The Criterion Channel added a lot of good movies at the beginning of September. Here are some of the best: Most of these are part of one of more collections – mostly New York Stories. A+ The Crowd (1928), part of the series New York Stories Of all the films in my All-Time Great Films … Continue reading Good movies suddenly available on Criterion
Tag: Michael Powell
What’s Screening: August 16 – 22
Aside from the obvious, here are a few worthwhile films screening in Bay Area movie theaters this week. Festivals Modern Cinema: Haunted! (Gothic Tales by Women) continues through the month. Read my preview. New films opening A After the Wedding, Embarcadero Center, opens Friday Two of our greatest American actresses, Michelle Williams and Julianne Moore, … Continue reading What’s Screening: August 16 – 22
My 15 Best Moviegoing Experiences of 2018
I went to the movies quite a bit in 2018, and it was often a wonderful experience. I attended six (I think) Bay Area film festivals, numerous special presentations, and just plain really good movies. In May, I flew to Rochester, New York for the Nitrate Picture Show. For four days of screenings and museum … Continue reading My 15 Best Moviegoing Experiences of 2018
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
Movies I’ve Recently Seen: BlacKkKlansman, Blindspotting, 49th Parallel, & Dark Victory
My current collection includes one film from Oakland which I saw in Canada, and one about Canada I saw at home in the East Bay. A BlacKkKlansman (2018), California Theatre (Berkeley) Until the very end, this is the most conventional Spike Lee Joint I've seen. But the normal approach was the right one for this very … Continue reading Movies I’ve Recently Seen: BlacKkKlansman, Blindspotting, 49th Parallel, & Dark Victory
What’s Screening: January 5 – 11
Robert Altman, Billy Wilder, Howard Hawks, Gus Van Sant, Michael Powell, and a very fine selection of shorts grace Bay Area movie screens this week. Festivals For Your Consideration opens today and runs through Thursday. You can learn more about it in my First Film Festivals of 2018. New films opening B+ 2017 Sundance Film Festival Short … Continue reading What’s Screening: January 5 – 11
A+ List: The Thief of Bagdad (1940 version)
Arabian Nights movies seem to have gone out of fashion, and that's probably not much of a loss. Most of them were laughably bad. But a few good ones got made, along with one true masterpiece: Alexander Korda's The Thief of Bagdad. With its loosely-weaved story, poetic dialog, beautiful color design, groundbreaking special effects, and … Continue reading A+ List: The Thief of Bagdad (1940 version)
What’s Screening: February 10 – 16
The Elite Squad of Colonel Blimp brings up baby. If you’re feeling like a festival, IndieFest continues through this week. B Elite Squad: The Enemy Within, 4-Star, opens Friday. Captain Roberto Nascimento believes in killing "scumbags." And as an officer in Rio’s militaristic Special Police Operations Battalion (BOPE), he gets plenty of opportunities to do … Continue reading What’s Screening: February 10 – 16
