Film noir led to apocalyptic cinema. When human society has no clear moral boundaries, the end of the world is but a plot twist away. At least that's the argument that Peter Labuza sets out to prove in his new, very short book, Approaching The End: Imagining Apocalypse in American Film. I can't say that … Continue reading Approaching The End: Imagining Apocalypse in American Film
What’s Screening: December 12 – 18
Only one festival, Another Hole in the Head, runs this week. It closes Monday. A- Birdman, Balboa, opens Friday. Michael Keaton plays a has-been movie star, who may or may not have superpowers, hoping to gain artistic respectability by writing, directing, and performing in a Broadway play. Edward Norton plays an actor who already has … Continue reading What’s Screening: December 12 – 18
Fantasy for the family that thinks together: Time Bandits on Criterion Blu-ray
At his creative height in the 1980s, Terry Gilliam wrote and directed some of the dizziest, imaginative fantasies ever projected. He would mash up well-known myths, social satire, amazing (but cheap) special effects, the surreal comedy of Monty Python (he was, after all, their token Yank), and a busily baroque visual style all his own. … Continue reading Fantasy for the family that thinks together: Time Bandits on Criterion Blu-ray
Dolby Stereo and the sound of the 1980s
Think of the films you love most from the late 70s through the early 90s. Raging Bull, The Last Waltz, Planes, Trains & Automobiles, The Princess Bride, Stop Making Sense, The Terminator, Goodfellas. There's a good chance that you may never hear the original soundtrack again. For 50 years after the talkie revolution, the optical, … Continue reading Dolby Stereo and the sound of the 1980s
The Magick Lantern–waiting to be reborn
The Magick Lantern, a tiny theater in Point Richmond, opened early this year, showing recent arthouse fare on weekends and classics Thursday night. I added it my Theaters link list immediately, but I never made it there to see a movie. Then, in October, before I had a chance to visit the Magick Latern, it … Continue reading The Magick Lantern–waiting to be reborn
What’s Screening: December 5 – 11
If the lack of film festivals this time of year scares you, we've got a festival that will scare you even more. Another Hole in the Head opens tonight (Friday) and runs through this week and beyond. A Wild, Kabuki, California, Guild, opens Friday. Judging from this adaptation of her memoirs, Cheryl Strayed led a … Continue reading What’s Screening: December 5 – 11
Wild: Hiking, Health, and Heroin
A drama Written by Nick Hornby, from a memoir by Cheryl Strayed Directed by Jean-Marc Vallée Judging from this adaptation of her memoirs, Cheryl Strayed led a pretty wild life, until she walked into the real wild and got herself together. I don't know or care whether the film is accurate to Strayed's memoirs or … Continue reading Wild: Hiking, Health, and Heroin
Watching Interstellar in 70mm
On director Christopher Nolan's orders, Paramount released Interstellar on film as well as digitally. I believe this is the first new movie released that way in over a year. And not just 35mm. it's also being released in conventional 70mm and 70mm Imax, along with various digital formats. I've already posted my review of the … Continue reading Watching Interstellar in 70mm
One more quick thought about Interstellar
This didn't get into my original review of Interstellar, but I wanted to share it anyway. In the much less ambitious but far more enjoyable sci-fi blockbuster Independence Day (from 1996), evil aliens attack Earth with the intention to wipe out the human race and make our planet their own. Their motive: They mistreated their … Continue reading One more quick thought about Interstellar
Physics Saturday: Interstellar and The Theory of Everything
I saw two very different movies on Saturday, but both were about physics. Well, sort of. Physics and fiction don't blend together unless you can work in suspense, romance, tragedy, horrible diseases, and special effects. Although one movie is a big, expensive Hollywood sci-fi blockbuster, and the other a British Indiewood biopic, their titles are … Continue reading Physics Saturday: Interstellar and The Theory of Everything
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