Recommended: Hitchcock and Passolini

We’re going slightly off topic with our recommendations this week. Instead of traditional Gothic horror fare, how about some mystery-thrillers and foreign art house films?

LAURA and VERTIGO. On Friday, February 6 at 7:30pm, the Silent Movie Theatre presents a double bill of two classic moody mysteries, . Otto Preminger’s classic 1940s whodunit, LAURA features Dana Andrews as a cop falling in love with the portrait of the woman whose murder he is investigating, setting up some strange necrophiliac vibes. Alfred Hitchcock’s 1958 gem VERTIGO operates on a similar level, with James Stewart as a private investigator yearing for the woman whose death he failed to prevent.

Silent Movie Theatre – 611 N Fairfax Avenue, Los Angeles, 90036 – 323-655-2510 www.silentmovietheatre.com

DECAMERON and ARABIAN NIGHTS. On Sunday, February 8, the New Beverly Cinema presents a double bill from Pier Paolo Passolini (SALO). These two films, both based on classic literature, are colorful entertainments with a bawdy appeal that extends beyond the art house (as long as you don’t mind reading subtitles). And Passolini incorporates fantasy elements with a refreshingly straight forward approach that is well suited to the fairy tale origins of ARABIAN NIGHTS.

New Beverly Cinema – 7165 Beverly Blvd – Los Angeles, CA 90036 – (323) 938-4038 www.newbevcinema.com