If you like to be scared out of your theatre seat, you may want to visit the Stanford over the next two months. Silicon Valley's classic movie palace opens its new series, Hitchcock and Other Masters of Suspense, this Friday. It closes Sunday, June 10. All films will be screened in 35mm. The series starts … Continue reading Hitchcock and Others at the Stanford
Category: Upcoming & Local
April at the Castro
For almost two weeks of this month, the San Francisco International Film Festival will take over the Castro. But since I'm covering that festival elsewhere, I'll stick here to the other two and a half weeks. San Francisco's grand movie palace will screen 19 feature films from the 20th century; in other words, movies that … Continue reading April at the Castro
SF Silent Film Fest Bigger (and hopefully better)
How much moviegoing can a man in his 60s take in a short period of time? Come late May and early June, I think I'm going to find out. This year's San Francisco Silent Film Festival will last a full four days; five if you include opening night (Wednesday, May 30). That's one more day … Continue reading SF Silent Film Fest Bigger (and hopefully better)
San Francisco Film Festival Preview, Part 3: Funny Nazis, a damaged rodeo rider, Hal Ashby, James Dean, and a pot-selling old man
Here's my last batch of San Francisco International Film Festival mini-reviews before the festival actually gets underway. As usual, they're in order from must-see to must-avoid. A+ To Be or Not To Be (original, 1942 version) The Nazis conquered Poland with frightening speed. But they prove no match for Carol Lombard and Jack Benny in Ernst … Continue reading San Francisco Film Festival Preview, Part 3: Funny Nazis, a damaged rodeo rider, Hal Ashby, James Dean, and a pot-selling old man
Animation Week at the Parkway
San Francisco International isn't the only film festival launching next week. The New Parkway is running Animation Week from Friday, April 6 through the following Thursday, April 12. The selection includes the traditional kiddie fare, as well as movies that would probably send your young child into therapy. Movies I've seen and reviewed In order … Continue reading Animation Week at the Parkway
San Francisco Film Festival Preview, Part 2: Racism, homophobia, war, and children with incarcerated parents
Here's four more film you might want to see at the San Francisco International Film Festival: A The Miseducation of Cameron Post In the 1990s, two high-school girls get caught having sex. One of them (Chloe Grace Moretz), is sent to an ultra-Christian camp intended to cure teenagers of SSA (Same-Sex Attraction). Initially, she views … Continue reading San Francisco Film Festival Preview, Part 2: Racism, homophobia, war, and children with incarcerated parents
San Francisco Film Festival Preview, Part 1
The San Francisco International Film Festival opens two weeks from tonight. Tickets are on sale. Here are four films you might want to see…or want to skip. As usual, they're in order from best to worst. A I Am Not a Witch In an unnamed African country (shot in Zambia), villagers accuse a young girl … Continue reading San Francisco Film Festival Preview, Part 1
This year’s San Francisco International Film Festival announced
Get ready for a massive injection of cinema. The 61st San Francisco International Film Festival opens April 4 and closes two weeks later on April 17. And you know what that means? For the third year in a row, the SFilm Fest conflicts with Passover. You would think that someone would check a Jewish calendar. The … Continue reading This year’s San Francisco International Film Festival announced
Previews of the Dark Side of the Dream
Attaining the American Dream isn't easy. Sometimes, it's impossible. The Dark Side of the Dream, a four-day film festival at the Roxie, screens six double bills that dramatize the ways our system doesn't work. The films date from 1933 to 1964. Most of them could be reasonably categorized as noir. The festival runs March 23 … Continue reading Previews of the Dark Side of the Dream
Coming Up in March
Want to see classic movies on the big screen next month? Here are a few March offerings: Stanford Paramount Pictures had an incredible run in the early 1930s - despite economic disasters that almost destroyed the studio. Just consider the comedies that came out in 1933: Duck Soup, Design for Living, International House, I'm No … Continue reading Coming Up in March
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