New Carriage

Promotional blurb on back of a VHS case for the movie Sodom and Gomorrah. (Found at: video & seminar room, Salvation Army Adult Rehabilitation Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota.)

Sodom and Gomorrah. Two cities built on barbarous cruelty and ruled by unspeakable vice. Sweeping off the pages of the bible, and brought to life by a cast of thousands, this breathtaking, epic production paints a vivid and shocking portrait of the cities too wicked and sinful to survive. It’s the story of Lot (Stuart Granger) who led the Hebrews out of the desert to these twin cities of sin, and into temptations no man or woman could resist. From bloody battle and sadistic torture to savage passion, it’s an action-packed story of shameless corruption of the flesh and spirit that leads to an awesome climax, as God’s fury is unleashed in one of the most gripping cinematic sequences of destruction ever created. Directed by Robert Aldrich in 1963, the star-studded international ensemble features Anouk Ami and Pierre Angelli. One hundred forty eight minutes, color, nineteen sixty three.

This movie — a documentary about the now-vanished Skid Row in Minneapolis, featuring footage and narration from flophouse owner “Johnny Rex” (John Bacich) — has been on my mind for a long time… and I’m happy to report it’s now on the web.

Before these gems started popping up on the net, the only way to catch them was by lucking into the odd screening or digging through the Minnesota History Center’s video library… and then burning them into your memory by making hasty notes and pencil sketches (old samples at bottom of post).

The sound is scratchy and the video is degraded, but you won’t regret watching this incredible footage.

This post is firstly an open thank-you to the extended family of Twin Cities film-goers who came to see “How to Live Better” in all its incarnations this year: at the Minneapolis / St. Paul International Film Festival, Bryant Lake Bowl, Square Lake Film Festival, Stevens Square Park, Rogue Buddha Gallery and more. From the entire cast and crew, we appreciate your support!

For those who haven’t seen the award-winning “How to Live Better,” December 2009 is your month. It will be screening at all of the following venues and times:

Saturday (tomorrow!), December 5 @ 4:30 p.m. — Minneapolis Underground Film Festival – “Short Film Showcase I” with filmmaker Q&A. (The festival is held at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and directions are here.)

Sunday, December 13 @ 10 p.m. — Appearing on Twin Cities Public Television as part of the MNTV short film competition on channel TPT 2

Saturday, December 19 (time TBA) — At the Corner Bar in Seven Corners, Minneapolis (downstairs in the Comedy Corner Underground), along with local actor and comedy impresario Gus Lynch.

Sunday, December 20 @ 8 p.m. — Appearing on Twin Cities Public Television as part of the MNTV short film competition on channel TPT MN.

And rolling into the new year, “How to Live Better” starts a standing gig at the Walker Art Center: it will be showing continuously on the Walker’s Best Buy Film/Video Bay from March 2010 through August 2010.

We’ll see you at the movies… and in the meantime, here’s some selected photos from this year’s screenings. Thanks for coming out!