Well… I must admit that we have had better-attended aprez-turkeyday MovieNights, but (and it is a “big but”, as I am fond of saying) it was a fine evening, a fine fine film. If you haven’t seen I’ve Loved You So Long, please do.

We welcomed our youngest ever MovieNight guest this week. At the unripe young age of two and a bit months, Calder seemed happy to see any movie, but we’re pretty sure that he’ll grow up with an unexplainable fascination with Kristin Scott Thomas, in spite of the fact that she (or perhaps, because of the fact that she)… nevermind. See the movie.

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Wes Anderson is always quirky, and often funny, but his stylized vision can sometimes be difficult to empathize with. Moonrise Kingdom shone though. Of course it was painstakingly stylish, but the endearing tale of two awkward teenagers drawn together by familial dysfunction made it all work. The closing titles (you know… the bit where most of the people in the theater get up and wander out) are worth watching all on their own.

We had a great turnout for Moonrise Kingdom this week; especially great because Bernd and Nina, A.K.A. “The Newly-weds”, flew in from Berlin for a few days and included MovieNight in their list of must-go-to’s. From Bernd we learned that thousands of genetically-modified research mice died during Super Storm Sandy; not the sort of loss we tend to think about straight away. I’m sure there are many many other extraordinary consequences we will learn about, probably for years to come.

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As you probably noticed, we rather abruptly shelved our plans to show Election this week. It had seemed like a good idea at the time, but enough politics already! It turned out to be a good decision (irony intended).

Monsieur Lazhar was the second French-Canadian movie screened at MovieNight… the first was C.R.A.Z.Y. Both films share the ability to be thought-provoking and comical at the same time, but Monsier Lazhar delved into some troubling issues that are more relevant in today’s world; persecution by religious extremism and the delicate balance which needs to be struck in interactions between children and the adults given authority over them. All the performances were strong, but the children were outstandingly good. We laughed and cried.

This week, along with some new people (welcome!), we saw the return of some MovieNight guests who had been absent, presumed missing, for a few years. Good to have you back.

What’s next?  Stay tuned.

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Ironically, we were going to show The Shining this week, but Sandy made sure that our projector couldn’t shine. We hope you are all safe and well, and hope to be back in the MovieNight “business” again soon.

It’s always great when Hallowe’en falls on a Thursday (or Friday, or Saturday for that matter), and we can show a scary movie. This year, Wednesday’s the night, and we were thinking of just ignoring it altogether. Thankfully, that thought didn’t persist and we decided to make a little “horror sandwich” and show two great flicks on either side of Hallowe’en. The Fly remains wonderfully entertaining in spite of (because of?) it’s age and the plethora of eighties hair. The unanswered question: “Where’s the sequel with the baby?”

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