Repertory Picks
Cocteau Casts a Spell in Kentucky
In Theaters — Jun 29, 2017
Next Wednesday, Lexington's Kentucky Theatre hosts a magical evening with Jean Cocteau's 1946 romantic fantasy Beauty and the Beast. Starring Josette Day and Cocteau's muse and partner, Jean Marais, in the title roles, this adaptation of Mme. Leprince de Beaumont's beloved fairy tale is a feast of sublime imagery that showcases the great French auteur at the height of his imaginative powers. Though Cocteau denied ever aiming for poetry—"the mere whispered mention of its name frightens it away," he said—his genius for transporting viewers to otherworldly realms continues to serve as an inspiration for filmmakers exploring the lyrical possibilities of the art form. As Geoffrey O'Brien notes in his essay for our release, "When it comes to 'fairy-tale movies'—if such a genre exists as something other than a profit center for the Disney corporation—there is Cocteau's Beauty and the Beast and then there is everything else." For more on Cocteau and Marais, check out the most recent episode of the Criterion Channel series Creative Marriages, which pays tribute to their legendary on- and offscreen partnership.
More: In Theaters
An Antiwar Film for the Ages Returns to Theaters
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On Film / In Theaters — Feb 21, 2020
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Critics are praising the French New Wave icon's joyous and reflective final film, which hits theaters in New York this week.
On Film / In Theaters — Nov 22, 2019
Three Weeks of Kiarostami
The late Iranian master takes the spotlight in a magisterial retrospective—the most comprehensive survey of his career ever mounted—opening today at New York's IFC Center.
On Film / In Theaters — Jul 26, 2019
Two Stark Visions of the American Underbelly Hit the Big Screen
A new restoration of the groundbreaking vérité documentary Streetwise joins its companion piece, Tiny: the Life of Eric Blackwell, at New York's Metrograph theater this weekend.