from the Daily Telegraph 10 The Bridge on the River Kwai The lavish production that launched Lean into the big league is grand, grown-up and full of eye-popping set pieces and moral complexity. 9 The Dirty Dozen Robert Aldrich, 1967 Real-life former marine Lee Marvin has to mould 12 convicted murderers into a crack unit to assassinate a slew of SS officers. Entertaining sparring leads to a dark climax....
In a stunning convergence of teeth and propellers, Hilary Swank's Amelia arrives in theaters this weekend, inspiring Pete Chianca to look back at some other noteworthy biopics.
The DVD of Mission to Moscow is being released today. Oh man, could my Dad get worked up about that movie. From the NY Post : On Christmas Eve, 1942, screenwriter Howard Koch was packing for a trip to New York when he received an urgent summons to meet with his bosses, Warner Bros. founders Harry and Jack Warner. After thanking Koch for his contributions to “Casablanca,” which had opened...
This week in the New York Times, the first of a two part round-up of recent horror film releases, which for some reason seem to proliferate in late October, looks at some examples of old school horror, before the gore revolution of the late 60s. Included are “The Walking Dead” (1936), one of the [...]
Continuing the "Creepy Moments" series for this month we move on to Doctor X from 1932, directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray and Lee Tracy, none of whom are in this scene (but Preston Foster is). And yes, it's a scene not a moment. Furthermore, it's not very creepy with all the electronic gizmos and gadgets pulsating throughout the scene probably removing any sense...
Since Alistair Cooke's death in March 2004, his legacy has passed from the airwaves to the printed page. Reprints of 'Alistair Cooke's America' and 'Six Men' have appeared, as well as a comprehensive single-volume selection of his 'Letters from America', the long presumed lost manuscript 'American Journey', and themed volumes of his writing which chronicle his political commentary and his love of golf....
The analysis of Steven Soderbergh's film and career in general has been a pet project of mine for the past four or five years. His Elmore Leonard adaptation, Out of Sight (1998), fueled my desire to not only watch the...
Aled Jones and Adam Cooper will star in the stage version of Irving Berlin’s 1954 movie musical White Christmas, which is being revived this festive season, running at the Theatre Royal Plymouth from 10 to 21 November 2009, followed by The Lowr...
So, a big hello to Cappuccino Culture , the Spectator's new culture blog where I see Pete has reposted the list he helped compile for The Spectator's 50 Essential Films supplement. Just for good measure, Pete's added another 35 films that would be contenders for his own personal list. Brother Hoskin is a much greater cinephile than I am, but his inclusion of Eyes Wide Shut as a candidate for his own...
Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs 20th Century Fox CinemaScope epic to screen at the Koret Auditorium San Francisco Sentinel critic will introduce The Egyptian By Seán Martinfield Sentinel Editor and Publisher Photo by Lynn Imanaka THE EGYPTIAN, a grand epic directed by Michael Curtiz, is alive and well come Friday night, August 21st in the Koret [...]
Videos
