{"id":6187,"date":"2009-02-25T17:13:57","date_gmt":"2009-02-26T00:13:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=6187"},"modified":"2021-01-29T23:27:44","modified_gmt":"2021-01-30T06:27:44","slug":"projectionist-the-1971","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=6187","title":{"rendered":"Projectionist, The (1971)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;I&#8217;ve always liked movies; movies have always been a kick for me.&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Poster.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Poster-194x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"194\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-22870\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Poster-194x300.jpg 194w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Poster-82x128.jpg 82w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Poster.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 194px) 100vw, 194px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nA nebbishy projectionist (Chuck McCann) escapes from the tyranny of his scolding boss (Rodney Dangerfield) by living vicariously through films, and imagining himself as a superhero named Captain Flash.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Character Studies<\/li>\n<li>Fantasy<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\n<em>The Projectionist<\/em> is a movie made both for and about film fanatics. Character actor Chuck McCann &#8212; best known for his voiceover work, though fans of 1968&#8217;s <em>The Heart is a Lonely Hunter<\/em> will immediately recognize him as the mute Spiros Antonapoulos &#8212; is perfectly cast in the lead role as an undistinguished projectionist whose passion for movies bleeds through into every facet of his waking life. At first, it seems that the projectionist&#8217;s fascination with cinema is one of simple homage to Hollywood: an early scene in which he gazes at a wall full of headshots and mimics the voices of Clark Gable, Jimmy Stewart, Oliver Hardy, and other cinematic icons is a treat. Eventually, however, we become privy to the darker thoughts in the projectionist&#8217;s mind &#8212; including concerns about racism, tyranny, and the general state of the world &#8212; and the film becomes an increasingly surreal, postmodern pastiche of rapidly edited clips and images.  <\/p>\n<p>Interwoven throughout the mostly dialogue-free film are fantasy sequences in which the projectionist&#8217;s pudgy alter-ego &#8212; a superhero named Captain Flash &#8212; romances a beautiful damsel (Ina Balin) while escaping from the clutches of &#8220;The Bat&#8221; (Dangerfield); unfortunately, these silent sequences are oddly uninspired, and not nearly as humorous as writer\/director Harry Hurwitz seems to want them to be. Much more impressive is Hurwitz&#8217;s seamless editing of McCann into classic movie clips &#8212; most notably <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=5660\"><em>Casablanca<\/em><\/a> (viewers will doubtless be reminded of Woody Allen&#8217;s <a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=3814\"><em>Play it Again, Sam<\/em><\/a>). Note that fans of Rodney Dangerfield may be disappointed &#8212; or at the very least surprised &#8212; by his decidedly dark and <em>non-comedic<\/em> debut role here (though his performance is spot-on).  <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>McCann&#8217;s impressive imitation of a host of movie stars<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-McCann.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-McCann-1024x593.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"371\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-46736\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-McCann-1024x593.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-McCann-300x174.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-McCann-128x74.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-McCann-768x444.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-McCann-1536x889.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-McCann.png 1685w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>A plethora of cleverly edited and integrated classic film clips<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Still.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Still-1024x586.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"366\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-46737\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Still-1024x586.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Still-300x172.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Still-128x73.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Still-768x439.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Still-1536x879.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2009\/02\/Projectionist-Still.png 1683w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes, simply for its oddball cult status. Listed as a Sleeper in the back of Peary&#8217;s book &#8212; though it recently gained some acclaim by being placed in the archives of the Museum Of Modern Art in New York<\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Cult Movie<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0067622\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.qwipster.net\/projectionist.htm\">Qwipster&#8217;s Movie Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/reviews\/3632\/projectionist-the\/\">DVD Talk Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/movies.tvguide.com\/projectionist\/review\/115064\">TV Guide Review<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.fwfr.com\/display.asp?ID=16295\">Four Word Film Reviews<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.thespinningimage.co.uk\/cultfilms\/displaycultfilm.asp?reviewid=1632&#038;aff=13\">Spinning Image Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;I&#8217;ve always liked movies; movies have always been a kick for me.&#8221; Synopsis: A nebbishy projectionist (Chuck McCann) escapes from the tyranny of his scolding boss (Rodney Dangerfield) by living vicariously through films, and imagining himself as a superhero named Captain Flash. Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Character Studies Fantasy Review: The Projectionist is a movie made both for and about film fanatics. Character actor Chuck McCann &#8212; best known for his voiceover work, though fans of 1968&#8217;s The Heart&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=6187\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6187"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6187\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67013,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6187\/revisions\/67013"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}