A Golden Age of Moviegoing Returns at Oakland’s Paramount Theatre
Two different film series on opposite sides of the Bay are partway through their runs, and both are can’t-miss affairs for different reasons.
At the Paramount Theatre in Oakland, it’s all about the atmosphere. For the first time since 2018, Paramount Movie Classics are back at the beautifully restored 1930s movie palace.
The series, dedicated to 35 millimeter film, leans into the auditorium’s time-travel ambiance with movies from the past 100 years of film. Before a recent screening of Purple Rain, starring Prince, a pipe organist played standards like “Something’s Gotta Give,” and the screen showed trailers for films like Casablanca and Rear Window.
In a further throwback to the golden age of Hollywood, the theater also hosted a round of “Dec-O-Win,” a spin-the-wheel game that awarded prizes from Oakland businesses to the audience, replete with a carnival-barker host and his assistants.
Prince performed at the Paramount just months before his death in 2016, and the sizable crowd, many dressed in purple, appeared eager resurrected his spirit. During the live performances in the film, they sang along and cheered just as if he were on the Paramount stage.
Jason Blackwell, general manager of the Paramount, told Oaklandside in May that this year’s relaunch will serve as a test to “gauge audience interest.” Paramount Movie Classics continue through the end of the month, with Mrs. Doubtfire (July 10), The Mark of Zorro (July 17) and The Maltese Falcon (July 24).
Meanwhile, at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco, it’s all about cross-pollination. The Fraenkel Film Festival, running through July 18, screens movies picked by visual artists associated with Fraenkel Gallery.
Now in its third year, the festival so far has featured films like the neo-horror Get Out, chosen by interdisciplinary artist Carrie Mae Weems, and the 1950s film noir Pickup on South Street, chosen by photographer and activist Nan Goldin.
For those familiar with each artists’ work, the program invites deeper viewing through their eyes. What does photographer Lee Friedlander see in Hitchcock’s North By Northwest (July 11)? Why does Grey Gardens (July 18) resonate with artist Sophie Calle?
The upcoming lineup includes films like Solaris, Klute and Mystery Train, worthy of seeing in any context. But for a film like Princess Mononoke (July 10), one can’t help but think of the artist and actress Martine Gutierrez’s remarks that “the ethereal realm is what matters, and every day we are convinced otherwise.”
Paramount Movie Classics run Fridays through July 24 at the Paramount Theatre (2025 Broadway, Oakland); program and details here. The Fraenkel Film Festival runs through Saturday, July 18 at the Roxie Theater (3125 16th Street, San Francisco); program and details here.