Summer in the City

As someone who A) works weekends and B) doesn't tan, you might assume that I'm not a big fan of New York summers. But ever since they stopped being unbearably hot (if "The Seven Year Itch" had been filmed today, Marilyn Monroe would have been coming downstairs to borrow a space heater), I find the ghost-town atmosphere and the endless supply of offbeat events make the season one of my favorite times of the year.

Last night was a Guys' Night Out screening of "The Proposal" -- with a special guest appearance by Betty White, who plays Ryan Reynolds' grandmother in the film. Although my dreams of having my photo taken with the Happy Homemaker herself did not come true, it was fun hanging out with my "plus one," Marc Lallanilla, and Matt and Jose, who were there more to see one Rose Nyland (and were just far enough inside the St. Olaf border to get a picture with her!).

Nothing against Betty, but I couldn't help but notice that the Left Coast Guys' Night Out event -- which apparently was for actual "male office assistants" like Reynolds' character in the film as opposed to the NYC event, a veritable fagapalooza -- featured a visit from Ryan himself, something our group was dreaming about but which I dismissed as an impossibility given the perilous "Suddenly, Last Summer" scenario that would likely unfold with Ry in a room full of gay men. (Who knew gay men in Los Angeles knew how to control themselves?)

The movie was tolerable enough, which means it was filled with cliches (YES Sandra Bullock took a dive; YES they broke into a "retro" song out of nowhere; and YES they HATE each other but somehow manage to fall TOTALLY in love) and implausible plot twists. But with Ryan Reynolds 100 percent naked (OK, he covered his dong), it would be hard to call it a complete waste of time.

The Boys of Summer: Me, Jose and Matt

Tonight promises to be way better (entertainmentwise, at least), as I'm going to a double feature of Susan Seidelman's classic '80s New Wave films, "Smithereens" and "Desperately Seeking Susan," at the 92nd Street Y Tribeca. As regular readers know, it was these works --along with help from Woody Allen, "Times Square" and reruns of "Family Affair" -- that inspired me to move to the city. So if you're at all interested in watching a grown man make a complete fool of himself, you might want to stop by and see how flummoxed I get when the Seidelman herself does a post-screening Q&A for one then introduces the other and I break down and tell her how much she altered the course of my life. (She's the cool aunt I never had!) Although it will be a riot to see "Desperately Seeking Susan" on the big screen again, I'm even more excited about seeing "Smithereens," a film I only used to catch on USA Network at 2 in the morning when I was a kid (remember Night Flight?). Back then, the idea of someone with little or no talent trying to self-promote themselves to fame (Angelyne, anyone?) was a novel idea. I'm curious how dated it will seem in the post-reality-TV era, when "real" stars are increasingly becoming the minority of celebrities.

"Smithereens" (1982)
7:30 p.m.
Director Susan Seidelman in person for post-screening Q&A.

Wren is a self-promoting wannabe punk from Jersey who moves to New York City with the dream of getting in on the music scene -- in spite of the fact that she has no musical talent. Aiming to create a buzz about herself, she posts flyers of her face around subway stations captioned with the question "Who Is This?", but no one seems to care enough to find out. Susan Seidelman’s first feature had its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in 1982 and co-stars punk legend Richard Hell.

"Desperately Seeking Susan" (1985)
10 p.m.
Director Susan Seidelman in person to introduce the film.

In this ‘80s love letter to the downtown scene, Rosanna Arquette is Roberta Glass, a bored New Jersey yuppie housewife who finds escapism from her mundane life in the New York personal ad exploits of a flighty bohemian named Susan (Madonna). When Roberta travels to the city to witness an ad-inspired meeting between Susan and her lover Jimmy, she bumps her head, loses her memory and for all intents and purposes, becomes Susan, thanks to a case of mistaken identity. As a result, she is pursued by crooks and other shady characters through the funky East Village of the early '80s.

"Times Square" (1980)
Girls, Interrupted

Although I've had the same (unwatched) movie from Netflix for months now ("Short Bus"), I need to get slash rewatch "Times Square," the best movie about two girls breaking out of a mental institution to form a punk band of the 1980s. (Or can a revival be far off?)

It's only the second week of June and my calendar is already jam-packed with lots of fun stuff. Too bad I'm too lazy to go to the Jersey: The Psychedelic Furs are playing this weekend at the Wellmont Theatre in Montclair, but Martha Davis and the Motels are coming back to the city later in the month ....