Like movies? Join the club

IT’S a Saturday, and the line in front of the Santa Monica Boulevard club is growing, even though the doors won’t open for another half an hour. Armed with coffee, newspapers and bottles of water, couples and singles wait patiently, some conversing quietly among themselves, others lost in apparent anticipation of the festivities inside.

When the eager patrons make it past the two doormen and into the coolness of the West Los Angeles building, the buzz rises as they mill around, munching on popcorn and bouncing from one corner of the establishment to the other. It’s only when the lights go down that the attendees calm down, hurrying to their chairs and bracing themselves for the main event.

But this ain’t no party, this ain’t no disco, this ain’t no foolin’ around. This club is all about serious movie watching, and the clubgoers -- members of the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films and the Los Angeles Film Teachers’ Assn. -- are settling in at the Royal Theater for an early-morning “before hours” screening of the youth romance “Tristan and Isolde.” Another gathering of the two groups’ weekend movie clubs is in session.

While industry experts ponder the myriad reasons behind dwindling box-office attendance, organizers of film clubs -- cliques in which film lovers can bond over movies in a more controlled environment than the neighborhood multiplex -- say their associations are growing in popularity. It’s particularly so with those who prefer their film fare served up with respect, and minus the endless commercials, chatter and crying babies.

Film historian and critic Stephen Farber, who runs Reel Talk With Stephen Farber, a series that offers previews of upcoming films at the Wadsworth Theatre in Brentwood along with discussions with the filmmakers, says that new members prefer his presentations for a simple reason.

“I always hear from my audiences how they’ve gotten fed up with talking, the commercials, the eating and the messy theaters,” Farber said. “They hunger for the pure moviegoing experience. They appreciate seeing a movie without being interrupted and disturbed.”

Membership in film clubs does indeed have its privileges, whether they’re free or discounted screenings of current films, or showings of movies weeks before their scheduled release. Committed film fans can volley with and question filmmakers, or rub shoulders with critics. Many of the clubs spotlight independent films, documentaries and other projects that might fall outside the blockbuster or major release mainstream. Though many screenings are at odd times -- on weeknights or early mornings rather than prime-time weekend nights -- members and organizers say the benefits far outweigh the shortfalls.

“Movies have always been fascinating, but it’s not enough for me just to go and see one,” said Gary Bostwick, a 1st Amendment attorney who is a devotee of Farber’s group. “To listen to viewpoints and insights from filmmakers is really riveting, and I find it very intriguing how different people bring certain things to the screen.”

Jay Kugelman, who heads up a film club linked with KPFK-FM (90.7), holds more than 100 screenings a year for subscribers to the Pacifica Radio affiliate.

“Our screenings have become real nice social events for listeners who share the same political views,” Kugelman said. “We show a lot of political documentaries, and you can find a lot of old lefties there.”

FORMAL movie clubs vary widely in size and structure -- from weekly local screenings followed by scholarly chats to a yearly gala Disney cruise with hundreds of fans for screenings moderated by “At the Movies” critics Roger Ebert and Richard Roeper. Farber says his group, which started in 1979 at UCLA Extension, has grown from 150 members to more than 400. The Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror often holds double and triple features on Sundays at USC, allowing members to preview films under consideration for the organization’s yearly Saturn Awards. KCRW-FM (89.9) offers Matt’s Movies screenings to anyone who subscribes to the public radio station for $100. The Laemmle Theaters chain hosts a free sneak preview club for patrons who register on the company’s website.

Though studios and filmmakers may have been reluctant in past years to allow their films to be screened for select groups, they are increasingly finding film clubs to be a significant part of the publicity machinery.

Dan Goldberg, vice president of marketing and publishing for Wellspring Media, which produces and distributes art-house and foreign films, says film clubs have “passionate film devotees who relish getting an advance look at movies. They go to dinner parties or other events and they want to discuss the new film they’ve just seen. Something like that is gold to us.”

Wellspring’s “Unknown White Male,” a documentary about Doug Bruce, a New York man who lost all memory of his existence during a subway ride to Coney Island, was screened for two movie clubs -- Farber’s group and UCLA Extension’s Sneak Preview -- on the same night last month.

According to Farber, Reel Talk members are generally in their 30s to 60s, well-educated and more interested in specialty films than mainstream movies. They don’t tend to like horror films or extremely violent movies such as “Final Destination 3.”

About 300 Reel Talk members watched with rapt attention at the Wadsworth Theatre screening, as Bruce struggled with his memory loss, dealing with old friends and establishing a new identity. After the screening, Rupert Murray, the film’s director and a friend of Bruce, appeared for a Q&A; with Farber.

Wearing jeans and tennis shoes, the director at first seemed shy, but he warmed up gradually as audience members peppered him with polite questions, such as how Bruce had responded to the film and whether Murray felt Bruce was perpetuating a hoax.

“Most seemed to like the film,” Farber said the next day. “There were plenty of good questions. If they don’t like a movie, they will most likely leave, not say anything or ask hostile questions.”

He recalled a preview screening he hosted of “The Getaway,” the 1994 action film starring Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger. “Everyone really hated that movie, and afterward, I interviewed David Foster, one of the producers,” Farber said. “He really antagonized the audience. When they said it was too violent, he told him they were the wrong crowd, it was meant for teenagers, that they were too old. Then some kid got up and said, ‘Well, I’m a young person, and I hated it.’ ”

Farber works in partnership with Richmark Entertainment, which manages the Wadsworth, and Landmark Theatres for the forums, and he selects the films himself. He also contacts the studios and filmmakers, who he says really like to receive feedback from members -- even though the sessions are not usually meant to result in changes to the movies.

“Many of the filmmakers don’t like test audiences, and they rarely get the chance to interact with the public,” Farber said. “It’s an opportunity for them to hear what a real audience feels. And through the years, the studios and filmmakers see this as a positive thing.”

Farber maintains that the surprise element of seeing a movie without any information other than a title is a key attraction for new members: “They enjoy the experience of being surprised. They tell me they often see films they might not otherwise have gone to see because it would not have automatically appealed to them.”

WHEREAS Farber is committed to exposing fresh and offbeat films, the First Weekend Club has a different mission. The club’s leader, Sandra Evers-Manley, says she started the nationwide group composed mostly of black filmgoers to support films that demonstrate diversity in front of and behind the camera.

“What we want is to get people out to see these films on the first weekend, so it can be proved that there is an audience out there for quality films that show diversity,” said Evers-Manley, who heads the Black Hollywood Education and Resource Center, a nonprofit group specializing in urban entertainment. “It’s crucial that we get crowds out the first weekend to make a significant impact.”

The club has grown since its local beginnings in 1997 to more than 37,000 members nationwide, with chapters in Dallas, Chicago, Detroit, New York, Washington, D.C., and several other cities. Club members pledge to support movies during the all-important first weekend, when hits are usually determined, and encourage 10 other people to do the same.

Studios have also recruited the club for word-of-mouth screenings of films such as “Ray,” “The Pink Panther” and “The Gospel.” The makers of “Hustle & Flow” staged a screening for the group that featured star Terrence Howard, producer John Singleton and others involved with the tale about a pimp who aspires to be a rapper.

Sony Pictures sponsored a screening of “Freedomland,” the racially charged thriller starring Samuel L. Jackson and Julianne Moore about an investigation into the abduction of a white child during a carjacking in a black project area.

The predominantly black audience at the screening at the Century City 15 was a bit more animated than the Reel Talk viewers, reacting with glee when Jackson’s detective character told a white superior to “kiss my black ass.” Though Evers-Manley had planned to have a discussion immediately after the screening, the audience quickly filed out during the closing credits, giving some in attendance the impression that “Freedomland” did not win over the crowd.

However, a large group gathered outside the theater hailed the film, comparing it favorably to the similarly themed “Crash” and giving particular praise to Moore’s performance.

“It was a little long, but I thought it was suspenseful,” said Bill Jones, a managing director of an executive search firm. “I would recommend it.”

Kay Johnson, a project specialist for Crystal Stairs, a child-care resource company who has belonged to the group since its beginnings, chimed in: “I loved it. I want to read the book. I like getting together with friends, seeing a movie and going out afterward. We make a party of it.”

Sometimes, a club can even have international reach. Chicago Sun-Times film critic Roger Ebert says his annual Overlooked Film Festival, held at the Virginia Theatre in Champaign, Ill., has become a large club, drawing film lovers from all over the world.

And his TV partner Richard Roeper says the pair’s annual floating film festival on a Disney cruise ship has become “the Super Bowl of movie clubs.”

“We get people coming back every year -- about 30%,” Roeper said of the festival, which features a week of films and around two screenings a day. (Information will be posted on disneycruise.disney.go.com.) “They range from 15-year-old critics for their high school papers to retired couples. It’s like a fresh experience, and the Q&A; sessions would go on forever if we let them. Roger and I are reminded just how much people love movies.”

That passion is just as apparent at local clubs such as the Los Angeles Film Teachers Assn. It was originally designed more than three decades ago to allow members, mostly teachers, to see films that they could then recommend to students as being worthy of attention. But the group’s president, retired Beverly Hills Unified School District teacher Alice La Deane, says the organization is open to anyone who appreciates film.

Director Robert Rodriguez (“Sin City,” “Spy Kids”) and the makers of “Crash” are some of the people who have appeared before the club.

“It’s a really passionate group,” said La Deane, who has been club president for 32 years. “We get a lot of parents and grandparents checking out films, and sometimes we have films they can bring their kids to.”

As La Deane sat in the lobby before a recent showing, several club members came by to greet and converse.

She smiled widely.

“I can’t think of anything more fun than this,” she said.

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Playing at select theaters

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Into sci-fi or art-house fare? There’s a movie club for you, and you’ll get your fix in a dignified milieu. (So, shhhh!) A sampling of some clubs in Southern California:

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Academy of Science

Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films

Mission: To honor and recognize genre filmmaking; host of the annual Saturn Awards, which honor science fiction, horror and fantasy films

Dues: $120 to $500 annually

Recent films: “V for Vendetta,” “Running Scared,” “Firewall”

Screenings: Sundays at USC Norris Theater

Contact: rholguin@saturnawards.net

Los Angeles Film

Teachers Assn.

Mission: Designed primarily for teachers who want to use film as a teaching tool, but open to anyone who appreciates film

Dues: $200 annually

Recent films: “Eight Below,” “V for Vendetta,” “Unknown White Male”

Screenings: Saturday and Sunday mornings at the Royal Theater in West Los Angeles

Contact: lafta@verizon.net

First Weekend Club

Mission: To promote and showcase films that highlight cultural diversity in front of and behind the camera

Dues: Free

Recent films: “Freedomland,” “Pink Panther,” “Akeelah and the Bee”

Screenings: Studio-sponsored screenings held on weeknights; informal screenings on weekends

Contact: www.bherc.org

Reel Talk With Stephen Farber

Mission: Screenings of independent and studio films, followed by discussions with the filmmakers hosted by film critic and historian Farber

Dues: $150 for 10 films -- current session ends April 17; single films $19

Recent films: “Unknown White Male,” “Kinky Boots,” “On a Clear Day”

Screenings: Wadsworth Theatre, 11301 Wilshire Blvd., Brentwood; tickets through Ticketmaster and the Wadsworth

Contact: WadsworthTheatre.com

KPFK Film Club

Mission: To offer a benefit for KPFK-FM subscribers; independent and foreign films showcased at several theaters around Los Angeles

Membership: $150 annually

Recent films: “Sophie Scholl: The Final Days,” “Joyeux Noel”

Contact: Station subscription department, (818) 985-2711, Ext. 508, or make an online pledge of $150 at www.kpfk.org

Laemmle Sneak Preview Club

Mission: To offer monthly sneak preview screenings to subscribers to the website of the theater chain, which specializes in independent, foreign-language and other art-house fare

Dues: Free

Recent films: “Unknown White Male,” “Joyeux Noel”

Contact: www.laemmle.com

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-- Greg Braxton