My wife and I attended A Conversation with T Bone Burnett at the San Francisco International Film Festival yesterday evening. Critic Elvis Mitchell moderated, interviewing Burnett and, briefly at the end, taking reader questions. Every so often they would stop for clips from movies Burnett had worked on. A singer, songwriter, musician, producer, and musical … Continue reading SFIFF: A Conversation with T Bone Burnett
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The Return of Cerrito Classics
I’ve just received word that the Cerrito will revive its old Cerrito Classics series, now running the second Thursday night of each month. The series begins April 8 with Diva. Other films on the schedule include Chinatown, Born Yesterday, Jaws, To Catch a Thief, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Rosemary’s Baby, The Red Shoes, and White Christmas.
Best Films You Can Finally See
Near the end of both 2006 and 2008, I wrote Top Ten lists of very little value (you’ll find them here and here). They listed the best new films I saw at festivals over the past year that hadn’t received regular releases. These were, in a sense, lists of the best films of the year … Continue reading Best Films You Can Finally See
SFIFF Report: Wednesday, May 6
I got to the Festival in time to see two films yesterday. I liked both of them, but wasn't blown away by either. Can Go Through Skin. After barely escaping an attempted murder, Marieke (Rifka Lodeizen) moves to the country to find peace and quiet. She finds a warm and friendly community, and even an … Continue reading SFIFF Report: Wednesday, May 6
Film Noir Fest Coming to Roxie
Just in case the San Francisco International Film Festival leaves you wanting movies that are short, cheap, to-the-point, and both entertaining and depressing, the Roxie will offer a solution: From May 15 to the 28, they'll screen I Wake Up Dreaming: the Haunted World of the B Film Noir, a series of 29 little-known, low-budget … Continue reading Film Noir Fest Coming to Roxie
Parkway Closing
The word went out this morning: Sunday is the last day for the Parkway Speakeasy Theater. This is very sudden. Last night I worked on next week's newsletter, and looked through the Parkway schedule for upcoming special events. There were several. This morning, I read they won't be happening. Founded 12 years ago, the Parkway … Continue reading Parkway Closing
The New PFA Schedule and the New New Deal
I got the new Pacific Film Archive schedule. As usual, there's a lot of interesting stuff. There's Women’s Cinema from Tangiers to Tehran, a film-lecture course uses film to understand Buddhism, a screening of Reefer Madness with a "totally dope soundtrack by Cal student DJs," and a retrospective of Agnès Varda, the one woman director … Continue reading The New PFA Schedule and the New New Deal
The Wrestler
Yes, Mickey Rourke and Marisa Tomei both give outstanding performances; in Rourke's case, it was as physically risky as it was emotionally so. And yes, the movie took me into a subculture I had never seen before--that strange pseudo-sport called Pro Wrestling--which I'll probably never look at the same way, again. These guys aren't really … Continue reading The Wrestler
Cinequest on the Way
Cinequest runs in San Jose from February 25 through March 8, with "250 screenings, 150+ films, with 80 U.S., North American, and World Premieres." In addition to all the new films they'll be showing (none of which I've seen), here are a couple of interesting events: How often do you get to see D. W. … Continue reading Cinequest on the Way
Fellini’s Amarcord
How's this for weird: I was actually in film school when Fellini’s Amarcord came out. And I was a big fan of Fellini at that time, with both La Strada and 8 1/2 high on my list of the greatest films of all time (8 1/2 is still there). But until Friday night (when I … Continue reading Fellini’s Amarcord
Bayflicks 