Today's moviegoing culture has changed dramatically since Cornell Cinema began 40 years ago. The accessibility of DVDs and streaming video means a night at the movies has to offer more than just the usual, and the eclectic on-campus repertory cinema provides just that. You might get a dual-projected experimental environmental film, a topical documentary introduced by a faculty member, or a film series with an academic twist, such as this semester's "Hitchcock 101."

The Alfred Hitchcock film series celebrates the 110th birthday of the master of suspense, with more than a dozen films. Four screenings are introduced by professors or graduate students in English. The series is tied to lecturer Lynda Bogel's course Studies in Film Analysis: Interpreting Hitchcock, cross-listed between the departments of English and Theatre, Film and Dance. The series began this fall with restored prints of two Hitchcock silent features.

Even with the 21st century's technological marvels, silent films are making a comeback. But watching them is anything but quiet. Cornell Cinema's silent programming often features musical accompaniment by pianist Philip Carli, staff accompanist at George Eastman House in Rochester, or original scores composed and performed by the world-renowned Alloy Orchestra.

Cornell Cinema Director Mary Fessenden recalls students' enthusiasm last year after seeing Harold Lloyd in "The Kid Brother," accompanied by the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra from Boulder, Colo. "The event was attended by students taking associate professor Sabine Haenni's Survey of American Film course," Fessenden says. "I could hear them talking as they walked out of the theater and they were ecstatic. You could tell they had no idea black-and-white movies could be so enjoyable."

Live music at screenings has become popular because it's unique and can't be duplicated on a computer, Fessenden says.

The recent sold-out showing of "13 Most Beautiful … Songs for Andy Warhol's Screen Tests" was "probably the most exciting event we ever put on," she says. The rarely seen black-and-white short films Warhol made in the mid-1960s were accompanied by a four-piece band led by Dean Wareham and Britta Phillips, who were commissioned by the Andy Warhol Museum to provide music for the screen tests both in performance and for a DVD release. Cornell art and film professors used the films as material for class discussion.

"Movies can be an amazing way to educate yourself," says Fessenden, pointing to the current series "Earth Days" as an example. The series includes a historical look at environmental activism and a documentary on gas drilling, an issue of significant current interest to area residents. The series is cosponsored with Sustainable Tompkins, Finger Lakes Bioneers and the CU Sustainability Hub.

Phil McMichael, professor of development sociology, participated in a panel discussion at a recent screening of "Food, Inc." "I use film a lot in my classes," he says. "It adds texture and perspective that I can't give. I encourage students to go see movies."

Integrating film with academics has always been part of Cornell Cinema's profile, Fessenden says -- and she actively seeks to promote community and campus partnerships. Each semester, she pores over the course catalog, looking for courses relevant to upcoming films. She also encourages faculty and campus and community groups to suggest or co-sponsor films in conjunction with courses or events.

For example, the upcoming series, "The Great Divide: Before and After the Wall," is timed to coincide with an interdisciplinary conference, "1989 in Europe and the World: 20th Anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall," Nov. 19-20. The series is cosponsored by the Department of German Studies, the Institute for German Cultural Studies and PG Kino, a German Studies graduate student group.

Cornell Cinema also features more than 30 guest filmmakers and speakers each year, introducing and discussing their work at screenings.

As Fessenden says, "What a great way to round out your education: sitting in a movie theatre and eating popcorn. What could be better?"

Linda Glaser is a freelance writer.