As I mentioned in my last post, I chose Danny Glover on Saturday over Mel Novikoff Award winner Kevin Brownlow, one of the world's foremost experts on silent films, because I was seeing Brownlow on Sunday. I just did. Billed as an "Introduction to Silents,-- Brownlow's presentation probably would have confused anyone truly unfamiliar with … Continue reading Festival Report, Part 3: Sunday

Why, after screening a dreadful film called Revolution Summer, would I bother seeing something called The Reel Youth Revolution? Because it was screening at a convenient time, and, as a collection of shorts, it couldn't be bad for very long. Besides, as a former film student myself, I was curious to see what young people--blessed … Continue reading Festival Report, Part 2: Saturday

I’m finally back at my computer and able to tell you about what I saw at the Kabuki and Castro. The first movie I caught was the first one shown without opening night hoopla, Otar Iosseliani, The Whistling Blackbird; appropriately, a movie about movies. Julie Bertuccelli’s documentary is a pleasant and often funny study of … Continue reading Festival Report, Part 1: Friday

Just to keep things simple, I'm listing San Francisco International Film Festival presentations first. San Francisco International Film Festival The Iron Mask, Castro, Friday, 2:00. Douglas Fairbanks must have felt melancholy as he made what he knew would be his last silent film. Based on Dumas' oft-filmed The Three Musketeers sequel, The Iron Mask is … Continue reading Films for the Week of April 27, 2007

I’m beginning to suspect that I will never see an English-language film theatrically again. The only one I’ve seen in the last three months is Blades of Glory--an outing that had more to do with parenting than cinephilia. Today I decided to break that track record and go see Hot Fuzz. But when I got … Continue reading Doomed to Subtitles and Other Tales

Golden Door, Castro, Thursday, 7:00. Emanuele Crialese begins his immigration allegory with two men climbing a mountain, barefoot, each carrying a sharp stone in his mouth. From there, Crialese fills his tale with strange, beautiful, and occasionally bewildering imagery. He also fills it with fascinating people and a dry, sardonic humor. Many of his characters, … Continue reading Films for the Week of April 20, 2006

Part of the San Francisco International Film Festival's programming is now up on Bayflicks.net, so I have to explain the little red dot icon () that marks some of the festival's presentations on my schedules. The red dot tells you that this particular film will probably get a regular theatrical run after the festival. With … Continue reading Red Dot Journalism

I just saw Golden Door, the Italian film about immigration to America that's opening the San Francisco International Film Festival. A very good, very unusual picture. I'm giving it an . You can click that to read my microreview. The festival is only screening Golden Door on opening night, giving you no options if you … Continue reading Another Festival Preview

I’m changing the site, again. Hopefully to your liking. First, you no longer need to be a registered member to comment on my posts and reviews. Now anyone can tell me I’m wrong, and I hope you do. There’s another change. Starting this week, the commentary part of Bayflicks.net becomes less like a traditional newsletter … Continue reading More Site Changes

Journey From the Fall, 4Star and Elmwood, opens Friday. “Nothing is more precious than freedom.-- Ho Chi Minh’s hypocritical quote adorns the entrance to a re-education center (in other words, a slave-labor camp) in Ham Tran’s small-scale historical epic. But Ham blows his wad early as he shows us a Vietnamese family’s horrific journey away … Continue reading Listings for the Week of April 13, 2007