Cinecon rewinds the reel of time

Movie buffs, prepare to feast upon a banquet of classic and rare films, celebrity guests and memorabilia marts at the 45th annual Cinecon film festival, which kicks off tonight and runs through Monday at the Egyptian Theatre in Hollywood.

Among the rarities scheduled to be shown are the previously lost 1929 melodrama “Trial Marriage”; the 1930 Maurice Chevalier musical “The Playboy of Paris”; the 1942 British drama “Hatter’s Castle” with a young Deborah Kerr and James Mason; and the 1930 Gary Cooper Civil War drama “Only the Brave.”

Cinecon’s Career Achievement Award banquet at the Renaissance Hollywood on Sunday honors actresses Adrian Booth, Stella Stevens and Denise Darcel, and Oscar-winning composer Richard M. Sherman. www.cinecon.org.

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Ready to scream

They’re heeeere. The American Cinematheque’s Aero Theatre wants to scare the pants off you this Labor Day weekend with its “Apparitions, Hauntings & Supernatural Sightings” retrospective, which kicks off tonight with 1982’s creepy suburbia ghost story “Poltergeist,” produced by Steven Spielberg, and the 1973 Richard Matheson-scripted shocker, “The Legend of Hell House.”

On Friday, the Aero celebrates the 25th anniversary of the comedy blockbuster “Ghostbusters.” The underrated 1989 sequel, “Ghostbusters II,” rounds out the evening of ghoulish laughter.

Stay away from the Tall Man at the Sept. 12 triple bill of 1979’s cult classic “Phantasm,” 1988’s “Phantasm II” and 1994’s “Phantasm III: Lord of the Dead.” There’ll be a discussion between the first two films with writer-director Don Coscarelli and many of the films’ stars. www.aerotheatre.com

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Technology stars

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences explores “Film Formats Through the 21st Century” on Wednesday at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater. The event looks at how emerging technology has been a major player in the evolution of film formats. www .oscars.org

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Taking a ‘Day Off’

The New Beverly Cinema celebrates the legacy of the late writer-director John Hughes Friday and Saturday with a double bill of his 1986 comedy hit “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” starring Matthew Broderick, and the 1987 hoot “Planes, Trains & Automobiles” with Steve Martin and John Candy. www.newbevcinema.com

For the more adventurous, Cinespia will also screen “Ferris Bueller” on Sunday at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery. www.cinespia.org.

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Hummable music

Turner Classic Movies host Robert Osborne will emcee the TCM concert “The Big Picture: Rodgers and Hammerstein at the Movies” Sunday at the Hollywood Bowl.

The Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, under the direction of David Newman, will play selections from “Oklahoma!” “State Fair,” “South Pacific,” “The King and I,” “The Sound of Music” and “Flower Drum Song.” www.hollywoodbowl.com

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Experiential movies

The ArcLight Hollywood shines the spotlight on 70-millimeter and Cinerama films with a screening Monday of the 70-millimeter director’s cut of the 1970 Oscar-winning documentary “Woodstock.”

On tap for Tuesday and Wednesday is the 1952 “This Is Cinerama,” the film that introduced the three-strip Cinerama projection process, and the 1962 all-star western classic “How the West Was Won,” which also will be presented in the original projection process.

Also screening Tuesday are two rarities, 1964’s “The Golden Head,” with George Sanders and Buddy Hackett -- considered the “lost” Cinerama film because it was never released in the U.S. -- as well as 1961’s “Holiday in Spain,” which was originally released as “Scent of Mystery” in smell-o-vision. www.arclightcinemas .com

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susan.king@latimes.com

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THIS WEEKEND

“All About Steve” Convinced that a CNN cameraman is her true love, an eccentric crossword puzzler trails him across the country.

“Amreeka” A journey into the lives of a family of immigrants and first-generation teenagers caught between their heritage and the new world in which they now live.

“Confessions of a Ex-Doofus-Itchy Footed Mutha” A yarn about a boy from Chicago who wants to see the world and get rich but discovers that all he needs is the love of a good woman.

“Extract” The owner of a flavor extract plant finds himself faced with a series of unfortunate predicaments.

“Gamer” A thriller set in a dystopian future in which game players can control other humans.

“The Headless Woman” A woman tries to piece together whether she killed someone with her car as her husband tries to protect her.

“Still Walking” Siblings gather at their parents’ to remember the eldest son who died young.