I attended the opening night program for this year's San Francisco International Film Festival Thursday night. The introductions, the movie, and the Q&A were all appropriately funny. But as usual for festivals' big nights, the reserved seat problem annoyed a lot of people. Unless you like to sit very close, very far back, or off … Continue reading SFIFF opening night and Love & Friendship
Category: First-person Report
Friday at the PFA
Friday night, I finally got around to visiting the Pacific Film Archive's new theater in downtown Berkeley. I've been busy. The theater is lovely, with the raised seats common in new multiplexes. The screen, I would guess, about the same size as in the previous theater. The acoustics sounded very good, but since the first … Continue reading Friday at the PFA
Trains on Film Saturday report
I spent Saturday at the Rafael, where I caught three of the six movies in the Trains on Film mini-festival ending today (Sunday). I had seen all three films before, but this was a great way to see them. And not only because of the big screen and enthusiastic audience. Film historian David Thomson and … Continue reading Trains on Film Saturday report
Melvin Van Peebles, Sweet Sweetback, and Me
I finally saw the completed version of Melvin Van Peebles' ground-breaking Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song. I didn't see it when it was in theaters partly because I was a bit too young for X-rated movies. But mostly because I had already seen a rough cut. When it hit theaters, Sweetback created a sensation. Here was … Continue reading Melvin Van Peebles, Sweet Sweetback, and Me
The Martian and Dolby 3D
I attended another press screening at Dolby Labs Thursday night, and once again, it was all about a man left for dead in inhospitable territory. Only this time, instead of The Revenant, I saw The Martian. And just like last week, I'll tell you about the movie, then a bit about the technology. As you … Continue reading The Martian and Dolby 3D
The Revenant and Dolby Atmos
I attended a special screening at Dolby Labs Thursday night of The Revenant, where the movie's Oscar-nominated audio mix could be played back in the full glory of Dolby Atmos. I'll tell you about The Revenant, and also about Atmos. In that difficult-to-find point where cinema technology merges into cinema art, The Revenant feels like … Continue reading The Revenant and Dolby Atmos
Quick thoughts: Anomalisa & Hail, Caesar!
I've been busy and sick lately, and therefore haven't caught many new movies. But this past weekend, my wife and I managed to get to Berkeley's California Theater twice, where we saw Charlie Kaufman's Anomalisa and the Coen brothers' Hail, Caesar! Both are worth catching, although for very different reasons. Anomalisa Early on, I wondered … Continue reading Quick thoughts: Anomalisa & Hail, Caesar!
Sunday Classical Music Noir Citys
Sunday's Noir City was all about classical musicians; dark, evil, down-and-dirty classical musicians. Well, not quite. Humoresque Talent isn't enough to make you a great musician. You need to work hard. You have to devote yourself to your art. And you have to sleep with Joan Crawford. In Humoresque, John Garfield plays a brilliant young … Continue reading Sunday Classical Music Noir Citys
Saturday at Noir City
I attended three of the four movies screened at Noir City Saturday. They didn't all adhere to this year's theme: The Art of Darkness (ie, dark films about artists). But they ranged from reasonably entertaining to absolutely brilliant. But the movies themselves aren't the festival's only attraction. Many people dress up for Noir City, usually … Continue reading Saturday at Noir City
Rear Window and Noir City Opening Night
Friday night I came the Castro for opening night of this year's Noir City festival. They were screening one of my all-time favorites, Rear Window, along with the obscure Public Eye from 1992. After grabbing my seat in the 3rd row, I went upstairs to the mezzanine, where I examined the bookstore table. The covers … Continue reading Rear Window and Noir City Opening Night
Bayflicks 