Classic Movies Showing in Miami in June

Another month, another series of classic films, and with each one, the line-up only grows! Trying to come up with a totally comprehensive list is impossible at this point, but we'll try to give everyone a solid oversight of all the good ol' features showing in Miami this month. This month, however, we'll do a little bit of cheating in terms of what qualifies as a true classic, with a couple of the inclusions being things well-worth deeming as modern classics in their very own way.

Here's what June has in store!


Hayao Miyazaki Retrospective
Probably the coolest highlight of the month is happening over at the Coral Gables Art Cinema, and it's the kind of thing that anyone — including those silly folks who think animation is for kids — would be crazy to miss. This is probably the biggest slate of animated films anyone will ever see at once in Miami. It's a retrospective of one of the best filmmakers in animation around: Hayao Miyazaki.

Starting on June 19th, the retrospective will include a whopping total of nine of his films, with a mix of digital and 35mm for the line-up, which includes My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, The Wind Rises, Princess Mononoke, Ponyo, Castle in the Sky, Porco Rosso, Kiki's Delivery Service, and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. Some of these are modern, sure, but there's no denying that the man's work as a whole deserves to be witnessed.

Double Doses of Deneuve & Clouzot
Two Gables theaters offer up double features of sorts this month, focusing on an actor and a director respectively. At the Cosford Cinema, it's all about the Divine Deneuve, with the first film in their series having passed last month and two more on the way — on 35mm — this month. On Saturday, June 6th, the theater is showing François Truffaut's The Last Metro, with Saturday, June 13, offering up a screening of Tony Scott's The Hunger. Over at Gables Cinema, Clouzot x2 will have two of Henri-Georges Clouzot's films playing as part of the Essentials program back to back on Saturday and Sunday. Wages of Fear will show on June 13 while Diabolique shows on June 14.


After Hours' Summer Camp: The Beginning
We've talked about Gables Cinema & Secret Celluloid Society's After Hours program plenty, but nothing tops what they've got prepared for the summer. It's a summer full of Saturday midnight movies, each and every single one of them on 35mm, and June holds the first four features in an intense line-up. On June 6, there's Friday the 13th. On June 13, there's Up in Smoke. On June 20, there's Who Framed Roger Rabbit? And, last but certainly not least, is Stanley Kubrick's The Shining on June 27.

Kubrick & More at O
Speaking of Stanley Kubrick, O Cinema is bringing back his films for a mini-retrospective on the weekend of June 6 through 8; a total delight and surprise for those who missed out on their full-on retrospective years ago in accompaniment with Rodney Ascher's Room 237 (whose new film The Nightmare hits theaters this month). The films, playing at O Cinema Miami Beach over the weekend, are The Shining, A Clockwork Orange ,and 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Meanwhile, at their Miami Shores location, some more cool events are popping up. First are the 40th anniversary showings of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, taking place on June 19 and 20, which are immediately followed by a cool little double feature event hosted by Popcorn Nights. That event is Robocop vs. The Terminator, where both films will be played back to back on June 21.


Benoît Debie Retrospective
All three of the films in this section have only existed for under fifteen years; one for just over a decade and the other two not even half that. All that being said, the three films — coming to the Miami Beach Cinematheque for their latest Speaking in Cinema event, Perfect is Often Imperfect — could easily be considered modern classics, if not strange masterpieces in their own way. The films are Gaspar Noé's Irreversible (June 4) and Enter the Void (June 11), along with Harmony Korine's Spring Breakers (June 18), all tied together by one man: cinematographer Benoît Debie. The cinematographer for these films — as well as Ryan Gosling's Lost River — will be attending a conversation with local critic Kai Sacco and Salon critic Andrew O'Hehir about his career on June 25. 

More, More, More!
It just doesn't end there! Over at Shirley's at Gramps, Secret Celluloid Society is doing their usual free Wednesday night movies, with four films to pick from: Ernest Goes to Camp (June 3), The Great Outdoors (June 10), Hairspray (June 17), and One Crazy Summer (June 23). At Actors Playhouse, The Big Lebowski will be showing for free on June 6. At the drive-in, there's two classics to catch this month: Grease on June 4 and 10 and Jurassic Park on June 17 and 18. And last, but certainly not least, is a special little movie that just got a digital restoration: Tsai Ming-liang's first full-length film, Rebels of the Neon God. It'll be showing at both Miami Beach Cinematheque and Cosford Cinema starting on June 5. Now here's hoping somebody gives us a Tsai Ming-liang retrospective sometime in the near future.

Follow Juan Barquin on Twitter @woahitsjuanito