A lot of people saw The Deer Hunter, it won several Academy Awards including a Best Picture Oscar and was the talk of 1978, for a variety of reasons. Heaven’s Gate would only win Razzie and Stinker Awards, and is often credited with sinking a movie studio. This blog is a tale of a director … More Michael Cimino, The Deer Hunter and Heaven’s Gate
I never understood the historical, religious and political conflict in Northern Ireland. At the time, all I saw was tragedy. No, I did not live there, so it is perhaps not fair to comment. I do not judge, and naïvely, I always wondered why everyone could not find a way to live in peace. When … More Belfast (2021)
The other day I wanted to watch a movie, but I was too tired. My eyelids were heavy as barbells. I wasn’t really sleepy, just too tired to focus on a movie. I put the movie on and got comfortable, closing my eyes. Yes, film is a visual media, but it is also a sound … More Listening to the Movies
After discussing Buster Keaton’s life in Part 1, I decided to take a more specific look at some of his films. Keaton the man and Keaton the filmmaker are difficult to view separately. Keaton may not have been born onstage, but he grew up there and was a born performer. The film legacy of Keaton … More Buster Keaton – Part 2
What a life. What a talent. Typical of many silent stars, Buster Keaton’s film success did not fully translate to the sound era. The image many of us have of Keaton is the stone-faced guy doing impossible stunts in silent films or the old guy in the pork pie hat chasing girls in bikinis in … More Buster Keaton – Part 1
The last thing I saw the late actor William Hurt in was the Prime series Goliath. He played a successful, but corrupt former law partner of the Billy Bob Thornton character.The nastiness, torment and flaws fit Hurt’s acting talent perfectly. Hurt played a lot of complicated characters, maybe because of the acting challenge, or because … More William Hurt Remembered
People generally are crazy about science fiction films or dislike them. Intentionally, science fiction also includes fantasy and superhero films in my book. So, Star Trek, Spider-Man, Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings are all cousins in the sci-fi/fantasy universe. Now, those are strange holiday gatherings! My list could include Star Wars, Gravity, Dark … More Favorite Science Fiction Films
Some of the best stories are of a flawed protagonist who exhibits complexity of personality and reveals himself (or herself) to have a pivotal moment(s) where their character undergoes an unexpected action, yet they remain true to their basic moral fabric. What this is not: a fairytale moment of metamorphosis of The Grinch suddenly growing … More Good Guy/Bad Guy
Liz Taylor had quite a film decade. Starring in the most costly film ever made (at the time), meeting her future husband Richard Burton, receiving two Academy Awards, and becoming probably the most photographed women in the world – that’s crazy. As you look at the films below, notice the swing between glamour and slutty … More Elizabeth Taylor 1960s Films: Campy, Trampy and Vampy
No Time to Die is not a bad film. Strip away the CGI and expensive appearance and you have an old fashioned spy film: too serious, incomprehensible and full of unrestrained violence. No Time to Die is dressed up for the new world order. Full disclosure: I grew up watching Bond films and own most … More Goodbye Mr. Bond
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