Lafayette Theatre
97 Lafayette Avenue,
Suffern,
NY
10901
97 Lafayette Avenue,
Suffern,
NY
10901
37 people
favorited this theater
Showing 651 - 675 of 915 comments
Thanks Bill, I wish I was there!
Bob: It was 1:85, and did look great. The audience reaction really made the screening special. I’d only ever seen it on television and video. My family always laughed in all the right places, but it was a thrill to hear so many other people doing it too.
Rhett, please see my posts back on 2/13-14, et al.
Was it run 1:37 or 1:85?
Today’s screening of “MARTY” is proof that the Lafayette is still in action. While it wasn’t the biggest crowd, I believe that this Bigscreen Classic series could grow from movie to movie. What they have to do is, set up an email list and set up a web page to advertise the series. People won’t come if they don’t know about it.
The print of MARTY was very good. The audience response was great. It made it very enjoyable. My only complaint is that the projectionist closed the curtain and stopped the movie after the title of THE END. Marty has curtain call credits which featured the cast and the song, but was cut off. I assume the projectionist wanted to impress with the curtain closing. He did, but cut the movie before it was complete.
There was however, a certain ambience that was missing from the screening. Upon entering the theater, it was dark, there was nothing in the lobby, no flyers and obviously no Nelson. However, we were all informed that next week, Jeff Barker will be there at the organ again. I hope this becomes a mainstay. The Lafayette seems under a lot of pressure to gain patrons to stay in business. I do hope word spreads of the series so that others may take place.
Question: Why isn’t Pete a part of this….was he partnered with Nelson???..
Anyway, great screening, great print, great movie. Hope it’s just the beginning
NTSC Television and 16mm film is 1.33. By the 1940’s, academy ratio for theatrical films was standardized at 1.37. As Bob has correctly point out above, Marty was printed full frame but composed to be exhibited at 1.85.
You’re absolutely right. There are worse things shown on broadcast tv and basic cable.
That makes me laugh that some people, in this day, were upset with “Tarzan & His Mate” and would walk out on it. I could understand not liking the violence, but the nude swimming scene?!!! Just goes to prove: people are the craaaaaaziest of animals!
MARTY (while protected for academy ratio) was composed for and originally presented theatrically in widescreen.
There’s an old saying…“You can’t please everybody”..while these films are adult, they are also classics. Raging Bull is now considered an oldie. It is ranked in the top 10 AFI Greatest American Films. If the elderly are put off by the cursing, well, so be it. I think showing these films is a good thing, it’s a change. Wouldn’t it be great if this series takes off, to see a “Godfather” weekend or “Apocalypse Now” on the Lafayette screen. Even classics like Elmer Gantry and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolfe. These aren’t movies the seniors haven’t heard of, they probably have seen them all. Give them the benefit of the doubt. My main concern is the quality of prints and show. I think that might turn people off. “Marty” will be the test. It’s a full screen movie. Will the projectionist use the correct lens and screen it at 1:33 or stretch it out to 1:85.
My first job was at a movie theater (Clifton Theater). When we showed “King Kong” in ‘76 a couple elderly seniors were yelling because of Jessica Lange in the shower scene. Once again, you can’t please everyone.
In 1965 a group of concerned parents picketed outside the Rivoli Theater in Rutherford NJ because they were showing “Goldfinger” on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, when children could see it. My parents got worried and started to think the movie might not be suitable for me (age 10), so they went to see it themselves on Saturday night, to pre-screen it since I was planning to go the next day. Their verdict: go. You’ll love it!
Rory –
You’d be surprised at the objections we received from people (of all ages) to some of the films we showed during our 6 years up at the Lafayette. Had a number of people upset with us and walk out on The Good the Bad and the Ugly, Dr. Strangelove, Superman, Amadeus, Tarzan & His Mate, the James Bond films, and – amazingly – the Three Stooges and Cartoon festival (complaint for that one – “too violent”).
I can’t imagine today’s “seniors” being much offended by movies made forty years ago, after all, they were young themselves forty years ago, and besides, this is not-so-Upstate New York, not Iowa. Let’s get real and give “seniors,” which is really kind of a put down, some credit for being a little sophisticated, to say the least.
Peter said:
“I do not think the older crowd will be as bent out of shape regarding the "racier” films as some pessimistic posters think."
Reminds me of when “Midnight Cowboy” was a current release. It still carried the X rating, and my parents went to see it without me since I was only 14. My older aunt and uncle went along – they were the oldest members of the family and I was sure they’d be offended by it just from what I’d read in the newspaper reviews (and that X rating). To my surprise, they liked it a lot – in fact, everybody liked it. A good movie is a good movie after all. I had to wait till I was 18 and see it on a re-release.
When “Midnight Cowboy” came out 40 years ago, some of the scenes it presented had never been seen before in mainstream movies, much less TV. But any seniors who have premium cable should not be shocked by anything they see in any of these scheduled movies.
We will have to wait and see what happens. I am looking forward to seeing Raging Bull, Rocky, Annie Hall and Midnight Cowboy.Different choices from when Nelson and Pete did the programing yes, but good flicks!.
I do not think the older crowd will be as bent out of shape regarding the “racier” films as some pessimistic posters think.
My personal feeling is the series will start well, with friendly, easy to take films like West Side Story, Thomas Crown, but as the films move into the early 70’s and beyond, they will get increasingly darker, rougher and edgier. By the time Raging Bull shows, at the first splash of blood or curse, any seniors with delicate sensibilities will get up, find the manager, chew him out for showing such a profane motion picture, than leave. And if that does'nt do it, De Niros' bathroom conversation with Moriarty probably will. As for the quality of the prints, if this line-up was thrown together quickly, they probably did'nt ask about getting the cleanest prints they could. It will be a crapshoot.
I’m rooting for the series to succeed although , yes, it will be lacking without Pete and Nelson’s showmanship. However, I hope the people in charge now do their best to make this new series grow. I also suggest a web campaign to advertise or mass emails to old customers.
Hey Pete I agree with you 100% on all of your points! Especially on reason three.With all the hard work you and Nelson and Bob did over the years, be it the classic series,special weekends or just seeing a regular Hollywood flick made The Lafayette a very special place.
Some of the “magic” may be missing without you guys at the helm,but “The Show Must Go On”
Hope to see many familiar faces and new ones for the spring season of classic films!
I don’t know how they will run the shows (re: organ, introduction), but I am very happy that they are having a film series up there now for three reasons. 1 – For the seniors who looked forward to the free films. 2 – The paying crowd which we had cultivated over the 6 years of our shows. 3 – For the venue itself, as the worst thing that could happen would be for the place be be neglected by its audience.
To my knowledge, there will be no organ. My guess is there will be a speaker presenting the films (at least the first one), most likely Phil Tisi and/or the other town Politcos who want their face in the public eye so you’ll vote for them. It is an election year after all. Since the same staff of people are manning the Lafayette that were there when Nelson was managing, you can probably assume the curtain will be used, but I think you’re going to find the Lafayette itself and the presentation to be a little “bland” to what you’ve become accustomed too. Much of the Lafayette’s “charm” was due to Nelson, and the place contained many personal affects that Nelson brought in to decorate the place with. Those are all gone now. My personal feeling is that should the curtain mechanism break, it would stay broken, and open. BCG isn’t doing this because they “love you”, they could care less, and probably didn’t want to do this. This series is exactly because of what hotwatterbottle said above. Remember, the seniors get in for free.
I’m delighted that movies are returning to the Lafayette and I WILL be there. I am wondering however, since it seems to be run with new people, what will the prints be like? Pete always scored the best prints. I guess we’ll soon see. Will there be a speaker presenting these films (a la Nelson?) will there be a pre-show on the organ, will the curtain be opened and closed at the proper times?? The presentation, is the next step.
AS for the titles, yes, many are NOT family friendly (although I think Rocky will pack em in) but perhaps this is a new trend. I'
m sure there will be bumps along the way, but I hope “this is the beginning of a beautiful frendship”
I’m very happy about the inclusion of “Marty”. Of my all-time favorite Top 10 movies, that’s the only one I’ve never seen in a theater. Now I get a good chance to rectify that.
The only reason there are “classics” this spring is because the town of Ramapo got many complaints fron the seniors, who get in for free anyway. The town is trying to do right by them by offering a series of “classic” films. However, the current owners took the easy way out by going to MGM and asking for 10 Oscar winning films and this is what they got. Notice that the line-up is devoid of any Warner, Columbia, Paramount or Universal films. Except for Butch Cassidy, all are handled by MGM. Why no other studio? Too much red tape, especially by Warners. This shows the line-up was thrown together in haste, to please the seniors in town, something Pete and Nelson could never be accused of. Also, 20th Century Fox does not have a good print of Butch Cassidy, so who knows what the film will look
like. Do you really thing 65+ year old ladies are going to line up to see Midnight Cowboy or Raging Bull? No way. It may be great for us film fans, but not the seniors, who is the core audience there.
The appear to be running films that were “Oscar” Winners over the years. Some may not be as family or senior citizen friendly as in the past.
Better to have a classic films series then none at all.
Hmmm, some titles are not exactly family friendly in that group!
I wonder if the new programmers know their audience?