Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 30, 2014)
MOVIES 492 E. 13th Ave. B Y M O L LY T E M P L E T O N bijou-cinemas.com Fri-Sun 2:10 7:00 Mon-Weds 7:00 Thurs 9:15 OSCAR SHORTS 2014 * Fri-Weds 4:00 9:25 Thurs 6:45 ANIMATION INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS (R)* Fri-Weds 4:35 8:30 Thurs 4:20 9:00 PHILOMENA (PG-13)* Fri-Sun 1:45 6:15 Mon-Weds 6:15 Thurs 3:45 OSCAR SHORTS 2014 * LIVE ACTION Encircle Documentary Series presents HEIST Thurs 6:00 w/Director chat via Skype *2014 Oscar Nominees SHE AND HIM 43 W. Broadway Spike Jonze explores romance in the isolated gadget era bijou-cinemas.com 12 YEARS A SLAVE (R)* Fri-Sun 6:45 Mon 4:00 Tues-Thurs 6:45 OSCAR SHORTS 2014 * Fri-Sat 2:00 6:00 DOCUMENTARY PROG A Sun-Thurs 2:00 6:00 9:50 OSCAR SHORTS 2014 * Fri-Sun 12:10 8:00 DOCUMENTARY PROG B Mon-Thurs 4:00 8:00 BLUE JASMINE (PG-13)* Fri 11:45am 4:25 Sat-Sun 11:45am 4:25 9:40 Mon-Thurs 4:25 9:40 DALLAS BUYERS CLUB (PG-13)* Fri-Sun 11:40am 9:30 Mon-Thurs 9:30 GOD LOVES UGANDA (PG-13)* Fri-Sun 12:00 4:45 Mon-Thurs 4:45 NEBRASKA (R)* Fri-Sun 4:15 Mon 1:30 Tues-Thurs 4:15 THE GREAT BEAUTY (NR)* Fri-Thurs 6:45 THE INVISIBLE WOMAN Fri-Thurs 2:00 THE BEST OFFER (R) Fri-Thurs 2:00 6:45 9:30 BRIGHTEST STAR Fri 9:30 Kickstarter Pledge Selection: GOOD HAIR (2009) Fri-Sun 4:00 First National Taphouse presents Bijou Metro Classic Series: Billy Wilder’s DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944) Fri-Sun 2:00 Mon 6:45 hosted by Tom Blank Tues-Thurs 2:00 Bijou Retro SECRET CINEMA! Fri-Sat 10:00 Showtimes Jan 31-Feb 6 HER : Written and directed by Spike Jonze. Cinematography Hoyte van Hoytema. Editing, Jeff Buchanan and Eric Zumbrunnen. Music, Arcade Fire and Owen Pallett. Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Rooney Mara and the voice of Scarlett Johansson. Warner Bros., 2013. R. 126 minutes. 00021 S pike Jonze’s Her takes place in a clearly futuristic Los Angeles, a spotless, sparse playground for disconnected souls, filmed as a place that is perpetually sunny and disconcertingly sad. Through this shiny, metal-and-glass metropolis march hundreds of humans having the sort of disconcerting earbud conversations we’re becoming accustomed to now. These folks aren’t talking to a friend on the other side of the country, though; they’re talking to their operating systems. Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix in a creepy mustache) is dragging his heels on finalizing his divorce from a pretty woman we see, for a time, only in affecting memories: she smiles at Theodore, holds someone else’s baby, breaks into a laugh. Her is dotted with memories that come in the form of silent flashbacks, scenes that are used to maximum effect. Theodore, at some point, was capable of being with another person, at least until their relationship shifted from smiles and collaboration to frowns and arguments had from different floors of the house. Theodore’s present is rather different. He lives in a glassy high- rise and spends his days working as a letter writer, maintaining or crafting connections for strangers. His one friend, Amy (Amy Adams), is busy with a failing relationship of her own. And then Theodore buys a new operating system. This one comes with a personality; it asks two or three questions about its buyer, then appears as a personality of its own, evolving second to second. Within minutes, Theodore’s OS has named herself Samantha (she reads a baby name book and picks that one) and charmed Theodore with her combination of curious child and eager-to-please assistant. Where Her goes for Theodore is not the least bit surprising: He falls in love with his constant digital companion, letting her lead him out of that spacious apartment and back into the sunlight and the life of L.A. Where it goes for Samantha is much more curious. Jonze is interested in how technology aids and traps the modern-day lonely schlub, and that’s all well and good (his robot rebound girlfriend makes him a somewhat better person), but Her’s most intriguing parts come not from Theodore’s journey, but from Samantha’s. She’s moving faster than we can imagine, doing everything at once, making friends with reconstituted dead philosophers and experiencing in a very short time what humanity’s been working on for ages. If we could make artificial friends, if they were smart enough to appear like people, would they be too smart to stay that way? The palpable loneliness of Her is as much Samantha’s as it is Theodore’s: She may be hyper-intelligent, but she can never sit on a rooftop, watching the sun rise. If Jonze occasionally misses a beat — he mostly ignores the question of who programmed Samantha, and how much of her wide- eyed, eager-to-please personality is, at first, the projection of her probably male creators, and he presses the too-sweet soundtrack on us in every scene — by the end, Her’s sympathy is for everyone. ■ THUR JAN 30 - WED FEB 5 TH NEW $3 MATINEE ARTSHOUND THE SPECTACULAR FRUITVALE LEE DANIELS NOW STATION THE BULER 4:00 4:00 5:40 * OSCAR NOMINATED *20 FT FROM STARDOM 8:00 *BLUE JASMINE 8:00, 9:50 “TEXT-A-BEER” 541-913-5733 ORDER DRINKS & FOOD RIGHT FROM YOUR SEAT “NO LONGER SNEAKING BEER INTO THE MOVIES SINCE 2008” 28 Beer Taps New Menu! The Perfect Match: Dinner & a Movie! Join us for comfort food and drinks all day and late night. First National Taphouse 51 W. Broadway | 541-393-6517 20 Sniffing out what you shouldn’t miss in the arts this week RUSH 5:40 THE WORLD’S END 9:50 HEIST: WHO STOLE THE AMERICAN DREAM? New kids on the block: Artist Shanna Trumbly is the latest to join Last Friday ArtWalk with her new studio at 267 Van Buren in the Whit. See her latest painting, “Ode to the Dandelion,” on Jan. 31. Trumbly says of the new piece, “I was shown when I was young, as many of us were, that the wish of a dandelion was not only a very special and fascinating way for nature to continue the growth of a species, but also a way for us to set our intention with clarity by making a wish.” Also new to the LFAW scene are indie bookers Behavior Castle with their first art show Favoritism — All Your Best Stuff, featuring art memorabilia and thrift store treasures, at 543 Blair (formerly Paper Moon Photo Studio). OSLP (Oregon Supported Living Program) Arts & Culture Program recently hired Mira Andrade — former MECCA executive director — to be a full-time resident artist. OSLP Arts & Culture offers weekly arts workshops in fiber arts, photography, dance, music and more for individuals with developmental disabilities, but also for the community in general, to “build bridges to a more diverse and inclusive community.” Oscar prep: Who has two hours for a movie anymore (or three hours, ahem, The Wolf of Wall Street)? Bijou Art Cinemas (on 13th) and the Bijou Metro (downtown) begin screening 2014 January 30, 2014 • eugeneweekly.com Oscar-nominated short films Jan. 31, including animated, live action and documentary films. EW picks: The Lady in Number 6 about Alice Herz Sommer, the world’s oldest pianist and Holocaust survivor at 109 years old; the Steampunk-inspired animated hijinx of Mr. Hublot; The Voorman Problem starring Martin Freeman (of Hobbit fame) as a doctor treating a patient who believes he’s a god. Also at Bijou Art Cinemas Feb. 6, the Encircle Film Series presents Heist: Who Stole the American Dream?, a documentary about the crumbling middle class, followed by a Skype discussion with director Donald Goldmacher. Cottage Theatre opens its 2014 season Jan. 31 with the aurora borealis-tinged romantic comedy Almost, Maine, composed of nine vignettes about a mythical Maine town. In other theater news, Salem has a new musical theater company: Enlightened Theatrics. Enlightened Theatrics will open its season with The Last Five Years, running Thursday through Sunday, Jan. 30 to Feb. 9, at the Historic Reed Opera House. See enlightenedtheatrics. org for more info.
