Herald critic, 007 author take their place in the spotlight

Even a blizzard can't keep fans from Dann & Raymond's Movie Club.

On one snowbound night in January, Daily Herald film critic Dann Gire and 007 author Raymond Benson feared they might be talking to an empty room at the Schaumburg Township District Library. Instead, more than 70 fans braved the elements to hear them talk about their favorite shared passion: the movies.

Each month, the pair draws crowds of film buffs to hear them dissect cinematic history by genre, topic or auteur. They take turns playing the straight man and the one unleashing one-liners - all improvised.

"They're such wonderful speakers," Schaumburg library's Susan Gibberman said. "It's their chemistry, their knowledge of movies, and their sense of humor. The films you normally wouldn't watch, you will learn about and appreciate."

To prepare for a program, the team that dubs itself "Gireson" chooses films that illustrate a certain topic, such as Westerns or Stanley Kubrick. They hunt down the movies in their own collections or from sources like Facets Multimedia in Chicago, then edit clips from each. In their presentation, they give background on each film and why it was pivotal, and discuss the clips in a give-and-take with the audience.

Each has his own areas of expertise. Gire loves the social statements that come out of seemingly trashy horror movies, while Benson obsesses over Director Stanley Kubrick.

"He's the only one," Gire said, "that can explain to me with a straight face the meaning of the monolith in '2001: A Space Odyssey.'"

As Benson explains it, "I love to challenge people who say, 'Oh, I don't understand it,' and I try to help them."

Benson admires Gire's eye for visual themes, as in the movie, "Up in the Air."

"Not only is he literally flying over everybody, but emotionally he is flying over everybody because he doesn't commit to his emotions," Benson said. "As the movie goes on, he begins to, then he gets grounded. Dann has honed his senses to pick things like that out."

As for their fans, Benson says, "It's a pretty intelligent crowd. They seem to know obscure and arty films."

The most knowledgeable crowd came for the club's program on James Bond films, but Benson was the authority on the matter because he wrote the 007 novel series from 1996 to 2003.

The multitalented Benson, who lives in Buffalo Grove, has also been a video game writer, a music composer, and a self-taught piano player.

He teaches film history at the College of DuPage and reviews films for magazines like Cinema Retro.

After starting as a crime reporter, Gire has been the Daily Herald film critic for years.

The presentations are generally G-rated, occasionally veering into PG-13 for some topics, such as censorship and sex.

Shows on Hitchcock, film noir, musicians, science fiction and horror are big draws, while the most popular program is the annual Oscar show. (Both men predict "The Hurt Locker" will win Best Picture.)

The pair resists comparisons to other famous dueling movie critics on television, but wouldn't rule out the medium.

"We will not prostitute our art by putting it on the demeaning mass mechanism of television," Gire said, "... but I suppose I could be bought."

Dann & Raymond's Movie ClubCatch Daily Herald film critic Dann Gire and 007 writer Raymond Benson at these upcoming events: bull; "Cue the music! Great composer/filmmaker collaborations," at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 4, at the Schaumburg Township District Library, 130 S. Roselle Road, Schaumburg. Call (847) 985-4000 for information.bull; "Stanley Kubrick: Inside a Filmmaker's Maze" at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 11, at Arlington Heights Memorial Library, 500 S. Dunton Road, Arlington Heights. Call (847) 392-0100 for more information.To see a list of upcoming appearances, check Dann Raymond's Movie Club on Facebook or at raymondbenson.com.True20001320Daily Herald film critic Dann Gire and 007 author Raymond BensonMark Welsh | Staff PhotographerTrue