SEPTEMBER 17 & 20

This romantic masterpiece from director David Lean (Lawrence of Arabia) remains one of the most successful movies ever made. Visually stunning and musically lush, the film won five Academy Awards including cinematography and original score.   With a stellar cast led by Omar Sharif and Julie Christie as lovers caught up in the turmoil of the Russian Revolution. (“Wouldn't it have been lovely if we'd met before?”)

1965 

Rated PG-13

SEPTEMBER 10 & 13

Romance is in the air when a princess visiting Rome (Audrey Hepburn) meets reporter Gregory Peck.  Filmed on location in the Eternal City, this enchanting comedy won three Academy Awards, including one for Hepburn in her first starring role. The actress is every inch the princess who yearns to experience everyday life, and gets the chance with the charming Peck as her guide.  (“I could do some of the things I’ve always wanted to!”)

1953

SEPTEMBER 3 & 6

The classic western widely considered to be Clint Eastwood’s masterpiece. He and Morgan Freeman play retired gunfighters with one last job to do. Gene Hackman is the cruel sheriff who stands in their way. Won four Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Supporting Actor (Hackman).  Eastwood won for directing and was nominated for actor for his haunting performance as the aging gunslinger. (“We all got it comin’, kid.”)

1992

Rated R

AUGUST 27 & 30

The hit comedy that spoofed every disaster movie cliché. The fate of an imperiled airliner depends on Ted Striker (Robert Hays), a nervous former pilot with a “drinking problem.” Ex-girlfriend Elaine (Julie Hagerty) is the flight attendant. (“There’s no reason to become alarmed… by the way, is there anyone on board who knows how to fly a plane?”) Gave Leslie Nielsen a whole new career as a comedic actor. (“And don’t call my Shirley.”) 

1980

Rated PG

AUGUST 20 & 23

This classic action comedy was the highest grossing movie of 1977 after Star Wars. Burt Reynolds is the fun-loving trucker, Bandit, who gives runaway bride Sally Field a lift, and country singer Jerry Reed is Reynolds’ sidekick, Snowman.  Jackie Gleason plays the chronically exasperated Sheriff Buford T. Justice, the “Smokey” who is hot on Bandit’s tail. (“What we’re dealing with here is a complete lack of respect for the law!”)

1977

Rated PG

AUGUST 6 & 9

Tom Cruise stars in this celebration of the heroism of Navy pilots, with some of the best aerial scenes ever filmed. The soundtrack album, with songs by Kenny Loggins and Berlin, including the Academy Award-winning Take My Breath Away, went platinum 9 times.  Val Kilmer co-stars as “Iceman” and Kelly McGillis plays a flight instructor romantically drawn to the reckless “Maverick” (Cruise).  (“I feel the need…the need for speed!”) 

1986 

Rated PG

JULY 30 & AUGUST 2

Kevin Bacon is the new kid in a small town where the locals don’t take kindly to rock music and dancing. And the girl he likes (Lori Singer) is the daughter of the town preacher (John Lithgow). Will he win them over? By the time our hero is done, everyone will be “kicking off their Sunday shoes” to the tune of such pop hits as Let’s Hear it For the Boy, Holding Out For a Hero, and of course the title song. (“Now I gotta cut loose…Footloose…”)

1984

Rated PG

JULY 23 & 26

The original film in the popular Vacation series—and still the best. Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase) takes his family on a cross-country trip to Wally World. Along the way they must cope with quirky relatives Cousin Eddie (Randy Quaid) and Aunt Edna (Imogene Coca), but nothing shakes Dad’s determination to make this the most memorable vacation ever. ("Perhaps you don’t want to see the second largest ball of twine on the face of the earth?”)

1983

Rated R

JULY 9 & 12

This coming-of-age baseball comedy was hailed by critic Roger Ebert as a summertime version of A Christmas Story. New kid in town Scotty Smalls wants to fit in, but there’s a problem: he can’t play baseball! Before summer is over, he will make new friends, and together they will confront “the Beast,” a mysterious dog with a scary reputation.  The scene where Ham teaches Scotty how to make s’mores is a classic. (“You’re killing me, Smalls!”)

1993

Rated PG

JULY 2 & 5

A killer shark is terrorizing the vacationers at Amity Island in this adaptation of Peter Benchley’s best-selling novel.  Jaws dominated the box office throughout the summer of ‘75 and made Steven Spielberg a household name.  Composer John Williams turned two ominous notes into an Academy Award-winning score.  It’s been over 40 years and folks still think twice about going into the water.   (“You’re going to need a bigger boat.”)

1975

Rated PG

JUNE 25 & 28

Music, comedy, and manic car chases through the streets of Chicago, all rolled into one 80’s cult classic. Original Saturday Night Live cast members John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd star as Jake and Elwood Blues, brothers who are getting the band back together to save the orphanage where they grew up. Filled with show-stopping numbers from such musical icons as Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles and James Brown. (“We’re on a mission from God.”)

1980

Rated R

JUNE 18 (FATHER’S DAY) & JUNE 21

Maybe the greatest adventure movie ever made, directed by Steven Spielberg from an idea from George Lucas.  The film introduced audiences to archeology professor/action hero Indiana Jones, and concerns the search for the legendary lost Ark of the Covenant.  The Ark is said to contain enormous power, and “Indy” (Harrison Ford) and Marion (Karen Allen) must find it before the Nazis do.   (“Snakes.  Why’d it have to be snakes?”) 

1981

Rated PG

JUNE 11 & 14

High school senior Ferris Bueller (Matthew Broderick) takes playing hooky to a whole new level in this classic 80’s comedy from writer/director John Hughes.  Whether it’s singing from a float in a parade or crashing a fancy restaurant as Abe Frohman (“the Sausage King of Chicago”) Ferris knows how to show his friends a good time.    (“Life moves pretty fast.  If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”) 

1986

Rated PG-13

JUNE 4 & 7

One of the most quotable comedies ever made.  Our hero Westley (Cary Elwes) is intent on rescuing lovely Buttercup (Robin Wright) from an unhappy fate as the bride of Prince Humperdinck (Chris Sarandon).  Mandy Patinkin co-stars.  (“My name is Inigo Montoya.  You killed my father.  Prepare to die.")  Not a big hit when it first played in theatres (“Inconceivable!”), this film has become a cult classic.  (“Have fun storming the castle!”) 

1987

Rated PG

MAY 21 & 24

The British Comedy troupe Monty Python applies their unique brand of off-the-wall humor to the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table.  The cast members play multiple parts, with Graham Chapman (“I am Arthur, King of the Britons!”), Terry Gilliam as the Bridgekeeper (“What…is your quest?”), Eric Idle as the Dead Collector, and John Cleese as the incredibly determined Black Knight.  (“It’s just a flesh wound!”) 

1975

Rated PG

MAY 14 (MOTHER’S DAY) & MAY 17

“The hills are alive” with the sound of the most popular musical of all time. Julie Andrews stars as the governess to the seven rambunctious children of Captain von Trapp (Christopher Plummer). The majestic Austrian Alps are matched by the unforgettable Rodgers and Hammerstein score.  You’ll be inspired to “climb every mountain,” while simply remembering your “favorite things.” ("Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens...”)

1965

Rated G

MAY 7 & 10

John Hughes wrote and directed this classic 1980’s coming-of-age movie. Five high school students—“a brain, a beauty, a jock, a rebel, and a recluse”—are stuck in Saturday detention together. Before it’s over they will learn some powerful truths about one another, and themselves. The original “brat pack” movie with Anthony Michael Hall, Molly Ringwald, Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson, and Ally Sheedy. (“Could you describe the ruckus, sir?”) 

1985

Rated R

APRIL 30 & MAY 3

Fred MacMurray and Barbara Stanwyck play an adulterous couple with murder on their minds, and Edward G. Robinson is the insurance investigator who is their worst nightmare. One of director Billy Wilder’s best, this classic film noir drama received 7 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture.  The screenplay by Wilder and Raymond Chandler is loaded with memorable lines. (“Murder can sometimes smell like honeysuckle.”) 

1944

APRIL 23 & 26

A love story to remember, one of the most popular in movie history.  Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr meet on an ocean liner, and feel an immediate attraction.  Both are involved with other people, so are they destined to be together or not?  Bring your handkerchiefs (but be ready to laugh and smile as well) as this irresistible romance builds to its unforgettable conclusion.  (“It was the nearest thing to heaven…you were there.")

1957

APRIL 16 (EASTER) & APRIL 19

Barbra Streisand stars as exuberant matchmaker Dolly Levi in the screen version of the Broadway musical. Walter Matthau is Horace Vandergelder, the “well known half-a-millionaire” who is Dolly’s client and the object of her affections. Directed by Gene Kelly, with a score by Jerry Herman that is full of toe-tapping tunes, including the title song performed by Streisand and Louis Armstrong.  ("It’s so nice to have you back where you belong...”)

1969

Rated G