This week in Bay Area cinemas there's Andrei Tarkovsky, the Coen Brothers, Stanley Kubrick, Sergio Leone, and a story about the birds (but not Hitchcock's). But no festivals this week. New films opening A The Teachers' Lounge: (2023), Opera Plaza, check days & times through the weekThis exceptional German film follows the problems of a … Continue reading What’s Screening: January 12 – 18
Darkness Has No Borders at Noir City
Walls, fences, and armed guards. Borders of all kinds keep us in. But on the big screen at The Grand Lake Theater, you can get away, whether you need a heist, a prison break, another language, an illicit affair, or maybe an old-fashioned murder. Once again, Noir City brings crime to Oakland - but in … Continue reading Darkness Has No Borders at Noir City
What’s leaving Criterion at the end of January
January is a month for staying inside. (Well, it is for me.) Thanks to The Criterion Channel, there's a lot of good movies you can see at home. Here's a selection that will disappear come February. Full recommendations A+ The Lady Eve (1941) Like most great screwballs, Preston Sturges' The Lady Eve looks at class differences through … Continue reading What’s leaving Criterion at the end of January
What’s Screening: January 5 – 11
Want to discover a great new auteur from Estonia? Or maybe you can watch Anthony Hopkins playing Sigmund Freud. Then there's musicals from Singin' in the Rain to Springtime for Hitler. There's also Harold Lloyd and David Bowie – although they probably didn't know each other. All of these are on big screens in the … Continue reading What’s Screening: January 5 – 11
Movies I’ve recently seen: January 3
Here are four films worth watching, and one worth throwing away. Two are Japanese. The others are American. And as usual, the films go from best to the worst. American Fiction Floating Weeds Rustin Godzilla Minus One The Divorcee A American Fiction (2023) As a comedy and a drama, this is one of the best … Continue reading Movies I’ve recently seen: January 3
What’s Screening: Dec Friday 29 – Jan 4
We have a documentary about Israel this week. There's also science fiction from America and Russia. Billy Wilder studies office hanky-panky. How about a feature film made entirely with silhouettes. How do you fight crime while sloshed? Just follow the Nick and Nora Charles couple. New films opening theatrically A- Israelism, New Parkway (2023) ֍ … Continue reading What’s Screening: Dec Friday 29 – Jan 4
Leonard Bernstein & the MGM musical
In the 1940s and '50's, Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM) made some of the best dancing musicals ever filmed. And now, Criterion is streaming nine of these pictures. I've added two movies, making eleven. Most musicals are fantasies. Without instruments and choreography, real people don't just burst into song and dance. But there are also realistic … Continue reading Leonard Bernstein & the MGM musical
What’s Screening: December 22 – 28
Finally, I've been able to give you a weekly newsletter. Just in time for Christmas. And I don't even celebrate Christmas. New films opening theatrically A- Anselm (2023), various theaters Try to see the film in 3D. Wim Wenders found a rare, artistic use for stereoscopic cinema. Anselm Kiefer is a German artist who works in … Continue reading What’s Screening: December 22 – 28
The Official, American list of important years
Every year, the Library of Congress adds 25 films to its list of films important enough to be saved and restored. This is not a list of this year's great American movies. The Library Congress' National Film Registry looks for more than good movies. It considers old films that people are still watching, or that … Continue reading The Official, American list of important years
What’s leaving Criterion at the end of 2023
I've been having technical problems recently. And yes, you won't get the Friday newsletter this week, again. But if you subscribe to The Criterion Channel, I can tell what good movies will leave the Channel before the year ends. Full recommendations A+ My Darling Clementine (1946) By all rules of the western genre, this John … Continue reading What’s leaving Criterion at the end of 2023
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