Gremlins (Joe Dante, 1984) 

The Howling (Joe Dante, 1981) TV newscaster Karen White (Dee Wallace) brashly interjects herself in the middle of a search for a serial killer, but in the process finds something much more sinister in Joe Dante’s werewolf thriller The Howling. Adapted by John Sayles for the screen from a novel by Gary Brandner, this continuation of Dante’s interest in the sinister, self-reflexive, and seedy is as amusing as it is disturbing.   ____________________________

The Last Picture Show  (Peter Bogdanovich, 1971) An adaptation of Larry McMurtry’s novel and set in a small North Texas town, The Last Picture Show focuses on the coming-of-age stories of Sonny (Timothy Bottoms), Duane (Jeff Bridges), and Jacy (Cybill Shepherd), as the conservative American values of the 1950s begin to crumble into a stark, moody landscape.

Piranha (Joe Dante, 1978) Joe Dante’s breakout film, Piranha, details the horror of mutant man-eating piranhas determined to ruin a beautiful summer by the lake. Produced by Roger Corman and written by John Sayles, the “best of the Jawsrip-offs” according to Steven Spielberg is Joe Dante’s hilariously gory contribution to B-movies in a time when the genre was elevating from drive-in fodder to box office blockbuster. 

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The Shooting (Monte Hellman, 1966) After working on Back Door to Hell and Flight to Fury, Monte Hellman’s relationship with Roger Corman and Jack Nicholson enabled him to direct the celebrated, genre-defying western The Shooting. Starring Warren Oates, Will Hutchins, and Jack Nicholson, and written by Carole Eastman, The Shooting pushed the western genre into more heady territory and defined the celebrated director’s early career. 

The Hard Problem by Tom Stoppard
Acclaimed playwright Tom Stoppard (Shakespeare in Love, Arcadia, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead) returns to the National Theatre with his highly anticipated new play The Hard Problem, directed by Nicholas Hytner (Othello, Hamlet, One Man, Two Guvnors).