Film club: the reel deal
| Wednesday, Oct 28 2009 10:49 PM
Last Updated Wednesday, Oct 28 2009 10:49 PM
Is there anything movie buffs like to do more than watch movies? Yes. They like to talk about movies.
Film Club with Cody Meek meets monthly at Barnes & Noble. Meek is an employee at the book store and a film studies major at UC Berkeley. Meek said he initially started the discussion group to focus on films that didn't sell well at the store.
“The smaller movies, the older movies and the movies that we really like,” Meek said. “And we wanted to reach out to like-minded people.”
The other part of “we” is music department manager Mitchell Gordon, a transplanted New Yorker with a degree in film production from New York University.
“We were just trying to generate interest in film,” Gordon said.
Each meeting has a particular theme, such as a genre, a director or other focus. October’s meeting was the club's fourth, and the theme was film noir, covering five movies: “Double Indemnity,” “Woman in the Window,” “The Long Goodbye,” “Blade Runner,” and “Brick.”
Gordon said attendance so far has been small — no more than 15 people — but hopes that will change as word gets out.
Meetings last for about 90 minutes and are held in the music department at the back of the store.
Meek said the small space precludes the group from watching films, but said viewing isn't the group's purpose: to discuss, compare and evaluate movies.
“I just hope it gets people thinking about the movies they're watching,” Meek said.
To do that, Meek puts on his film studies hat, and starts the discussion, filling in information that some of the attendees might not have. But he likes it when discussion opens up.
“I think it works best when people bring their own opinions,” Meek said. “Sometimes people are pretty outspoken.”
“Some of the people we have here aren't as familiar with some of the more obscure films,” Gordon said.
Because they cannot show films during their meetings, Meek and Gordon see their club as occupying a different niche than the long-time FLICS International Film Society, which shows films at the Fox Theater. But the two groups have made a connection.
“I always thought it would be wonderful to have some sort of venue where people could talk about films and learn a little bit more,” said FLICS president Phil Neufeld.
The connection bears fruit during November’s club meeting Wednesday. The group will discuss the film “Let the Right One In,” which FLICS is screening Friday.
Though Gordon reached out to Neufeld as one film lover to another, Neufeld said there were other reasons as well.
“He saw the marketing opportunity,” Neufeld said. “A lot of people often ask where they can buy a copy of the film (they just saw).”
Gordon said he has set up a FLICS display at the store, featuring DVDs of films on the screening schedule. In return, Gordon has distributed fliers for the discussion group at FLICS events.
“We’re hoping we'll see more people as a result,” Gordon said.
“Film is a communal experience,” Meek added. “It works best when you watch them with other people.”
