Last night, Turner Classic Movies and Fathom--a company that distributes high-definition operas and stage plays to movie theaters--presented Casablanca in 485 theaters--mostly or entirely big multiplexes--across the USA. Needless to say, the movie was digitally projected. The event was tied to Casablanca's 70th anniversary. In fact, the show was officially titled Turner Classic Movies Presents … Continue reading Watching Casablanca, Digitally Projected, at a Big Multiplex
What’s Screening: March 16 – 22
Both the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival and the San Francisco Dance Film Festival continue through Sunday. The Bengali Film Fest opens today (Friday) and continues through Tuesday. B- Peaches Christ presents Pam Grier as Coffy, Jackie Brown, and herself, Castro, Saturday, 8:00. The B- grade goes to Coffy, as I haven’t seen … Continue reading What’s Screening: March 16 – 22
Great Directors and a Catholic Education
Let me start with a quote from Roger Ebert’s autobiography, Life Itself: In my childhood the Church arched high over everything. I was awed by its ceremonies. Years later I agreed with Pauline Kael when she said that the three greatest American directors of the 1970s—Scorsese, Altman, and Coppola—had derived much of their artistic richness … Continue reading Great Directors and a Catholic Education
Children of Paradise: Mystery of the Second Credits
Like a lot of long epics, Marcel Carné's Children of Paradise has an intermission. But there's something odd about it. When the intermission is over, Part II begins with a full repeat of Part I's opening credits, which is then followed by a brief summary of Part I's action. Both seem pointless. Carné wanted to … Continue reading Children of Paradise: Mystery of the Second Credits
Children of Paradise
Something struck me as I watched Children of Paradise Saturday at the Castro. The main characters are, at heart, all extraordinarily selfish. Even when expressing deep and undying love, they're thinking only of their own needs and desires. They want to own the object of their adoration, but they don't see that object as a … Continue reading Children of Paradise
What’s Screening: March 9 – 15
Cinequest runs through Sunday, and the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival continues through the week. The San Francisco Dance Film Festival opens Friday. A Children of Paradise, Castro, Saturday. Shot while the Nazi occupation of Paris fell apart, Children of Paradise may be the most ecstatically French film ever made. A three-hour epic … Continue reading What’s Screening: March 9 – 15
The Challenges of Digital Projection, Part 3: Preservation
In my first two pieces on the conversion to digital projection, I covered what the conversion would do to theaters and how it would likely effect small distributors and classic film presentation. In this final installment, I discuss the scariest part of all: Will studios and archives be able to preserve their motion pictures in … Continue reading The Challenges of Digital Projection, Part 3: Preservation
What’s Screening: March 2 – 8
The SF Green Festival opened on Wednesday, but I just found out about it on Thursday. It runs through next Wednesday. Cinequest is on and will continue to run this week and beyond. Another pre-code festival, Hollywood Before the Code: Nasty-Ass Films For a Nasty-Ass World, opens Friday and runs through the week. And the … Continue reading What’s Screening: March 2 – 8
Blu-ray Review: Manhattan
Woody Allen followed the triumph of Annie Hall with a dead-serious drama that few people saw and even fewer liked: Interiors (Confession: I haven't seen it). Luckily for his career, Allen followed Interiors with Manhattan. Like Annie Hall, Manhattan is a realistic, character-driven comedy about love, romance, and how the sexual urge messes up our … Continue reading Blu-ray Review: Manhattan
The Challenges of Digital Projection, Part 2: Distribution
As the theatrical film industry moves to digital projection, will we still be able to watch independent films and classic movies on the big screen? Last week I covered one major issue: How will small, independent theaters finance expensive new projectors and the servers required to run them? This week I'm covering the other side … Continue reading The Challenges of Digital Projection, Part 2: Distribution
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