About a year and a half ago, I started what would prove to be an unachievable and utterly batshit project. It was a "revision" of the Andrew Sarris seminal text The American Cinema: Directors and Directions 1929-1968, or as it is more commonly known, that one book
The first month of the new year began with a bunch of bangers. Several of these wound up on my Best of 2025 list. Song Sung Blue (2025), directed by Craig Brewer The antidote to all those reverent musical biopics about great men. This is about mediocre people who only
The Criterion Channel is wonderful, isn't it? They have a series this month on Nordic Noir, consisting of four films and directors I had never heard of. This is very rare for me. And gives me hope. I have only dipped my toe but the fist, Girl with
I am starting a regular feature (going to try for weekly, to be published on Fridays) that looks ahead to the TCM schedule and recommend films for immediate watch or recording. If you are lucky enough to have TCM on cable or on You Tube t.v. or the TCM
I haven't missed an Oscar ceremony since 1970. And I pretty much hate the Oscars. They get everything wrong, sometimes egregiously so. They screw up TCM's schedule every year (the 31 days of Oscar is pretty much the only time of year I don't
Do you know about Kanopy? It is a streaming service that partners with the Public Library system to allow digital access, for free, to their vast A.V. resources. Their inventory is second to none, and is a fine (and did I mention free?) alternative to something like Criterion or
I am starting a regular feature (going to try for weekly, to be published on Fridays) that looks ahead to the TCM (Turner Classic Movies) schedule and recommend films for immediate watch or recording. If you are lucky enough to have TCM on cable or on You Tube t.v.
Yes, Amanda Seyfried, No Other Choice and Jesse Plemons got screwed, but to my mind the biggest Oscar snub was the brand new Achievement in Casting award not honoring Richard Linklater's Nouvelle Vague. Not only do they nail Godard (Guillaume Marbeck), Seberg (Zoey Deutch) and Belmondo (Aubry Dullin)
Like any good guilty whitey I watched Afro American themed movies on MLK day. Started with Nothing But a Man, which I have seen a few times and is probably the greatest film ever made. But I was taken aback by the authenticity and pungency of Uptight, which has largely
A bit late, my list of top 10 films of the year with a few other random "awards." Top 10 (no order) Bugonia The Secret Agent One Battle After Another No Other Choice Reflection in a Dead Diamond Marty Supreme If I Had Legs I'd Kick