Prepare yourself for a lot of movie-going. Graham Leggat, the new Executive Director of the San Francisco Film Society, announced the 2006 San Francisco International Film Festival this week. It runs April 20 through May 4. The numbers, as always, are big: 97 features and 130 shorts from 41 countries, including 38 west coast, 12 … Continue reading Coming Soon: The San Francisco International Film Festival

The big one is coming. Actually, the big one came a hundred years ago. What’s coming is the big anniversary of the big one. I’m speaking, of course, of the 1906 earthquake and fire. Expect a lot of ink devoted to it in the local press, including sobering discussions of our unprepared conditions, comparisons with … Continue reading Earthquakes

I don't usually send out a newsletter on Sunday, but next Friday will be too late to talk about the 24th San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival. I caught two Festival events Saturday at the Castro, both very much worth talking about. As part of its tribute to actor James Shigeta, the Festival screened … Continue reading Addendum: Asian American Film Festival

Bayflicks lacks a links page, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love other web sites. Here are a few: SF360, a sort of local news site for the independent film scene, officially launched this week (this is called a news hook in the journalism biz). It’s still taking form, but it already looks good, with … Continue reading Links

There's nothing I can say about the Oscars that you haven't read elsewhere, so I'll just go directly to my weekly recommendations: Recommended: Valley Girl, Castro, Friday, 7:00. Was there ever a less promising film to become a classic? Made on a miniscule budget, financed by people more concerned with tits than story, with a title ripped off … Continue reading Films for the Week of March 10, 2006

Sometimes you just can't get to a movie theater. Or there's nothing playing that you want to see. Or you just don't want the hassle. That's why we have DVDs. This week, I'm going to ignore the real thing and give you a couple of home theater recommendations. Let's start with the big one--in more … Continue reading DVD Recommendations