Once again, the summer movie season descends upon cinemas across the nation as June kicks into gear. The sun is shining, the schools are emptying and popcorn is popping. While this season of movies is mainly known for gigantic tentpole films, like Jurassic World: Rebirth, Superman, and The Fantastic Four: First Steps (to name a few), there are always smaller films being released throughout summer in hoping to grab the attention of wider audiences already visiting theaters for dinosaurs and people flying around. And as always in the Hudson Valley, local theaters are programming big screen events of classic films of all types and genres.
Here are six movie events to keep your eyes on happening throughout June at Hudson Valley independent theaters.
Pavements
The band Pavement was influential for not only many other bands that came after, but also every listener in the ’90s who was looking for something a little “different.” Knowing of and speaking about the band in those early days couldn’t help but make one feel as though they had tapped into something that was extremely rare and powerful, and meeting others who shared the knowledge and love of the West Coast band was met with almost instant friendship. This isn’t only because of the band’s massive talent and influence, but also because of what the band members themselves represented in a constantly changing music scene during the ‘90s and early aughts: nonconformity through art. Director Alex Ross Perry, through use of different aspect ratios, genres, and even film styles, presents the origins of the band with real-life interviews, fictionalized accounts, and dramatic reenactments that fully present the band as who they are, what they mean and what happened to them. Perry’s 2018 film, Her Smell, equally captured the whirlwind of music performance and the razor sharp relationships that band members and fans can develop, so have no fear—these efforts are perfectly balanced for a majorly distinctive film experience.
Pavements starts June 6 at Upstate Films Orpheum Theatre and Jacob Burns Film Center.
Broadcast News
James L. Brooks’s award-winning 1987 romantic-comedy Broadcast News works not only as a loving ode to friendship and romance in the workplace, but also as a satire of just that. A classic love-triangle set-up follows a news producer, played by Holly Hunter, dealing with a new anchorman, played by William Hurt, whom she cannot stand, but for some reason can’t help falling in love with. And to complicate matters, her reporter best friend, played by Albert Brooks, is secretly in love with her and wants the anchorman’s job. It wouldn’t be too hard to guess where the rest of the movie goes, but director Brooks finds small moments to focus on, rather than just the large ones, such as a simple telephone call that lasts hours longer than anticipated. The story takes a couple good swings at the integrity and ethics in the news organization at the time, but truly shines when holding the light on ambition versus romance in a professional environment, and how that affects people from all types of backgrounds differently.
Broadcast News screens June 11 at Jacob Burns Film Center.
To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar
While many movies have achieved a similar level of cult fame as To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything! Julie Newmar, not many of them can be considered Pride films. As with many other queer features being screened throughout Pride Month, it can sometimes be more difficult than one would think to find a true crowdpleaser or optimistic story based on the queer experience. But this 1995 road-trip comedy is exactly that. The film features lightning in a bottle performances from all three of its leads: Patrick Swayze, Wesley Snipes, and John Leguizamo, all of whom embody their characters with so much soul it’s sort of surprising they never returned to the roles. The story follows three drag queens who have some car trouble in a small town, ultimately teaching the local community a little something about being fabulous. The movie is a heartfelt testament to hope, love, friendship, and acceptance that is just as important to experience and share today as it was in the ’90s. This screening will be in benefit of the Christopher Street Project, which builds and leverages political power to make equity a reality for transgender people across the country, working to elect fierce champions for trans rights to public office, while holding Democrats accountable, and fighting back against Republican attacks.
Presented by Hudson Film Festival, OutHudson, Two Fruits and Quinnie’s, and featuring introductions by Oscar-winning executive producer of the film, Bruce Cohen, and founder and executive director of Christopher Street, Tyler Hack.
To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar screens June 13 at Story Screen Cinema.
Friendship
What do you get when you mix the elevated horrors of modern indie cinema with the anti-awk-comedy trappings of one of the funniest comedians working today? You get Andrew DeYoung and Tim Robinson’s Friendship, a movie that dares state: “Men shouldn’t have friends.” Described as an uncomfortable nightmare that will have you laughing just as much as cringing, the film features Robinson as a middle-aged man who sparks up a friendship with his new neighbor, played by the eternally handsome Paul Rudd. Robinson’s past comedic works on I Think You Should Leave and Detroiters are on full display, but where this feature-length film ends up going is far darker and funnier than just about anything he’s ever done. Rudd’s superstar power truly holds the reality of the situation down, as the two men slowly learn more and more about each other, sometimes for the worse. If you’ve ever felt awkward at a party where you didn’t really know anyone but had to stay for at least an hour, this film will bring you right back to that feeling in the funniest way possible.
Friendship is currently playing at The Moviehouse, Jacob Burns Film Center, Upstate Films Starr Cinema, and starts June 13 at Time & Space Ltd.
The Life of Chuck
The names Mike Flanagan and Stephen King might bring to mind the horror genre when first mentioned to just about anyone familiar with their works. So you wouldn’t be blamed for being a little flummoxed when you find out their latest collaboration is an overwhelmingly optimistic and joyous tribute to the human soul and the beauty of everyday life. After its festival run last year, The Life of Chuck immediately became the frontrunner for 2025’s awards season, being compared to It’s a Wonderful Life and earning the coveted title of “the type of movie the world needs right now.” Using a very interesting narrative device, as well as moving backwards chronologically for most its runtime, the life of Charles “Chuck” Krantz, played by Tom Hiddleston, is placed before us in increasingly atmospheric and teleportive ways that will make even the grumpiest audience member want to stand up and dance along. Featuring an absolutely loaded cast, including Chiwetel Ejiofor, Mia Sara, Karen Gillan, Jacob Tremblay, and Mark Hamill, it will, without a doubt, be the must-see, feel-good movie of the summer, and you can rest assured that everyone will be talking about it come awards nominations time.
The Life of Chuck starts June 20 at Jacob Burns Film Center and Story Screen Cinema.
Portrait of a Lady on Fire
One of the great romances of the last 25 years, Celine Sciamma’s Portrait of a Lady on Fire continues to attract new audiences seemingly every year around this time, as its cult status grows larger and larger as a perfect example of new-age queer cinema. Filmed in English, French, and Italian, the movie takes place in 1770, following a young painter, played by Noemie Merlant, as she is commissioned to paint a secret wedding portrait of a reluctant bride, played by Adele Haenel, without her knowledge. The chemistry between the two leads is electrifying, creating a story that is just as much an observation on the souls of those in our lives as it is a rollercoaster of emotion, sensuality, and grief. On a technical level, and at the risk of seeming hyperbolic, the film is one of the most beautiful to ever be shot, combining colors in a way that the film itself looks like one of our protagonist’s 18th-century paintings. While these gorgeous frames are pleasing to observe, it also speaks to the film’s themes on the anchoring of experiences in our lives, how eventually all memories that we recall become more about how they made us feel, rather than how they may have actually occurred.
Portrait of a Lady on Fire screens June 18 and June 22 at The Moviehouse.
