Just as I started to write again, a new Pacific Film Archive schedule shows up in the mail. Plenty of stuff I’d like to see. They’ve got a Ingrid Bergman festival with an interesting twist: nothing from Hollywood. Between November 4 and December 17, the PFA will screen nine European features (and one collection of … Continue reading New PFA Schedule
San Francisco Silent Film Festival Winter Event
I missed the big, three-day festival in July, and I’m determined to make this one. On Saturday, December 12, the Castro will come alive with crowds, film, and live music with four feature films—one a 162-minute epic—for the 5th annual San Francisco Silent Film Festival Winter Event. It will start at 11:30 with Chang: A … Continue reading San Francisco Silent Film Festival Winter Event
What’s Screening: October 23 – 29
I haven’t done one of these in a long time, and I’m not really prepared, and I’m just trying to get my feet wet again, so bear with me. Okay, festival news: I haven’t been following the festivals, but these ones are going on right now: Cinema by the Bay, through Sunday. Doc Fest, through … Continue reading What’s Screening: October 23 – 29
I’m Back
More than four months after my last post (not counting the Soul Power review, which I’d written months before), I’m resurrecting Bayflicks. Without going into details, let’s just say I have a very busy summer, and not all of it was busy in a good way. I got to very few movies during that time, … Continue reading I’m Back
Soul Power
Music Documentary Directed by Jeffrey Levy-Hinte In 1974, many of the greatest African and African-American musicians alive came together in Zaire for a big all-star concert attached to the legendary Muhammad Ali/George Foreman fight. The fight was delayed, but the concert went on as scheduled. But the film version of the Zaire ‘74 concert was … Continue reading Soul Power
What’s Screening: June 19 – 25
Frameline continues through the week. A Katyn, Kabuki, Rafael, opens Friday. In the spring of 1940, Soviet special forces massacred over 15,000 Polish prisoners of war, including the father of future filmmaker Andrzej Wajda. After the war, Stalin’s government insisted that the Nazis were to blame and suppressed the truth. Wajda tells the story of … Continue reading What’s Screening: June 19 – 25
Bayflicks Slowing Down for Awhile
My life is extremely busy these days. I have little time to see movies, let alone write about them. I don’t foresee that changing for a couple of months, at least. For that reason, I’m putting Bayflicks on semi-hold. I’ll try to post the weekly newsletter, although it will probably be short. And if I … Continue reading Bayflicks Slowing Down for Awhile
What’s Screening: June 12 – 18
Frameline, the LGBT festival, opens Thursday at the Castro. Other than that, not much to report, if only because I’ve been just too busy. But a very special event is happening tonight in Fremont: A Around the Bay, Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum, Friday, 8:00. Sparse and utilitarian, Alejandro Adams' low-key drama gets right to … Continue reading What’s Screening: June 12 – 18
Around the Bay and My Personal Appearance
A small film I’ve been championing for over a year, Alejandro Adams' Around the Bay, comes to the Niles Essanay Silent Film Museum this Friday night (June 12). This low-key drama never got a theatrical release, and isn’t available on Netflix. You don’t get many chances to see it. You can read my original review. … Continue reading Around the Bay and My Personal Appearance
Kurosawa Diary, Part 9: Ikiru
After the overlong, stultifying mess of The Idiot, we come to one of the great masterpieces of world cinema. The title, Ikiru, means “to live” (or so I’ve been told), and I’d be hard pressed to think of a better film about the mortality that shapes and shadows our lives. In fact, I’d be hard-pressed … Continue reading Kurosawa Diary, Part 9: Ikiru
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