pm, free. In honor of Bastille Day, the Disposable Film Festival will present a collection of disposable films with a French flare. Enjoy drink specials courtesy of Hotel Rex and valet bike parking provided by Globe Bikes.

THURSDAY 15

Hayes Valley Farm Tour Hayes Valley Farm, Laguna between Oak and Fell, SF; www.laborfest.net. 3pm, free. Attend this LaborFest sponsored tour of Hayes Valley Farm, an urban agriculture education and research project, and learn about the alliance of urban farmers, educators, and designers that comprise the Hayes Valley Farm Project Team and the innovative strategies used on the farm in order to meet the needs of our planet and the surrounding communities of San Francisco. Tours of the farm are held every Thursday and Sunday.

FRIDAY 16

Free Museum Weekend Various museums in San Francisco, visit www.onlyinsanfrancisco.com/target for exact dates and times. Fri.-Sun., free. The de Young Museum, Asian Art Museum, SFMOMA, Contemporary Jewish Museum, Museum of African Diaspora, Zeum, and the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival are all offering free admission days throughout the weekend for all ages along with hands-on art activities, and family friendly performances.

SATURDAY 17

“Art Show” Cat Club, 1190 Folsom, SF; (415) 703-8964. 5pm, $5 suggested donation. Watch interpretive drag performances devoted to the works of Keith Gaspari, who will be hosting along with the lovely Bebe Sweetbriar. Featuring works by local artists and performers, champagne toasts, a raffle, and special Bulleit bourbon cocktails to benefit Visual Aid, a non-profit that supports artists living with HIV.

“Beatles to Bowie” San Francisco Art Exchange, 458 Geary, SF; (415) 441-8840. 7pm, free. Attend the opening of this Rock n’ Roll photo exhibition displaying original photos showcasing the evolution of music from the British invasion to glam rock from 1962 to 1974. Featuring never before seen photos by Terry O’Neill.

Behind the Storefronts Chinese Cultural Center of San Francisco, 3rd floor, 750 Kearny, SF; (415) 252-2598. 2pm, free. Learn about how Art in Storefronts, a citywide project that temporarily places original art installations and murals into vacant storefront windows and exposed walls, from some of the artists and property owners who participated in the current Chinatown exhibition. An artist-led tour of the storefronts and murals will follow the discussion.

Night Light SOMArts Cultural Center, 934 Brannan, SF; (415) 552-1770. 9pm, $5 suggested donation. Get lost in a multimedia garden party featuring temporary multimedia, abstract sound, video, and film installation set in the garden of SOMArts. In conjunction with the current “Totally Unrealistic: the art of abstraction” exhibit.

Schools for Salone El Rio, 3158 Mission, SF; (415) 648-4767. 4pm, $10 suggested donation. Enjoy an afternoon of dancing, eating, drinking, and probable sunshine to benefit Schools for Salone, a non profit that build schools in Sierra Leone. Featuring music by DJs Marcos, Eschew, SpinCycle, PMS, and Ras Kanta, African food by Bissap Baobab, and raffle prizes.

Song and Poetry Swap The San Francisco Folk Music Club, 885 Clayton, SF; (415) 648-3457. 8pm, free. Join the Freedom Song Network to help keep the spirit of labor and political song alive in the Bay Area by bringing songs or poems to share at this swap of picket line, rally, and concert songs and poems. No musical training or talent required. Part of LaborFest 2010: www.laborfest.net.

Union Square Art Walk Participating galleries along Post and Sutter streets, SF; for exact locations visit http://artwalksf.com/. Noon-5pm, free. Take a free, self-guided walking tour of Union Square art galleries at this art walk featuring artist talks, performance art, live music, film screenings, refreshments, and more.

SUNDAY 18

Lots of Abundance Meet at CCA Farm, 8th St. at Hooper, SF; www.sfbike.org. 9:45am, $5 suggested donation. Discover local projects that reclaim abandoned lots and former freeways for public use and for the purpose of restoring connections to food on this two and a half hour bike tour led by TransitionSF and the San Francisco Permaculture Guild. The tour will highlight local efforts to create community and garner support for both the environment and the economy.

MONDAY 19

Ubu Roi Theater Pub, Café Royale, 800 Post, SF; www.sftheaterpub.wordpress.com. 8pm, free. Take in a one night performance of Alfred Jarry’s 1896 bawdy and nihilistic re-imagining of Macbeth, translated and modernized by Bennett Fisher. Enjoy this original work and workshop at the Café Royale bar featuring musical accompaniment by DJ Wait What.

For Lit, Talks, and Benefits listings, visit the Pixel Vision blog at www.sfbg.com/pixel_vision.

Dizzy dazzle

Jesse Hawthorne Ficks
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0
Dizzy dazzle

arts@sfbg.com

ART Let’s start with the obvious: the massive art collection of Gap Inc. founders Doris and the late Don Fisher is by far one of the largest and most significant windfalls SFMOMA has received in its 75-year history. More important, the collection — which had primarily been viewable throughout the Gap’s SF headquarters only by company employees and visiting tour groups — is finally being made accessible to the general public.

Gary Garrels, SFMOMA’s senior curator of painting and sculpture, has selected 160 works — a mere fraction of the 1,100 total — for “Calder to Warhol: Introducing the Fisher Collection,” a Fishers’ Greatest Hits that aims to provide an overview of the breadth of their holdings as well as highlight their in-depth focus on certain artists. During the exhibits media preview, Garrels mentioned that the Fishers acquired pieces without the help of advisers, jointly choosing works that “spoke to them.” Clearly, they had a taste for big game.

Primarily comprising paintings and sculpture, “Calder to Warhol” is, as its title indicates, a veritable who’s who of mid-to-late 20th century modern art that takes over the museum’s top two floors and spills out into the rooftop sculpture garden. I’m not being facetious when I say there’s something for everyone. Aside from extensive collections of Calder and Warhol, the show is chockablock with iconic pieces by Ellsworth Kelly, Gerhard Richter, Cy Twombly, Richard Serra, Roy Lichtenstein, Chuck Close … and the list goes on.

The range of artists and quality of the pieces assembled is dizzying. Take the fourth floor, for instance. The shock of several hideous, large-scale mixed media on aluminum DayGlo monstrosities by Frank Stella from the late 1970s and ’80s is largely soothed by the blushing, meaty pinks and reds of The Street, a remarkable 1956 Philip Guston abstract canvas in an adjoining gallery (Guston gets an additional gallery all to himself), which then leads to the downy embrace of Lee Krasner’s equally stunning 1961 oil Polar Stampede — a palimpsest of brown and gold hatch-marked feathers — and from there a gallery of four decades of Twombly’s looped scribbles.

Then there’s the small collection of Agnes Martin paintings, which by itself would be worth the price of admission. Martin is an artist who particularly suffers in reproduction: the delicate lines and gentle washes of color in her paintings get lost, and all one sees are their grid-like skeletons. Being able to study up close the subtle pop effect of the squares in Night Sea (1963) — the way in which the gold leaf underneath the oil causes the canvas’ tiny bluish squares to flash teal — is a revelation.

Or, starting from the floor’s north end, one encounters a crash course in Pop Art and its kin. The Lichtensteins and the Claes Oldenburg apple core are all well and good, but the Warhols are where it’s at: standouts are early 1960s silkscreens such as Tunafish Disaster and two of the handsome criminals in the “Most Wanted Men” series, and lesser-famous portraits of Joseph Beuys and Robert Mapplethorpe alongside Dolly and Jackie’s familiar visages. These aren’t the usual Factory hits.

Around another corner, past a room crowded with Close portraits, is another must-see: two enormous Sigmar Polke canvases from his alchemical 1988 series, “The Spirits That Lend Strength to the Invisible,” on which the German artist applied unconventional materials such as tellurium, chemical resin, and ground-up meteors. Their wild, particulate sprays evoke both the Hubble Telescope’s images of space, as well as the crude plumes currently floating off the Gulf Coast.

And I haven’t even started in on the fifth floor, with its showcases of Important Works by Calder, Kelly, Serra, Kiefer, Richter, and some particularly wonderful Lewitt wall drawings.

Yes, “Calder to Warhol” is dizzying. It is also frequently dazzling. But I can’t help but feel a little squeamish in the face of such a grand and copious cache; one that until recently had been displayed as an act of corporate largesse to those in the service of the empire that funded its acquisition.

Art collecting is a form of investment, capital put down toward ensuring the collector’s future legacy as much as it is a reflection of aesthetic tastes. The Fishers rarely sold pieces, and the equal attention they paid to collecting both figurative and abstract works — as well as an earlier failed bid to construct a private museum in the Presidio — suggests that the collection was developed increasingly with an eye toward creating the very sort of jaw-dropping endowment of which SFMOMA now finds itself the very fortunate recipient.

Certainly for SFMOMA, the benefits of this gift are clear. The museum’s profile has undoubtedly risen, and will continue to rise once the planned expansion set to house the remaining 90 percent of the collection’s holdings is complete. What remains less apparent throughout “Calder to Warhol” is a sense of the Fishers’ personal investment in the pieces they so assiduously acquired. To simply say that the art — so much amazing work, now finally on view — speaks for itself is only half true. As with any major private collection, it also speaks to a long campaign waged over the peaks and valleys of the art market.

Still, the Fishers aren’t merely the sum of their deep pockets. I wish the wall panels revealed when each piece had been bought, and whether Don or Doris had singled it out first (Imagine their dinner conversations: “Honey, would you like to buy a Dan Flavin?”). That information would put a different, perhaps more humanizing, spin on the story “Calder to Warhol” currently tells: a testament to the Fishers’ wide-reaching, frequently well-informed, and relatively safe taste for blue chip names.

CALDER TO WARHOL: INTRODUCING THE FISHER COLLECTION

Through Sept. 19, $9–$15

(children under 12 free; first Tuesday of every month free)

SFMOMA

151 Third St., SF

(415) 357-4000

www.sfmoma.org

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