It's those wild '60s and '70s

By Susan King

April 20, 2006 12 AM PT

Times Staff Writer

BRITISH filmmaker Peter Whitehead’s unflinching eye vibrantly captured the world of the mods and rockers and the counterculture in London and New York in the late 1960s and early ‘70s.

His film career lasted a little more than a decade -- after he quit films he turned to falconry and then writing -- but Whitehead’s contribution in chronicling this turbulent, taboo-breaking era is irrefutable.

There have been several recent retrospectives of his works in England. This Friday, the UCLA Film & Television Archive kicks off “The Word and the Image: The Films of Peter Whitehead” with three dazzling documentaries: 1967’s “Tonite Let’s All Make Love in London,” 1965’s “Wholly Communion” and 1967’s “The Benefit of the Doubt.”

In “Tonite Let’s All Make Love in London,” Whitehead employs dazzling visuals and quick cuts to emphasize the whirl of London at that time. The film’s most exciting aspects are the quirky interviews with Julie Christie, Michael Caine, Mick Jagger, David Hockney and even Lee Marvin.

“Wholly Communion” is another fascinating time capsule -- Whitehead documents an event at Royal Albert Hall on June 11, 1965, when 7,000 people watched the first meeting of British and American Beat poets such as Allen Ginsberg, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Gregory Corso and Adrian Mitchell.

Rounding out the evening is “The Benefit of the Doubt,” a thought-provoking piece on Peter Brook’s production of the Royal Shakespeare Company’s anti-Vietnam War piece “US.” The documentary features numerous scenes from the semi-improvised agitprop production, public meetings dealing with the play, and interviews with Brook and several cast members, including Glenda Jackson.

Indian films

The fourth annual Indian Film Festival at the ArcLight is paying tribute to actor Naseeruddin Shah (“Monsoon Wedding”) with “Parzania” tonight and “The Churning” on Friday. (Shah will appear for a discussion after “The Churning.”)

Shah’s touching, finely nuanced performance in 2005’s “Parzania” is the best reason to catch this uneven drama, based on the true story of one family whose lives are torn apart by Hindu-Muslim riots. The downside is the one-note turn by Corin Nemec as a foulmouthed family friend from America who comes to India to write his master’s thesis on Gandhi.

Among the worthwhile documentaries scheduled are “Bombay Calling,” screening Friday, an intriguing look at the young, gung-ho Indian telemarketers who use Western names to sell goods and services; and the poignant “I for India,” screening Saturday, about an Indian immigrant family’s innovative way of keeping in touch.

Humphrey, my man

Throughout his film career, Humphrey Bogart excelled in playing gangsters, tough guys with chips on their shoulders and even psychotics such as Duke Mantee in “The Petrified Forest.” One of his most complex characters was the acerbic, alcoholic screenwriter Dixon Steele in Nicholas Ray’s bravura 1950 film noir “In a Lonely Place,” screening Friday and Saturday at the New Beverly Cinema.

When Steele is asked to adapt a trashy novel, he asks a hat check girl -- who had read the book -- at his favorite eatery to tell him the story. When she’s discovered murdered later that evening, Steele is considered the prime suspect. Gloria Grahame, who was married to Ray, plays Steele’s beautiful neighbor Laurel, who provides an alibi for Steele. The two quickly become lovers, though Laurel begins to have doubts surrounding Steele’s innocence.

Screening with “Place” is Billy Wilder’s seminal 1944 film noir “Double Indemnity.”

At the Aero

British director Ronald Neame celebrates his 95th birthday, in what is billed as his final public appearance, Friday at the American Cinematheque’s Aero Theatre with his 1972 classic disaster flick “The Poseidon Adventure.” Produced by Irwin Allen, this addictive popcorn thriller stars Gene Hackman, Ernest Borgnine, Red Buttons, Carol Lynley, Jack Albertson and Stella Stevens, among others.

Ray Bradbury and his friend special-effects wizard Ray Harryhausen are scheduled to appear Sunday at the Aero for a delicious double bill: 1953’s “The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms” and 1935’s “She.”

“Beast,” adapted from a Bradbury short story and featuring Harryhausen’s dazzling stop-motion special effects, revolves around a prehistoric creature called a “rhedosaurus” that makes its way to New York.

“She,” based on the novel by H. Rider Haggard, marks the only screen appearance by stage actress Helen Gahagan, who was married to Melvyn Douglas. She later entered politics and was defeated in a congressional race in 1950 by Richard Nixon. Gahagan plays She Who Must Be Obeyed, the ruler of the lost Arctic kingdom of Kor. Randolph Scott is the brave explorer who becomes the object of She’s affections.

And Saturday, the Aero pays homage to Chris Penn, the younger brother of Sean who died in January at age 40, with two exemplary examples of his acting talent: “Reservoir Dogs” and “The Funeral.”

Note: The Brothers Quay, the acclaimed stop-motion and puppet animators, will be making their first speaking engagement in the United States at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the 10th Marc Davis Celebration of Animation at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills. The identical twins will discuss their influences and screen several of their short films. (310) 247-3000, Ext. 111.

The Newport Beach Film Festival begins tonight at 7:30 with the Southern California premiere of “Neverwas,” starring Aaron Eckhart and Ian McKellen. The festival continues through April 30. (866) NBFF-TIX, www.newportbeachfilmfest.com.

Peter Whitehead films

* “Tonite Let’s All Make Love in London,” “Wholly Communion” and “The Benefit of the Doubt”: 7:30 p.m. Friday

Where: James Bridges Theater, 1409 Melnitz Hall, UCLA campus

Info: (310) 206-3456,www.cinema.ucla.edu

Indian Film Festival

* “Parzania”: 7:15 tonight

* “The Churning”: 7:30 p.m. Friday

* “Bombay Calling: 7 p.m. Friday

* “I for India”: 6:30 p.m. Saturday

Where: ArcLight, 6360 W. Sunset Blvd., L.A.

Info: (310) 364-4403, www.indianfilmfestival.org

New Beverly