Aero Theatre Presents: Los Angeles Plays Itself

LOS ANGELES PLAYS ITSELF, 2003, The Cinema Guild, 170 min. Dir. Thom Andersen. Southern California practically bleeds celluloid; virtually everywhere you turn, you’ll see a location that once doubled as a film set. Director Thom Andersen plays private eye in this sardonic video essay, revisiting the scenes of cinematic crimes and triumphs and unraveling the tangled relationship between the movies and our metropolis. Both Los Angeles history buffs and cinema enthusiasts will marvel at the hundreds of archival and film clips revealing an almost secret history of the City of Angels. A Cinematheque favorite! In the Los Angeles Times, Kenneth Turan called LOS ANGELES PLAYS ITSELF “the best documentary ever made about Los Angeles.” Thom Andersen’s sardonic video essay about the tangled relationship between the movies and our metropolis has been remastered and re-edited. It’s funnier, sharper and bigger. It’s now really a double feature. No matter how many times you’ve seen it before, you will be blown away by the new version on the big screen! Discussion following with director Thom Andersen.