A few thoughts on formats, in advance of One Thing After Another
Plus: October and November Mills Folly Microcinema screenings announced
Scroll down for Now Showing in Madison, September 22–29, 2025
Correction to last week’s newsletter: The correct date for the Grace Mitchell screening at Side Room Cinematheque is Monday, September 29. Last week it was incorrectly reported as September 22. (Apologies!)
Perfs to Pixels and Back Again, Part One: Film Formats and Prestige
What’s up with Jake Andrew McMahon? He’s enough of a film sophisticate to read the Paul Thomas Anderson The Director Facebook page, but he’s not sophisticated enough to know that Chicago is not getting 15-perf 70mm IMAX? It is getting the 5-perf 70mm print at Music Box Theatre. Oh wait, maybe he has tickets for the digital IMAX, like we’re getting at AMC Fitchburg 18. But why would he do that, when he lives in a city that has 70mm!
And how did Monty Britton sleep the night after he posted such a faulty assumption that a VistaVision film would be in 2.35? Doesn’t he know that VistaVision and Cinemascope were competing widescreen formats? Thank God that Tim Buttner was on hand to start to set him straight.
Apologies to all involved. The only thing anyone is actually guilty of here is enthusiasm for the cinema. More power to you for sharing your excitement.
But it is interesting the degree to which a current trend in prestige filmmaking, from Christopher Nolan (IMAX) to Quentin Tarrantino (70mm) to Brady Corbet and now Paul Thomas Anderson (VistaVision) depends on technology that few moviegoers, including few cineastes, actually understand, as reflected in these and other social media threads.
Don’t get me wrong: I’m all for the enthusiasm behind shooting and projecting on film. As noted below, I’m excited to project 16mm at the Blake Barit screening at Mills Folly this Wednesday. I drove down to Chicago to see The Hateful Eight and The Brutalist projected on 70mm. I will probably see One Battle After Another a few times, hopefully at least once projected on film.
But the Facebook posts quoted above reflect some interesting aspects to this revival of film on film in the general film culture. Instead of an advance in technology creating interest, it is a return to older technologies that is the basis of the prestige. This is not new to popular culture, as vinyl records made a comeback when music purists became frustrated with compressed digital codecs. But everyone of a certain age has had their hands on a vinyl record and a record player. Far fewer people, again even cineastes, have had their hands on large format film prints or projectors. I’m not convinced that many cineastes have the means to describe the difference between film and digital projection in their filmgoing experience.
There’s a mystique around the older formats, rather than a grassroots demand to return to film projection from people who know how it differs from digital projection. And, generally speaking, the trend is driven from the top down. It is not audience demand, it is filmmaker preference and insistence driving these prestige format releases.
So audiences have to catch up with the filmmakers (and history), or they can just continue to ignore the difference as they did when film projection transitioned to digital. Meanwhile, I think it is great that everyone is excited about the projection formats available for One Battle After Another. While I’m arguing that the trend is top down driven, with more examples and exposure perhaps there will be more bottom up demand. Until then, I’m not sure how many people know what they’re excited about.
More to come on this topic, especially after I see One Battle After Another, which opens this week. I’d appreciate your thoughts and comments on the topic!
Mills Folly Microcinema: Blake Barit this Wednesday; October and November screenings announced
Madison’s Blake Barit will screen his work (including two films on 16mm film) in a program titled Digitalog at Mills Folly Microcinema (Arts + Literature Laboratory, 111 S. Livingston Street, Suite 100). As Barit explains in his program description, “This screening invites viewers to appreciate the fluid boundaries between memory and media, reflecting on how time and technology shape our perceptions.”
Thanks to Barit’s own 16mm projectors, I’m pleased to report that at least two titles will be projected on 16mm film.
Barit received his BFA at University of Colorado Boulder, and his MFA from SUNY Buffalo, both programs with strong experimental traditions. He’s relatively new to Madison, and is a member of the faculty in the Video Audio Design Department at Madison College. He also has a studio at Roundhouse Studios on Commercial Avenue, as seen in the photo above.
It has been great having Barit in town, and it is clear that he wants to have an impact on experimental filmmaking in Madison, both through Madison College and Madison’s broader film culture. He curated the Richard Tuohy and Dianna Barrie screening at Mills Folly Microcinema back in March.
In other Mills Folly Microcinema news, the October and November screenings have now been posted.
Project Projection, Wednesday October 22, 7pm
I’ve mentioned this a few times, but it’s worth reminding that the next showcase for local film and video, focusing on experimental film, short docs, animation, and music video, is coming up. The current running time is about an hour’s worth of material, and we’re attempting to make screenings shorter and more frequent. So if you have something you want to submit, please do so soon at the Project Projection event page.
Give It Back: Crimes Against Humanity and Nosferasta: First Bite, Wednesday, October 29, 7:00pm
The regular October screening for Mills Folly Microcinema will feature two recent videos by Indigenous artists.
The collective New Red Order (NRO) is a New Red Order (NRO) is a public secret society facilitated by core contributors Jackson Polys (Tlingit), Adam Khalil (Ojibway), and Zack Khalil (Ojibway). Some viewers may be familiar with the Khalil brothers’ feature INAATE/SE from when it screened at Rooftop Cinema a few years ago.
The New Red Order series “Give It Back” has focused on devising strategies and “activate new avenues instantiating the transfer of land back to Indigenous people.” This specific installment, Crimes Against Reality, revolves around a tour of an apartment which has supposedly been “given back.” The video “swerves between branded content, documentary, and a decolonial episode of MTV 'Cribs’” (Video Data Bank).
The second short, Nosferasta: First Bite (2021), is a collaboration between Adam Khalil and Bayley Sweitzer, who previously collaborated on the 2018 feature Empty Metal. Nosferasta tells the story of Oba, a Rastafarian vampire, and Christopher Columbus, Oba’s original biter, as they spread the colonial infection throughout the “new world.” (Video Data Bank)
Behind Closed Doors: Videos by Hugo Ljungbäck, Wednesday, November 19, 7:00pm
Hugo Ljungbäck is a Swedish filmmaker, archivist, curator, and media scholar. His videos explore queer history, identity, representation, and sexuality through an autobiographical lens, emphasizing the possibilities afforded by found footage filmmaking in response to the ephemerality of queer history.
I first crossed paths with Hugo when he was working on his BFA at UW-Milwaukee. He subsequently received an MFA at University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill, and he’s currently working on a PhD in Cinema and Media Studies at University of Chicago. So, conveniently, he’s not too far away to schedule a screening of his work here in Madison.
I’ll have more to say about the October and November screenings as the dates approach. Meanwhile, I hope to see many of you at the Blake Barit screening on Wednesday!
September Birthday Subscription Drive continues!
Please pass the word about Moving Image Madison to friends and colleagues who are film fans in Madison. It would be great to build the free subscription base as well as the paid subscription support!
Now Playing In Madison: September 22-29, 2025
Please confirm showtimes with the venues (follow venue links where provided). The commercial theaters update their weekend listings on Wednesdays.
Comments here are not reviews of the films, they are usually a response to the trailer, a summary of the buzz I have heard, or just snark.
Wisconsin Union Directorate Film
THE LOST BOYS (1987) 9/26 & 9/27
THE ROYAL TENENBAUMS 9/26 & 9/27
UW-Cinematheque
DREAMS (DRØMMER) 9/25
Won the top prize at the 2025 Berlin Film Festival
DONNIE DARKO 9/26
ONE SECOND 9/27
2020 feature from director Zhang Yimou.
ITALIAN STRAW HAT (9/28, Chazen Museum)
1928 classic from director René Clair, screened for Silent Movie Day.
Side Room Cinematheque at Aftershock Games
Films by Grace Mitchell, Monday, September 29
If you’re not familiar with Mitchell’s work, or if you missed the Milwaukee Experimental Film screening at Rooftop Cinema a few weeks ago, check out the Tone Madison conversation with her, published when her short The Year played at the Wisconsin Film Festival.
AMC Theatres, Flix Brewhouse, Marcus Theatres
Always check the respective websites to confirm dates and showtimes. I add trailers to new films of interest that you might not know about (American indies, international features, etc.).
731 (2025) at AMC, Point.
Chinese WWII drama, also known internationally as Evil Unbound. Addresses biochemical experiment atrocities committed by the Imperial Japanese Army’s Unit 731. Naturally this has added to current tensions between the two countries.
AFTERBURN (2025) at AMC, Palace.
ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN at AMC.
One of several Robert Redford tributes this week.
AMC SCREAM UNSEEN: SEPTEMBER 29 at AMC.
ANDREA BOCELLI: BECAUSE I BELIEVE at Palace.
One more screening of this documentary about the acclaimed Italian tenor.
APOLLO 13 30TH ANNIVERSARY (2025) at AMC.
BAU: ARTIST AT WAR (2024) at AMC.
American indie romance drama. Examines the life of Holocaust survivor and artist Joseph Bau (Emile Hirsch) and his relationship with fellow prisoner Rebecca Tennenbaum (Inbar Lavi).
BERNADETTE OF LOURDES: THE MUSICAL IN CINEMA at Point, Palace.
Faith-based theater production released as a Fathom event.
BIG BOLD BEAUTIFUL JOURNEY, A (2025) at AMC, Flix, Point, Palace.
This seems to have bombed at the box office this past weekend. So if you have any interest in this vehicle for Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell, go sooner than later.
BLAZING SADDLES at Flix.
BTS 2016 HYYH ON STAGE : EPILOGUE REMASTERED at Palace.
K-Pop concert.
BTS 2017 THE WINGS TOUR THE FINAL REMASTERED at Palace.
K-Pop concert.
CAUGHT STEALING (2025) at AMC.
Latest from director Darren Aronofsky
CONJURING: LAST RITES, THE (2025) at AMC, Flix, Point, Palace.
DEAD OF WINTER (2025) at AMC, Palace.
Opens September 26. Thriller set in rural Minnesota, starring Emma Thompson and Judy Greer.
DEMON SLAYER: KIMETSU NO YAIBA INFINITY CASTLE (2025) at AMC, Flix, Point, Palace.
Say what you will, this is making bank. I was tempted to check it out this weekend just to see what everything as about. But 150 minutes in the middle of a story that I’m not familiar with is a big ask. That said, if it sticks around long enough, I might try this on the big screen.
DOWNTON ABBEY: THE GRAND FINALE (2025) at AMC, Flix, Point, Palace.
DUDE PERFECT: THE HERO TOUR (2025) at AMC, Point, Palace.
Family friendly immersive experience for fans of The Dudes at Dude Perfect. What is Dude Perfect? If you have to ask, this probably isn’t for you.
ELEANOR THE GREAT (2025) at AMC.
Opens September 26. Scarlett Johansson’s directorial debut, starring June Squibb, who starred in Thema last year.
FANTASTIC FOUR: FIRST STEPS, THE (2025) at AMC.
FREAKIER FRIDAY at Point, Palace.
GABBY'S DOLLHOUSE: THE MOVIE (2025) at AMC, Flix, Point, Palace.
Gabby’s Dollhouse is an interactive children’s television show on Netflix, in the tradition of Blue’s Clues. I have no idea if this is worth watching for those outside of its target audience, but at least it has provided a paycheck for some very funny people, like Thomas Lennon, Jason Mantzoukas, and Ego Nwodim.
GIRL WHO LEAPT THROUGH TIME 4K, THE at Point.
A 4K re-release of the 2006 animated film by Mamoru Hosoda.
HAMILTON at Flix, Point, Palace.
HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE - 20TH at Point, Palace.
HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN at Point, Palace.
HIM (2025) at AMC, Flix, Point, Palace.
This also seemed to tank at the box office this weekend. I said last week that it looks terrible.
HISTORY OF SOUND, THE (2025) at AMC, Point
.Oliver Hermanus (Beauty, 2011; Living, 2022) directs this adaptation of short stories by Ben Shattuck. Stars Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor. A Mubi release.
HOWL'S MOVING CASTLE - STUDIO GHIBLI FEST 2025 at AMC, Point, Palace.
JACKASS 3 IN 2D at AMC.
LONDON CALLING (2025) at AMC.
A hitman (Josh Duhamel) is forced to show the ropes to the son of his new crime boss.
LONG WALK, THE (2025) at AMC, Flix, Point, Palace.
MARCUS MYSTERY MOVIE (9/22) at Point, Palace.
MEGADOC (2025) at AMC.
Mike Figgis’s documentary that looks behind the scenes of the making of Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis.
MIRAI (2025) at AMC.
Last week I mentioned the $17 admission for this Indian Telugu-language fantasy/mythology/action adventure. The price did indeed go down, but I do not see screenings past Wednesday.
NAKED GUN, THE (2025) at Flix.
NATURAL, THE at AMC.
Another Robert Redford tribute screening.
ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER (2025) at AMC, Flix, Point, Palace.
I already think I might be seeing this a few times while it is in theaters, so you can anticipate some words written here about it in the coming weeks. The latest from Paul Thomas Anderson, loosely inspired by Thomas Pynchon’s 1990 novel, Vineland. This has the most positive pre-release buzz of any film this year, it seems.
PEE WEE'S BIG ADVENTURE at Flix.
ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW: 50TH ANNIVERSARY, THE at Point.
I have no idea if the fan floor show will be allowed, but if it is not you would be missing a lot of the Rocky Horror experience that kept this in theaters at midnight screenings for many years.
SENIOR, THE (2025) at AMC, Point, Palace.
SIGHT & SOUND PRESENTS: NOAH LIVE at Point, Palace.
At first I thought this was referencing the British Film Institute’s magazine, Sight and Sound. I was wrong. This is the 30th anniversary of the flagship stage production by faith-based Sight & Sound Theaters. A Fathom event release.
SPIDER-MAN (FATHOM 2025) at AMC, Point, Palace.
SPIDER-MAN 2.1 (FATHOM 2025) at AMC, Point, Palace.
SPIDER-MAN 3 (FATHOM 2025) at AMC, Point, Palace.
SPINAL TAP II: THE END CONTINUES (2025) at AMC, Flix, Point, Palace.
The opening paragraph of Nathan Rabin’s review captures what I was afraid I would have to say if I ended up seeing this in the theater and writing about it here. I’ll still catch up with it at some point.
STRANGERS: CHAPTER 2, THE (2025) at AMC, Point, Palace.
I had no idea Renny Harlin was still directing feature films. Not only did he direct The Strangers: Chapter 1 last year, but he is also credited as the director of The Strangers: Chapter three, which is reportedly in post-production. This is a re-boot of the franchise started with The Strangers in 2008.
THEY CALL HIM OG at Point, Palace.
Indian Telugu-language action-crime film directed by Sujeeth and starring Pawan Kalyan.
TOY STORY: 30TH ANNIVERSARY, THE (2025) at AMC, Flix, Point, Palace.
TRIUMPH OF THE HEART at Point.
WALTZING WITH BRANDO (2025) at AMC.
Billy Zane is receiving decent reviews for his performance as Marlon Brando. Can’t say the same for the film as a whole.
WEAPONS (2025) at AMC, Flix, Point.
Looking Ahead:
Mills Folly Microcinema
See overview above
Four Star Video Rental at Lola’s Hi-Lo Sidecar Lounge
CHOOSE ME, 9/24
Cinesthesia, Madison Public Library Central Branch
CANDYMAN 10/15
Atwood Music Hall
SILENT FILM SERIES, Friday, October 10, 7:00pm
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920) and The Fall of the House of Usher (1928) with music by DJ Slimzy
TENANT FILM SERIES, Tuesday, October 21, 7:00pm
Films and discussion, Push (2019) and Not a Penny on the Rents (1969). Presented with Madison Tenant Power.
A JOHN WATERS CHRISTMAS, Monday, December 15, 7:30pm
[Sold out]
Bartell Theatre
2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY, Sunday, October 12, 6:30pm
VARIANTS: THE SHORT FILMS OF JOE MEREDITH, Friday, October 17, 7:30pm
Presented by Four Star Video
NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, Friday, October 17, 7:30pm
AGAINST THE WIND, Saturday, October 18, 7:00pm
STRANGE JOURNEY: THE STORY OF ROCKY HORROR, Friday, October 24, 8:00pm
WISCONSIN 48 HOUR FILM PROJECT, HORROR & SCI-FI, Saturday, October 25, 1:00pm and 4:30pm.