The Ten Best Film Events in Denver in May

Summer will be here before you know it, which means the biggest blockbuster bets of the year will soon be hitting local screens. In addition to those studio tent poles, there are numerous other movie offerings that are worth a look, from hard-to-find international gems to secret film festivals. Here are the ten best Denver film events in May, in chronological order.

Graveyard Shift
May 2, 15 and 22
Alamo Drafthouse
Sloans Lake, Westminster and Littleton locations
Alamo Drafthouse’s long-running Graveyard Shift series knows what horror fans want: a few tasteful chills, a splash of excessive gore and maybe a laugh or two. This May it delivers on all those points with three fun selections, kicking things off on Tuesday, May 2, with the gonzo werewolf B-picture Silver Bullet, an enjoyable romp adapted by Stephen King from his novella; it pits paraplegic Marty (Corey Haim) and his TV-movie-dysfunctional family against a lycanthrope chewing its way through their small Maine town. Following Bullet is the latest of Ted Nicolaou’s vampire movies, Subspecies V: Blood Rise (May 15), as well as Polish mermaid-monster disco musical The Lure (May 22). The latter is a particularly toothsome slice of modern feminist horror. Get tickets here.

Retro Replay: May’d Men: Scorcese and De Niro
Tuesdays beginning May 2
Landmark Mayan Theatre
110 Broadway
Despite the groan-inducing title, May’d Men (have you no shame, Landmark?) is a great entry point to explore the intersecting careers of cinema giants Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese. The five-film lineup delivers their essential pairings, taking us from the groundbreaking character studies of Taxi Driver and Raging Bull to the sprawling mob epics Goodfellas and Casino. Scorsese drops next-level filmmaking genius in classic scene after classic scene, while DeNiro evolves from method icon to opaque straight man, but not before turning in a scenery-chewing turn for the ages in Cape Fear. See the schedule and get tickets here.

Wild Things: Pulse
May 3, 9:30 p.m.
Alamo Drafthouse Sloan’s Lake
4255 West Colfax Avenue
Anyone who’s stayed up way too late on their computer knows how deeply creepy that can be: shadows everywhere, the unhealthy glow of the screen on your skin, distant sounds of the house settling. Kiyoshi Kurosawa translated that experience for the screen in 2001’s Pulse, in which ghosts spill out of the Internet to invade a lonely city. The befuddled characters fail to halt or even fully understand the supernatural apocalypse, nervously making plans that go nowhere while wandering through cluttered apartments, libraries and rooftop greenhouses. Kurosawa repeatedly traps us in tight spots, only occasionally turning his camera to the troubled sky over the vast Tokyo skyline, as if to show us the approaching doom we’re missing while staring at our screens. The film screens as part of the Alamo’s Wild Things series, which showcases “outstanding films from the furthest fringes of genre.” Get tickets here.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Opens May 4
Denver-area theaters
James Gunn’s roller-coaster saga of unlikely heroes, Spielbergian pathos, nonstop gags and galactic peril blasts its way into multiplexes for its conclusion this month, a fitting opener to summer blockbuster season. Anticipation is high for the series’ third entry, especially after Gunn was unexpectedly fired when some extra-crunchy decade-old Twitter comments went viral during production back in 2018, before being rehired when his loyal cast banded together to lobby for him. Questionable social media moments aside, Gunn undeniably has a gift for making comic book movies not only big, but fun, brilliantly combining one of the most beautifully detailed fantasy worlds since Star Wars with one of the most enjoyable and inspired casts. Find tickets on Fandango.

Ponyo
May 7, 8 and 10
Denver-area theaters
Hayao Miyazaki is undoubtedly one of the most beloved Japanese fantasists ever to reach cult status in the United States. His animated features combine thrilling action, poignant coming-of-age drama and a lyrical use of Japanese folklore and fantasy that makes them accessible and enjoyable by audiences of all ages. The nationwide Studio Ghibli Fest has been offering a Miyazaki retrospective to American audiences since 2017 with monthly screenings, and continues this month with Ponyo, his 2008 tale of a goldfish princess falling in love with the human world. As always with Miyazaki, the animation is outstanding (and especially absorbing on the big screen), and the story resonates beyond age or nationality. Find tickets on Fandango.

Cinema Azteca
May 9, 16 and 23, 7:00 p.m.
Holiday Theater
2644 West 32nd Avenue
One of the most promising new Denver film series is Cinema Azteca, which shows Spanish-language films on Tuesdays at the revamped Holiday Theater. The location has a long history of playing movies in the language; it was the first theater in Denver to screen cine en español from the 1960s through the 1980s, when it was closed and repurposed. The Denver Museum of Contemporary Art purchased the location last year, pledging to keep the vintage decor while making it a hub for the arts. It is admirably realizing that commitment with Cinema Azteca, which kicked off in March with Out of This World, a stylistically wide-ranging three-month surrealist series focusing on altered perceptions. Selections this month include Denver Film Festival favorite El Abrazo de la Serpiente (Embrace of the Serpent) on May 9. See the full schedule and get tickets here.

Salida Film Festival
May 11 to 14
SteamPlant Event Center
220 West Sackett Avenue, Salida
Tucked away in the mountains, Salida Film Festival is heading into its second year with a four-day program mainly comprising regional gems and drawing heavily on Colorado talent. Of particular note is the opening-night film, A Love Song, a tender tribute to late love starring Dale Dickey and Wes Studi as an aging missed connection looking for another shot and showcasing the scenery of southern Colorado at its most eye-popping. Other standouts include Cisco Kid, a portrait of the queer contemporary West, as well as Mystic Vibrosis, a documentary on Fort Collins band Indubious. There are also two shorts programs and a special presentation of Colorado-shot indie pilot Offline, which sees the Broken Lizard comedy group face off against Tarantino regular Michael Madsen. See the full schedule and buy passes and tickets here.

Joyland
Opens May 19
Sie FilmCenter
2510 East Colfax Avenue
The Sie has long been the best place in the area to catch first-run independent and foreign features that are impossible to find anywhere else on the big screen, and this month is no exception. Saim Sadiq’s debut feature, Joyland, comes to Denver highly lauded, having won both Best International Film from the Independent Spirit Awards and a Queer Palm at Cannes, where it was the first Pakistani film to ever premiere. An exploration of love within a patriarchal society, it follows unemployed Haider, who finds work as a backup dancer in a burlesque show but tells his strict father that he is a theater manager. As his relationship deepens with the strong-willed trans woman named Biba who runs the show, he finds his perspective changing in ways both surprising and profound. Get tickets here.

Mystery Cider Theatre 3000: Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift
May 19, 6:30 p.m.
WaldschÁ¤nke Ciders + Coffee
4100 Jason Street
This monthly series, riffing on the MST3K format, picks films from the “best of the B’s” and combines them with commentary and opening sets from Denver-based comedian Sydney Carrington and a rotating cast of fellow comics. This time around, in a cheeky nod to Fast X hitting theaters the same day, they’re roasting the third entry from the especially car-crazy Tokyo Drift. When the franchise stalled in the mid ’00s, unable to retain star Vin Diesel, indie director Justin Lin took it to Japan for this iridescent love-it-or-hate-it installment, which is unconnected to the main storyline. There are few better ways to watch a goofy movie like this than with a squad of comedians while quaffing a cider. Buy tickets here.

Scream Screen presents: VHScream Screen!
May 20, Swap and Sale, 3:00 p.m., Archive Aurora, 1431 Dayton Street, Aurora
Movie Marathon, 6:30 p.m., Sie FilmCenter, 2510 East Colfax Avenue
Scream Screen is at it again. After last month’s first-ever hot springs horror movie sleepover, host with the most Theresa Mercado has another outside-the-box treat for Denver horror heads. She’s curated a secret marathon of three mystery movies at the Sie. The only clue to the titles? The only format you can obtain copies of them on is old-fashioned videocassette, which means the Sie is firing up the VCR for a one-of-a-kind evening. In addition to the screening, there will be a VHS Swap-and-Sale held before the film at the Archive Aurora, Denver’s last video store. VHS collectors interested in taking part can reserve a free table through the Archive’s Instagram as long as availability lasts. Tickets are available here.