SF Silent Film Fest, Part 1

May 8, 2022 ~ Lincoln Spector

This year's San Francisco Silent Film Festival opened Thursday night - the first one since 2019. Rather than write about all the films I've seen so far, I'll give you some highlights and lowlights. But first, here's a taste of what the Castro Theater has become now that it's owned by Another Planet Entertainment (APE). … Continue reading SF Silent Film Fest, Part 1

Movies I’ve recently seen: Almost Famous ֍ Young Mr. Lincoln ֍ Planet of the Apes ֍ The Saphead

April 18, 2022April 17, 2022 ~ Lincoln Spector

While reviewing films for the SFFilm Festival, I found some time to just enjoy some old movies. Click a picture's title to find how you can see one. A- Almost Famous (2000) The story would be unbelievable if similar events happened to writer/director Cameron Crowe in his adolescence. In 1973, a 15-year-old boy gets a … Continue reading Movies I’ve recently seen: Almost Famous ֍ Young Mr. Lincoln ֍ Planet of the Apes ֍ The Saphead

Movies I’ve recently seen: The Birdcage ֍ Cyrano De Begerac ֍ 5 Fingers ֍ Doughboys

March 30, 2022March 29, 2022 ~ Lincoln Spector

Another four movies I've seen for the first time. None of them are masterpieces, and none of them are awful. They were all made in the 20th century. Click a film's title to find how to stream the movie. As usual, I'm going from best to worst. B+ The Birdcage (1996) The American movie version … Continue reading Movies I’ve recently seen: The Birdcage ֍ Cyrano De Begerac ֍ 5 Fingers ֍ Doughboys

The San Francisco Silent Film Festival is coming back

March 28, 2022March 28, 2022 ~ Lincoln Spector

I love silent movies - especially with live music. I also love the San Francisco Silent Film Festival. You can hear various musical ensembles. People dress for the occasion (well, I don't). You can take a seat for the whole day, usually next to people you know. Between movies, you can talk to important preservationists … Continue reading The San Francisco Silent Film Festival is coming back

What’s Screening: January 7 – 13

January 7, 2022January 6, 2022 ~ Lincoln Spector

I dedicate this week's newsletter to film historian and filmmaker Peter Bogdanovich (July 30, 1939 – January 6, 2022). Considering what Omicron is doing all over the world, we have a surprising number of vintage movies playing in real theaters. We've got major works from Peter Jackson, F.W. Murnau, Wong Kar Wai, The Coen Brothers, … Continue reading What’s Screening: January 7 – 13

National Silent Movie Day…at home

September 27, 2021September 26, 2021 ~ Lincoln Spector

This coming Wednesday is National Silent Movie Day, which makes it a perfect day to start exploring silent cinema. Here are eight of my nine favorite silent feature films. (The other, Napoleon is too big for most theaters, let alone your living room.) I'm not listing them best to worst, as I usually do. They're … Continue reading National Silent Movie Day…at home

What’s Leaving Criterion when March ends

March 22, 2021December 14, 2022 ~ Lincoln Spector

At the end of every month, the Criterion Channel trims its collection of films to make room for others (probably because of contract issues). Thankfully, they give us warning, so we can watch a film before it goes away. If you're a Criterion subscriber, catch some of these before you wake up and discover it's … Continue reading What’s Leaving Criterion when March ends

More movies free to stream from Kanopy

January 26, 2021January 26, 2021 ~ Lincoln Spector

If you have a library card, you can probably stream up to ten movies for free monthly from Kanopy. Here are eleven dramas and comedies that are "New on Kanopy," although I don't know how new they actually are to the streaming service: A The Secret of Roan Inish (1994) At his height, John Sayles' … Continue reading More movies free to stream from Kanopy

Silent movies thru a ’60s filter: The Comic

August 26, 2020 ~ Lincoln Spector

I've wanted for decades to revisit Carl Reiner's dramatic comedy, The Comic. When I first saw it in 1969, I knew almost nothing about silent films. More than 50 years later, they're a life-long hobby. I first saw The Comic when I was in my sophomore year in high school. Around that time, Harold Lloyd … Continue reading Silent movies thru a ’60s filter: The Comic