Rochester is a cinema-rich city. No other city this size has a five-screen art-house theater and a repertory theater in addition to the commercial theaters in the area. This is in part due to the generosity and legacy of George Eastman and the Eastman Kodak Co., but is also due to the long list of filmmakers who were born, worked, or studied in Rochester, in addition to those who visited often and called the city a second home. From director George Melford, actor Norman Kerry, and actress Louise Brooks in the silent period, to musician Cab Calloway, writers Garson and Michael Kanin in Hollywood’s golden years, to more recent actors such as John Lithgow and Taye Diggs, Rochester has produced an impressive list of artists who have contributed to the art of cinema. This year, the Dryden Theatre will bring films featuring many of these artists to the big screen, opening up chapters of this city you may never have known.
Dates and Titles:
January 14: The Sheik (George Melford, 1921, 86 min., 35mm)
February 1 (2 p.m.): Dryden Roundtable: From Rochester, With Love (featuring Jim Memmott, Nora Brown, Philip Carli, and Jared Case)
February 4: Sweet Alyssum (Colin Campbell, 1915, 59 min., 35mm)
February 15: Sabrina (Billy Wilder, 1954, 113 min., 35mm)
March 6: Woman of the Year (George Stevens, 1942, 114 min., DCP)
March 8: Gaslight (George Cukor, 1944, 114 min., DCP)
March 11: The Lone Wolf Returns (Ralph Ince, US 1926, 70 min., 35mm)
March 13: Intermezzo
March 14: The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (John Huston, 1948, 126 min., 35mm)
March 15: Casablanca (Michael Curtiz, 1942, 102 min., 35mm)
March 20: Silk Stockings (Rouben Mamoulian, 1957, 117 min., DCP)
March 28: The Pride of the Yankees (Sam Wood, 1942, 128 min., 35mm)
March 29 (2 p.m.): The Pride of the Yankees (Sam Wood, 1942, 128 min., 35mm)
April 3: Pat and Mike (George Cukor, 1952, 95 min., DCP)
April 24: Stormy Weather (Andrew L. Stone, 1943, 78 min., DCP)
June 3: The Magnificent Yankee (John Sturges, US 1950, 89 min., 16mm)
Jun 10: Tortilla Flat (Victor Fleming, US 1942, 105 min., 35mm)
June 17: The Letter (William Wyler, US 1940, 95 min., 35mm)
June 20: The Philadelphia Story (George Cukor, US 1940, 112 min., 35mm)
June 21 (2 p.m.): The Philadelphia Story (George Cukor, US 1940, 112 min., 35mm)
June 26: National Velvet (Clarence Brown, US 1944, 123 min., 35mm)
June 28: (2 p.m.): The Letter (William Wyler, US 1940, 95 min., 35mm)
August 1: Along Came Polly (John Hamburg, US 2004, 90 min., DCP)
August 2 (2 p.m.): State and Main (David Mamet, US 2000, 105 min., 35mm)
August 2: The Big Lebowski (Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, US 1998, 117 min., 35mm)
Events in this Series
Matinee: The Letter (35mm)
From Rochester, With Love | Saturday Matinees! William Wyler’s adaptation of a Somerset Maugham short story opens with a bang—six of them, to be exact, all from the gun Bette Davis has just used to kill the man she claims made an unwelcome advance. As the wife of a respectable plantation owner, she’ll most likely get off . . . except for that incriminating letter that proves her clear-cut case of self-defense was anything but. Supported by a classic Max Steiner score, Davis has never been better. Her brief stint as part of the Cukor-Kondolf stage company in Rochester, NY never prepared her for this.
Member Movie Night: National Velvet (35mm)
From Rochester, With Love | The Centennial Club | Member Movie Night By the age of 12, British-born Elizabeth Taylor was under contract to MGM and had already appeared in several popular films, but it was this wonderful girl-and-her-gelding adventure that made her a major star.
Matinee: The Philadelphia Story (35mm)
From Rochester, With Love | Saturday Matinees! Labeled “box office poison” in 1938, primarily for being a non-conformist, Katharine Hepburn returned to the stage in a play written by Rochester-born Philip Barry to showcase the actress’s strengths: The Philadelphia Story. Before the production even opened on Broadway, Hepburn had purchased the film rights (with the help of her then-partner Howard Hughes) and shopped it around Hollywood.
The Philadelphia Story (35mm)
From Rochester, With Love Labeled “box office poison” in 1938, primarily for being a non-conformist, Katharine Hepburn returned to the stage in a play written by Rochester-born Philip Barry to showcase the actress’s strengths: The Philadelphia Story.
The Letter (35mm)
From Rochester, With Love William Wyler’s adaptation of a Somerset Maugham short story opens with a bang—six of them, to be exact, all from the gun Bette Davis has just used to kill the man she claims made an unwelcome advance.