Friday, March 15, 8:15 p.m. | Fur bomber jackets, blue skies, and burning poppy fields; such are the sights of CLEOPATRA JONES, a 1973 American blaxploitation classic starring Tamara Dobson as the titular 6'2" supermodel and undercover special agent. Kung-fu master Cleopatra "Cleo" Jones works for the government out of her tricked-out ‘73 Stingray. In order to defend her community, Cleo takes on a cartel run by a drug lord known as Mommy (a delightfully unhinged Shelley Winters). She faces off against Mommy's hitmen, as well as a corrupt police force that interferes with her lover's passion project, a halfway house serving addicts. As entertaining as it is eye-catching, Jones is a can't-miss Technicolor spectacle.

TECHNICOLOR WEEKEND celebrates the longevity, beauty, and richness of the technicolor printing process. All presented on 35mm prints that were intended to last only through their initial runs, and have instead endured hundreds of projections, studio mergers, film exchange closures, and multiple private owners. These unlikely survivors offer us a view of what these films looked like before digital color correction and other modern restoration techniques, and are stunning examples of an incredibly complex industrial process that delighted millions. View full series.

ABOUT CHICAGO FILM SOCIETY

Chicago Film Society makes rare and classic films available to local audiences in their original forms—on 35mm and 16mm motion picture film. Our screenings spotlight the restoration efforts of archives, studios, and private collectors, as well as the experience of seeing films projected in a theater with an audience. Through an array of program notes, extended blog entries, and introductory remarks before each screening, the Chicago Film Society endeavors to bring new notions of the cultural and material history of cinema to the public. The Chicago Film Society is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established by Chicago projectionists in 2011.

The Film Center is ADA accessible. This presentation will be projected without open captions. The theater is hearing-loop equipped. For accessibility requests, please email filmcenter@saic.edu