SFIFF: Paul Schrader to be honored in this year’s Kanbar Award

April 10, 2015 ~ Lincoln Spector

The San Francisco International Film Festival just announced that writer and sometimes director Paul Schrader will receive this year's Kanbar Award for life achievement in storytelling (previously, it was life achievement in screenwriting). I guess he's a good choice. He's written at least two great films: Taxi Driver and Raging Bull. Both were directed by … Continue reading SFIFF: Paul Schrader to be honored in this year’s Kanbar Award

Richard Gere, Guillermo del Toro, and the rest of this year’s San Francisco International Film Festival

March 31, 2015March 31, 2015 ~ Lincoln Spector

This year's San Francisco International Film Festival officially launched at a San Francisco press conference Tuesday morning. It opens Thursday, April 23 with Alex Gibney’s tech documentary, Steve Jobs: the Man In the Machine. Two Thursdays later, on May 7, it will close with Experimenter, a history-based drama about psychologist Stanley Milgram, who did some … Continue reading Richard Gere, Guillermo del Toro, and the rest of this year’s San Francisco International Film Festival

Silent Film Festival announced

March 27, 2015April 7, 2015 ~ Lincoln Spector

With live music, great movies, knowledgeable guests, and enthusiastic audiences, and all set in the beautiful Castro Theater, the San Francisco Silent Film Festival is easily one of the best movie-going experiences that the Bay Area has to offer. And this intense, silent movie immersion experience is getting longer. This year, the festival is expanding … Continue reading Silent Film Festival announced

A Wilder Weekend and the PFA

February 16, 2015 ~ Lincoln Spector

As part of its series Ready for His Close-Up: The Films of Billy Wilder, the Pacific Film Archive screened three of his films over the weekend. I caught them all. Ninotchka I was delighted to discover that this Ernst Lubitsch-directed comedy was part the Wilder series. We should celebrate Wilder the writer as much as … Continue reading A Wilder Weekend and the PFA

IndieFest Preview

January 21, 2015 ~ Lincoln Spector

I've managed to preview four films that will screen at next month's IndieFest. Here's what I thought of them, from "must see" to "must miss." A Chocolate Strawberry Vanilla Imagine Milton from Office Space slowly turning into Travis Bickle. That's pretty much what you get in this very black comedy from Australia. The main … Continue reading IndieFest Preview

Even More Upcoming Film Festivals

January 11, 2015January 9, 2015 ~ Lincoln Spector

On Thursday, I told you about the upcoming Noir City and SF Sketchfest festivals. I also promised to tell you about some other upcoming festivals. Here they are: Berlin & Beyond, January 29 - February 3 The Bay Area's German language festival returns with a modest selection of movies from Germany, Austria, and the German-speaking … Continue reading Even More Upcoming Film Festivals

Upcoming Film Festivals

January 8, 2015 ~ Lincoln Spector

The end-of-the-year film festival drought is coming to an end. New festivals are on the way. Here's two that we can look forward to in the coming weeks: Noir City, January 16 - 25 Film noir festivals have become a dime a dozen, but Eddie Mueller's two-week wallow in the dark side of escapist cinema … Continue reading Upcoming Film Festivals

December at the Castro

November 26, 2014 ~ Lincoln Spector

Have you seen the Castro's Coming Soon page? Some interesting stuff coming up in December. Regular readers know that I disapprove of all the brouhaha over Gone with the Wind's 75th anniversary. I find it upsetting that a film so racist can be a beloved classic in the 21st century, with very little discussion of … Continue reading December at the Castro

Mill Valley Film Festival Preview, Part II

September 28, 2014September 28, 2014 ~ Lincoln Spector

Since I wrote Part 1, I've managed to see three additional movies that will screen at the upcoming Mill Valley Film Festival. Here's what I thought of them, in order of best to worst. A Hide and Seek Four young adults, two women and two men, move into a large and remote country house, intent … Continue reading Mill Valley Film Festival Preview, Part II

Kubrick in digital and on film

September 27, 2014September 26, 2014 ~ Lincoln Spector

Digital or film? For cinephiles, that's the great controversy of our age. And the arguments get particularly agitated when talking about classic pictures made at a time when digital projection wasn't an option. But in the coming weeks, you get your chance to watch two Stanley Kubrick classics on 35mm film, and then again on … Continue reading Kubrick in digital and on film