When you first insert this disc, it takes a few seconds to load (as all Blu-rays do), then it goes directly to the opening menu--no ads, no trailers. I wish all major studio Blu-rays were like that. Now, on with my review: I enjoy a strange relationship with the biggest commercial hit of the 1950s. … Continue reading Blu-ray Review: The Ten Commandments
Month: March 2011
Blu-ray Review: Au Revoir Les Enfants
Young Julien would rather stay with his mother in Paris than go to his provincial Catholic boarding school. But in the fall of 1944, he has no choice. Slowly, he begins to realize that there's something odd about Jean, the new boy in his class--the one the monks who run the school seem to be … Continue reading Blu-ray Review: Au Revoir Les Enfants
ILM Animator at Balboa Saturday Night
I would have included this in the weekly newsletter, but I just found out about it this morning. This Saturday, Industrial Light and Magic lead animator Charles Alleneck will appear at the Balboa to discuss his work on Rango and other movies. He'll talk after the 7:00 show and before the 9:10 screening. In addition … Continue reading ILM Animator at Balboa Saturday Night
What’s Screening: March 11 – 17
Cinequest comes to a close on Sunday, as does the East Bay Jewish Film Festival. The Asian American Film Festival continues through this week. The Cinequest entries are at the end of this newsletter. A Double bill: The Seventh Seal & Beauty and the Beast (1946 version). Castro, Thursday. Two classics of mid-twentieth century European … Continue reading What’s Screening: March 11 – 17
More Keaton on Blu-ray: Our Hospitality
Kino has another Buster Keaton Blu-ray title on the way, and it's a winner. Three years before he made The General, Keaton mined the antebellum South for comic gold in this almost gentle comedy inspired by the Hatfield/McCoy feud. Still adjusting to the long form of the feature film (this was only his second), Keaton … Continue reading More Keaton on Blu-ray: Our Hospitality
Nora’s Will
A Dramatic comedy A woman sets her table for a big, family dinner, carefully arranges her apartment, then commits suicide. Over the next few days, her family and religious community will have to grapple with their feelings for her, each other, and Judaism. (Oddly, this is the second Mexican film about death in a Jewish … Continue reading Nora’s Will
What’s Screening: March 4 – 10
Cinequest continues through the week, the Green Film Festival runs through the weekend. The East Bay Jewish Film Festival opens Saturday. The Asian American Film Festival opens Friday. As usual, I'm placing festival films at the end of the newsletter. Balboa Birthday Bash, Balboa, Sunday, 7:00. To celebrate the theater's 81st birthday, the theater will … Continue reading What’s Screening: March 4 – 10
Tarzan of the 30’s
From 1932 through 1948, Johnny Weissmuller starred in 12 Tarzan movies--six for MGM followed by six for RKO, and all now owned by Warner Brothers. The Rafael will present two of these movies--both from the MGM 1930s--over the next two Sundays in a series called Hollywood & Vines: The Movie Magic of Tarzan. Visual effects … Continue reading Tarzan of the 30’s
Cinequest Preview: A Little Help
C- A Little Help, Camera 12, Thursday, March 3, 9:15; Wednesday, March 9, 12:00 noon; California Theatre, Saturday, March 9, 9:15. This film really helped me appreciate Mike Leigh. It did so by reminding me that not everyone can make a good low-key drama about ordinary, damaged human beings. A Little Help's protagonist (Jenna Fischer) … Continue reading Cinequest Preview: A Little Help
Cinequest Preview: Small Town Murder Songs
Cinequest opens tonight, and I'm not ready. The festival recently sent me several screener DVDs so I could review some of their films, but I don't know how many I'll get to in time. Because I don't know how many of these films I'll get to in a timely manner, I'm going to post capsule … Continue reading Cinequest Preview: Small Town Murder Songs
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