Finally went out and did something my partner and I had been thinking of doing for quite some time. There is a theater in Greenpoint called Film Noir Cinema. It's owner used to own a video store nearby that I went to back in the day (I bought the screenplay for Ed Wood there if you want a taste of the vibe) and he opened in a new location a minute and a half ago. I never have been there but decided to hit it up for their surprise film noir Mondays, where they show a random noir without telling anybody in advance what the film will be. This week it was Odds Against Tomorrow, directed by Robert Wise and starring Harry Belafonte. I had never seen it before, and I thought it was excellent! Add it to the pantheon of great upstate New York movies. Robert Ryan's character reminded me of Duck Phillips. Before the movie they also showed the episode of Batman: The Animated Series with Man-Bat, so obviously it won me over.
They also had tapes!! The owner was telling us that when he started he had 6,400 in his store, and now he only has less than 200. Sun rise, sun set. I almost grabbed my beloved Pokemon 3: The Spell of Unown but instead opted for two movies that have definitely been on my Most Wanted list: the amazing Dracula's Daughter, perhaps my favorite of the original Universal monster movies because of it's lesbian undertones, and A Return To Salem's Lot, a Larry Cohen masterpiece. On a good day I could tell you about how I think his collaboration with Michael Moriarty is just as impressive as Scorsese with DeNiro, but needless to say thrilled to have the grandmaster join the collection. (Now just need to source a copy of Hell Up In Harlem...)