?We passed through death.? I think Peter Weir?s 1993 film Fearless may be a very important film for the world to consider in 2021. That will be after we have come through the worst of the Corona Virus pandemic and the social and economic turmoil it is creating. What does it mean to be a…
I don’t know why I love The Town so much. Maybe it’s because it’s so Boston, the biggest city near where I grew up in Rhode Island. Maybe it’s because it’s an exciting, tense film based on Chris Hogan’s book. Maybe it’s because it’s full of strong performances by actors like Ben Affleck, Jeremy Renner…
A recent Op-Ed piece in the L.A. Times made reference to our current experience of ?binary confinement? (as opposed to solitary confinement in prisons). That certainly fits for my wife and me?two people isolated (sort of) from the rest of the world. It?s good that we get along together. (My wife is very forgiving.) But…
Richard Donner’s epic film Superman the Movie is … “swell,” to quote Clark Kent. While superhero films have advanced in production (well, except for maybe Green Lantern), Donner’s original hero films (counting the first and second films about Kent AKA Kal-El AKA Superman) remain high up on my list. While the flash-bangs of Marvel’s Avengers…
While we fill the days and nights of self-isolation, this is a great time to discover films that we may have overlooked?especially films from long ago. Buster Keaton?s The General, a 1926 silent film, is thought by some, including Orson Wells and BFI?s Sight & Sound magazine, to be the greatest comedy of all time….
One minute you are comfortable. You have all you need and then some. You have freedom to go anywhere, anytime, with anyone. Secure and confident in your situation, you spend your days enjoying unlimited opportunities. And then one day, government agents are at your door, confiscating furniture, jewelry, and you?re frantically trying to pack your…
Like many people, I have a specific slate of movies I turn to whenever I am bored or want to relax after a long day at work. Many of the films are humorous, such as The Princess Bride, Spaceballs, and The Emperor?s New Groove. Some have an endearing charm to them, like My Neighbor Totoro…
Life is going along just fine, but then a virus begins spreading, threatening everything and everyone. That is a scary prospect. How is someone supposed to respond to such a crisis? That?s a problem raised in Disney?s Ralph Breaks the Internet. So, as we continue our own struggle with a threatening virus, perhaps we can…
If I’m being honest, this could be any number of superhero films – Superman the Movie, Avengers (the first one), etc. – but I decided that Batman Begins still reflects the socio-political environment of our world today. And seriously, can you go wrong with Christopher Nolan? Fifteen years ago, the keys to the Batmobile were…
Following the relative lack of box office success of Fantasia and Pinocchio and with the country on the verge of entering a World War, Disney needed to churn out something inexpensive and much shorter.? That little movie turned out to be the story of a young elephant with big ears who learns to fly.? I?ll…
