‘Jazz Singer,’ ‘Thelma and Louise among films in spring film series

“The Jazz Singer” and “Thelma and Louise” are among the offerings this spring for the 48th edition of the Buffalo Film Seminars.

The popular series, hosted by UB faculty members Bruce Jackson and Diane Christian, continues remotely this spring, with online screenings and discussions of the films.

The weekly discussions will take place via Zoom at 7 p.m. on Tuesdays from Jan. 30 through May 7.

An email notification about each film will be sent out on the Saturday before the Zoom discussion date to students registered for Christian and Jackson’s “Film Directors” class (ENG 381), as well as to the Department of English’s Discussion List and to the Buffalo Film Seminars’ listserv (email Jackson or Christian to get on the BFS listserv). That notice will include a URL for the pair’s Vimeo introduction to the film and a PDF of that week’s Goldenrod Handout. The notice will also include an invitation to the Zoom discussion.

All films except for “The Last Wave” are available for free streaming to UB email account holders via the UB Libraries’ film portals. The Swank and Kanopy links for those films are included in the lineup below. Many public and university libraries provide their card-holders free streaming access to films in the Swank and Kanopy catalogs.

Those without UB email accounts can find all of the films, including “The Last Wave,” on Amazon Prime.

The series opens on Jan. 30 with the 1927 film “The Jazz Singer,” directed by Alan Crossland, the first feature-length motion picture with synchronized dialogue. Watch here on Swank. The son of a Jewish cantor must defy the traditions of his religious father to pursue his dream of becoming a jazz singer.

The remainder of the spring 2024 schedule, with descriptions culled from the IMDb online movie database and other sources:

Feb. 6: “Bride of Frankenstein,” 1935, directed by James Whale. Watch here on Swank. Dr. Frankenstein, goaded by an even madder scientist, builds his monster a mate.

Feb. 13: “Sullivan’s Travels,” 1941, directed by Preston Sturges. Watch here on Swank. Hollywood director John L. Sullivan sets out to experience life as a homeless person in order to gain relevant life experiences for his next movie.

Feb. 20: “Beauty and the Beast,” 1946, directed by Jean Cocteau. Watch here on Kanopy. A beautiful young woman takes her father’s place as the prisoner of a mysterious beast, who wishes to marry her.

Feb. 27: “Rashomon,” 1950, directed by Akira Kurosawa. Watch here on Kanopy. The rape of a bride and the murder of her samurai husband are told from the perspectives of a bandit, the bride, the samurai’s ghost and a woodcutter.

March 5: “Knife in the Water,” 1962, directed by Roman Polanski. Watch here on Kanopy A couple picks up a hitchhiker on the way to their yacht and the husband invites the man to come along for the day’s sailing. As the voyage progresses, antagonism between the men grows. A violent confrontation is inevitable.

March 12: “8½,” 1963, directed by Federico Fellini. Watch here on Kanopy. A harried movie director retreats into his memories and fantasies.

March 19: No screening, spring break.

March 26: “The Battle of Algiers,” 1965, directed by Gillo Pontecorvo. Watch here on Kanopy. Fear and violence escalate as the people of Algiers fight for independence from the French government in the 1950s.

April 2: “The Last Wave,” 1977, directed by Peter Weir. A Sydney lawyer defends five Aboriginal persons in a ritualized taboo murder and learns disturbing things about himself and premonitions.

April 9: “The Double Life of Véronique,” 1991, directed by Krzysztof Kieslowski. Watch here on Kanopy. Two parallel stories about two identical women, one living in Poland, the other in France. They don’t know each other, but their lives are profoundly connected.

April 16: “Thelma and Louise,” 1991, directed by Ridley Scott. Watch here on Swank. Two best friends set out on an adventure, but end up being hunted by the police for crimes they committed.

April 23: “Beau Travail,” 1999, directed by Claire Denis. Watch here on Kanopy.  An ex Foreign Legion officer recalls his once-glorious life leading troops in the Gulf of Djibouti.

April 30: “There Will Be Blood,” 2007, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. Watch here on Swank. A story of family, religion, hatred, oil and madness in early 20th-century California.

May 7: “The Adventures of Baron Munchausen,” 1988, directed by Terry Gilliam. Watch here on Swank. The fantastic tale of an 18th-century aristocrat, his talented henchmen and a little girl in their efforts to save a town from defeat by the Turks.