The recent death of Gene Wilder has been a stark, saddening reminder of just how good the man could be, whether the winking, sarcastic intensity of his Willy Wonka, or the deadpan-to-manic transitions he mastered while working with Mel Brooks. But even as we all pass YouTube clips around of our favorite moments from Blazing Saddles or Silver Streak, it’s not quite the same as sitting in front of a big screen and sharing in Wilder’s comic genius. (Especially since, for many fans, they’ve never had the chance to see Wilder in a movie theater, since he more or less quit acting in 2003.)
Luckily, AMC here’s to scratch that enigmatic, twinkly-eyed itch, announcing today that it’s planning to bring two of Wilder’s most beloved performances—Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory and Blazing Saddles—back to theaters this weekend. (The chain did a similar promotion withPurple Rain after the death of Prince.) The films will be offered for just $5 a ticket at 54 AMC locations this weekend, including New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. (You can see the full list of cities over at Mashable.) For the rest of us, we’ll just have to content ourselves with taking in Wilder’s genius piecemeal for a little while longer. (Here’s a couple of clips to get you started.)
