MONDAY SEPTEMBER 28

JOHNNY GUITAR (1954)
Directed by Nicholas Ray
110 minutes
In English

This all-time classic directed by Nicholas Ray (Rebel without a Cause) is one of the most abnormal and deviant Westerns ever made. A Western where the sexual roles between man and woman are often switched, and where there is a fiery erotic undertone smoldering beneath much of the dialogue. Pedro Almodovar recently said that this was one of the major films that inspired him to make films, and that it still inspires him today.

Johnny Guitar (Sterling Hayden) walks into a saloon run by Vienna (Joan Crawford), who is his past love whom he hasn't seen for five years. He\'s looking for a job as a guitar player. Many things has changed since they saw each other for the last time, Vienna turned from a saloon singer to its owner, and Johnny Guitar, one of the fastest gunslingers in the West, passed through many trials and tribulations too. But one thing immediately becomes clear as they meet again- that the major suffering they had to pass through was the solitude, the pain of separation from each other.

Fabulous acting by great actors, a wonderful script with unforgettably intelligent and witty dialogue, magnificent direction and wildly colorful cinematography. \"Cowboys dying with the grace of ballet dancers\" is how François Truffaut put it in his review on the film back in the 50s. He also called the director Nick Ray \"the poet of nightfall\". What more can I say? Simply one of the most unusual Westerns ever made and one that deserves to be seen again and again and again (and of course its NEVER screened in cinemas these days, what a pity). It is also one of the favorite films of both Martin Scorsese and Jean-Luc Godard, by the way.

If you like Westerns then this is one of the best. But its also a Western for people who don't like Westerns, because its so much more....

+ Short film: SHAKING TOKYO - Directed by Bong Joon-Ho

CINEMANITA @ THE NEW ANITA
Frederik Hendrikstraat 111 (Hugo de Grootplein)
Doors open at 19:30
The film starts at 20:30 sharp



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