Pete's weekend roundup: Support Your Local Theater!

I hit the Orinda, the Fox, and the Paramount this week—and had three outstanding experiences.

There are two movies in theaters that examine the deteriorating condition of daily newspapers. One is the Soloist, which comes out today. I have not seen it, but my Diablo colleague Ethan Fletcher has, and wrote about its East Bay connection in the April issue. Click here to read Ethan's story about one of the film's protagonists, Steve Lopez, who grew up in Pittsburg and is portrayed by the great Robert Downey, Jr. in the film.

The other big newspaper film right now is State of Play, which I went to see the other night at the Orinda Theater. Based on a BBC miniseries, the film is a very entertaining thriller, starring Russell Crowe as an intrepid Washington D.C. newspaper reporter unwinding a twist-a-minute mystery involving an idealistic, horndoggish U.S. Senator (Ben Affleck) and a bunch of crooked politicos and Halliburton/Blackwater-esque corporate bad guys. Crowe, overweight and longhaired, is very appealing as the old-school newsman and Jason Bateman burns up the screen late in the film in a great role as a sleazy PR flack sitting on some crucial information. Less effective is Rachel McAdams as a blogger on Crowe's paper, who learns a few heavy-handed lessons about real journalism. Her character happens to show up in a few scenes, just as the underscore swells to let the audience no that trouble is just around the corner, reminding us that this is just a movie.

While State of Play isn't a rush out and see it film, and would serve as a suitable Netflix rental, it does deserve credit for its earnest message that real, objective fact-finding by the press is  a crucial part of the American way. And those journalistic ethics, and the newspapers that stick to them, are rapidly dissolving. As the end credits rolled, set to Creedence Clearwater's Revival's "Long as I Can See the Light", director Kevin MacDonald puts together a wonderful sequence that shows the process a newspaper takes to the newsstands and driveways. It's surprisingly moving, and one one of the better title credit sequences I have seen in quite awhile.

As concerned as I am for the future of newspapers, I am equally concerned for some of the East Bay's wonderful independent cinemas. There could not have been more than 15 people watching State of Play in the beautiful Orinda Theater's main auditorium at 7 p.m. on a Tuesday. I love the Orinda, and try to frequent it as much as possible. If you have been seeing most of your movies at the multiplex lately, try the Orinda next time, it's an absolute jewel of a cinema. Similarly, there has been buzz about the Cerrito Speakeasy running into money trouble lately, and it would be a tragedy to see this beautiful and unique cinema to suffer the same fate as its Oakland sibling, the Parkway. And of course, the spectacular Alameda Theatre is worth visiting, for its massive screen and beautiful restoration. The Alameda has Casablanca on Wednesday and Thursday. Hard to beat that.

Meanwhile, I had two more great experiences in classic East Bay theaters this week. On Tuesday, I saw this fantastic band from Seattle, Fleet Foxes, at the Fox Oakland. It was my fourth concert at the Fox since the February grand re-opening, and I just can't get enough. The opulently restored concert hall is bringing all kinds of music fans to Oakland's Uptown neighborhood. The next night, I went to see Harry Sheraer, Michael McKean, and Christopher Guest,  the guys from This is Spinal Tap, one of my very favorite films of all-time, play a sold-out show at the Paramount Theatre, just around the corner from the Fox. The trio perfomred songs from Tap, as well as their folk satire, A Mighty Wind. I had not been to the Paramount in quite awhile, so it was a treat to revisit its gorgeous interiors. The concert was pretty funny too.

Posted at 04:40 PM in Pete's Popcorn Picks | Permalink