What's Up, Doc? (1972) - 35mm

What's Up, Doc? (1972) is coming to the Portland Art Museum on Sunday, November 1, running from 2 PM to 4 PM in the Whitsell Auditorium. It's being presented on 35mm by Film School x PAM CUT, and it kicks off the museum's Portraits film series.

If you haven't seen it, What's Up, Doc? is a screwball comedy directed by Peter Bogdanovich and starring Barbra Streisand and Ryan O'Neal. The plot is a classic mix-up: two people swap plaid luggage, and the resulting chaos unfolds across 1970s San Francisco. The whole thing is built around Streisand's comedic persona—the kind of high-energy, slightly eccentric presence that carries the movie and echoes the screwball heroines of the 1930s and 40s. It runs an hour and 34 minutes and is rated G.

Film School is the community film club behind the screening; they host monthly screenings, discussions, and a blog. This particular showing opens the Portraits series, and there's a discussion of the film and Streisand's character to follow the credits. If you're into the conversation part, that's a good reason to stick around after the movie ends.

Portraits is a month-long program, and What's Up, Doc? is just the start. Over the next few weeks, the museum will screen Mary Oliver: Saved by the Beauty of the World (2022), the jazz documentary Ornette: Made In America (1985), the kung fu musical Berry Gordy's The Last Dragon (1985), the French romantic comedy Amélie (2001), and Cinema Paradiso (1988). It's a wide-ranging lineup, so if you're in the mood for more than one, you've got a few different directions to go from here. The screening is at the Whitsell Auditorium, 1219 SW Park Ave, from 2 PM to 4 PM.