As silent movies died and the talkies took over, movies became racier. The jokes got raunchier. The gowns were more revealing. And the bad girl could get the good guy – or maybe two good guys. This so-called "Pre-Code era" died in 1934, when the censors of the Production Code Administration took away much of the fun. … Continue reading Pre-Code Paramount on the Criterion Channel
Tag: Josef von Sternberg
What’s Screening: August 19 – 25
In Bay Area moviegoing this week: A Powell/Pressburger film I’ve yet to see. A Kurosawa double bill. Spike Lee’s best film free in the open air. Movies by Howard Hawks and Samuel Fuller. And for the first time in movie history, a handsome man lights a cigarette and says the immortal words, “Bond. James Bond.” … Continue reading What’s Screening: August 19 – 25
What’s Screening: August 5 – 11
A lot of vintage movies will play on Bay Area big screens this week. The Stanford is playing a Gary Cooper double bill. The Roxie screens Taxi Driver. The Rafael continues its Pixar series. The Thing stays at the New Mission for several days. BAMPFA continues its Sam Fuller series, while the New Parkway has … Continue reading What’s Screening: August 5 – 11
Pre-Code Paramount at the Criterion Channel
As silent movies died and the talkies took over, movies became racier. The jokes got raunchier. The gowns were more revealing. And the bad girl could get the good guy - or maybe two good guys. This so-called "Pre-Code era" died in 1934, when the censors of the Production Code Administration took away much of … Continue reading Pre-Code Paramount at the Criterion Channel
Movies I’ve recently seen: Nomadland | Judas and the Black Messiah | Morocco & March of the Wooden Soldiers
Here again are two new films that everybody's talking about and two films made more than 80 years ago. That wasn't intended. A Nomadland (2020) After Fern loses her husband, job, and home (Frances McDormand), she goes on the road in her van, working temporary jobs, getting by, and befriending other "nomads." She doesn't consider … Continue reading Movies I’ve recently seen: Nomadland | Judas and the Black Messiah | Morocco & March of the Wooden Soldiers
Movies I’ve Recently Seen: Harnessed the Wind | The New World | Promising Young Woman | Yentl | Dishonored
Here are five movies I saw recently; four for the first time. The other I watched before I started writing about every film I saw. A The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019) What a powerful story! A small, African village is on the brink of death. The lack of water, caused in part by government … Continue reading Movies I’ve Recently Seen: Harnessed the Wind | The New World | Promising Young Woman | Yentl | Dishonored
1928: The peak and the fall
I don't believe in golden ages and "great film years." Every year since the beginning of cinema has had good and bad films. But there's something special about 1928. At least in America, it was the artistic pinnacle of silent film. And yet it was also the year where silence began to die. Movies kept … Continue reading 1928: The peak and the fall
Three silent classics by Josef von Sternberg, now together on Criterion Blu-ray
When cinephiles consider Josef von Sternberg, they usually think about beautiful, erotic images of Marlene Dietrich, set in exotic, far-off places but shot entirely on the Paramount lot. Yet before he met Dietrich or made a talkie, he created three stunning silent dramas that are among his best work. These three films, Underworld, The Last … Continue reading Three silent classics by Josef von Sternberg, now together on Criterion Blu-ray
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: February 23 – March 1
Celebrate the Communist revolution. Ogle (or laugh at) sex kitten Jane Fonda. Play chess with Death as your guitar gently weeps. All these experiences and more can be found this week in Bay Area movie theaters. Also: Two film festivals. Festivals The Children's Film Festival opens today and runs through Sunday CineQuest opens Tuesday and … Continue reading What’s Screening: February 23 – March 1
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