The last movie theater in Westport closed in 1999. The Westport Cinema Initiative, a collection of film lovers, aim to bring one back. Until a permanent place is found, they screen movies at various venues to attract members and indulge in the joy of watching a movie together. Executive Director Sandy Lefkowitz suggests these films with local connections.
HELLO I MUST BE GOING (2012)
Set and filmed in Westport, this film is from writer Sarah Koskoff and her husband, Todd Louiso, who directed. It stars Gwyneth Paltrow’s mom, Blythe Danner, and HBO’s Girls star Christopher Abbott.
HEY BARTENDER (2013)
This documentary, exploring the newfound cocktail culture, is written and directed by Westport Cinema Initiative Board Vice President Douglas Tirola and features Steve Carpentieri, owner of Dunville’s Restaurant in Westport.
MAN IN GRAY FLANNEL SUIT (1956)
Set in the years after WWII, Gregory Peck stars as an emotionally wounded vet living in suburban Connecticut. It was filmed along Main Street and at the train station in Westport.
MARSHALL (2017)
This biographical drama is written by local attorney Michael Koskoff and his filmmaker son, Jacob. It focuses on Thurgood Marshall, the first African-American Supreme Court Justice, and the real-life State
of Connecticut v. Joseph Spell case in Bridgeport.
RALLY ROUND THE FLAG, BOYS! (1958)
This 1950s classic stars Westport’s own Joanne Woodward and Paul Newman. When the Army plans to build a missile base in Putnam Landing, Connecticut, Grace Bannerman (Woodward) convinces her husband, Harry (Newman), to head to Washington, D.C., to talk to the military.
THE SWIMMER (1968)
This film was filmed in swimming pools in and around Westport where director Frank Perry lived. It stars Burt Lancaster, Janet Landgard, Janice Rule and Joan Rivers. Before he became a notable director, Perry had a job as a parking lot attendant at the Westport Country Playhouse, where he would later return to produce plays.
STEPFORD WIVES (2004)
Based off the novel by Ira Levin, this remake of a 1975 version starred an all-star cast: Nicole Kidman, Christopher Walken, Bette Midler, Faith Hill, Glenn Close and Matthew Broderick. Most of the filming was done in New Canaan, Darien and Norwalk, and the author has stated that the fictional town of Stepford, Connecticut, is based on Wilton.
2011: A SPACE ODYSSEY (1968)
Fairfield resident Keir Dullea stars as the man behind the helmet, Dr. David Bowman, in Stanley Kubrick’s 1968 masterpiece. Dullea recently spoke at the Westport Woman’s Club and cofounded the Theatre Artists Workshop of Norwalk.
EDITOR PICKS: MOVIES WITH LOCAL STARS
ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD (2017)
Westonite Christopher Plummer earned an Oscar nomination for this Ridley Scott film, completing it in just a week after replacing Kevin Spacey. The story follows the kidnapping of John Paul Getty III and his mother’s efforts to get his billionaire grandfather to pay the ransom.
MR. AND MRS. BRIDGE (1990)
Westporters Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward star in this film, for which Woodward received her fourth Academy Award nomination.
THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA (2006)
Weston’s James Naughton, who has an enormous body of work on stage (including City of Angels and Chicago), TV and screen, is a consistent scene stealer in this film adaptation of a book by Lauren Weisberger.
All images are contributed.