Long delayed film by Vicksburg born director to screen at the Strand

Charles Burnett's

 The Annihilation of Fish

Saturday, March 22 at 7 PM

Strand Theatre 

 

In 2013 the Strand Theatre hosted Charles Burnett, an acclaimed director who was born in Vicksburg, for a weekend of his films and conversation. “Bringing Charles home to introduce him to the community of his birth is the program that I am most proud of,” said Daniel Boone, film programmer for the Strand Theatre. One of the treats of the event was the screening of the Annihilation of Fish. What made it so special was that the film had been made in 1999 but never released. “A geriatric romantic comedy starring the late James Earl Jones (the Star Wars films), another Mississippi icon, and Lynn Redgrave (Georgy Girl) may have seemed too controversial at the time, but the Vicksburg audience enjoyed it all those years ago, and now they can see it again along with the rest of the world,” said Boone. After years of negotiating and a new restoration, the film is opening in theaters around the country. “I wish he could be with us for this show, but I’m not giving up on getting him back here again. And it’s certainly a shame that James Earl Jones, who passed away in September of 2024, didn’t live to see this film finally in theaters.”  Burnett is the winner of an Honorary Academy Award® for lifetime achievement, and remains one of our country’s most celebrated independentfilmmakers. In his charming The Annihilation of Fish, Redgrave plays Poinsettia, a former housewife with an imagined lover in the form of 19th-century composer Giacomo Puccini. She moves into a Los Angeles boarding house with an energetic landlady (Margot Kidder) where she meets a Jamaican widower, Fish (James Earl Jones), who has recently been released from a mental institution despite his continued battles against unseen demons. In the face of personal challenges and differences, the couple grows together and begins to discover new things about themselves and the nuances of love and happiness. “Burnett has made a simple yet beguiling film about how two imperfect people can find a kind of perfection in each other's company — and howsometimes in life, and in the movies, good things do come to those who wait.” – Justin Chang, NPR “For much too long, ‘The Annihilation of Fish’ has been in limbo. It took many years and endless persistence to rescue this beautiful, delicatepicture… I’m so happy that it’s finally ready for the world to discover.” – Martin Scorsese Tickets $10 ($9 in advance at Highway 61 Coffeehouse) Free Popcorn! Saturday, March 22 at 7 PM

Where? The Strand Theatre 717 Clay Street Downtown Vicksburg

I'm Not There - a mosaic meditation on the subject of Bob Dylan

 

 

Saturday, March 15 at 7 PM

Inspired by the recent attention and award nominations for A Complete Unknown, Bill Justice thought it was a good time to reconsider an earlier film focusing on the same subject: Bob Dylan.

Since Dylan has been a force in our cultural landscape for 60 some years and gone through so many phases (as have we), one actor would never be enough to express the real Dylan or all of our projections of him.

So...Todd Haynes' 2007 imaginative meditation on the life and career of Bob Dylan employs six different actors---including Cate Blanchett, Christian Bale, Richard Gere and Heath Ledger---to depict assorted aspects of the legendary singer-songwriter's person.

 

Tickets $10 ($9 in advance at Highway 61 Coffeehouse)

 

Free Popcorn!

 

Saturday, March 15 at 7 PM

The Lord of the Rings The Return of the King

 

Yes, Peter Jackson's The Return of the King will be onscreen at the Strand. Sunday, March 2, 2025 at 4 PM

 

(Sponsored by Rich & Jennifer Smith)

 

So, over the last couple of years, Rich and Jennifer presented The Fellowship of the Ring and the Two Towers at the Strand, and now it's time to see what happens next for Frodo, Sam, Aragorn, Merry, Pippin, Gimli, Legolas, Gollum and Gandalf (along with a few thousand others.)

 

In the conclusion of J.R.R. Tolkien's epic masterpiece, The Lord of the Rings, as armies mass for a final battle that will decide the fate of the world--and powerful, ancient forces of Light and Dark compete to determine the outcome--one member of the Fellowship of the Ring is revealed as the noble heir to the throne of the Kings of Men. Yet, the sole hope for triumph over evil lies with a brave hobbit, Frodo, who, accompanied only by his loyal friend Sam and the hideous, wretched Gollum, ventures deep into the very dark heart of Mordor on his seemingly impossible quest to destroy the Ring of Power.

Winner of 11 Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director!

Director: Peter Jackson / Production year: 2003 / Rating: PG-13 / 203 minutes

Three Rings for the Elven-kings under the sky,

Seven for the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,

Nine for Mortal Men, doomed to die,

One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne

In the Land of Mordor where the Shadows lie.

One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them,

One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them...

Come see the new 4k version of the The Return of the King and hear the newly remixed Atmos sound through our Atmos sound system.

Tickets $10 ($9 in advance at Highway 61 Coffeehouse)

Free Popcorn!

Sunday, March 2 at 4 PM (that's right: Sunday afternoon at 4)

The IRL Movie Club presents The Thinking Game

 

The Thinking Game

Sunday, February 2 at 5 PM

 

The Thinking Game chronicles the extraordinary life of Demis Hassabis, a visionary scientist on a relentless quest to solve the enigma of artificial general intelligence (AGI).

 

Directed by Greg Kohs

 

The Thinking Game takes you on a fascinating journey into the heart of DeepMind, one of the world's leading AI labs, as it strives to unravel the mysteries of artificial general intelligence (AGI).

 

Inside DeepMind's London headquarters, founder Demis Hassabis and his team are relentlessly pursuing the creation of AI that matches or surpasses human abilities on a wide range of tasks.

Filmed over five years, the documentary puts viewers in the room for the pivotal moments of this quest, including the groundbreaking achievement of AlphaFold, a program that solved a 50-year grand challenge in biology.

 

The Thinking Game captures the exhilaration of historic breakthroughs like AlphaFold, the crushing weight of disappointment during setbacks, and the unwavering pursuit of knowledge that defines Demis' commitment to scientific innovation. This film invites viewers to witness one of the most important scientific adventures of our time, exploring the potential of AGI to reshape our world

 

What is the IRL Movie Club and How Does it Work?

 

It is an in-person movie club for people to gather regularly, connect with their local community, and together explore trending topics through the lens of independent film. There will be a post-film discussion about each club film.

 

Tickets are $5 and available at Highway 61 Coffeehouse and at the door.

This discounted price includes admission to the show and an optional membership in the IRL Movie Club.

It's a Wonderful Life at the Strand

 

The Christmas spirit has arrived in downtown Vicksburg...

Bitsy Sloan is sponsoring a free showing of this Christmas classic.

 

 

Frank Capra's classic stars Oscar nominee James Stewart as George Bailey, a decent small-town banker who learns what life would have been like if he'd never been born after he unwittingly becomes involved in a mistaken case of bank fraud, which threatens his spirit and tests his will to live until a wise angel compels him to see how his presence has made an incredible impact on the people of Bedford Falls. (That was quite a sentence)

James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, Henry Travers, Beulah Bondi

Come get into the spirit of the season...

And remember if it's cold outside, it will be cold in the Strand, so bring warm clothes, a blanket, mukluks, a sleeping bag, or whatever will help you keep warm.

And...not only is the movie free... 

the popcorn is free!

It is a wonderful life!!!

Saturday, December 21 at 4 PM

Where?

The Strand Theatre

717 Clay Street

Downtown Vicksburg

The African Queen - Bogart and Hepburn at the Strand the Day after Thanksgiving

 

We like to watch a classic film after all that turkey, and this is a true classic directed by John Huston and starring Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn in roles they were born to play.

The earthy, drunken captain of a tramp steamer helps the prim and proper sister of a missionary escape Africa after her brother dies. Along the way the pair gets past their differences and fall in love, but must contend with a tenacious German gunboat in order to escape with their lives.

Recently restored in 4k.

Tickets are $9 in advance at Highway 61 Coffeehouse, and $10 at the door.

And.. the popcorn is free!

Across the Universe at the Strand

Across the Universe

Saturday, November 16 at 7 PM

Strand Theatre

John Roquet presents ACROSS THE UNIVERSE

 

Director, Julie Taymor, uses the music of the Beatles to create a revolutionary rock musical that re-imagines America in the turbulent late-1960s, a time when battle lines were being drawn at home and abroad. When young dockworker Jude (Jim Sturgess) leaves Liverpool to find his estranged father in America, he is swept up by the waves of change that are re-shaping the nation. Jude falls in love with Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood), a rich but sheltered American girl who joins the growing anti-war movement in New York's Greenwich Village. As the body count in Vietnam rises, political tensions at home spiral out of control and the star-crossed lovers find themselves in a psychedelic world gone mad. 

 

With a cameo by Bono, Across the Universe is "the kind of movie you watch again, like listening to a favorite album." (Roger Ebert, CHICAGO SUN-TIMES)

 

Advance tickets are available for $9 at Highway 61 Coffeehouse. 

 

Tickets at the door will be $10.

 

And please remember the FREE POPCORN!!!