I've already told you about Modern Cinema and the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival (although there'll be more to say on that one). But there are two other festivals competing for your attention next month - and both over the same weekend. Charlie Chaplin Days Friday, July 13 - Sunday, July 15 Every year, the … Continue reading Santa Fe & Charlie Chaplin: More July Festivals
What’s Screening: June 22 – 28
Fred and Ginger meet Preston Sturges. Ingmar Bergman makes us laugh about sex. Kurosawa takes on Shakespeare. Wes Anderson and Greta Garbo take you to two very grand hotels. And it all happens this week on Bay Area movie screens. Festivals Frameline closes Sunday Promising events Grand Hotel, Pacific Film Archive, Sunday, 7:00 It's been … Continue reading What’s Screening: June 22 – 28
San Francisco Jewish Film Festival opens July 19 (my birthday)
The Bay Area hosts a lot of what I call identity film festivals. These concentrate on a particular group of people - both on the screen and in the audience. We have film festivals for Asians, South Asians, Asian-Americans, LGBTQ, Iranians, Irish, women, and atheists. I can't properly cover them all. But I try to … Continue reading San Francisco Jewish Film Festival opens July 19 (my birthday)
Chaplin Diary, Part 12: The Gold Rush
As I chronologically move through Charlie Chaplin's work as a director, I now come to his first feature-length masterpiece, The Gold Rush. His 1925 epic belongs on any list of great films - including mine. I've already written two articles on The Gold Rush: a report on a screening with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, … Continue reading Chaplin Diary, Part 12: The Gold Rush
What’s Screening: June 15 – 21
Bergman illustrates Mozart. Antonioni does adventure. Garbo plays the Queen. And Keaton wrecks the house. All that, plus a full week of LGBTQ films in Bay Area movie theaters. Festivals Frameline continues through this week and beyond Promising events McKellen: Playing the Part, Embarcadero Center, Shattuck, Aquarius, Tuesday, 7:00 The great Shakespearean actor (and movie star) … Continue reading What’s Screening: June 15 – 21
Critique of Macho: The Big Country on Blu-ray
William Wyler's big-budget, large-format, star-studded epic, The Big Country, just may be the first anti-western. It condemns, rather than celebrates, the macho behavior of the mythical cowboy. The hero only fires a gun once, and he's not aiming at anyone. Gregory Peck plays that hero, a sea captain named James McKay, who's traded in his … Continue reading Critique of Macho: The Big Country on Blu-ray
Black Powers coming to Modern Cinema
Black filmmakers illuminate the African-American experience in SFFILM and SFMOMA's latest Modern Cinema series, Black Powers: Reframing Hollywood. The series/festival runs from July 12–29. As with all Modern Cinema series, this one takes place at SFMOMA's Phyllis Wattis Theater. Neither organization is calling this a festival, but I think the title fits, because you can … Continue reading Black Powers coming to Modern Cinema
A Tale of Two Munchausens
The real Baron Munchausen (yes, there was one) never went to the moon. He did not ride on a cannonball. And he certainly wasn't swallowed by a giant fish. But the 18th-century aristocrat gained a reputation of telling outrageous tales of his military exploits. In 1785, when the Baron was still alive, Rudolf Erich Raspe … Continue reading A Tale of Two Munchausens
What’s Screening: June 8 – 14
Transgender prostitutes, unruly composers, hungry aliens, two film festivals, and three new B+ movies. And all of this is happening on Bay Area movie screens this week. Festivals DocFest continues through the week Frameline opens Thursday New films opening B+ Filmworker, Opera Plaza, Shattuck, opens Friday Like many great artists, Stanley Kubrick was an obsessive … Continue reading What’s Screening: June 8 – 14
A Boy Like Jake should be part of the film
B+ Family drama Written by Daniel Pearle; based on his stage play Directed by Silas Howard Early on, I found myself wondering if we really need this story? Do I care if this white, comfortable, Brooklyn couple get their four-year-old son (the Jake of the title) into the right private school? But as the story … Continue reading A Boy Like Jake should be part of the film
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