After successful campaigns to save Movie Madness, get a new marquee, and install improved front doors, the nonprofit Hollywood Theatre is launching its latest fundraiserāone that aims to collect $25,000 so the theater can purchase a brand-new 70mm print of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Ever since 2015, when the Hollywood brought back 70mm projection, 2001 screenings have been one of the theater's best and most popular events. Back in 1968, when the film opened, it played for a whopping 42 weeks at the theater.
The Hollywood's setting a deadline of January 18 to raise the necessary fundsāand if they end up exceeding their goal, they'll push for an extra $10,000 to make it easier to show films projected in 35mm in one of their two upstairs auditoriums. Assuming the Hollywood's exclusive 70mm print of 2001 becomes a reality, the theater tentatively plans on showing it off to audiences in March or April of 2019.
I reached out to the Hollywood with a few questions about the fundraiser, their plans, and Tom Cruise, which head programmer Dan Halsted was kind enough to answer.
PORTLAND MERCURY: Does the Hollywood own prints of any other movies? What made you decide 2001 was important enough to raise funds for in order to acquire a dedicated 70mm print?
DAN HALSTED: I'm a film archivist, so I have my own 35mm film collection, and we also have films on deposit that make up our film archive. I think an argument can be made that 2001 is the greatest film ever made. If cinema is the ultimate art form, combining the art forms of photography, music, editing, etc., then I think a case can be made for 2001 being the greatest work of art ever created. That's obviously a bold statement, but I think it's true. Seeing 2001 on DVD or even 35mm is like seeing a replica of a great work of art. Seeing it on 70mm is truly experiencing it the way it was intended by Stanley Kubrick.
How has the Hollywood arranged to show 2001 on 70mm in the past, and whatās the benefit of the Hollywood having its own print?
In the past, we've just booked the film through Warner Bros., and then crossed our fingers on what the print condition will be. The first couple of times we showed 2001, it looked great, but there was some damage on the print. 2001 is a movie that should be a completely immersive experience. Scratches and splices in the film can be distracting and take away from that experience. With a brand-new print being struck exclusively for us, we can guarantee excellent presentation every time we show it. Warner Bros. was excited about the idea of us purchasing our own print, and they've been great to work with through this process.
"With a brand new print being struck exclusively for us, we can guarantee excellent presentation every time we show it."
What kind of measures will the Hollywood need to take in order to make sure this new print of 2001 stays in good shape? How long do you expect this print to last?
We pride ourselves on our film presentation and our projectionists have excellent film-handling skills. We'll ensure that each reel (a 70mm print of 2001 is 10 reels long, and each reel weighs roughly 40 pounds) is always handled properly. There's no expiration date on a modern film print. As long as it's handled with care, a 70mm print can look just as good in 20 years as it does now.
Assuming this fundraiser succeeds, is the Hollywood looking to get any other dedicated 70mm prints in the future, such as the award-winning 1992 Tom Cruise classic Far and Away?
I've been working on trying to dig up some negatives so more 70mm prints can be struck for us. Unfortunately, the negatives are missing for a lot of the epic films from the '60s that were shot in the format, so new prints can't be made, and the prints that exist are in terrible condition. I took a trip to LA to meet with studios and archives to try to track down the negative for Ice Station Zebra, but didn't have any luck. That movie is a bit of an oddityāthe first half is a tense Cold War-era thriller, and after intermission, the movie completely goes off the rails.
The film was intended to be seen in 70mm on a giant screen, so I'd love to present it to a modern audience in that format someday. We're not planning on Far and Away at the moment, but I'm always on the lookout for some other 70mm prints from that era. I'd love to have our own 70mm print of Die Hard to pull out every Christmas. If this fundraiser works, maybe we can think about doing this again in the future for that film.
