A few hardtop theaters are opening up, but despite all the precautions they're taking, I'm still not ready to visit one. But a lot of fine films are playing in makeshift drive-ins. Festivals The Napa Valley Film Festival closes Sunday So does the Transgender Film Festival New films opening B The Climb, in real movie … Continue reading What’s Screening: November 13 – 19
Tag: Gene Kelly
What’s Screening: March 6 – 12
With coronavirus spreading, it's a scary time to go to the movies. The Stanford is closed until further notice, ending or delaying the Kurosawa series. Amazon, Netflix and other companies have dropped out of SXSW - a major technology and film festival in Austin. But if you have the courage to go to an arthouse … Continue reading What’s Screening: March 6 – 12
What’s Screening: December 27 – January 2
How can you close 2019 and open 2020 in Bay Area movie theaters? The Lark has a major New Year's Eve Party, including a movie. But there's a whole week of good films, including works by Paul Thomas Anderson, Alfred Hitchcock, Louis Malle, Harold Lloyd, Ernst Lubitsch, Agnès Varda, and more. New Year's Eve Events … Continue reading What’s Screening: December 27 – January 2
Movies I’ve Recently Seen: Dark Waters, Summer Stock, & High Anxiety
I see a lot of films at festivals - always with a press pass. I screen movies before they're opened so I can review them. But I also see pictures like everyone else; buying a ticket or streaming at home. If I see the film that way, and have never written about before, it goes … Continue reading Movies I’ve Recently Seen: Dark Waters, Summer Stock, & High Anxiety
Movies I’ve Recently Seen: The Pirate, The King, Harriet, & The Curse of the Cat People
Since my last Recently Seen piece, I've revisited two films I hadn't seen in ages, along two new ones. (Of course, I've seen other movies over that time, but I either wrote about them elsewhere or didn't feel the need to write about them at all.) A- The Pirate (1948), Criterion Channel Cole Porter's songs … Continue reading Movies I’ve Recently Seen: The Pirate, The King, Harriet, & The Curse of the Cat People
Good movies, but strangely appropriate double bills
The double bill is almost a lost art. Here in the Bay Area, only the Castro and the Stanford regularly give you two movies for one admission. (I once had to explain the word intermission to my daughter.) Most double bills contain two films with matching moods or belong to the same genre. You don't … Continue reading Good movies, but strangely appropriate double bills
What’s Screening: November 16 – 22
The week that ends in Thanksgiving doesn't have much for cinephiles…at least not this year in the Bay Area. But we do have the Addams Family, Charlie Kaufman, angels over Berlin, and three movies shot in three-strip Technicolor. Also, three film festivals. Festivals The 3rd i South Asian Film Festival reincarnates itself for one day … Continue reading What’s Screening: November 16 – 22
What’s Screening: October 26 – November 1
Halloween approaches, and that tells you plenty about what’s on Bay Area movie screens this week. And if you don't like scary movies, you can attend one of more of the Bay Area's current four film festivals. Festivals The United Nations Association Film Festival continues through Sunday The Berlin & Beyond Autumn Showcase opens Thursday … Continue reading What’s Screening: October 26 – November 1
Gotta Dance: Gene Kelly at the Stanford
For some time now, I've been hoping that some local rep house would do a series on MGM musicals from the 40s and 50s. They could call the series The Lion Dances. For the next four weeks, we have something close. Starting this Friday, the Stanford will run what they're calling the Gene Kelly Film … Continue reading Gotta Dance: Gene Kelly at the Stanford
What’s Screening: August 10 – 16
Jim Jarmusch, Gary Cooper, Andrei Tarkovsky, and Gene Kelly grace Bay Area movie theaters this week. Also, one film festival. Warning: I had to write this newsletter two weeks early. It may be missing several worthwhile screenings. Festivals The Broncho Billy Silent Film Festival opens tonight and runs through Sunday New films opening A The … Continue reading What’s Screening: August 10 – 16
