35mm Film Festival

35mm Film Festival
Saturday, Apr 26, 2025 at 10:00am
Ambler Theater
108 East Butler Avenue

Annual 35mm Film Festival from April 25th to 27th. Join us for this three-day event that surveys a variety of titles from cult classics to Hollywood staples and celebrates watching films on film. Funding from the Vesta Fund.

Schedule:

10:00 a.m: Fantasia
One of Disney’s most groundbreaking and ambitious films put to screen consists of 8 animated segments set to classical music, with the most notable segment being “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” starring Mickey Mouse. This imaginative animated film contains little spoken dialog and features the work of legendary conductor Leopold Stokowski, leading the Philadelphia Orchestra. The mesmerizing animation and bold colors make FANTASIA a must-see on 35mm.

1:30 p.m: Dancing Lady
Joan Crawford shines in this pre-Code musical about a burlesque dancer who gets her shot on Broadway. Determined to be a success, she juggles her career and her two suitors – a rich playboy (played by Crawford’s future husband Franchot Tone) and her moody director (played by Crawford’s longtime lover Clark Gable). Come for the electric chemistry between the three leads, and stay for the spectacular finale featuring a larger-than-life set, with a mesmerizing mirrored merry-go-round sequence. Featuring an early screen appearance from The Three Stooges and Fred Astaire in his first on screen role. Presented on a breathtaking 35mm print made from the original nitrate negative housed at The George Eastman Museum.

3:45 p.m: Joan Crawford's Home Movies
The private Joan Crawford fought as hard to create a normal family life as she did to establish her career. She forged her own path and became a single parent, eventually adopting and raising four children. Like many parents, she picked up a 16mm camera and began filming both the special and the ordinary events of her family’s life. These home movies (ca. 1940–42) present that which one rarely gets to see: a larger-than-life personality at home, unadorned, just being herself — and often in color, at a time when her feature films were black and white. Crawford filmed most of the home movies herself; when she is on camera, it is unclear who is behind it.

6:30 p.m: The Heartbreak Kid
In this rarely screened anti-romantic comedy from trailblazing filmmaker Elaine May, a self-absorbed newlywed falls in love with the woman of his dreams while on his honeymoon; the only problem is she is not his new wife. Featuring a screenplay by Neil Simon and noteworthy performances by Charles Grodin and Cybill Shepherd. THE HEARTBREAK KID influenced a new generation of comedy films with its focus on dialogue-heavy, character-centric humor.

9:45 p.m: Blue Velvet
In David Lynch’s unsettling tale of suburbia, an investigation is launched after a young man discovers a severed human ear in a vacant field. Featuring an impressive cast that includes Kyle MacLachlan, Isabella Rossellini, Laura Dern, and a memorably deranged performance from Dennis Hopper. Considered controversial upon its initial release, BLUE VELVET pries open an alternate reality of dread and evil that lurks just beneath the surface of everyday life. Lynch’s warping of the cinematic convention cemented his reputation as an uncompromising visionary whose approach has stood the test of time. Rated R.