ROPE

(1948, Alfred Hitchcock) Hitchcock’s boldest technical experiment ever, told in a claustrophobic single set, as a murder by effete, thrill-seeking rich boys Farley Granger and John Dall (as characters clearly based on Leopold and Loeb) is exposed by Professor James Stewart. Shot in continuously moving ten-minute takes, with mid-reel cuts cleverly masked, the entire film seems to be composed of only four shots (count ‘em), causing as much suspense on the set as for the audience. Approx. 80 min. 35mm.
12:30, 4:00, 7:30

SWOON

(1992, Tom Kalin) “My blood froze in my heart.” Moody, b&w treatment of the Leopold & Loeb case, replete with studied anachronisms,
 and expressionistic touches, as well as putting the pair’s sexuality, unlike other versions, front and center: the lovers in their bed in the middle of the courtroom. Approx. 93 min. 35mm print courtesy of the director.
2:10, 5:40, 9:10*
*9:10 show introduced by director Tom Kalin

“Wildly audacious, dazzlingly well realized.”
– Janet Maslin, The New York Times