New documentary 'Urbanized' gives Detroit considerable screen time

Though Detroit is often singled out as a textbook example of urban decay, filmmaker Gary Hustwit cites the "spark, creativity and positive spirit" of the city's residents in his new documentary "Urbanized."
The New York filmmaker spent nearly a week here in June to gather information for the documentary, which explores the history and design of cities. The movie, he says, "is meant to open a dialogue about the way cities operate."

Detroit's People Mover is featured in "Urbanized," a new documentary by filmmaker Gary Hustwit

Nearly 40 cities from all over the globe are featured in the film, but only a dozen or so, including Detroit, get substantial screen time.
The movie, which premiered last month at the Toronto International Film Festival, screens Tuesday at the Detroit Film Theatre. The filmmaker will answer audience questions after the showing.

"Obviously, there are challenges facing Detroit, just as there are any city," Hustwit said by phone last week. "What impressed me most were the self-organized, DIY-style projects happening in the city, the urban agriculture movement and community gardens."

The filmmaker said he avoided editorializing in "Urbanized." "I just present," he said. "I see this as a series of conversations with people from all over the world, among them mayors, architects and developers of policy."

Among the Detroit residents interviewed is Mark Covington, founder of the Georgia Street Community Collective. "Sometimes this is the story of one guy trying to make his neighborhood vital," Hustwit said.
The filmmaker is best known for directing 2007's "Helvetica," about the way a single typeface impacted graphic design and culture. "All of my movies have been an exploration on the way design affects our lives," he said.

7 p.m. Tuesday at the DFT at the Detroit Institute of Arts, 5200 Woodward, Detroit. 313-833-4005 or dia.org/dft. $7;50; $6.50 students, seniors.

Around the world at the DFT: Detroit Film Theatre offerings this weekend span three continents. Films from Italy, Mexico and China are on the itinerary.

• At 7 tonight, two films showcasing the work of cinematographer Alex Phillips are offered as the latest in a series of titles from Mexico. In the romantic drama "Dona Barbara" (1943), Maria Felix falls for a young law school graduate. "Santa" (1931) finds a young girl shattered by a relationship with a soldier. The free screenings are cosponsored by the local Mexican consulate.

• "City of Life and Death" recalls the 1937 Japanese siege of Nanking, which resulted in the deaths of as many as 300,000 Chinese civilians. The movie has been praised for its detailed re-creation of the tragedy, and it's the first big-budget film from China to deal with the dark moment in the country's history. It screens at 7 p.m. Friday-Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday (also next weekend). $7.50; $6.50 students, seniors.
• The DFT 101 series of classic films continues with "Once Upon a Time in the West," the influential 1968 Sergio Leone Western starring a harmonica-playing Charles Bronson and a villainous Henry Fonda. It's a must-see on the big screen. 3 p.m. Saturday. $5.

DFT at the Detroit Institute of Arts. (See theater info in previous item.).
'Human Centipede' sequel slithers into Main: Called the most disgusting movie ever made, 2009's "The Human Centipede" is about a doctor who creates the title abomination by stitching together a trio of kidnapped tourists from mouth to anus. The film was a cult hit when it bowed at midnight screenings in the summer of 2010.

"The Human Centipede II: Full Sequence," showing at midnight this weekend and next at the Main, promises more of the same. Dutchman Tom Six again directs. The film is being released without a rating and, like its predecessor, is calculated to shock. Midnight Friday-Saturday, Main Art Theatre, 118 N. Main, Royal Oak. $7.

Stooges at the Redford: The Redford Theatre, which celebrates the Three Stooges at events twice a year, is delivering the laughs this weekend with six short comedies from the slapstick clowns. "Pardon My Scotch" (1935), "Three Missing Links" (1938) and "From Nurse to Worse" (1946), all starring Larry, Moe and Curly, are part of the lineup. 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday. 17360 Lahser Road, Detroit. 313-537-2560 or redfordtheatre.com. $5.

Penn scares up October classics: "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken," a 1966 horror comedy starring Don Knotts, kicks off a month of scary (and not so scary) fare at 7 tonight at the Penn Theatre in Plymouth.
Also on tap: Spencer Tracy and Ingrid Bergman in the 1941 edition of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" (Oct. 13), "The Bride of Frankenstein" (Oct. 20) and "Abbott and Costello Meet the Killer" (Oct. 27), featuring Boris Karloff. All films start at 7 p.m. and screen in 35mm prints. 734-453-0870