Instructional Leadership, emphasis: K-12 School Leadership (MEd)
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Film Series

CAL Film Series: B Movies! Cult Classics! Midnight Movies!

NAU and the Flagstaff community are invited to come together in front of the big screen in Cline Library’s Assembly Hall for the College of Arts and Letters Film Series.

Discussions and screenings take place most Tuesdays at 7 p.m.

All screenings are free and open to the public. Each classic movie will be preceded by a short introduction from NAU faculty and followed by a community discussion.

The film series promotes understanding and appreciation of cinema through Northern Arizona University and the greater Flagstaff community. The CAL Film Series blends well-known audience favorites along with lesser-known films, as well as a mix of genres, directors, and actors. This season, the focus is on films that don’t normally get the respect one would expect from a film series. We are enjoying B movies, cult classics, and shows that are frequently featured in midnight movie houses!

The film series is made possible with the support of the College of Arts and Letters, the Department of Comparative Cultural Studies, the School of Communication’s Journalism program, NAU’s Cline Library, and under the direction of professors Paul Helford and Paul Donnelly.

Free weeknight parking is available for community members behind Cline Library and requires a special free permit.

January

January 21: The Killing

Stanley Kubrick (Director). (1956). The Killing. Universal Pictures.

Directed by Stanley Kubrick in 1956

Director Stanley Kubrick’s first masterpiece, which he also wrote, is a taut race track heist film noir starring Sterling Hayden with a supporting cast of B-movie staples including Elisha Cook Jr., Marie Windsor, Jay C. Flippen, and Timothy Carey. 

Rotten Tomatoes: 96%

Watch the theatrical trailer.

January 28: The Conversation

Francis Ford Coppola (Director). (1974). The Conversation. Harrison Ford. Universal Pictures.

Directed by Francis Ford Coppola in 1974

Between Best Picture Oscar winners, “The Godfather” (1972) and “The Godfather Part II” (1974), Francis Ford Coppola wrote and directed this Best Picture nominee, a psychological mystery about a master surveillance expert, brilliantly played by Gene Hackman, who believes he’s uncovered a murder plot; co-starring the great John Cazale.

Rotten Tomatoes: 96%

Watch the theatrical trailer.

February

February 11: Coherence

James Ward Byrkit (Director). (2013). Coherence. Pinnacle Films

Directed by James Ward Byrkit in 2013

Meet NAU alumnus James Ward Byrkit who will introduce his low-budget 2013 award-winning sci-fi thriller about a group of friends who meet for dinner on a night when a comet passing overhead serves as a catalyst for a mind-bending mystery.

Rotten Tomatoes: 89%

Watch the theatrical trailer.

February 18: Kiss the Future


Nenad Cicin-Sain (Director) (2023). Kiss the Future. Paramount Films.

Meet NAU School of Communication Professor Bill Carter whose 2005 memoir “Fools Rush In” is the inspiration for this documentary about his time as an aid working during the Bosnian War when he engaged U2, the biggest band in the world, to help raise awareness about the siege of Sarajevo. Produced by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, this uplifting celebration of the power of the human spirit shows music’s potential to change the world.

Rotten Tomatoes: 100%

Watch the trailer.

February 25: Get Out

Jordan Peele (Director). (2017). Get Out. Universal.

Directed by Jordan Peele in 2017

Our Black History Month screening is Jordan Peele’s first directorial effort for which he was nominated for an Oscar and won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, for a darkly comic psychological horror film about a young Black man, played by Oscar-nominated Daniel Kaluuya, who visits his white girlfriend’s parents to discover they have an unusual interest in him.

Rotten Tomatoes: 98%

Watch the theatrical trailer.  

March

March 4: Promising Young Woman

Emerald Fennell (Director). (2020). Promising Young Woman. Focus Features.

Directed by Emerald Fennell in 2020

With five Oscar nominations, including for Best Picture, Director, and Actress Carey Mulligan, the film series Women’s History Month screening won director Fennell a Best Original Screenplay Oscar for this always surprising psychological thriller about an emotionally scarred young woman living a double life, coping with her past by visiting local bars and finding unexpected ways to punish predatory men.

Rotten Tomatoes: 98%

Watch the theatrical trailer.

March 18: The Producers

Mel Brooks (Director). (1968). The Producers. Studio Canal

Directed by Mel Brooks in 1968

Legendary comedian Mel Brooks’ breakthrough film tells the story of a pathetic Broadway producer, played by Zero Mostel, who convinces his new accountant (Gene Wilder) to help him produce a play guaranteed to lose money. The play, a musical, is “Springtime for Hitler.” This unlikely, and controversial, premise is one of the great cult movies and led to an actual Broadway musical in 2001 and a 2005 film.

Rotten Tomatoes: 91%

Watch the theatrical trailer.

March 25: Easy Rider

Dennis Hopper (Director). (1969). Easy Rider. Columbia.

Directed by Dennis Hopper in 1969

This week’s film is one of the cornerstones of the New Hollywood cinema that arose in the late 1960s. Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper play two bikers who set out on a road trip from California to Florida after making a lucrative drug deal. This film is also our way of honoring the 100-year anniversary of Route 66 and features footage in Flagstaff and other sites in Northern Arizona.

Rotten Tomatoes: 84%

Watch the theatrical trailer.

April

April 8: Point Blank

John Boorman(Director). (1967). Point Blank. MGM

Directed by John Boorman in 1967

Point Blank has come to be seen as an early and definitive entry in the neo-noir wave from the late 1960s through the 70s and 80s. Lee Marvin plays a criminal, double-crossed and left for dead, who sets out to retrieve the cash stolen from him. The stellar supporting cast includes Angie Dickinson, Keenan Wynn, and Carroll O’Connor.

Rotten Tomatoes: 93%

Watch the theatrical trailer.

April 15: Ed Wood

Tim Burton (Director). (1994). Ed Wood. Touchstone Pictures

Directed by Tim Burton in 1994

Burton’s homage to cult director Edward D. Wood (whose Plan 9 from Outer Space has been called the worst movie ever made) stars Johnny Depp as the struggling director trying to make it in Hollywood. The film was a critical success and earned two Oscars including Best Actor for Martin Landau’s portrayal of Bela Lugosi.

Rotten Tomatoes: 93%

Watch the theatrical trailer.

April 29: The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert

Stephan Elliott (Director). (1994). The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert. Gramercy

Directed by Stephan Elliott in 1994.

For our season finale, we present a film about three Sydney-based drag performers who take their show on the road across the Australian outback for a series of show performances in the remote town of Alice Springs. The film stars Hugo Weaving, Guy Pearce, and veteran British actor Terrence Stamp. It was a surprise worldwide hit and its positive portrayal of LGBT individuals helped to introduce LGBT themes to a mainstream audience.

Rotten Tomatoes: 94%

Watch the theatrical trailer.