Our Themed Lecture Options:

Ladies’ Night: Gather The Gals For A Girls’ Night Out!  

In movies, getting the girls together can mean a variety of things: A wild night out, a moving drama, possibly a touching love story. At the heart, always, is female bonding, and a sense of companionship and support to deal with whatever life throws their way. We’ll look at the ways movies bring women together and champion the female bond.

From The Heart: Palpitations, Sweaty Palms And Romance For All

Whether it’s a comedy or drama, the best love stories inspire the audience to care about the characters and root for them to be together. When they do finally embrace, darn if it doesn’t make even the most cynical loner believe in love all over again. But how do movies get us to believe in love time and time again? We’ll discuss that and more.

Carry A Tune: For All Who Love Musicals

In movies, musicals bring together music and Broadway in ways that no other genre offers. Breaks from reality into song and dance make musicals wonderfully enjoyable and a masterclass in filmmaking prowess. We’ll examine what makes musicals unique and great, and appreciate the classics with reverence and adulation.

Fright Night: Who’s Scared? I’m Not Scared!

Horror movies are not all blood and guts. In fact, the slasher movie (Halloween, Friday the 13th) is a relatively new entry to the horror genre. The best horror disturbs and unsettles, and its roots date back to the silent era. We’ll discuss what makes horror movies effective, and why they remain one of the most popular genres in Hollywood today. Includes clips from Dracula, Frankenstein, The Exorcist, and more! 

Home For The Holidays: ‘Tis The Season For Family And Friends

Thanksgiving, Hanukah and Christmas involve family, friends, food…and chaos. Whether there’s trouble traveling or trouble at home, holiday movies heighten the drama around the season’s festivities – often to a breaking point. But then the virtues of the holiday come through to save the day. Includes clips from Planes, Trains and Automobiles, A Christmas Story, It’s A Wonderful Life, and more! 

Oscar Night

Get ready for Hollywood’s biggest night with HOH’s annual lecture on the Best Picture Oscar nominees! Break out the red carpet, pop the champagne and (if you’d like!) dress in your finest as we cover all of this year’s Best Picture nominees. We’ll discuss why each film was nominated, the Oscars it’s most likely to win, and we’ll show a clip from each film. We also hit on all the major categories throughout the evening. This is a lecture any fan of the Oscars will not want to miss! Note: The lecture can only be done during Oscar season, which is Jan. 24-March 12, 2023.

Sports Fans: The Perfect Program For All Sports Lovers

Unfortunately, not all sports movies hit it out of the park. At their best, they combine competition, heartache and (usually) the thrill of victory to create unforgettable movie experiences. What’s interesting is that regardless of the sport, a similar genre formula is often used to create terrific dramatic effect. We’ll break down that formula for success and highlight key moments that have made the genre a real winner.

Par For The Course: For All The Golfers In The Community

Movies centered on golf have a unique place in the sports movie genre: Whether a comedy, drama, or dramedy, they often involve underdogs who need a little bit of luck (and possible mystical intervention) to succeed. Ranging from silly to sentimental, golf movies take the palpably real frustrations of being on the course and make them indelibly human. We’ll look at how that’s done, and how these charms continue to work time and again.

Southern Charm: If Ya’ll Enjoy A Focus On All Things Southern!

Iconic images of the American south – searing heat, fried chicken, grits and sweet tea – only begin to tell the story of the south on the big screen. While racial tension has long been a part of southern-based movies, comedies, dramas and action films have taken the tenets of southern charm and made them their own. This is a fascinating look at southern life that you will not want to miss!

At The Hop: Poodle Skirts, Letter Jackets, Fast Cars…..This One Is Going To Be Fun!

While the reality of living through the 1950s and ‘60s was a bit different from the idealized big screen interpretations, the cultural elements of the time lend themselves wonderfully to movie romanticism. This trip down memory lane looks at the icons and iconography of the times and is a fun way to reminisce for all!

Black History: Celebrating Memorable Performances

Largely suppressed and certainly underappreciated until the emergence of Hattie McDaniel in the late 1930s, African-Americans have since given some of the most nuanced, moving and complex performances in film history. We’ll look at the circumstances of the work, the pure talent on display, and how the performances spoke to a generational culture that may not have been ready for its message.

America!

Celebrate America by indulging in Hollywood’s (occasional) unabashed patriotism. Here we champion all that America has done well, how it has strived to become and stay the greatest country in the world. Great for Memorial Day, July 4th or Labor Day events. Be sure to wear red, white and blue if you can!

Family Night: Celebrating Movies For All Ages

A movie that genuinely appeals to kids and grandparents and all ages in between is a rarity, and surprisingly difficult to pull off. We’ll look at how these films appeal to everyone, and what needs to work for all to enjoy.

Four-Legged Friends: Calling All Dog And Cat People!

The advice to adult actors is to never work with kids or animals because they’ll steal the movie. Here we focus on animals, both the undisciplined rapscallions who are too adorable not to love, and the helpful ones who save the day.

Corral The Western

It was the most popular genre in Hollywood for 30 years thanks largely to John Wayne. Today, however, westerns are rarely made. We’ll look at the formula of the genre and why it was so successful, as well as why there are so few made today.

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