URBANA, IL (Chambana Today) — Film-Fanatic.Club will continue its big-screen repertory cinema series, FILM FANATIC MOVIE NIGHTS, on Thursday, February 26 with a screening of The Unknown (1927) at 6 p.m. at the Analog Wine Library in Urbana.
The screening will be introduced by Chuck Koplinski, a film critic and contributing writer to the Library of Congress.
“The less you know about the movie, the better,” says Koplinski. “The surprises are plenty, as the story’s morbid events defy logic. Yet, despite its sensational elements, its examination of obsessive love is what sticks with you. After its grandiose moments fade, it’s Browning and Chaney’s portrayal of unrequited love that comes to mind.”
“Seen with an audience, its shocks and silences land with renewed force, making this bold statement one of the most unsettling and uncompromising films of the 1920s,” Koplinski adds. “Its lurid story was surprising at every turn, Chaney, both poignant and hysterical, was fascinating, while Browning’s unflinching eye reveled in rendering one of the most perverse love stories to grace the screen. My first experience with The Unknown left me dazzled by its audacity but moved by its ironic poignancy, feelings I suspect other first-time, and even repeat viewers, will be grappling with when the end credits roll.”
The screening will be followed by a discussion.
The screening is presented by Film-Fanatic.Club, a movie club sponsoring 10 “movie parties” at C-U venues throughout the year looking to present a festival-like atmosphere.
“We want every screening to feel like a special event,” says Paul Young, retired graphic design professor and club co-founder. “Each film is preceded by a surprise short subject and followed by a lively discussion.”