I Saw Eraserhead Here!

The Coolidge Corner Theater

Saw Eraserhead here.

In the pre-film promo clip that the Coolidge Corner Theater plays before (mostly) every screening, an enthused Julianne Moore chortles abruptly: “I saw Eraserhead here!”

Indeed, the Hollywood star took advantage of the opportunity to see the classic debut feature from David Lynch at the Coolidge, presumably when she was studying theater at Boston University.

Her anecdote lives on, every day, multiple times a day. And now everyone at the theater on a cool September night can join her in a mass chorus, singing: “We saw Eraserhead here too!” It might not make the pre-film promo clip, but it should.

The dark, disturbing, and occasionally hilarious film, shot in black & white, shocked and titillated the midnight crowds, playing alongside memorable pop trash like Pink Flamingos and forgettable B-movie abominations in its original theater release.

No one knew what to make of the director’s talent. The adjective “Lynchian” was coined because the existing vocabulary of film could not quite capture Lynch’s vision.

The film was screened on Saturday (into Sunday) as part of the ongoing Coolidge After Midnite series, bringing the film back to its original late night slot, a stomping grounds for film buffs and weirdos and weirdo film buffs. Late night time is the right time, provided you can stay awake…

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