Hell's multiplex: the UA Court Street Stadium 12

Remember that Brooklyn Heights-set horror movie The Sentinel (1977), where the doorway to hell was located in a genteel brownstone? Hell has been relocated a few blocks, to the dreaded UA Court Street Stadium 12 multiplex, hated by discerning moviegoers. I know enough to avoid it (and most multiplexes) on weekends, but yesterday's noon jaunt to see the (eh) Super 8 was a nightmare of slowpoke ticket-taking and molasses-paced concession sales that made me 15 minutes late for the movie. Irritated I wound up in an argument with the theater's manager, who couldn't care less about consumer complaints and just wanted to refund my money and get me out of there. And so after a few choice words I left, never to return.

The nicer Cobble Hill Cinemas was glad to have me, and as it happened it was discount day, so I paid $3 less than I would have at UA...Hell. UA's slightly more convenient location has obliged me to patronize it these past six years, despite terrible reviews, cretinous, nachos-stuffed audiences to match the staff in intelligence and girth, and two smoky fires started by malfunctioning popcorn machines, or malfunctioning employees. Want proof of the decline of customer service, basic worker competency, and pride in one's profession? Look no further.

Weekend at BAMcinemaFest

Staycationing cinephiles in the vicinity of the five boroughs are advised to trek over to the Brooklyn Academy of Music, where the BAMcinemaFest begins tonight. Propelled by a favorable review in Film Comment I saw the opening film, the British-made Weekend, last week and it's a keeper, a finely wrought gay romance...well, that's limiting. Yes, it's about two men inching their way toward some sort of commitment beyond a one-night stand, and an audience (gay or straight) underserved by the usual cliche-ridden love stories has reason to cheer a more serious one, not that the film lacks humor (or heat). This one digs deeper, and while not a suspense picture per se it builds considerable tension of a kind as the tentative, sort-of out lifeguard Russell (Tom Cullen, below in frame) hooks up with Glen (Chris New), a garrulous, probing artist...on the last weekend before Glen is to leave for Portland for a two-year fellowship. Andrew Haigh's film suggests Richard Linklater's Before Sunrise but the stakes are in their own way more urgent; a subtle sub-theme of the movie is how England's baleful surveillance culture (represented by security cameras around Russell's housing estate) deforms lifestyles, presenting another hurdle for the two very different men to overcome. A stimulating and rewarding start to what promises to be an excellent festival, Weekend is slated for fall release, but the filmmakers are trekking to Brooklyn to screen it...and so might you to see it.

Cineaste in Brooklyn

The magazine is collaborating with Brooklyn-based UnionDocs on a special series of documentary programs this fall. Kicking things off on Saturday, Oct. 16 at 7pm is a screening of Bastards of Utopia, followed by a filmmaker Q&A. Hang out with Cineaste in Williamsburg.

Thompy comes home

I don't often write about community topics, but my world-famous "stash spot" was rocked by a dognapping a couple of weeks ago, one that was publicized on various local blogs, TV shows, and newspapers. I wasn't expecting a happy ending, but sure enough a miracle occurred, and Thompy was located in Red Hook this morning. (The bastard who stole him, still roaming the streets, sold him to an unsuspecting family; a microchip implant proved his ownership.) Two things to note: watch your dogs, and never bet against Brooklynites who unite for the common good.

Let's hear it for 560 State Street

Jay-Z filmed the video for his new single "Empire State of Mind," the hip-hop "Theme from 'New York, New York'," here at the "stash spot" last month. You can see us from :28-:33.

Star crossed

On my way to Broadway last night to see Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman in A Steady Rain (good show, spare, lurid) I walked into the tail end of a video shoot Jay-Z was having outside our lobby. (As that part of the world that cares about Jay-Z knows, this his former "stash spot," as mentioned in one of his new songs.) Beyonce tagged along and made it up to our courtyard. A crowd of on-lookers enjoyed the show.

Assuming our signage makes it into the video we'll have international renown; already, Lora said a vote taker, when seeing our address on Tuesday, exclaimed, "That famous place!" Unimpressed was Larissa, who was in transit with her dad for a pre-theater hand-off with mom; she showed her disapproval with celebrity culture by throwing her bottle on the train tracks when we got into the station. (More amused than annoyed, I sensibly let it go.) She's the real diva.

Intolerance

I took Larissa on our daily stroll today. I didn't realize that the goons from the Westboro Baptist Church were in town, protesting near Brooklyn Tech, at a local intersection already choked with construction. There were five of them (including earnest-looking teens), about two dozen cops who weren't about to let things get out of hand, and at the time we were there about 100 protesters, mostly students (that figure is said to have swelled to 200-400). It was a pretty jovial demonstration, actually--the church is so extreme it's (almost) difficult to take seriously, as repellent as its signs and literature are. But I was glad to see the neighborhood come together to shout down the voices of bigotry, which manifest themselves more subtly elsewhere and always need to be denounced.

Here's Westboro's picket schedule, which takes them to several Brooklyn synagogues this weekend. Show up and shout them down. God hates fanatics.

I stood up for my own principles today. As I was taking the baby upstairs I noticed someone fumbling with the intercom system in our building. I went back down to see if I could assist. It turned out to be a campaign worker (also earnest-looking, the calm, unruffled face of belief) for David Yassky, who's in an election runoff for comptroller. I took the pamphlet he was offering, the one he wanted to slip under everyone's doors. Thanks, he said--and could he come upstairs to deliver the rest? "No, you cannot!" I barked--I detest Yassky, one of the term-limits turncoats perpetuating the Bloomberg years. It's bad enough that I have a Bloomberg campaign office around the block without having a rep from one of his spineless would-be lackeys accost me in my home. I'm sure another of Yassky's drones will be back before next Tuesday. But in the meantime, and this goes double for the Westboro bunch: Go sell crazy someplace else.

More from my crib

As Jay-Z's single moves up the charts his reference to our address has gone viral. If he drops dead I can only imagine the candlelight vigils. In the meantime I'm conducting tours.

Hip-hop paradise

A neighbor reported that former renter Jay-Z has immortalized our building in song on his new album. You can hear the address about 30 seconds in. The owner reports that he's unsurprised that Jay-Z, who lived here in 1992, used it as his "stash spot." So, too, did actor-musician Lord Jamar, who lived in our very unit when not reporting for duty on the HBO show Oz. Jazz trumpeter extraordinaire Terence Blanchard also lived here for a time. Rosie Perez almost moved in--but was irked when a would-be neighbor asked for her autograph and backed out of the deal. Come back and visit, Jay-Z, and bring the Mrs.--I think you have the money now to afford to buy your own crib.

A Brooklyn Fiesta

Ford's "Follow the Fiesta" promotion pulled into Brooklyn last night, as "agent" (and longtime friend) Brad Nelson and his girl Friday, co-agent Emma Frankland, had a siesta at our place before heading northwards. The Oregonians are on a monthlong jaunt through the Lower 48 as they put their magenta Euro-car through its paces before its reintroduction in the U.S. market (discontinued stateside in the 80s, the Fiesta is now the top-selling car on the Continent). It's been quite an adventure, what with 127-degree temps in the Nevada desert, torrential rains and fearsome lightning at Disneyworld, various only-in-the-U.S. oddities along the way, and their first meeting with Lora and Larissa last night, who were in top form. After breakfast at the nearby Ocean View Diner and communication with "Mission Control" they're on the road again--bon voyage, and let's meet up sometime soon at home base in Medford, OR.

The purr-fect idea

Picque's not-unreasonable response to another cold Brooklyn night: Curling up in her mom's coat.

Film Park Slope resumes

Film Park Slope, the brainchild of House Next Door poohbah Keith Uhlich, is back, with a full slate of programming that kicked off tonight. Probably a good place to meet some of New York's film blogging cognoscenti, those who sensibly forsook Park City for the far greater comforts of Park Slope.

Let it snow

Had I not had to pick up dinner tonight I might have missed experiencing the first snowfall of the season here in New York. I'm sure my parents, in the Alaska-like hinterlands of New Jersey, are cursing it, but if I don't have to shovel it, or drive in it, I say, let it snow. The chilly little flakes were pleasantly bracing on my hat-less head.

Help The Civilians mobilize

The Civilians' production Brooklyn at Eye Level is taking shape, and if you're a neighbor with something to say about the Atlantic Yards project they'd like to hear from you. Here's what to do:

"The Civilians want to hear from you. Brooklyn is changing fast. We are creating Brooklyn at Eye Level, a theater show inspired by interviews about the transformation of Brooklyn and the controversial Atlantic Yards Project. If you have something to say about the communities surrounding the proposed project (Downtown, Ft. Greene, Clinton Hill, Crown Heights, Prospect Heights & Park Slope), we want to listen. We want to talk to long-term residents, recent arrivals, players in the Atlantic Yards story, as well as those who work or live in the area. Eager to hear from all perspectives.

If you want to be interviewed send us an email with a little information about yourself to Michael Premo, Project Coordinator: Premo(at)thecivilians(dot)org. For more information: www.brooklynateyelevel.org . These interviews will be performed along with original music and dance by Urban Bush Women live at the Brooklyn Lyceum, December 4th – 7th. "

Civilian action

The Civilians, who created the delightful Off Broadway musical Gone Missing (pictured), are taking on an entirely different subject for their next production: Gentrification in Brooklyn, with an emphasis on the Atlantic Yards project/fiasco taking shape in my backyard. (I've said before that I'd love to see something like Chicago's Millennium Park rise from its all-but-ashes, but my gut tells me all we'll get from it are empty lots and building remnants left from its clearing). According to the press release, "Brooklyn at Eye Level will examine the surge of development in Brooklyn, with a specific focus on the controversial Atlantic Yards project and its effect on the surrounding communities of Fort Greene, Boreum Hill (us, in the would-be "BAM Cultural District"), Downtown Brooklyn, Crown Heights, Park Slope and Prospect Heights."

It gets better. "Beginning in late October, a team of professional actors, led by (artistic director Steven) Cosson, will begin immersing themselves in these neighborhoods and conducting interviews with residents, business owners, politicians and civic organizations. They will collect information everywhere, from public events to beauty salons, developing insights into how buildings, services, public space and economic issues shape the ecology of the neighborhood around us. Civilians artists will participate in neighborhood life, observing public space, exploring community and gaining an intimate understanding of what has endeared generations to an area affectionately dubbed Brownstone Brooklyn.

Brooklyn at Eye Level will also incorporate a series of Artistic Labs bringing artists and community members together to creatively explore these changing neighborhoods. The Labs include playwright Lucy Thurber working with local youth at the Atlantic Terminal Community Center, a dance Lab led by the Brooklyn-based and critically-acclaimed dance company Urban Bush Women and a music Lab led by Civilians composer Michael Friedman, working closely with a group of Brooklyn musicians.

The Labs and the community investigation will culminate in a week of public performances at the Brooklyn Lyceum December 4-7, 2008 featuring professional actors, musicians and dancers as well as local residents. Following the December shows, the company will use the material gathered in the fall to develop a new full-length work of theater as well as online content and several future programs to be announced.

'Though the focus will be the Atlantic Yards project, we hope to delve deeply into the issues of development, eminent domain and community on a broad level, looking at changes in many neighborhoods and how they affects people’s lives on an intimate level,” explained Cosson. 'We are excited to begin this new theatrical experiment so close to home and are looking forward to seeing what this project reveals about our city and ourselves.'

The New York-based Civilians, whose other works include the musical hit Gone Missing and their recent Paris Commune, was founded in 2001 by Cosson. The renowned company develops original projects inspired from investigations into real life, using methods that combine documentary and artistic practices. The Civilians’ seven original shows have been presented by numerous arts festivals and a range of venues that include La Jolla Playhouse, The Public Theater, A.R.T., HBO’s US Comedy Festival, the Humana Festival, London’s Soho Theatre, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (Fringe First Award, 2006) and other venues worldwide.

In addition to Brooklyn at Eye Level, The Civilians are deeply involved in their newest work, This Beautiful City, a play with music that details the explosion of America’s evangelical Christian movement. Major productions are scheduled for Los Angeles’ Center Theater Group this month (Kirk Douglas Theatre, September 21 – October 26, 2008) and New York City’s Vineyard Theatre in early 2009.

For more information, visit www.thecivilians.org."

So, neighbors, if you spot a Civilian among you, don't hesitate to do your civic duty and assist in this intriguing production.

Ray at Not Ray's

In between errands I stopped for a slice at Not Ray's Pizza, on Fulton here in Brooklyn. (There are Rays, and Not Ray's, and I suppose Never Were Ray's all over New York, but explaining why is complicated, as we New Yorkers say.) Despite the name, on the wall there were framed publicity stills of famous Ray's. I assume Ray Charles was up there, but I didn't see him. I did, however, spot Ghostbusters tunesmith Ray Parker, Jr., movie tough guy Ray Danton, and Citizen Kane's Boss Gettys, Ray Collins. I admit I had trouble recalling Collins' name (few are identified, and I was stumped about the guy seated next to Susan Hayward in one still). I was most delighted to see Ray Harryhausen immortalized on Not Ray's wall. He's easy to find--if you don't know him by sight, he's the guy adjusting the Cyclops maquette he created for The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad, 50 years ago. Ah, the things you see in your neighborhood.

Now this is a poster...

...one unthinkable today, in our sensitive, post-9/11 world. Did it rankle New Yorkers in 1974, or were they too woebegone to care as the Death Wish-era city collapsed all around them? (A framed, full-size version hangs in the waitroom to the Magno screening room in Midtown.)

I bring this up to report that the minor classic of New York mayhem is being remade by slickster director Tony Scott in my neighborhood, for a 35th-anniversary July 2009 release. (There was a TV version in 1998.) I am living it: The gear and lighting trucks were out in full force near the Hoyt Schermerhorn station today, and I saw costumes being carted along State Street. It's the second big State Street shoot of the year, following the Coen Bros.' Burn After Reading, which opens in September. If I look harder I may spot co-stars Denzel Washington, John Travolta, and James Gandolfini, offering a temporary respite from the celebrity drought I commented upon a couple of days ago. But the original movie, with Walter Matthau, Robert Shaw, and a great cast of beat-up looking local talent, will be hard to top.

There goes the neighborhood...

Brownstoner and Curbed report today that A Beautiful Mind co-stars Jennifer Connelly and Paul Bettany are abandoning a formidable limestone brownstone on Prospect Park for the vapidly trendy and overpopulated West Village (I say that with love). With the saga of Heath Ledger and Michelle Williams come to its tragic end our beautiful people quota is plummeting, and don't tell me that "we still have all those writers"--they're homely souls no one except the book reviewing staff of the Times could possibly recognize. I worry that Peter Sarsgaard and Maggie Gyllenhaal are losing interest; hang in there, guys, is there anything I can do to make your stay more enjoyable? Need a half-pound of delicious smoked almonds from Sahadi's, perhaps? I'm on my way.

The silver lining: The Connelly-Bettany digs are in the hands of a broker to the stars, the only people outside of (ugly, graceless) hedge-fund managers who could afford the $8.5 million asking price.

But who gets the house?

After they painted it and everything. I never saw them in the neighborhood, and there was very little activity at their brownstone (formerly owned by club and Rocky Horror diva Nell Campbell, who painted it an aggressive yellow) on Hoyt and Dean till they gave it a more somber coat earlier this year, posssibly in advance of a post-breakup resale. They never did use that Brooklyn marriage license the tabloids were all abuzz about. Assuming they are splitsville from the borough, Heath, Michelle, and Matilda, we hardly knew ye.

There Was Almost a Ballpark Here

You don't have to be a baseball fan to enjoy Brooklyn Dodgers: The Ghosts of Flatbush, a fine documentary about the fabled club that HBO began airing last night (this is the 50th anniversary of the year the team abandoned the borough for Los Angeles, an unforgivable slight that is very much an open wound for many of the aged interviewees). But it probably helps to be a Brooklyn resident. There is a lot of wonderful period footage of city streets, some of it in color, and for me an interesting tidbit.

Rather than move the Dodgers across country, owner Walter O'Malley wanted to build them a replacement stadium for the crumbling Ebbetts Field, on the corner of Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues--or pretty much across the street from where we live. This had been the site of the Fort Greene Retail Meat Market, which was slated to close, and was more importantly located near many subway stops (as it is today, second only to Times Square in the entire system) and the prize, the Long Island Railroad stop, Long Island being where so many Brooklyn residents had decamped once Robert Moses built all his highways and thoroughfares leading the way out of town. There are scenes of O'Malley, a dead ringer for the imperious character actor Edward Arnold, dickering with Moses, who carries himself like Jabba the Hutt and emerges as the true architect of Dodgers fans' despair (along with, in a way, Rosalind Wyman, the scrappy 22-year-old Los Angeles councilwoman who planted the seed of California in O'Malley's head, and who is alive to voice disbelief that city authorities would let the Dodgers get away just two years after winning the World Series).

The somewhat desolate-looking Flatbush/Atlantic area of the era is just about unrecognizable today, as another stadium project looms for the neighborhood. But I'd rather have O'Malley's planned geodesic-domed wonder than what's being concocted in backrooms for the Nets.