Events for December, 2009
A Serious Man
Directed by Ethan Cohen. US. 2009. R. Running time: 105 min.
Wed, Nov 25 thru Thu, Dec 3 -- Roll over to view showtimes.
“Joel and Ethan Coen have frequently explored classic movie genres, usually through the prism of a particular era. The Big Lebowski is a wise-ass riff on detective stories, but it’s also an examination of the cultural wasteland of the early 90s. The Man Who Wasn’t There is a noir about the noir era; O Brother Where Art Thou is a musical about the 30s, and so on. The brothers’ latest, A Serious Man, finds them off in their own headspace more than usual, making another era-pastiche for the late 60s, this time they’vemixed with their version of profound philosophical inquiry.” More »
Coco Before Chanel
Directed by Anne Fontaine. France. 2009. PG-13. Running time: 105 min.
Fri, Dec 4 thru Thu, Dec 10 -- Roll over to view showtimes.
“This refreshing alternative to the usual potted biopic provides an absorbing look at a singular, steely determination as it was forged and annealed, long before it made itself known to the world.” More »
Gremlins
Directed by Joe Dante. US. 1984. PG. Running time: 106 min.
Sponsored by Iron Hill Brewery “Never expose them to bright light. Sunlight will kill them. Never get them wet, trust me on that. The one thing that you must never, ever do is feed them after midnight. Gremlins (1984) is Joe Dante (director), Chris Columbus (writer) and Steve Spielberg’s (producers) send up of the great horror films of the fifties mixed with Christmas cheer. Billy (Zach Galligan) receives an unusual pet from his father for Christmas, a Mogwai named Gizmo. He’s cute, funny and lovable. Unfortunately for Billy and Gizmo fate steps in and unleashes the horror that Gizmo conceals under his cute smile. The perfect treat for those that love a bit of horror mixed with their holiday. Catch the trailer here. (Bob Trate) More »
Phoenixville Federal Bank & Trust Annual Christmas Party
All ages.
Presented by Phoenixville Federal Bank & Trust
- Sat, Dec 5, 2:00 pm
Meet Santa at the Colonial! Tickets are free but MUST be picked up at any PFB&T branch. This year we’re screening Shrek the Halls!
Trout Fishing in America
Tickets: $22 / $20 (Prices include a $2 Restoration Fee).
- Sun, Dec 6, 3:00 pm
The four-time Grammy-nominated duo Trout Fishing in America, offers a musical and lyrical adventure that both kids and adults can truly enjoy together. With lots of family-friendly humor and hand-clapping rhythms, their folksy-acoustic sound is simple, yet invigorating when coupled with lyrics that acknowledge the intelligent minds of children. More »
Fantastic Mr. Fox
Directed by Wes Anderson. US. 2009. PG. Running time: 87 min.
Fri, Dec 11 thru Thu, Dec 17 -- Roll over to view showtimes.
“For the reportedly painstaking labor it took to create, the film is a marvel to behold—with wonderful shifts in perspective, an intensely tactile design, and an intentional herky-jerkiness of motion that only enriches the make-believe atmosphere. Clooney (speaking as if everything were a self-conscious aside) and Streep (resplendent as a former wildcat turned Earth mother) do some of the best work of their illustrious careers. Among the movie’s many virtues, they render an unusually convincing portrait of a marriage, a reminder that the most unexpected thing about Anderson’s film may be—underneath all the carefully affixed, wind-sensitive whiskers and fur—how deeply human it is.” (Scott Foundas, The Village Voice) More »
John Cassidy and David Smith
Tickets: $7. Ages 4+. Running time: 90 min.
- Sat, Dec 12, 2:00 pm
Two of our most popular performers, John Cassidy and David Smith have joined forces to create a show just for the Colonial! Magic, mayhem, juggling, and balloon sculptures will prevail as these two take over the theatre. More »
Firebird Improv Orchestra and The Phoenix Myth
- Sat, Dec 12, 6:00 pm
What is this Phoenix story all about? Come here the myth told by Storytelling Irma, known for her interactive storytelling style. She will be accompanied by the Firebird Improv Orchestra – a group of eclectic musicians and instruments from didgeridoos to violins. This show is interactive, spontaneous and fun for all ages.
The lighiting of the Firebird happens at approximately 8PM at 347 Bridge Street (The Justice Center Building). More info on the festival at www.firebirdfestival.com.
White Christmas
Directed by Michael Curtiz. 1954. NR. Running time: 120 min.
Sponsored by Columbia Bar and Grille
- Sun, Dec 13, 2:00 pm
“This holiday-themed musical is essentially a buddy film. Well sort of, it’s certainly got two buddies in it, but it’s also a love story, a Christmas fable, and a vehicle to hang some exceptionally catchy hits on. More »
Red Cliff
Directed by John Woo. China. 2009. R. Running time: 146 min.
Fri, Dec 18 thru Wed, Dec 23 -- Roll over to view showtimes.
“One of the signature motifs of a John Woo film – the white dove – gets its moment in the spotlight (well, more like three long minutes) in the amazing Red Cliff. There the bird is, soaring over vast military encampments, across the wide Yangtze River to a base on the far shores, where thousands upon thousands of soldiers await the call to battle. Woo’s doves have fluttered their way across many, if not all, of the Hong Kong-gone-Hollywood director’s hard-boiled face-offs, but here, in his wide-screen historical epic, the bird represents more than just peace in the midst of chaos. More »
A Christmas Story
Directed by Bob Clark. US. 1983. 6+. Running time: 98 min.
Sponsored by Konell Insurance
- Sat, Dec 19, 2:00 pm
It took in only $18 million at the box office, but this delightful slice of 1940s Americana has become a latter-day holiday classic. Radio raconteur Jean Shepherd adapted an excerpt from his memoir, In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash, and narrated this appealing gem in the first person. Blending nostalgia, slapstick, and gentle satire, the movie chronicles a nine-year-old boy’s single-minded quest for that ultimate Christmas gift: a genuine Red Ryder BB gun.
It’s a Wonderful Life
Directed by Frank Capra. US. 1946. NR. Running time: 130 min.
Sponsored by Carnevale Eustis Architects
- Sun, Dec 20, 2:00 pm
“Look closer: Frank Capra’s heartwarming holiday perennial is really a pretty dark tale of stifling small-town life, deferred dreams and attempted suicide. James Stewart gives a remarkable performance as a man whose big plans for his own life are constantly thwarted by family responsibilities. Not a big success at the time of its release, it’s gone on to become one of the most popular movies ever made.” (TV Guide)
The Eric Mintel Quartet: A Charlie Brown Christmas
Tickets: $17 / $14 / $12 (Prices include a $2 Restoration Fee).
- Sun, Dec 20, 7:00 pm
If you love Charlie Brown and the Peanuts Christmas special, then you will love the Eric Mintel Quartet when they swing into the Colonial Theater to perform their very own tribute to the music of Vince Guaraldi. More »
Ted the Fiddler’s Big Time Birthday Bash
Tickets: $12 (includes a $2 per ticket Restoration Fee).
- Wed, Dec 23, 8:00 pm
It’s time again for Ted The Fiddler’s Big Time Birthday Bash – this year featuring special guests Ray Atkins and J.D. Malone! Shake off those frantic shopping blues and join us for a night of music, laughs and fun! Tickets are $12 (including a $2 per ticket theatre restoration fee). The Bash benefits the Colonial Theatre.
Visit Ted The Fiddler at www.tfiddler.com, Ray Atkins on myspace, and J.D. Malone at www.jdmalone.com. More »
Elf
Directed by John Favreau. US. 2003. 8+. Running time: 97 min.
- Sat, Dec 26, 2:00 pm
“In this wan Christmas concoction, lumbering human Buddy (Will Ferrell) leaves the elfin toy-making community that raised him and heads south to find his Hobbesian father Walter Hobbs (James Caan), a mercenary children’s-book publisher who (as Santa notes) is firmly on the naughty list. More »
An Education
Directed by Lone Scherfig. UK. 2009. PG-13. Running time: 95 min.
Sat, Dec 26 thru Thu, Jan 7 -- Roll over to view showtimes.
“Novelist and moonlighting screenwriter Nick Hornby shifts his perceptive gaze from pop culture-obsessed men dragged into the scary world of adulthood to the coming-of-age perils of a pop culture-obsessed teenage girl in a terrible hurry to grow up in early-’60s England with An Education, a fine adaptation of journalist Lynn Collins’ memoir directed by Lone Scherfig. An Education shares with Hornby’s best work trenchant insight into the way smart, hyper-verbal young people let the music, films, books, and art they love define themselves as they figure out who they are and what they want to be.” More »
Miracle on 34th Street
Directed by George Seaton. US. 1947. NR. Running time: 96 min.
- Sun, Dec 27, 2:00 pm
“Classic Christmas story about a Macy’s Santa Claus who insists he’s the real Kris Kringle – sending New York into a frenzy. Edmund Gwenn deservedly won an Oscar for his delightful and definitive portrayal of Santa, and nine-year-old Natalie Wood is charming as a disbelieving youngster who is befriended y St. Nick.” More »
The Polar Express
Directed by Robert Zemekis. US. 2004. 8+. Running time: 99 min.
- Mon, Dec 28, 2:00 pm
“The Polar Express is a movie for more than one season; it will become a perennial, shared by the generations. It has a haunting, magical quality because it has imagined its world freshly and played true to it, sidestepping all the tiresome Christmas cliches that children have inflicted on them this time of year. The conductor tells Hero Boy he thinks he really should get on the train, and I have the same advice for you.” (Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun Times) More »