Pete's weekend movie roundup: I like I Love You, Man, I Love the Parkway ... man

Oakland's pizza, pub, and picture house closes this Sunday; Andy Samberg steals scenes in raunchy new bro-mantic comedy.

Last week, I blogged about my nostalgic feelings for the long-closed Sunvalley Cinemas and thought it might be fun to occasionally write about some of the East Bay's ghosts of cinemas past (Concord's Capri, Pleasant Hill's Hillcrest, Lafayette's Park) and the fun we had going to the movies there. I didn't realize that one week later, I would have to add Oakland's wonderful Parkway Speakeasy Cinema to the list of former East Bay movie houses.

On Thursday, Parkway owners announced that, after 12 years in business, the Oakland two-screen movie house would close for business this Sunday night. The Parkway was California's first pizza-and-beer-serving movie house, received national buzz for its Baby Brigade nights, where screenings were opened to parents of under one-year-olds, and hosted hundreds of special screenings (I may have never laughed so hard in a movie theater as the night the Parkway's colorful booker, Will The Thrill Viharo, screened the long-forgotten William Shatner serial killer film Impulse, at the first annual William Shatner Tribute). Just after the Parkway opened, I went with two friends to see From Here to Eternity on the big screen and have loved the place ever since. I'm going to miss it, and so are hundreds of Bay Area movie buffs who loved its couches, its 2-for-1 Wednesdays, and its beer. If you're one of those who has always said, "I've always wanted to go there," this weekend is your last chance. I recommend Let the Right One In, my pick as the best film in 2008, which plays nightly at 8:45 p.m., and will be the last film to show at the Parkway.

The only bright side of all this is that the Parkway's sibling, the El Cerrito Speakeasy Cinema, is still going strong. It's showing the Jim Henson directed 1980's puppet-and-magic pic Labyrinth this weekend on Sat. and Sun. at 2 p.m. They also have the awesome The Wrestler every night this week.

OK, more good news: here's a funny new movie in wide release today. The bro-mantic comedy I Love You, Man stars the very likable Paul Rudd and Jason Segel in an R-rated spin on the chick flick trip-to-the-altar formula romcoms that usually feature Kate Hudson or Meg Ryan or Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant. Rudd plays an L.A. real estate agent who is happily engaged to a great woman but doesn't have a best man. In a desperate effort to connect with another dude, he goes on a series of man-dates. I know, it sounds contrived and schmaltzy, but the movie skates by thanks to some very funny moments and an extremely likeable cast. One supporting standout is Andy Samberg, the Berkeley native and Saturday Night Live star who plays Rudd's gay younger brother. Samberg nails the role—he subverts the stereotypes of gay supporting characters and creates an interesting, funny, and sage-wise character who should have had a few more scenes in the film. If not for the overly flat final scene, I would have raved about I Love You, Man.

I can rave, however, about Gomorra, a knock-you-on-your ass crime saga about the Comorra crime network in Naples, Italy. Basedon a book by investigative journalist Roberto Saviano, Gomorra plays like a passport to hell, weaving five story threads together in a bleak, uncompromising, and absolutely fascinating masterpiece of a cinematic experience. This is a film that should be showing at every multiplex in the country, because its better than anything out there, but it's only showing at the Elmwood Cinemas in Berkeley and the Embarcadero Cinemas in San Francisco.

Speaking of masterpieces, the Alameda Theatres have been showing Hollywood classics on Wednesday and Thursday in their spectacularly restored main theater. This week they are showing the Best Picture-winning The Bridge on the River Kwai. Going to the movies doesn't get any better than that.

Posted at 03:57 PM in Pete's Popcorn Picks | Permalink