Raymond Benson and Dann Gire take their place in the spotlight
Even a blizzard can't keep fans from Dann & Raymond's Movie Club.
On one snowbound night in January, Daily Herald film critic Dann Gire and 007 author Raymond Benson feared they might be talking to an empty room at the Schaumburg Township District Library. Instead, more than 70 fans braved the elements to hear them talk about their favorite shared passion: the movies.
Each month, the pair draws crowds of film buffs to hear them dissect cinematic history by genre, topic or auteur. They take turns playing the straight man and the one unleashing one-liners - all improvised.
"They're such wonderful speakers," Schaumburg library's Susan Gibberman said. "It's their chemistry, their knowledge of movies, and their sense of humor. The films you normally wouldn't watch, you will learn about and appreciate."
To prepare for a program, the team that dubs itself "Gireson" chooses films that illustrate a certain topic, such as Westerns or Stanley Kubrick. They hunt down the movies in their own collections or from sources like Facets Multimedia in Chicago, then edit clips from each. In their presentation, they give background on each film and why it was pivotal, and discuss the clips in a give-and-take with the audience...
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http://commanderbond...quicknews/57455 - Daily Herald