Sunday, April 26, 6:00 p.m. | A lonely garbage man named Simon Grim puts his ear to the ground in Woodside, Queens, and summons a scoundrel who will upend the lives of everyone around him. Henry Fool ("centuries ago it had an E at the end") is a depraved horndog, a felon, a writer of a magnum opus (unfinished), and he cracks open Simon's world like an egg. While HENRY FOOL contains all the humanist trappings of Hartley's earlier films (deadpan humor, blue collar weirdos, artistic struggle), it deepens and darkens that work, going down a twisted path strewn with domestic violence, suicide, pedophilia, a '90s version of MAGA, plus its fair share of excrement and puke. All of which makes CFS very proud to be the archival custodians of Hal Hartley's 35mm films, including this one. Starring James Urbaniak as Simon, Thomas Jay Ryan as Henry, an underrated Kevin Corrigan, and always fabulous Parker Posey as Fay Grim – she of chronic bedhead and a bad attitude. (Chicago Film Society)
Preceded by: SHARE THE CARE (1941, produced by the Chicago Park District, USA, 2 mins, 35mm). 35mm prints from the Chicago Film Society collection
WHAT IS CFS?
Founded by projectionists in 2011, the Chicago Film Society promotes the exhibition and preservation of film in context. CFS screenings provide access to the restoration efforts of archives, studios, and private collectors, the work of artists exploring the film medium today, and the experience of seeing film projected live in a theater, with an audience. As physical artifacts, the film prints we show hold the stories told by films—but also the stories of the industries that produced them, the labs that printed them, the places where they were exhibited, and the people who watched them. Through screenings, writing, film preservation projects, and workshops, CFS works to make all of this context visible and accessible to the public. Learn more about Chicago Film Society at chicagofilmsociety.org.
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