CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com audio review for the streaming series “Emily in Paris” the adventures of Emily Cooper and her fanciful/fashionable Paris friends and lovers, now in its fourth season. Episodes 1-5 currently on Netflix.
Podtalk: Programmer Raul Benitez on FACETS Chicago Speakeasy Cinema on May 11. 2024
![Printer-friendly version Printer-friendly version](/sites/all/modules/print/icons/print_icon.gif)
![E-mail page to friend E-mail page to friend](/sites/all/modules/print/icons/mail_icon.gif)
![PDF version PDF version](/sites/all/modules/print/icons/pdf_icon.gif)
CHICAGO – Get out your flapper dresses and raccoon coats as FACETS Chicago goes back to the early talkies and so-called “pre-code” films, paired with a cocktail bar at their new “Speakeasy Cinema,” programmed by Raul Benitez. The first film is “The Doorway to Hell” (1930) on Saturday May 11th, starting at 6:30p. For ticket info and more details, click SPEAKEASY.
FACETS invites film lovers to leave their troubles at the door, grab a prohibition-era cocktail, listen to some jazz, and make their way through the secret back entrance to an intimate cabaret-style screening room showcasing underrated gems from the Golden Age of Hollywood. From trailblazing pre-code cinema to classic gangster fare, series programmer Raul Benitez has curated a lineup of films to be presented within their historical context, yet appreciated through a modern lens.
![SpeakE SpeakE](http://www.hollywoodchicago.com/sites/default/files/aaRaulMain.jpg)
Speakeasy Cinema at FACETS Chicago
Photo credit: Facets.org
“The Doorway to Hell” involves Louie Ricarno (Lew Ayres), the leader of a bootlegging gang in Chicago, with his right hand man Steve Mileaway (James Cagney). With ruthless charisma, he brings the other gangs under control. It’s a time of peace in the crime world. Louie now has time to marry his girlfriend Doris (Dorothy Mathews) and tries to retire and go straight. Events conspire to pull him back into the life.
Raul Benitez has been a film programmer in Chicago for over 14 years. He programs at Comfort Station Logan Square, is the Senior Programmer at the Midwest Film Festival, the After Dark and shorts programmer for the Chicago International Film Festival, and the Chicagoland Shorts programmer for Full Spectrum Features.
In a Podtalk interview by Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com, programmer Raul Benitez provides background for “Speakeasy Cinema” …
In a Video Clip, Raul gives the pitch …
![]() | By PATRICK McDONALD |