Striking another blow for Truffaut

The American Cinematheque pays homage to two directing legends: Francois Truffaut and John Sturges.

For details on the Sturges retrospective, see my colleague Kenneth Turan’s critic’s pick, above. Meanwhile, this year marks the 50th anniversary of Truffaut’s groundbreaking French New Wave autobiographical feature “The 400 Blows” and the 25th anniversary of his untimely death from cancer at age 52.

To pay tribute, the Aero Theatre has put together “Confidentially Yours: A Weekend With Francois Truffaut,” featuring some of his best-known works and rarely seen features. The screenings kick off Friday with his 1962 film “Jules and Jim,” with Jeanne Moreau and Oskar Werner, and his 1972 romance “Two English Girls,” with reel-life alter ego Jean-Pierre Leaud. On tap for Saturday is a new print of “The 400 Blows,” starring Leaud, and its charming 1968 sequel, “Stolen Kisses.”

Sunday’s double bill has a new 35-millimeter print of his 1960 film noir “Shoot the Piano Player,” with Charles Aznavour, and his 1980 World War II drama, “The Last Metro,” with Catherine Deneuve and Gerard Depardieu. Truffaut’s last film, “Confidentially Yours,” screens on Wednesday. www.americancinematheque.com.

Rick Castro presents a “Fetish Film Night” Friday at the intimate Spielberg Theatre at the Egyptian. This month’s offering is “Inserts,” John Byrum’s 1974 X-rated drama (it’s now NC-17) about a pornographic film production in the 1930s, starring Richard Dreyfuss, Veronica Cartwright and Jessica Harper. wwwegyptian theatre.com.

The Los Angeles Theatre Organ Society presents Harold Lloyd in “The Kid Brother” and the Buster Keaton short “One Week” on Friday at the Orpheum Theatre. Bob Salisbury will accompany the films on the Mighty Wurlitzer pipe organ. Suzanne Lloyd, Harold Lloyd’s granddaughter, is the special guest. www.latos.org/ SilentMoviesLA/main_Kid_ Brother.html.

Film at REDCAT this Monday presents “ ‘Manhatta’ and Other Restored Treasures.” Archivist, curator and filmmaker Bruce Posner will present a collection of vintage avant-garde films, including the digital restoration of Paul Strand and Charles Sheeler’s seminal 1920 “Manhatta” and Maya Deren’s 1948 “Meditation on Violence.” www.redcat.org.

As guest programmer at the New Beverly Cinema, director Peter Bogdanovich on Wednesday will screen the director’s cut of his 1971 drama “The Last Picture Show” and his 1972 screwball comedy “What’s Up, Doc?” www.newbevcinema .com.

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