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Magic & Mystery

February 19, 2014 at 1:17 am
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Everyone needs a little magic in his life.

So come join us at the Jean Cocteau next week, for MAGIC & MYSTERY WEEK.  Starting this Friday, the whole week will devoted to wizards, sorcerers, illusionists, and practitioners of the dark arts (like screenwriting).

For starts, we have three movies opening.

DESPERATE ACTS OF MAGIC is a delightful new romantic comedy about magicians.

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THE PRESTIGE… well, what can I say?  Based on the novel by Christopher Priest, this tale of a bitter feud between two rival magicians is becoming a classic, and may well be the best film about the world of magic ever made.  Directed by Christopher Nolan, adapted from the novel by Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan, it stars Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale, Scarlett Johanssen, and Michael Caine.

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And, for our midnight shows, we have THE RAVEN, Edgar Allen Poe by way of Roger Corman, starring Vincent Price, Peter Lorre, and Boris Karloff.  (Yes, and Jack Nicholson, believe it or not).

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The movies are just part of Magic and Mystery Week, however.

We also thrilled to present the first live-in-person magic ever offered at the Jean Cocteau: three performances by the Amazing MISTY LEE, straight from LA's famed Magic Castle.   Misty will be performing three shows only, so be sure to catch them if you're in the area.

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And last, but certainly not least, on Sunday February 23, we will be joined at the Cocteau by JONATHAN NOLAN, screenwriter on THE PRESTIGE and MEMENTO, showrunner on PERSON OF INTEREST, and all around terrific talent.  Jonathan will be introducing THE PRESTIGE and answering questions about the film… and he and I will also be doing a dialogue about scriptwriting and adaptation on Sunday afternoon.  Should be fun.

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Advance tickets to the movies, the magic shows, and the dialogue are all available on the Cocteau website.

So come join the fun.  We promise not to saw you in half.

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This Weekend at the Jean Cocteau

February 12, 2014 at 11:10 am
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Something for all tastes, I think.

See you at the movies.

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Coolest Dragons Ever

February 10, 2014 at 4:52 pm
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VERMITHRAX PERJORATIVE

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SMAUG

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DROGON

Gotta love them dragons.

I have long maintained that Vermithrax Perjorative was the coolest dragon ever put on film… but Peter Jackson's version of Smaug, from the second HOBBIT film, may have stolen his laurels.

And I gotta say, our own baby Drogon is growing up fast.

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New Mexico Film Foundation

February 9, 2014 at 11:13 pm
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Making movies is an art, a science, a business… but most of all it's a challenge, especially for young film makers, independents, minority members, and all those who find themselves outside Hollywood and the studio system.

The New Mexico Film Foundation is a brand-new non-profit organization whose goal it will be to help New Mexico film makers with a mutual support, education, networking… and grants.  It's headed by Dirk Norris, a former member of the state Film Commission, and a long time member of the local and state film community.

RIght now Dirk is trying to raise some start-up funds with an Indiegogo campaign.  You can find the details here:

http://igg.me/at/nmfilmfoundation/x/969552

Go check it out, and if you have a few bucks, give.  Robert A. Heinlein once said he could not possibly pay back all those who helped him when he was starting out, so he believed in paying forward, and helping those who came after him.  That's what the New Mexico Film Foundation is all about.

It's a good cause, and we may get some good films out of it.

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One Billion Rising

January 24, 2014 at 1:20 pm
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On Wednesday (January 29), the Jean Cocteau Cinema will be hosting a special event — a reception and screening in support of One Billion Rising, a global initiative to fight violence against women and girls.

http://www.jeancocteaucinema.com/ai1ec_event/one-billion-rising-reception-screening/?instance_id=2042

Admission is free, and all are welcome.

Come join us, and lend your support to this world-wide movement.  Causes do not get any more worthy.

(And all those attending the One Billion Rising event will also receive a group discount for the feature film we will be showing afterward, REACHING FOR THE MOON).

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The Last Unicorn

January 18, 2014 at 6:13 pm
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Oh, and if Peter S. Beagle and THE LAST UNICORN are not enough for us, we also plan to mount a special Last Unicorn Art Show in the Cocteau gallery.  Prints and artwork will be for sale.  Along with pizza, candy, and the best popcorn in New Mexico.

(And the real movie fans can stay for the midnight show, and catch THE BRAIN THAT WOULDN'T DIE).  Which has no unicorns whatsover, but did you expect?  Peter Beagle got the last one.

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Kids Free at the Cocteau

October 25, 2013 at 7:49 pm
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The film we're offering is a classic… a great comedy, and a terrific horror film… ABBOTT AND COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN.

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If you can't make tomorrow's debut, we'll be showing the film again on Sunday (27th) and Thursday (the 31st) at 2:00 pm.  Children under twelve will be admitted free to those showings as well.

For grown-up fans of Bud and Lou, like me, we've also scheduled an evening showing on Tuesday (29th) at 8:30.  Kids are welcome at that one too, if it's not past their bedtimes, but they have to pay like everyone else.

In honor of Halloween week, we have a full slate of fun monster and horror flicks.  WICKER MAN and ESCAPE FROM TOMORROW have both been held over, we debuted THE WHISPERER IN DARKNESS tonight, we have ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW coming up on Halloween night, and we have a special one-time only screening of the original HOUSE OF WAX 3D, starring Vincent Price.  More on that one later.

See you at the movies.

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Buying a Cinema

May 10, 2013 at 1:50 pm
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For those of you interested in following my Adventures in the Screen Trade, the SANTA FE REPORTER has uploaded a short clip from the press conference wherein I announced my purchase of “Santa Fe’s most beloved movie theatre,” the Jean Cocteau.

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FYI, there was a lot more to the press conference than that. Most notably, I announced the hiring of Jon Bowman, the founder and former director of the Santa Fe Film Festival, who will be managing the Cocteau. Jon is already hard at work. We hope to reopen the theatre this summer. Besides an eclectic menu of films both old and new, we also plan to have midnight movies and children’s matinees, and some very special events, including music, comedy, and author readings.

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Time to Howl

February 9, 2012 at 11:30 am
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The team at Mike the Pike Productions, who hold the film option on my World Fantasy Award winning werewolf novella “The Skin Trade,” have put together a new and improved website for the project. All you horror buffs and werewolf groupies out there should go take a look:

http://www.theskintrademovie.com

And while I don’t do Facebook myself, the guys at Mike the Pike are into it. They have a company page at

www.Facebook.com/MTPfb

and a SKIN TRADE Facebook page at

www.Facebook.com/BlackstoneManor

If you’d like to follow the progress of the project, do be sure to friend or follow or mark or link or whatever the hell one does on Facebook…

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The Hobbit Is Coming Too

December 22, 2011 at 3:06 pm
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This has nothing to do with my own work (well, aside from kindling my love of fantasy in the first place), but as a huge Tolkien fanboy, I can’t help but sharing this for the six or seven of you who may not have stumbled on it yet.

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Bilbo! Gandalf! Dwarfs! (No dragons till next picture, though).

Hot damn! Can’t wait!

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