Martin Scorsese doesn't only make films. For the last thirty years, he has also been restoring old films through his Film Foundation. The Criterion Channel is now streaming a selection of 27 films that Scorsese has restored. I haven't seen all of them. Here are nine out of the 27 that I have seen and … Continue reading Criterion & The Film Foundation
Tag: film
What’s Screening: Oct. 21 – 27
What can you see on Bay Area big screens this week? Two of the best of Hitchcock. The looney, and sexy, world of Max Fleischer. Also, there's a very disturbing post-Holocaust thriller, Mel Brooks' Halloween treat, the world's most Catholic horror flick, and Charlie Chaplin with live music. Festivals & Series The Albany Filmfest closes … Continue reading What’s Screening: Oct. 21 – 27
What’s Screening: July 29 – August 4
It's quite a week for vintage cinema in Bay Area theaters. Both Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin will screen (and not on the same day). There are films from Billy Wilder, Alfred Hitchcock, William Wyler, Sam Fuller, Christopher Nolan, and the Wachowskis. Festivals The Broncho Billy & Friends Silent Film Festival runs through the weekend … Continue reading What’s Screening: July 29 – August 4
What’s Screening: April 16 – 22
The Sonoma International Film Festival continues through Sunday, and the San Francisco International Film Festival opens Thursday. And we’ve got an earthquake to commemorate. A- The Palm Beach Story, Stanford, Saturday through Tuesday. No one wrote and directed screwball comedies as well as Preston Sturges, and if this one doesn’t quite come up to the brilliant … Continue reading What’s Screening: April 16 – 22
What’s Screening: April 9 – 15
This is a great week for silent movie lovers. We’ve got The Gold Rush with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, Sunrise with organ accompaniment (it usually plays with the original Movietone track), and Sherlock Jr. with hip-hop. On the festival beat, the Sonoma International Film Festival starts its four-day run on Thursday. A The Gold … Continue reading What’s Screening: April 9 – 15
What’s Screening: April 2 – 8
I’m trying to get back into the swing of things after my mother’s death. Expect this newsletter to be short. I missed the San Francisco International Film Festival press conference on Tuesday, but I have the press kit. I’ll get to it probably on Sunday. B+ The President’s Analyst, Castro, Wednesday. This little comedy from … Continue reading What’s Screening: April 2 – 8
What’s Screening: March 19 – 25
The Asian American Film Festival plays through Sunday, and the Tiburon International Film Festival continue through the week. Creature Features Presents Horror Express, Balboa, Thursday, 7:00. Bay area film buffs old enough to remember TV before the VCR have fond memories of KTVU (channel 2)’s late night series Creature Features. Each week, host Bob Wilkins--or … Continue reading What’s Screening: March 19 – 25
What’s Screening: March 12 – 18
Slim pickings this week. If it wasn’t for the Stanford’s Kurosawa series, there would hardly be anything. I hope to soon get back into the festival routine, which would give me much more to write about for weeks like this one. The Asian American Film Festival continues through the week. And the Tiburon International Film … Continue reading What’s Screening: March 12 – 18
Kurosawa Diary, Part 13: The Lower Depths
Akira Kurosawa turned two classic European stage plays into Japanese films in 1957. But while the first of these adaptations, Throne of Blood, is exciting, action-packed, and expressionistic, the second, The Lower Depths, is dialog-heavy and relentlessly realistic. I was also going to call it low-key, but I realized that wasn’t quite accurate. There’s a … Continue reading Kurosawa Diary, Part 13: The Lower Depths
The Oscars
Hey, didn’t I predict last week that Cameron would lose to Bigelow? Really, the give-away was that Avatar wasn’t even nominated for Best Original Screenplay. Just as the Best Picture winner usually takes Best Director, it also generally gets one of the two screenwriting awards. Although my favorite nominee was actually Precious, I’m delighted that … Continue reading The Oscars
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