Anne Tate
Star City Secret Cinema showcases at the Grandin Theatre.
Once a month, curious movie lovers gather at the historic Grandin Theatre to watch a film they probably haven’t seen (or even heard of). The audience arrives with just two hints: rating and run time.
That’s how it goes at Star City Secret Cinema — the featured film is a mystery until just moments before the lights go down. After the big reveal, viewers are left to embrace whichever movie Roanoke native and self-proclaimed cinephile Justin Smith carefully selected.
“I’m targeting the adventurous filmgoer — somebody who’s going to give themselves over to the experience,” Smith says. “Even if you don’t like a movie, you can come away with an appreciation for it.”
Nearly 50 Roanokers showed up for the first secret movie last January. The film was action-thriller “Duel” (1971), one of Steven Spielberg’s earliest films. If the round of applause that accompanied the closing credits was any indicator of the debut event’s success, it was a big hit.
Even more people showed up for the second showing in February, which featured Wim Wenders’ neo-Western drama “Paris Texas” (1984).
“Movies are the one thing that I’ve consistently loved my entire life.” Smith says. “My earliest memories are sitting on the arm of my grandad’s recliner and watching movies together when I was a little kid. They’ve always been my thing.”
Smith's lineup of mystery movies is intentional yet unpredictable. From early and modern pictures to foreign films, audiences can expect to see exploratory movies that vary in genre from the 1920s to now. There could even be a silent film in the lineup.
“When you get outside your comfort zone — whether it’s how old the film is, the genre, or the language — you grow as a film viewer,” Smith says. “It makes you push against the boundaries of your experience, whether that’s a challenging subject matter, style, or perspective you’ve never seen.”
For those wary about horror films, Smith says he plans to stay away from anything particularly gory and that he’ll give content warnings as he sees fit.
The next Star City Secret Cinema showing is coming up on Monday, March 18 at 7 p.m. All we know is it’s less than 90 minutes long and rated R. You can try to guess the film, but you probably won’t.
“I love sharing movies with people,” Smith says. “If people keep showing up, I’m planning to do this for a while.”
Bonus: Looking for something to watch tonight? Try James Cameron’s “Aliens” (1986), the sequel to Alien and one of Smith's favorite movies.
Learn more + purchase tickets to Star City Secret Cinema here.