Doors – 7:00 PM 

Film – 8:00 PM 

Tickets - $12 

Shorts Program: The Goat (1921) and One Week (1920)  

48min | NR | Comedy | United States  

Feature: Sherlock Jr. (1924) 100th Anniversary Screening! 

45min | NR | Comedy/Fantasy | United States 

Live organ accompaniment by Dennis Scott

A season of Silents at the Senate would not be complete without the timeless pairing of cinema and physical comedy—SLAPSTICK!

With two classic shorts and one short feature directed and starring the most deadpan titan of silent comedy, An Evening with Buster Keaton is sure to delight.  

Irate cops stepping into open elevator shafts, a crudely assembled house with teetering walls, a movie screen turned into a doorway toward which a dreamer falls, searching for a way back to his beloved. Even after a century or more, his films—overflowing with physicality, absurdity, mischief, and even wonder—remain as captivating and hilarious as ever. They are . . .

PURE MOVIE MAGIC!

And their magic will be made all the more powerful by the internationally known silent film accompanist out of Chicago, Dennis Scott. At the console of our Mighty Wurlitzer theater pipe organ, Mr. Scott is sure to show off our instrument’s kaleidoscopic tonal color without ever showing up the images on the screen as he creates a live film score in real time, right before your very ears! 

A LIVE FILM SCORE IN REAL TIME, RIGHT BEFORE YOUR VERY EARS!

Be sure to stick around after the show for a chance to ask the organist a question and take a tour of the organ pipe chambers. This is a rare opportunity to get an up-close look at the inner workings of this marvelous musical machine! 

The Senate Theater and The Detroit Theater Organ Society is supported by The Michigan Arts and Culture Council and The National Endowment for the Arts 

Parking is available in a gated parking lot on Gilbert St., behind the theater.

Doors – 7:00 PM 

Organ Overture – 7:30 PM 

Film – 8:00 PM 

Tickets - $6 

1hr 54min | NR | Noir/Crime | USA 

PRESENTED WITH MOTOR CITY CINEMA SOCIETY ON 16MM FILM

“Made it, Ma! Top of the World!”  

With these iconic lines James Cagney—his voice aching with crazed intensity—cemented his comeback as Hollywood’s most explosive movie star.  In 1949, as moviegoers sat transfixed by the screen, the movie stars’ manic desperation left little doubt: Cagney and White Heat had reached the peak of the gangster film. And today, 75 years later, few, if any, have come close to attaining such heights. 

Using real-life gangsters like Ma Barker and her four criminal sons as a jumping off point, this firecracker of a story travels across the beauty of the High Sierra mountains, deep into the horrors of the penitentiary, and into the mind of a man suffering from “homicidal psychosis.”  

On the edge of the gangster and film noir genres, it features a bold heist, a femme fatale, and moody black and white photography, all directed by gangster flick veteran Raoul Walsh (The Roaring Twenties, High Sierra).

But what really sets it apart is Cagney. Bursting with vulnerability and rage, he embodies Arthur “Cody” Jarrett, a violently volatile, (and highly quotable) criminal madman beset with mommy issues, a debilitating psychosomatic ailment, and a beautiful woman he can’t help but trust.  

Come see why White Heat, decades later, is still on top of the gangster heap, WITH THE REAL FLICKER OF 16MM FILM ON SCREEN!

The Senate Theater and The Detroit Theater Organ Society is supported by The Michigan Arts and Culture Council and The National Endowment for the Arts. 

Parking is available in our gated lot, on Gilbert, and Michigan Avenue

Sat. Jan. 20 

Doors – 7:00 PM 

Organ Overture – 7:30 PM 

Film – 8:00 PM 

Tickets - $6 

1hr 32min | Not Rated |Noir/Thriller | USA 

Love and hate. Darkness and light. A terrifying evil that only righteousness can overcome.  

The stuff of fables, of scripture, of the deep and eternal struggle in our souls. An old story, but rarely has this tale been told with such indelible and nightmarish beauty as in the noir/thriller classic, The Night of the Hunter! 

Robert Mitchum stars as Robert Powell, a murderous “preacher” in Great Depression era West Virginia. After being released from the state penitentiary he quickly closes in on the stash of stolen money he knows to be hidden somewhere in the home of his now executed cellmate. With charisma and sex appeal he insinuates himself into the life of the widow Willa Harper, (Shelley Winters) presenting himself as a man of God as he preys upon her unfulfilled desire and the innocence of her children. 

The first and last film directed by acclaimed British actor Charles Laughton, The Night of the Hunter was initially ignored by audiences and harshly reviewed by critics. This, despite its daring visual style, a screenplay by Pulitzer Prize winner James Agee, and a movie star lead. Over the decades, however, the film developed a cult following thanks to television and revival art house theaters. Audiences were drawn to its strange synthesis of film noir mood, horror aesthetics, elemental themes, and abstract set design. As a result, its cult burgeoned while simultaneously undergoing a critical reassessment that now places it among the best of all time. 

Don’t miss this masterpiece on our big screen! 

The Senate Theater and The Detroit Theater Organ Society is supported by The Michigan Arts and Culture Council and The National Endowment for the Arts. 

Parking is available in our gated lot, on Gilbert, and Michigan Avenue