AMHERST — The holiday season has arrived at Amherst Cinema, and to celebrate, black-and-white classics “It’s A Wonderful Life” and “The Shop Around the Corner” are returning to the big screen. The 2020 film “Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey” also will be screened.
The festive line-up begins with “The Shop Around The Corner,” which is being screened Sunday at 1:30 p.m. and Tuesday at 7 p.m. Directed by Ernst Lubitsch, the 1940 film is a romantic comedy that follows the unlikely romance between two employees at a general store in Budapest: Alfred Kralik (James Stewart) and Klara Novak (Margaret Sullavan). The duo disagrees on almost everything, but through an anonymous pen-pal program, they begin exchanging romantic letters and developing a connection.
Next on the line-up is “Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey.” The film, a family-friendly musical released in 2020, will be screened on Dec. 20 at 12:45 p.m. It is the only specialty Christmas film being screened in color. “Jingle Jangle” follows an eccentric toymaker (played by Forest Whitaker), his adventurous granddaughter (played by Madalen Mills), and the adventure they embark on when an invention comes to life.
Rounding out the season’s offerings is “It’s A Wonderful Life” on Dec. 21 at 1:30 p.m. and Dec. 23 at 7 p.m. While there have been several versions of this film made, Amherst Cinema is screening the original black-and-white version made in 1946.
Directed by Frank Capra, “It’s A Wonderful Life” stars James Stewart, who believes his life is meaningless, and a guardian angel, played by Henry Travers, who shows him how special his life truly is. The film also stars Donna Reed, Beulah Bondi, Thomas Mitchell, Lionel Barrymore and Gloria Grahame.
Amherst Cinema also will screen “Marty Supreme,” the newest film by writer and director Josh Safdie, starting on Christmas Eve, Dec. 24. Nominated for three Golden Globe Awards, the film stars Timothée Chalamet, Gwyneth Paltrow, Tyler Okonma, Abel Ferrara and Fran Drescher.
Tickets for Amherst Cinema’s holiday screenings are now available online at amherstcinema.org and in-person at the cinema box office.
