A- Comedy Written and directed by Boots Riley I worry that people will assume that this very pointed comedy is nothing but a Get Out rip-off. Both movies combine humor, horror, and social commentary, and were made by an African-American neophyte director with a decidedly black point of view. But if you know anything about … Continue reading Sorry to Bother You, but you don’t want to miss this movie
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Movies I’ve Recently Seen: First Reformed, Friendly Persuasion, Anna Karenina, & Now Voyager
I see a lot of films at festivals. I screen films that haven't yet been released. I review classics on Blu-ray, and I revisit beloved films in series such as my current Chaplin Diary. But sometimes, I just want to see a movie at home or, better yet, in a theater. Here's my latest batch … Continue reading Movies I’ve Recently Seen: First Reformed, Friendly Persuasion, Anna Karenina, & Now Voyager
San Francisco Jewish Film Festival opens July 19 (my birthday)
The Bay Area hosts a lot of what I call identity film festivals. These concentrate on a particular group of people - both on the screen and in the audience. We have film festivals for Asians, South Asians, Asian-Americans, LGBTQ, Iranians, Irish, women, and atheists. I can't properly cover them all. But I try to … Continue reading San Francisco Jewish Film Festival opens July 19 (my birthday)
A Tale of Two Munchausens
The real Baron Munchausen (yes, there was one) never went to the moon. He did not ride on a cannonball. And he certainly wasn't swallowed by a giant fish. But the 18th-century aristocrat gained a reputation of telling outrageous tales of his military exploits. In 1785, when the Baron was still alive, Rudolf Erich Raspe … Continue reading A Tale of Two Munchausens
Movies I’ve Recently Seen: Get Carter, The Big Sleep, & 20,000 Years in Sing Sing
What with the big film festival and all, I've had very little time in the last month to simply watch movies. But here are three I managed to catch. All of them are old crime movies, and I saw all three on FilmStruck. I also saw The Big Lebowski at the Castro, but since I've … Continue reading Movies I’ve Recently Seen: Get Carter, The Big Sleep, & 20,000 Years in Sing Sing
Chaplin Diary, Part 8: Early First National
Charlie Chaplin's contract with First National turned him from an employee to an independent contractor. He built his own studio, hired his own employees, and financed his own films. First National just handled distribution. Chaplin was required to produce eight movies of two reels or more, over the course the 18 months. It took him … Continue reading Chaplin Diary, Part 8: Early First National
Movies I’ve Recently Seen: Mudbound, The Post, & High Sierra
2017 was a great year for motion pictures, even if it was a lousy year for everything else. In the last week, I've seen two excellent films from last year (one of which was barely shown in the Bay Area) and revisited one from another great movie year (that was even worse in the real … Continue reading Movies I’ve Recently Seen: Mudbound, The Post, & High Sierra
