Friday Happenings

Movies

The Brattle continues its Classic Gangsters series with a pair of pre-Code gems. Little Caesar (1931), not to be confused with the Detroit pizza chain, stars Edward G. Robinson as a gangster on the make, clawing his way through the ranks even as his best friend, played by Douglas Fairbanks Jr., drifts away from crime. The Public Enemy (1931) was the Depression's answer to Law & Order, a "ripped from the headlines" thriller starring James Cagney and Edward Woods as a pair of brutal crime lords. Jean Harlow is a highlight. Brattle Theatre, 40 Brattle St., Cambridge. Tickets and showtimes.

Fanboys

The annual Can't Stop the Serenity is a chance to see Joss Whedon's space western on his birthday and donate a few bucks to his favorite charity, Equality Now. Also screening is Whedon's internet collaboration with Neil Patrick Harris, the musical Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along. Will a Youtube video even be legible on the big screen? Let us know. Coolidge Corner Theatre, 290 Harvard St., Brookline, 11:55 p.m. $15/$20.

Beer

Beer Advocate's American Craft Beer Festival is probably sold out has tickets available at the door, but we thought we'd mention it here in case you are in tight with beer festival scalpers with people who sell tickets at the door or have time to call all of these venues Included in the (now probably astronomical) admission is a tasting cup and "access to over 300 craft beers!" (Exclamation point not ours, but it could be.) Seaport World Trade Center, 200 Seaport Blvd., 6 p.m.

New Music

NEC's Summer Institute for Contemporary Performance Practice continues with chamber pieces by Jonathan Harvey and Elliott Carter. Williams Hall, New England Conservatory, 30 Gainsborough St., 8 p.m. Free.