HEIGHTS THEATER

After the financial and critical disaster of Dune, Lynch retreated to the surrealist world he knew best, and with Blue Velvet established himself as a controversial and mesmerizing auteur. This is the story of Jeffrey (Kyle Machlachlan, Lynch's muse if ever there was one) who returns home to Lumberton, Oregon only to find a human ear in an abandoned lot. Enter Frank (Dennis Hopper), one of the nastiest villains ever to appear in a movie, who terrorizes Dorothy (Isabella Rosellini) and draws a very curious Jeffrey into this sticky web of lust and murder. Despite dividing the critics of its day, Blue Velvet earned Lynch an Academy Award nomination for Best Director, and has since been regarded as one of the greatest films ever made.

Sam Bowden (Peck) is a lawyer, a pillar of his community, married and with a 14-year-old daughter. Released from prison, Max Cady (Mitchum) seethes, hell bent on destroying Bowden, whose testimony sent him there. Mitchum is mesmerizing as Cady, but Peck's Bowden grounds Cape Fear, and his character's desperate attempts at protecting his family call into question ethics, morality and even challenge Peck's own image as an upstanding man.

35MM PRESENTATION 80TH ANNIVERSARY SCREENING 80 years ago, of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, Ilsa walked into Rick's, captivating moviegoers still reeling from America's sudden entry into World War II. A picture studded with the best stars and character actors, witty and memorable lines, a crowd pleaser in absolutely the best sense the term, Casablanca is a masterpiece by almost every standard. Not to be missed on the big screen in 35mm!

Forget the newest version, there is no greater Dune than David Lynch's! Well, there's probably a lot of folks who would disagree with that claim, but Lynch fans cannot miss the director's very personal take on Frank Herbert's massive sci-fi tome. Kyle Maclachlan, in his screen debut, is Paul Atreides, the young heir to the throne, who may also be a sort of messianic figure, and who must control the planet Arrakis and... well, the plot defies further explanation in so few words, but this lush, crazy and spectacular epic is a feast for the eyes. Derided in its time, with a score by Toto and Brian Eno, as well as a star-studded cast (including Sting!) Dune must be seen on the big screen to be believed.

Young Ed Wood (Johnny Depp) is struggling to make his movies in a Hollywood indifferent to his genius. Baffled, Wood persists in trying to get “I Changed My Sex!”, “Bride of the Atom”, and “Plan 9 from Outer Space” made… films too visionary for studios to produce. Or so he believes, but, as we all well know, Ed Wood was the epitome of the awful artist, his cringeworthy films so bad they have to be seen to be believed. But he managed to make some crazy friends, whom he cast in his dogs, namely Bela Lugosi (Martin Landau, who won an Oscar for his role), the Amazing Criswell (Jeffrey Jones) and Vampira (Lisa Marie). Tim Burton’s affectionate bio-pic balances perfectly an admiration for Wood’s very limited talents without being patronizing or overly serious.

ELVIS is an epic, big-screen spectacle from Warner Bros. Pictures and visionary, Oscar-nominated filmmaker Baz Luhrmann that explores the life and music of Elvis Presley, starring Austin Butler and Oscar winner Tom Hanks.

The third full-length feature film from Walt Disney, “Fantasia” was clearly his most ambitious film at that point, and that ambition almost destroyed the studio. Essentially a series of six animated music videos of great pieces of classical music (with Mickey Mouse as Dukas’ Sorcerer’s Apprentice being perhaps the most famous) all conducted by the great Leopold Stokowski. An army of over a thousand animators labored on the production, a new surround-sound technology (Fantasound) was created, and the result is a breathtaking and joyous appreciation of music and storytelling. “Fantasia” has not been screened in Minnesota this century, so don’t miss this rare event.

As an actress begins to adopt the persona of her character in a film, her world becomes nightmarish and surreal. David Lynch described his last feature-length film as being "about a woman in trouble, and it's a mystery, and that's all I want to say about it." Despite his movies being famous for their incomprehensibility, INLAND EMPIRE is perhaps his strangest and most disturbing film. With virtually no blood or gore, Lynch crafted a film of almost unbearable menace, grounded by a magnificent performance by Laura Dern. A film that totally defies summary, INLAND EMPIRE—unavailable on streaming or DVD—must be seen to be believed, especially on the big screen, and in the dark. If you are a David Lynch fan, do not miss this very rare screening. Newly restored by Janus Films.

This contemporary musical classic returns to the Heights Theater. Mia (Emma Stone), a struggling actress, meets Seb (Ryan Gosling), a struggling jazz pianist, and the pair fall in and out and in and out of love, all the while navigating their perilous careers in modern day Los Angeles. “La La Land” charmed audiences worldwide. Winner of the Academy Award for Best Director, Best Actress and Best Picture (for about five minutes).

One of the most epic films in all of cinema history, presented in glorious 70mm. The story of T. E. Lawrence's exploits in the Arabian Peninsula during the first World War launched Peter O'Toole into the spotlight, and cemented Lean's status as one of the greatest directors in the world. Don't miss this rare screening of LAWRENCE OF ARABIA in 70mm, the way it was meant to be seen!

Fred Madison (Bill Pullman) answers the phone one night to hear this message: "Dick Laurent is dead." Then, his wife, Renee (Patricia Arquette) finds a mysterious package containing a VHS tape of their home, shot from the inside. Soon, more packages arrive, and then, at a party, Fred meets The Mystery Man (Robert Blake), and things slip into almost total unreality. Inspired, according to Lynch, by the O. J. Simpson trial and the idea of a "psychogenic fugue", Lost Highway is not only a wonderful ride through Lynch's psyche, but a thrilling and at times hilarious film, with brilliant performances all around. Newly restored by Janus.

The battle with the Black Knight. The Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog. The Knights who say “Ni!” The Trojan Rabbit, Castle Anthrax, Sir Robin the Not-Quite-So-Brave-as-Sir-Lancelot… these are but a few of the classic bits in what is unquestionably Monty Python’s most popular film in the States. This crass and witty send-up of the King Arthur legend is an episodic romp through filthy olde England, and has been adored and quoted again and again and again by Python fans since its release almost fifty years ago.

Ann (Audrey Hepburn), a princess from an unnamed country, is on an official visit to Rome. Frustrated over being micromanaged, she escapes, and falls in with broke reporter, Joe (Peck). With his pal and photographer Irving (Eddie Albert) along to snap pictures, Joe takes the princess on a whirlwind tour, pretending he doesn’t know who she is, in the hopes of getting an exclusive that will make his career. Peck had a clause in his contract giving him top billing, but upon seeing Hepburns wonderful performance, insisted they have equal billing. This bittersweet pairing of Hepburn (in her first starring role) and Peck was an instant classic, and won her the Oscar.

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, and this year will be presented in 35mm! What a wonderful feeling!

Created in part because of producer David O. Selnick’s success with psychoanalysis, and adapted from the strange novel The House of Dr. Edwardes, and working with both Selznick’s therapist and Salvador Dali, Spellbound is one bizarre and entertaining picture. Dr. Petersen (Ingrid Bergman) works at Green Manors, a Vermont sanatorium. Enter the new director, Dr. Edwardes (Peck), a handsome rogue who exhibits some strange tendencies. Petersen falls in love with Edwardes, but soon begins to wonder if he isn’t hiding dark secrets. Bergman and Peck famously fell for one another during filming, and their chemistry is blazing in this intense thriller.

The Heights Theater and Syncopated Silents presents the silent classic THE FIRE BRIGADE with live accompaniment by KATIE CONDON.. The O'Neill brothers are proud Irish-American firefighters, overjoyed that the youngest, Terry (Charles Ray), has finally joined their ranks. Terry is in love with the beautiful Helen Corwin (May McAvoy) and hopes to marry her. One problem: her father is a ruthless politician and slumlord whose tenements are deadly firetraps. Boasting spectacular camerawork, fire effects that will astound modern audiences, and Technicolor scenes that explode off the screen, The Fire Brigade is a stunning masterpiece, and thoroughly entertaining. This incredible film has been newly restored by the Library of Congress and will absolutely ignite our silver screen. Acclaimed musician Katie Condon will be accompanying The Fire Brigade.

When an American diplomat Robert Thorn (Peck) and his wife, Katherine (Lee Remick), have a baby that dies in childbirth, he secretly adopts a baby whose own mother died, and doesn’t tell her. And isn’t little Damien cute? Especially when, years later, he begins to kill people off and might just be the spawn of the devil? This entertainly ridiculous film is terrifying and fun, and was an enormous hit, and reestablished Peck as a star to a younger generation.

Sharon McKendrick and Susan Evers (both played by Haley Mills) hate one another. Meeting at summer camp, their identical appearance makes them instant rivals, playing tricks on counselors and one another. As punishment, they’re forced to room together, and there they discover they’re actually twins, separated at birth when their parents divorced. A plan is hatched—they’ll get the same haircut and switch places in order to finally meet the other parent… and maybe, just maybe, reunite the couple! Minneapolis native David Swift directed this charming film, which was an enormous box office hit for Disney, thanks in no small part to Haley Mills’ incredible performance.

When speaking of classic art-house cinema, all conversations begin with Ingmar Bergman’s The Seventh Seal. Bergman’s black-and-white masterpiece follows the exploits of world-weary knight Antonius (Max von Sydow) and his cynical squire, Jons (Gunnar Björnstrand), as they return from the violence and folly of the Crusades to a world made insane by avarice, lust and plague. Upon meeting the Angel of Death (Bengt Ekerot), Antonius engages in a fateful game of chess, an image oft copied and parodied, but never surpassed. You may think you know “The Seventh Seal”, but it can only be truly appreciated on the silver screen, and on 35mm.

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.

35MM TECHNICOLOR DYE-TRANSFER PRINT!! What would an anniversary celebration of Judy be without “The Wizard of Oz”? 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.

Based on Harper Lee's beloved novel, the Heights is proud to present To Kill a Mockingbird, the film that defined Peck’s entire career. In the history of motion pictures, there has probably never been a film that is as beloved as its source novel as this story. Peck won an Oscar for his role as Atticus Finch, and the rest of the cast, featuring Mary Badham as Scout, Philip Alford as Jem, and a young Robert Duvall as Boo Radley, is utter perfection. The film of To Kill a Mockingbird captured the nation's attention with nearly as much force as the book.

Capitalizing on the decades-long rivalry between stars Bette Davis and Joan Crawford, director Robert Aldrich crafted a psychologically fraught horror film that opened the floodgates for older actresses to reveal, and revel in, their dark sides. Playing the child star of the title, Bette Davis unleashed her inner Medusa, and Crawford is her ideal foil as the wheelchair bound sister, Blanche. The gloves are off, the claws are sharpened, and hair (and blood) will fly in this, the culminating battle between two actresses whose actual loathing for each other knew no bounds.