SJC Faculty Member to Lead Film Discussion on Chinatown

March 25, 2014

PATCHOGUE, N.Y. March 26, 2014 St. Josephs College (SJC) faculty member Peter Mascuch, Ph.D., will host a discussion on the Roman Polanski classic film Chinatown on Monday, April 21 at 7 p.m. The screening is part of Mascuchs Language of Film Seminar with the Plaza Cinema & Arts Center (MAC), and will take place at Shands Loft on the second floor of the BrickHouse Brewery located in downtown Patchogue.

Chinatown is a neo-noir film directed by Polanski, starring Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway. In this classic film, a private detective (Nicholson) is hired to spy on a womans husband, but gets wrapped up in a case of deception, deceit and murder. In 1975, Chinatown was nominated 11 times and won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. The Golden Globe Awards also honored the film for Best Drama, Best Director, Best Actor and Best Screenplay.

"As someone who first started watching movies seriously in the 70s, Chinatown has always been one of my favorites, said Dr. Mascuch, associate professor of English and American studies and coordinator of the film media studies program at SJC. "It captures the essence of film noir, while giving it a contemporary treatment with extraordinary stylistic artistry and a post-Vietnam/post-Watergate sensibility. Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway are at the peak of their careers, the script by Robert Towne remains one of the most highly regarded ever written for Hollywood and Roman Polanskis exalted reputation as a director is in large part due to his work on this film. Its essential cinema.

Plaza MAC has included SJC faculty members in its Film Discussion Series since the beginning of 2013. Discussions were led by Peter Mascuch, SJC English and Writing Professor Thomas Grochowski and SJC Professor and Chair of the Department of Religious Studies Thomas Petriano.

Tickets for Chinatown and the film discussion are $10 for the general public and $7 for students with a valid ID. For more information, visit www.plazamac.org. 

ABOUT PLAZA CINEMA & MEDIA ARTS CENTER
The Plaza Cinema and Media Arts Center is a non-profit public charity organization dedicated to bringing the magic and power of movies and filmmaking to the hearts and minds of the community. On a weekly basis, the Plaza provides the Patchogue community with current, quality independent films from around the world while offering special films for children and cultural programming such as broadcasts of operas and ballet from the world stage. Since 2013, the Plaza has offered classes in screenwriting, editing and film production.