Weekend Movie Roundup: Beat The Heat Edition

By Steven Pate in Arts & Entertainment on Jul 16, 2010 6:20PM

Looking to stay out of the heat this weekend? Consider the cool darkness of one of the bevy of our local cineplexes.

• It is Inception weekend. We're not sure if we're ready to say that Christopher Nolan is the new Steven Spielberg, but lots of folks are excited about this one. The phrase "From the director of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight" alone is probably enough to guarantee box office success and a $60-70 million opening weekend seems to be the consensus. Nothing will be showing on more screens in Chicago, and nothing goes together quite like hot weather, cool theaters and big blockbusters.
• If being outside in the heat is your thing, don't forget you can still catch some great flicks this weekend at the Movies in the Park series. Our pick of that litter is a title particularly suited to a lively outdoor setting: Raiders of the Lost Ark at Jonquil Playlot Park, 1023 W. Wrightwood Ave. The movie starts at dusk and admission is always free.
• Fans of hardcore punk and Chicago music may remember last year's documentary "You Weren't There: A History of Chicago Punk 1977-1984," which featured archival concert footage from the era and interviews with veterans of a local punk scene whose existence had all but vanished from popular memory compared to those of New York, L.A. or D.C. The pair that produced that documentary are currently cooking up a narrative feature along the same lines called 'Sacrificial Youth,' about a hardcore band, set in Chicago. They're still looking for an "18-25 Female Lead." Perhaps a Chicagoist reader has what it takes to be a Windy City Siouxsie Sue?
• In other music-related movie news: Richard Linklater's classic Dazed and Confused (which we were recently reminiscing about) will be featured in the "Sound Opinions" series hosted by Jim De Rogatis and Greg Kot next Wednesday at 7:30pm. Purchasing advanced tickets for those events is never a bad idea. We recommend you practice your Wooderson impression in advance as well.
• We're still a few months away from the scheduled release of The Social Network, David Fincher's depiction of the Facebook story. You don't have to wait until then to see Jesse Eisenberg, who stars as Mark Zuckerberg in Fincher's big-budget film. In 2007, he starred in a little indie called The Living Wake about an eccentric with one day to live who convinces his best friend to cart him around on a bicycle rickshaw. You can catch The Living Wake at Facets Cinematheque starting tonight, with special showings Friday at 7 and 9 p.m., and on Saturday at 5 and 7 p.m. featuring the filmmaker Sol Tyron as well as Ami Ankin (producer and actress), Chadwick Clough (producer), Peter Kline (producer and co-screenwriter), and Mike O'Connell (screenwriter and actor). Check the Facets website to see just who will be at which showing.