The Film Institute at Montclair State presents “Sundays with Scorsese” and “Friday Night Frights”

“Taxi Driver” the 1976 film classic directed by renowned filmmaker, Martin Scorsese, is the first film in the four-part screening and lecture series offered by The Film Institute titled “Sunday’s with Scorsese,” which will be hosted by film critic and author, Stephen Whitty.  Realizing that not everyone’s tastes run to Scorsese, the Institute is also offering a “Friday Night Frights,” a free horror film series.

“Sundays with Scorsese,” kicks off on February 4, from 2-5 p.m. in the newly opened, state of the art Presentation Hall in the School of Communications and Media facility. The second film in the series will be a February 11 showing of another Scorsese film, the 1980 classic, “Raging Bull,” followed by “After Hours” on February 18 with a special appearance by screenwriter, Joe Minion.  On February 25, the series will conclude with 1990’s “GoodFellas.”

Considered to be one the finest American film directors, Martin Scorsese has made some of the most important and influential films in cinema history. The screening and lecture series offers a tour of New York City where Scorsese was born, raised, and began his career. Each film is set in a singular and, for Scorsese, significant neighborhood.  Stephen Whitty, film critic and host of “Sundays with Scorsese,” says, “New York City isn’t just a character in Martin Scorsese’s movies — it creates his characters, from the SoHo hipsters of “After Hours” to the Bronx battlers of “Raging Bull,” the Times Square hustlers of “Taxi Driver” to the outer-borough strivers of “GoodFellas.” Scorsese’s films both brings New York neighborhoods alive and preserves them forever, and I’m looking forward to taking a tour of them over a month of Sundays.”

Director of Programming at the Film Institute at Montclair State, Susan Skoog, an instructor in the school’s Filmmaking program, said, “A mission of the Film Institute is to show classic films the way they were intended, on the big screen with an audience, which we began with the “Sundays with Hitchcock” series in the Fall. This winter, we are beyond thrilled to bring the ferocious power of Martin Scorsese’s films to our students and the community, many of whom never had the chance to see these cinematic masterpieces in the theatre.”

In addition to “Sunday’s with Scorsese, the Institute is also offering “Friday Night Frights,” a free, public, monthly film series presented by the Film Institute at Montclair State, sheds light on the past, present, and future of horror filmmaking. With introspective lectures, special screenings, and exclusive Q&As with the most promising talents in horror today, “Friday Night Frights” brings a unique look at what has made horror such a popular and lasting genre in cinema history.

“Sundays with Scorsese” will continue every Sunday in February from 2-5 p.m. in the Presentation Hall in the School of Communication and Media at Montclair State.

The Schedule for the “Sundays with Scorsese” series is as follows:

“Taxi Driver” – February 4, 2018

“Raging Bull” – February 11, 2018

“After Hours” – February 18, 2018

“GoodFellas”- February 25, 2018