MAY
1 SATURDAY
Best of Chicago voting is live now. Vote for your favorites »
In New Maps of Hell, a survey of science fiction, Kingsley Amis examined the way the genre liberates the imagination and tackles “those large, general, speculative questions that ordinary fiction so often avoids.” He held that no sci-fi film is better than a novel, but there’s a whole lot he missed after he wrote that in 1960. Today and tomorrow, the Chicago Fantastic Film Festival will feature sci-fi, horror, and fantasy movies such as The Vam-pire Lovers, Horror of Dracula, and Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, as well as the midwest premiere of Stuart Gordon’s second ultragory reworking of an H.P. Lovecraft story, Dagon. Interspersed between screenings are panels on a variety of topics. Guests include classic horror-film vamp Ingrid Pitt, actress Joanna Cassidy, and monster portraitist Basil Gogos, whose original paintings will be up in the festival’s gallery. It’s all happening at Gateway Theatre, 5216 W. Lawrence in Chicago, and kicks off at 10:30 AM Friday with The Day the Earth Stood Still, introduced by one of its stars, Billy Gray. Admission is $15 for one day, $20 for two, $40 for tickets that include the Saturday night banquet, or $100 for all of the above plus a “very special convention surprise,” autographed photos, and a poster. Children under ten get in free. Call 800-878-9378 or see www.cf3fest.com for more information.
Artist Kristen Neveu believes Solace, a sculpture garden created from over 500 tin cans decorated with found objects, will create an integrative public atmosphere of serenity and hope, “much like an arboretum provides comfort in the middle of winter.” Each item in her installation is for sale for $10, and since buyers are required to remove their pieces on the spot, the shape of Neveu’s garden–which’ll be up through July 13 at ATC Space–will be in constant flux. The free opening reception is today at 5 at 1579 N. Milwaukee, room 352, in Chicago’s Flat Iron Building; call 773-342-6777 for more information.
5 WEDNESDAY
