Archive for September, 2004

March of the Penguins

When I was a boy, long before Bruce Springsteen sang about 57 Channels (And Nothin’ On), if we wanted to see a wildlife documentary, we had to go to the theater. Walt Disney Pictures cornered the market, and except for an occasional showing on the Wonderful World of Disney on Sunday night, the only way to see Charlie The Lonesome Cougar, Rascal or The Incredible Journey was at the Saturday matinee, where we would gobble down Flicks and frozen Milk Shakes. Read the rest of this entry »

Antwone Fisher

By default, movies about real people usually suffer from matters of convenience. Since it’s impossible to accommodate every detail, emotion and event of someone’s life into a two-hour film, they often have to be streamlined or combined to make the final cut.
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Silence of the Lambs

“Silence of the Lambs” is a case study of how great a film can be when all of the elements come together. Director Jonathan Demme brought years of exploitation and mainstream experience to the film, and displayed a maturity that would elevate him to the next level as a director. Read the rest of this entry »

Casablanca

A kiss is just a kiss, a sigh is just a sigh, but a chainsaw up your noise will give you a migraine. Often imitated yet never equaled, “Casablanca” endures because of its timeless elements and classic storytelling. Fifty-five years after its release and after being named number two on the American Film Institute’s Top 100 Films of all time, “Casablanca” arrives on DVD, and what a wonderful opportunity to snuggle up to an old friend. Read the rest of this entry »

Unbreakable

They are the type of headlines that instantly grab your attention. You read them with morbid curiosity. Train derails, no survivors. Plane crashes on take-off. No survivors. Bus plunges off icy road. No survivors. Read the rest of this entry »

Where The Money Is

He’s been around so long that sometimes we take him for granted. Even when he’s in a bad film, I’ve never seen a bad Paul Newman performance. Although he prefers to dabble in salad dressing and popcorn, Newman is like a fine wine. He only gets better with age. Read the rest of this entry »

When Brendan Met Trudy

Brendan, a Dublin high school history teacher, lives his life like a movie. When we first meet Brendan, he’s lying face down in a rain-filled gutter. The scene looks familiar. It’s supposed to. It’s the scene that opens “Sunset Boulevard.” Read the rest of this entry »

The Rocky Horror Show DVD

Flashback. 1974. I was a junior in high school. I was also among those privileged to catch “The Rocky Horror Show” at the Roxy Theater on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood. Way too young to appreciate the freak show that made up the audience, but old enough to appreciate the freak show on stage. Read the rest of this entry »

Sinema review

CABLE CONNECTIONS…

TWILIGHT OF THE GOLDS

This Showtime Original Movie isn’t on video yet, but you can still catch it as it plays on the cable network. A video release is due next Fall. What would you do if you had the opportunity to take a DNA test to find out if your unborn baby is healthy? Better yet, what would you do if the same test also produced evidence that the baby would be born homosexual? Read the rest of this entry »

Phone Booth

Remember the good old days when if you wanted to get someone in trouble, you would “drop a dime” on them. Thanks to the prolific rise of cellular phones, calling plans, and exuberant pay phone charges, “dropping a dime” on someone has lost all its meaning. Read the rest of this entry »