American Gigolo (1980); Light Sleeper (1992)

July 12, 2013 - 7:30 pm

American Gigolo (1980)

Directed by Paul Schrader

Writer-director Paul Schrader channels multiple European influences (Bresson’s Pickpocket by way of Bertolucci’s The Conformist) into one of the most influential American films of the 1980s. Richard Gere’s Los Angeles gigolo, Julian, thrives in a world of brief encounters and seductive surfaces--Schrader’s camera glides effortlessly through spaces brilliantly rendered by visual consultant Ferdinando Scarfiotti and cinematographer John Bailey--until he becomes a suspect in a murder investigation.

Paramount Pictures. Producer: Freddie Fields, Jerry Bruckheimer. Screenwriter: Paul Schrader. Cinematographer: John Bailey. Editor: Richard Halsey. Cast: Richard Gere, Lauren Hutton, Hector Elizondo, Nina Van Pallandt, Bill Duke.

35mm, color, 117 min.

Watch the trailer below.

Light Sleeper (1992)

Directed by Paul Schrader

Filmmaker Paul Schrader revisits the mean streets of New York he first assayed in his script for Taxi Driver through the eyes of another drifting voyeur, this time, John LeTour, a middle-aged drug courier (Willem Dafoe). Facing an uncertain future after his boss (Susan Sarandon) announces she’s quitting the business, LeTour grows increasingly anxious in his search for some kind of mooring—attempting to reconnect with his ex-lover (Dana Delany), pouring out his thoughts into journals, consulting a psychic—until he stumbles upon a final, clarifying act.

Fine Line Features. Producer: Linda Reisman. Screenwriter: Paul Schrader. Cinematographer: Ed Lachman. Editor: Kristina Boden. Cast: Willem Dafoe, Susan Sarandon, Dana Delany, David Clennon, Mary Beth Hurt.

35mm, color, 103 min.

Watch the trailer below.

Part of:

Hardcore: The Films of Paul Schrader

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American Gigolo (1980); Light Sleeper (1992)

American Gigolo (1980)

Light Sleeper (1992)

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