HEIGHTS THEATER

Judy (Jane Fonda) is newly divorced and needs a job, and she lands one as a secretary at Consolidated. Violet (Lily Tomlin) has worked there for a dozen years, trained her stupid boss, Franklin M. Hart (the wonderfully odious Dabney Coleman), and is stuck without promotion. Doralee (Dolly Parton) is Frank’s secretary, whom he belittles. Well, put those three women together, and in no time, they’ll have their sweet revenge… and start running the company! Produced and conceived by Jane Fonda, 9 to 5 launched Parton’s cinematic career and was a massive hit, even though President Ronald Reagan hated that the characters smoked pot in once scene. Don’t miss it!

Widely regarded as the greatest film about Broadway, All About Eve unleashed Bette Davis at her most witty and eviscerating, here going toe-to-toe with Anne Baxter, who plays the title character. This story of a young actress who claws her way to stardom, and the wreckage she leaves behind, was nominated for a then-record 14 Academy Awards, winning Best Picture and Director (among others) and remains a classic.

Beverly (Marion Davies) is a young American student, eager to see Europe with her cousin Oscar. Good news! Oscar’s just been named heir to the throne of a European country. Bad news! He got injured in a skiing accident and can’t make it in time to receive his birthright. Here’s an idea—dress cousin Beverly as Oscar! Complications: man, Beverly sure thinks Oscar’s bodyguard is one hot number. One of the great “trouser roles” in silent film, Marion Davies’ Beverly is drag personified in this gender-bending silent masterpiece, with another brilliant score by the talented Katie Condon.

Here come the VILLAGE PEOPLE! Songwriter Jack Morell (Steve Gutenberg, in his debut) writes great disco songs. His pal, former supermodel turned consumer of junk food, Sam Simpson (Oscar-nominated Valerie Perrine), helps our man by asking her ex, who happens to be an executive of a record label, to sign him to a contract. Enter sexy lawyer Ron White (Caitlyn Jenner), who helps assemble a band. What band? THE VILLAGE PEOPLE, who else? CAN’T STOP THE MUSIC was a critical and commercial failure but has since become embraced as one of the craziest, most heartfelt paeans to disco ever put on film, not to mention a joyous celebration of a late 70s LGBTQ+ culture, even as it’s trying to pretend every man is straight (not in the least). The “YMCA” and “Milkshake” scenes are worth the price alone, but don’t believe us, don’t miss CAN’T STOP THE MUSIC.

Set in Paris’ theatrical society in the early 19th Century, Children of Paradise is the story of a mysterious courtesan who is beloved by four men: an actor, a thief, a count, and a mime. Director Marcel Carné and screenwriter Jacques Prévert create a lush world in stunning contrast to the Nazi-controlled France in which they were filmmaking. One of the most beloved French films of all-time, director François Truffaut famously said that he would give up all of his films to have made Children of Paradise, and in a 1995 survey, French film critics called it the best film ever made.

Joe and Kirsten (Lemmon and Lee Remick) are married, a professional couple working for a San Francisco PR firm. They’re also full-blown alcoholics, whose addiction is no longer slowly unraveling their lives, it’s torn their world apart. Blake Edwards’ blistering drama was a direct confrontation to the standard practice of social drinking at work and was a surprise box-office smash. Lemmon and Remick were both nominated for Oscars for their powerful performances.

Flo and Marian are a pair of young New York girls looking to nab rich husbands. “Borrowing” a fine set of clothes from their employer, they head straight for the Florida beaches, pretending to be widows. Del Ruth’s hilarious silent comedy likely inspired Some Like It Hot and comes to us with a newly restored print from the Library of Congress.

When stick-up artist “Heliotrope” Harry comes home after escaping the cops, he finds his devious wife, Lilly, in the arms of another. Enraged, Harry shoots his rival, and before he’s caught, leaves his baby girl on the doorstep of a rich, childless couple. While in the big house, he’s kept abreast of daughter Alice’s progress by his former associate, Froggy. But when Lilly finds the girl and seeks revenge, Harry is able to get free and tries to set a trap to keep his daughter safe. One of the earliest productions from David O. Selznick, Forgotten Faces is a newly restored masterpiece of silent melodrama, not available for streaming anywhere!

In Wabasha, Minnesota, John Gustafson (Lemmon) and Max Goldman (Walter Matthau) are best frenemies, nursing decades-long grievances and eternally seeking to one-up the other with ever nastier practical jokes. When attractive professor Ariel Truax (Ann-Margaret) comes to town, John begins to court her, sending Max into a jealous fury whose limits know no bounds. GRUMPY OLD MEN was a surprise hit and one of the most Minnesota comedies you will ever find, shot in St. Paul and Faribault. Shooting in the cold literally almost killed Matthau, so you’d better enjoy it.

We’ve been asked to screen Hocus Pocus for years, and it’s finally here! When Salem, Massachusetts teenager Max accidentally resurrects three witches from the seventeenth century, and those witches happen to be comedians Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy, the results is one of the most hilarious (and beloved) pictures from the 1990s!

Lieutenant Aldo Raine is a battle-tested solider in the U.S. Army during World War II. His goal: recruit a commando group of Jewish-American soldiers to do “one thing, and one thing only: kill Nazis!” This is Quentin Tarantino’s World War II, full of blood, brilliant dialogue, great actors, all the while referencing spaghetti Westerns and Italian action films. Inglourious Basterds was a tremendous hit and introduced the world to the amazing Christoph Waltz, who won an Oscar for his slimy performance.

NEW DIGITAL RESTORATIONS! One of the Heights’ most popular events returns for what is sure to another sold-out screening. This year we’re bringing six classic short films in new digital restorations. “Another Fine Mess” (1930), “Men o’ War” (1929), “Going Bye-Bye” (1934), “Perfect Day” (1929), “Dirty Work” (1933), and “Hog Wild” (1930) round out the program. Don’t miss it!

Hans Wieland is a brilliant actor, a leading figure in German cinema. When the Nazis pressure him to divorce his Jewish wife, Elisabeth, he refuses. Finally, political pressure becomes too much, and, realizing that he will be arrested, his wife to be sent to a concentration camp, he faces the ultimate test of his love. Based on the real-life story of actor Joachim Gottschalk, Kurt Maetzig’s Marriage in the Shadows was the first movie (produced under Soviet auspices) to confront Germans about their treatment of Jews. A brilliant and heartbreaking film, shot like a noir but filled with the rarefied emotions of a melodrama, this rare screening should not be missed.

One of our most popular features in a stunning new 70mm restoration. WHAT?!? That’s right, North by Northwest, one of Alfred Hitchcock’s most triumphantly entertaining films, has had a mind-blowing 70mm restoration, and we’re bringing it to the Twin Cities. Charming ad man Roger O. Thornhill (or ROT, to his friends) must run for his life when he's mistaken for an American spy by a dastardly criminal organization. Hitchcock urged screenwriter Ernest Lehman to pull out all the stops, resulting in a breathtaking adventure whose insane plot twists work in spite of themselves. Cary Grant was never more charming, Eve Marie Saint never more alluring, and Hitchcock never more assured.

Pete, Delmar and Ulysses (Tim Blake Nelson, John Turturro and George Clooney) escape a chain gang in 1930s Mississippi in the Coen Brothers’ riotous take on Homer’s Ulysses. Featuring some of the best folk musicians of the turn of the century, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, a modest hit in its day, has since gone on to be one of the Coen’s most revered classics.

Jennie Livingston’s groundbreaking documentary about 1980s ball culture in New York City is a revelation. This cinéma verité masterpiece was shot in the mid-1980s and follows performers vogueing their way into drag superstardom—the houses of Pendavis, Xtravaganza, and LaBeija will forever be a part of the drag firmament. Every season of RuPAUL’S DRAG RACE features a nod to PARIS IS BURNING, one of RuPaul’s favorite films. Perhaps the greatest examination of the roots of modern drag, PARIS IS BURNING should not be missed.

Poor Nina and Robert (Holliday and Jack Lemmon). Married for eight years and phffft!, it’s splitsville. So, Robert crashes at the home of his playboy pal Charlie (Jack Carlson) and Nina nurses her grievances over the phone to her mom. It’s the 50s, just get a divorce already! Too bad Nina and Robert can’t live without one another in this sidesplitting, and tender, comedy of manners. Holliday and Lemmon have incredible chemistry, Carlson is the perfect cad, and Kim Novak is on hand as an ingenue with an eye for our man Robert.

There is no way we’re having a drag series without DIVINE! Pity poor Frances Fishpaw (Divine): her porno-theater-owning husband is having an affair, her son's huffing household chemicals, her daughter's a hussy, and the other housewives spit on her! Enter the handsome Todd Tomorrow (Tab Hunter), who sweeps her off her feet—but is he for real, or just another cad? Exploding off the screen in Waters' patented grainy grindhouse style, POLYESTER is alarming, offensive, hilarious, and even dare-we-say affectionate. Also: Divine is the Queen of all Queens!

In the sixteenth century, bandits have been invading a small mountain village, depleting it of its rice harvest and leaving its inhabitants in a state of perpetual near-hunger. A group of three brave villagers goes to the nearest town, hoping to entice down-on-their-heels samurai to help defend the village with the promise of rice. What ensues is one of the most thrilling, and emotionally moving, action epics ever made. The Seven Samurai has always been high on list of the greatest films ever made, and is an absolutely entertaining film that leaves its viewers enthralled and devastated. The Heights presents the gorgeous new digital 4K restoration from Janus.

Do we really need to explain this one? Perhaps no movie musical is as beloved as Singin' in the Rain, which has sold out the Heights Theater three times in the last four years! What a wonderful feeling!

When desperate musicians Joe (Tony Curtis) and Jerry (Jack Lemmon) witness the St. Valentine's Day Massacre in Chicago, they've got to get out of town, and fast. But without any money, what can they do except, well, dress like women and join an all-girls band bound for sunny Florida? The cross-dressing duo find themselves in the same resort as the gangster who order the murders, but that's not the least of their troubles: Joe/Josephine is in love with Marilyn Monroe's "Sugar" and Jerry/Daphne's got a suitor in Osgood Fielding III, a man who won't take no for an answer. This groundbreaking comedy feels ahead of its time even in the 21st Century.

THE BALLAD OF WALLIS ISLAND follows Charles (Tim Key), an eccentric lottery winner who lives alone on a remote island and dreams of getting his favorite musicians, McGwyer Mortimer (Tom Basden & Carey Mulligan) back together. His fantasy turns into reality when the bandmates and former lovers accept his invitation to play a private show at his home on Wallis Island. Old tensions resurface as Charles tries desperately to salvage his dream gig.

Armand (Robin Williams) and Albert (Nathan Lane) run The Birdcage, a drag nightclub in Miami where Albert performs as Starina. Armand has a 20-year-old son from a one-night stand, and whoops! Armand’s son wants to marry a young woman… whose father happens to be ultra right-wing Senator Keely (Gene Hackman). Well, their idiot son hid the fact that his folks are gay and Jewish, so voila! Enter Mr. and Mrs. Coleman—Armand as Mr. and Albert as Mrs. This sparkling comedy was a surprise hit, and Robin Williams and Nathan Lane are pure comedy gold. Also, we miss Gene Hackman and Robin Williams.

Boris Karloff met his match with Elsa Lanchester, who plays the Bride of Frankenstein and sports perhaps the greatest hairdo in Hollywood's long history of great hairdos. Her performance was years ahead of its time, the kind of thing that wins Oscars today and was the perfect foil to Karloff. James Whale attempted to camp up his entry, but the result is a film that many consider superior to the first, more emotional and less stagy than the first, and perhaps the greatest entry of Universal's celebrated horror films.

Poor Harry (Lemmon). A sports cameraman, he’s whacked by a football player while shooting from the sidelines, but no worries—Harry was barely scratched. Enter “Whiplash Willie”, Harry’s brother-in-law (Walter Matthau). Willie sees dollar signs, Harry dreams of his lovely ex-wife coming back to nurse his injuries, and the insurance company smells a rat. Billy Wilder’s black comedy skewers dog-eat-dog life in the 60s. The first of many Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau pairings, THE FORTUNE COOKIE won Matthau his only Oscar, for Best Supporting Actor.

Based on the bestselling novel, writer and teacher Iris (Watts) finds her comfortable, solitary New York life thrown into disarray after her closest friend and mentor (Murray) leaves her his beloved 150 lb. Great Dane. The regal yet intractable beast, named Apollo, immediately creates practical problems for Iris, from furniture destruction to eviction notices, as well as more existential ones. Yet as Iris finds herself unexpectedly bonding with Apollo, she begins to come to terms with her past and her own creative inner life in this story of healing, love, and friendship.

The kids of the Goon Dock section of a small Oregon town refer to themselves as Goonies. When their neighborhood is threatened with development, they get in their heads to try and find the treasure of “One-Eyed Willy”, in the hopes of saving their homes. One of the rare cases of a hit movie that is also a cult classic, The Goonies has thrilled audiences for four decades.

This brave and biting comedy by Charlie Chaplin was his first sound film, and most successful picture. Released at a time when the U.S. was still in a tenuous truce with Germany, The Great Dictator not only satirized the Fuhrer, but accurately portrayed Hitler's hunger for world domination, and his dangerous policies against the Jews, perhaps the first major American film to do so. The Great Dictator is not only one of the greatest movies of all-time, but perhaps the most important comedy ever made.

Felix (Lemmon) is a neurotic clean freak, whose wife has just left him. Oscar (Walter Matthau), divorced, is an incredible slob, and enjoys his independent squalor. When the latter offers the former a place to stay, life turns upside-down for both men. THE ODD COUPLE reunited Lemmon and Matthau and was a critical and box office smash and was turned into a classic television show.

Everything’s peachy for Gwen and George Kellerman (Sandy Dennis and Lemmon): nice home in suburban Ohio, great job, kids, dog. When George gets an interview to become a top salesman in New York City—uh, grungy, crime-ridden 1970 New York City, that is—he and Gwen are thrown headlong into an endless parade of indignities in a hilarious and terrifying 24 hours. This is one of the most manic comedies ever made, and Lemmon and Dennis are astonishing as the loving couple pushed to the brink of insanity.

THE PHOENICIAN SCHEME. The story of a family and a family business. Starring: Benicio del Toro as Zsa-zsa Korda, one of the richest men in Europe; Mia Threapleton as Sister Liesl, his daughter/a nun; Michael Cera as Bjorn Lund, their tutor. With: Tom Hanks, Bryan Cranston, Riz Ahmed, Mathieu Amalric, Jeffrey Wright, Scarlett Johansson, Richard Ayoade, Rupert Friend, Hope Davis, and Benedict Cumberbatch.

Jack Torrence, a recovering alcoholic, retreats to the Overlook Hotel with his wife, Wendy, and son, Danny, in tow, in the hopes of breaking his writer's block. But the hotel is host to a variety of dark secrets, none more disturbing than those in Room 237. The Shining is one of Kubrick's more startling masterpieces, and Jack Nicholson's performance is the stuff of legend.

One of the most popular films of all-time arrives at the Heights Theater! Poor Maria (Julie Andrews) is a nun who is just too free-spirited to do anything right in the convent. So, she’s placed as a governess to the stern Captain von Trapp (Christopher Plummer) and his seven children, who are models of discipline. Thank goodness Maria is there to help them become happy kids again! Director Robert Wise pulled out all the stops making this blockbuster, whose music people have adored for generations. Winner of five Academy Awards.

35MM TECHNICOLOR DYE-TRANSFER PRINT!! One of the greatest motion pictures of all-time is one of our most popular events and sells out year after year. As always, we’re screening the rare 35mm Technicolor Dye Transfer print, whose astounding colors must be seen to be believed. Has there ever been a more essential piece of movie magic than the journey of Dorothy and Toto? Never. And the lush Technicolor makes the colors so rich it's like seeing a painting.

Blaine, Missouri is small town whose local amateur theater, led by the indomitable Corky St. Clair (Guest), plans to put on a show to commemorate the town’s 150th anniversary. Pulling together all the citizens, who battle for choice roles, Corky’s Red, White and Blaine might just be their undoing! Guest’s star-studded mockumentary is hilarious, and features brilliant comic performances from Eugene Levy, Catherine O’Hara, Parker Posey, Fred Willard and Guest himself.

To Glensheen devotees and local cinema buffs, this Gothic old dark house suspense film is an absolute must-see! Shot completely on location in Duluth in the winter of 1971, You'll Like My Mother stars Patty Duke, a very sinister Richard Thomas (John Boy from The Waltons), and an utterly chilling Rosemary Murphy as the mother you'll love to cringe from. However, the real star of this film is the glorious Glensheen Mansion, which you'll explore (with a terrified Patty) from the cellar to the attic!