It’s only fitting that George A. Romero’s seminal zombie movie “Night of the Living Dead” (1968) just won’t die. It’s possible nobody has seen it more times than sci-fi author Daniel Kraus. His new book “Partially Devoured: How ‘Night of the Living Dead’ Saved My Life and Changed the World,” dissects the film’s impact on his own life and the culture at large. On Friday, Kraus will introduce the film at the Brattle Theatre, followed by a Q&A moderated by horror writer Gretchen Felker-Martin.
Or, spend your Friday with a different thing that refuses to die, Pennsylvania’s venerable Mahoning Drive-In, whose programmers run their annual Mahoning Drive-In Takeover at the Somerville Theatre. This year’s theme is “Hell on Wheels,” pairing two classic 1970s car chase flicks. First up is the genre-defining “Smokey and the Bandit” (1977), starring Burt Reynolds as an irascible bootlegger burning rubber in his black Pontiac Trans Am from Texarkana to Atlanta, leaving the bumbling Sheriff Buford T. Justice (Jackie Gleason) in his dust. It’s paired with the cult horror film “The Car” (1977), in which James Brolin defends his town from a malevolent, seemingly possessed Lincoln Continental.
Also this weekend, fast-talking, tough-as-nails female reporters take over the screen at the Harvard Film Archive as part of its look at The Lady and the Typewriter. Screening Friday is Frank Capra’s “Meet John Doe” (1941), wherein journalist Ann Mitchell (Barbara Stanwyck) uses a male pseudonym to write a column so successful that she casts an unemployed baseball player (Gary Cooper) as her in-person surrogate — only to inadvertently spark a movement which spirals out of control. Saturday brings the archetype’s defining character, Rosalind Russell’s Hildy Johnson, in “His Girl Friday” (1940). Johnson’s a crusading reporter so formidable that even her most pigheaded male contemporaries bow to her prowess. Also on Saturday is the Coen Brothers’ neo-screwball comedy “The Hudsucker Proxy” (1994), in which Jennifer Jason Leigh pays clear homage to Russell as the no-nonsense Ann Archer, who makes it her mission to blow the lid off the absurd business scheme at the movie’s core. The series is presented in conjunction with the exhibit “Thanks for Typing: Women’s Type Labor in Literature and the Arts,” on display at Harvard’s Houghton Library through May 1.
Or catch the Brattle’s ongoing series Kate the Great: Oscar’s Favorite Actress, straight through Oscar weekend. On Friday, catch a 35mm matinee of “Summertime” (1955), a bittersweet Technicolor romance in which Hepburn shares a brief but meaningful fling with a Venetian antique dealer (Rossanno Brazzi). Saturday brings a pair of Hepburn’s greatest collaborations with her on- and off-screen partner, Spencer Tracy, in “Pat and Mike” (1952) and “Desk Set” (1957). On Sunday, appropriately enough, are the films which brought Hepburn her record-breaking third and fourth Oscars, “The Lion in Winter” (1968) and “On Golden Pond” (1981) (don’t worry — you’ll have time to get home before this year’s Oscars begin!). Finally, the series closes with perhaps the film Hepburn will be best remembered for, Howard Hawks’ timeless romantic comedy “Bringing Up Baby” (1938).
On Wednesday, the Somerville Theatre‘s Feel Good Films series showcases arguably the most beloved feature from the late, great Rob Reiner. “The Princess Bride” (1987) is that rarest of family films, simultaneously hip and timeless, earnestly romantic and very, very funny. The story is typical fairy-tale stuff, involving a daring hero (Cary Elwes’ Dread Pirate Roberts), a damsel in distress (Robin Wright’s Princess Buttercup), a dashing swordsman (Mandy Patinkin’s Inigo Montoya), and a haughty villan (Chris Sarandon’s Prince Humperdinck). But Reiner and screenwriter William Goldman lovingly tweak the formula, inserting winking asides and a Pythonesque sense of humor. In support is one of the best comic casts of the 1980s. Give it a rewatch and fall in “twue wuv” again.
Or take the opposite tack with the 2026 Boston Underground Film Festival — the Brattle’s annual March dive into five days of the wildest and wooliest cult films from the world over. The BUFF (as it’s known) this year sees longtime heads Kevin Monahan and Nicole McControversy give way to tech directors Adam Van Voorhis and Phil Healy. Helping this duo’s debut is a new board of local film notables: the Brattle’s Alex Kittle, Coolidge Corner Theatre’s Mark Anastasio and Billy Thegenus, and ArtFuse critic Nicole Veneto. Wednesday’s opening night features Ben Wheatley’s “Normal,” accompanied by a Q&A with star Bob Odenkirk. Thursday brings “The Serpent’s Skin,” the latest feature from Australian trans wunderkind Alice Maio Mackay, as well as in-person appearances by directors Nick Funess (“The Hedonist”) and Becca Kozak (“Sugar Rot”).
BUFF continues through the weekend with more shocks, including two programs of local shorts, a documentary about a notorious ‘70s bomb, and a guest appearance by horror legend Bill Moseley.
A stronger
Please consider making a financial contribution to maintain, expand and improve Cambridge Day.
We are now a 501(c)(3) nonprofit and all donations are tax deductible.
Please consider a recurring contribution.