It’s about time.
A one-week, 36-film series opening Friday at New York City’s IFC Center is devoted to the tricks cinema plays with time — movies that cover decades (“Citizen Kane’’) as well as series of films in which we watch the same actors playing characters as they grow older, such as the “Harry Potter’’ chronicle.
Also included are movies that mess with our heads by including flashbacks within flashbacks within flashbacks — and, of course, “Groundhog Day,’’ in which we see Bill Murray live the same day over and over again until he finally gets it right.
It’s all leading up to the July 11 opening at the IFC Center of Richard Linklater’s “Boyhood,’’ which was filmed over a period of 12 years.
Here are some trailers from the films in “Time Regained,’’ as they’re calling the retrospective that precedes it:
‘Citizen Kane’ (1940)
Orson Welles took flashbacks to another level in this masterpiece about a press baron (that he played) with overlapping reminiscences told from multiple points of view — a technique famously used in another classic in the series, “Rashomon’’ (1950).
Playing: Saturday, 9 p.m.
‘The Clock’ (1945)
One way filmmakers manipulate time is to set movies within a single day — like Vincente Minnelli’s exquisite World War II romance between a secretary (Judy Garland) and GI on leave Robert Walker.
Playing: July 8, 8:20 p.m.
‘The Locket’ (1947)
You’ll need to pay very close attention to the super-complicated thriller about a psychopathic woman (Laraine Day), whose story is recounted by a psychiatrist who wanders into flashbacks within flashbacks and even a second narrator (Robert Mitchum) who takes us into a flashback within a flashback within a flashback.
Playing: Saturday, 7 p.m.
‘Rope’ (1948)
One way to heighten tension is to have a movie take place in “real time’’ — though films such as “High Noon’’ (Friday, 5 p.m., Monday, 9:30 p.m.) usually cheat a little bit in the editing.
Not so this audacious Alfred Hitchcock experiment starring James Stewart as a professor who discovers his prize pupils are murderers, which was literally shot over 80 consecutive minutes.
Playing: Tuesday, 9:15 p.m., Thursday, 1:25 p.m.
‘Brigadoon’ (1954)
Vincente Minnelli, who actually directed a movie called “A Matter of Time’’ (not in this series), also helmed this Broadway musical adaptation about a pair of Americans (Gene Kelly, Van Johnson) who encounter a mysterious Scottish village that materializes once every 200 years.
Playing: Saturday at 1:45 p.m., Wednesday at 1:40 p.m.
‘Groundhog Day’ (1993)
Largely ignored on its original release, Harold Ramis’ pioneering time-twisting comedy about arrogant weatherman Bill Murray’s pursuit of producer Andie MacDowell is now considered a profoundly religious film. Among other things.
Playing: Saturday, 9:15 p.m., Wednesday, 9:15 p.m.
‘Before Sunrise’ (1995)
“Boyhood’’ director Linklater revisted the lovers played by Ethan Hawke (who is also in the new film) and Julie Delpy at different stages of their lives in a pair of spread-out sequels: “Before Sunset’’ (2004) and “Before Midnight’’ (2013).
All three are being shown on consecutive days: “Sunrise,’’ Monday, 6 p.m.; “Sunset,’’ Tuesday, 6:30 p.m., “Midnight,’’ Wednesday, 9:30 p.m.
‘Harry Potter’ series (2001-2011)
Watch Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Hermoine (Emma Watson) and Ron (Rupert Grint) grow up at Hogworts over a decade in these blockbusters.
The IFC Center is showing all eight, beginning with a double feature of “Sorcerer’s Stone’’ and “Chamber of Secrets’’ at 11 a.m. Friday.
Click here for the complete schedule.