Inaugural James Bond Film Fest Part of Summer Program at Princeton Garden Theatre

Some of Hollywood’s all-time classics will be screened at the Princeton Garden Theatre beginning in June as part of the annual Hollywood Summer Nights.

This year’s program includes the theatre’s inaugural James Bond Film Fest, set for July 23. It will highlight Goldfinger, featuring the inimitable Sean Connery as the smooth and resourceful 007, assigned to prevent a notorious gold smuggler from sabotaging Fort Knox. The special event will include trivia, games, and giveaways, as well as a costume contest of Bond characters.

Other series highlights of the series will be a 40th-anniversary screening of Jaws, written by Princeton resident Peter Benchley.

“We show films of high artistic quality, and the past 100 years have given us so many to choose from,” Executive Director John Toner said. “Putting classic films up on the big screen is one of our top priorities at the Princeton Garden Theatre.”

Sony Pictures Entertainment has just completed a painstaking 4K restoration of a number of Frank Capra masterpieces, three of which will be shown as part of Hollywood Summer Nights: It Happened One Night, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, and You Can’t Take It With You. These heart-warming American gems helped define the Golden Age of Hollywood.

“Classic movies on the big screen in a packed theater are not simply great entertainment - they’re a community experience,” said Chris Collier, Associate Director for Renew Theaters. “Your first time seeing an iconic scene, the way it was meant to be seen, up in bright lights, and hearing the murmur of the crowd is something that cannot be replaced.”

Admission for each film is $3 for patrons 18 years old or younger. Patrons who dress “in theme” for the films will receive free popcorn. All movies begin at 7 p.m., unless otherwise noted.

“It’s important to the organization that the next generation of theater-goers has the chance to experience these films on the big screen, the way they were meant to be seen, how their parents and grandparents got to see them,” Collier said.

Details for all films, from James Bond to the Marx Brothers, can be found on the Garden’s website at princetongardentheatre.org/hsn.

The full schedule is as follows:

June 4: Singin’ in the Rain

June 10: Blue Velvet

June 11: Shadow of a Doubt

June 18: It Happened One Night

June 24: All About Eve

June 25: Jaws

July 1: Pickup on South Street

July 2: Casablanca

July 8: Mr. Deeds Goes to Town

July 9: The Godfather

July 15: Trouble in Paradise

July 16: Vertigo

July 22: Notorious

July 23: Goldfinger

July 29: Duck Soup

July 30: Double Indemnity

Aug 5: You Can’t Take It With You

Aug 6: The Third Man

Aug 12: 42nd Street

Aug 13: The Birds

Aug 19: Out of the Past

Aug 20: Roman Holiday

Aug 26: Destry Rides Again

Aug 27: Raiders of the Lost Ark

Aug 30, 12:30pm: Gone with the Wind

Sept 2: North by Northwest