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San Francisco is one of the great American cities but its role in American cinema has often been overlooked by people who prefer to examine New York City or Chicago. 

These 3 films, all set in the Golden Gate City, demonstrate how San Francisco plays a key role in the American cinematic imagination. 

In Invasion of the Body Snatchers (the first remake of Don Siegel’s classic alien invasion movie), San Francisco is the home of alternative lifestyles, which makes it difficult to discern who is an alien pod and who remains human. 

Point Blank sets up San Francisco as the scene of a double-cross which leads the film’s hero towards a shocking realisation about American crime. 

The final film in the season, Zodiac, is closely based on real events, and depicts San Francisco as a menacing home to unfathomable criminals. This is not the San Francisco that you think you know!

+ DISCUSSION

All the films will be introduced by Dr Joe Street, senior lecturer in American History at Northumbria University, and the screenings will be followed by a discussion.