THE AVON THEATRE PRESENTS A NIGHT OF NOIR
/ 0 - Details
- Category: Arts and Entertainment
- Published on Thursday, 01 March 2012 15:06
- Written by Bridget Stokes
On Thursday, May 22nd at 7:30 p.m. The Avon Theatre presents a Night of Noir screening of Born To Kill, hosted by local film noir maven, Michael Kovner.
About the Film: Born to Kill was a classic and some say archetypal film noir movie directed by Robert Wise who would go on to direct several other movies in the same genre. The notable cast included Claire Trevor who did so many film noir features that she became known as the "Queen of Film Noir," and the controversial Lawrence Tierny whose extensive film career included Reservoir Dogs.
Helen Brent (played by Claire Trevor) knows Sam Wild (Lawrence Tierny) is more than a social climber who married her wealthy foster sister. He's a remorseless killer. And yet she finds his brash confidence square-shouldered good looks and constant aura of menace completely irresistible. Versatile director Robert Wise (The Day the Earth Stood Still, The Sound of Music, West Side Story) shows his film noir chops with this dark gem whose mix of heiress sisters, stone-hearted men, needy hangers-on and inexplicable but inevitable love plays like a soap opera that refuses to wash itself clean. Walter Slezak portrays the verse-quoting shamus and Claire Trevor and Lawrence Tierney portray the illicit lovers who play with fire - and burn their names forever into film-noir lore.
- Amazon editorial review
About the Host: Michael Kovner is a long-time Greenwich resident, having gone to Rye Country Day School as a kid and still holding a residence here today. While he is an accomplished Vice President and Managing Director with the real estate firm Brown Harris Stevens in his professional life, his personal passion is the cinema. An avid Avon supporter and lover of film noir, Michael has watched movies since his early childhood, he can repeat lines in his sleep, and he has probably spent more time in the dark confines of cinemas than anywhere else. His fascination with film noir began at a young age, starting with The Maltese Falcon all the way up to Psycho, which he first saw at the Avon. He first watched Born To Kill in Aspen while on a ski trip and was glued to the screen. It has remained an all-time favorite of his ever since, largely a result of the art of the unexpected - the beautiful and elegant Claire Trevor, who plays a rich society woman, but acts as rotten and murderous as any thug with no moral compass - perhaps even more so.
An undergraduate of Lafayette College with postgraduate degrees from Georgetown University and the University of Dijon (France), Michael proudly served as an officer in the US Army, and was posted to the 25th Infantry Division in the Republic of Vietnam. His service was exemplary and he was awarded medals and accommodations which included an ARCOM Medal, Bronze Star and Bronze Star 1st Oak Leaf Cluster. Michael and his spouse, Jean Doyen de Montaillou remain active on many boards and institutions, while splitting time between their homes in Greenwich, Palm Beach, Florida, and Nantucket.
About The Avon: The Avon Theatre features the best of independent, documentary, foreign films and Hollywood classics, and educational programming that enhances the cultural richness of the Stamford community. The Avon is a non-profit, member-supported organization that has been described as an eclectic and whimsical picture house. The theatre is highlighted by an original exterior facade, framed by a restored vertical "AVON" marquee that lights up the Connecticut sky at night. The theatre is bestowed with interior murals that were commissioned by a local artist, Oscar Glas. Glas' murals evoke a sense of local history by paying homage to the early settlers and Native Americans of coastal Stamford.
The Avon Theatre
272 Bedford St
Stamford, CT 06901
