Category: Drama

Drama

SFFILM honors Joe Wright’s Darkest Hour

~ Lincoln Spector

Monday night at the Castro, SFFILM recognized Joe Wright and Anthony McCarten's historical drama, Darkest Hour, giving the film the organization's second annual SF Honors award. The event included a mercifully short presentation of the award, a screening of the film, and a Q&A with five of the filmmakers. Darkest Hour follows Winston Churchill's first … Continue reading SFFILM honors Joe Wright’s Darkest Hour

Goodbye Christopher Robin: How a great children’s book hurt the child that inspired it

~ Lincoln Spector

B+ biopic Written by Frank Cottrell Boyce and Simon Vaughan Directed by Simon Curtis Almost everyone who can read, or has been read to, loves A. A. Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh stories. But according to this film, which covers some 20-plus years of Milne's life, the stories of Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, and others made one child very … Continue reading Goodbye Christopher Robin: How a great children’s book hurt the child that inspired it

Movies I’ve Recently Seen: Battle of the Sexes, Professor Marston and the Wonder Woman, & Le Million

~ Lincoln Spector

Another three movies I've seen for the first time recently. Two of them, still in theaters, are based on actual events. The other is an early talkie that makes no attempt at anything like realism. A- Battle of the Sexes (2017), Cerrito In 1973, former men's tennis champ Bobby Riggs set up a match with women's … Continue reading Movies I’ve Recently Seen: Battle of the Sexes, Professor Marston and the Wonder Woman, & Le Million

The Florida Project brings you not quite to Disney World

~ Lincoln Spector

A- Slice of life Written by Sean Baker and Chris Bergoch Directed by Sean Baker Cheap motels and tourist traps abound on the edge of Florida's Disney World. Some, such as The Magic Castle, have become unofficial residency motels, filled with desperate people - mostly single mothers. Tourists are few and far between. Sean Baker's … Continue reading The Florida Project brings you not quite to Disney World

Machismo faces the Holocaust: My Blu-ray review of Seven Beauties

~ Lincoln Spector

Lina Wertmüller's 1975 masterpiece, Seven Beauties, is a Holocaust film (with no recognizably Jewish characters), an examination of Italian machismo, and a witheringly sad and disturbing drama. And at times, it becomes a very funny slapstick comedy. Giancarlo Giannini stars as Pasqualino, a charming but somewhat dense egomaniac. He lives in Naples with his mother … Continue reading Machismo faces the Holocaust: My Blu-ray review of Seven Beauties

Italian comedy & American tragedy: Friday night at the Pacific Film Archive

~ Lincoln Spector

My wife and I attended two very different films last night (Friday night) at the Pacific Film Archive. One was a 1963, Italian satire on consumerism that is only now being released in the States. The other was an American classic. Both movies recently enjoyed fine digital restorations. Both were screened from DCPs. We sat … Continue reading Italian comedy & American tragedy: Friday night at the Pacific Film Archive