Film
The Problem with High Noon.
I’ve talked about the idea of the Western as a unique American mythology before, and the concept is important in understanding my issues with High Noon. The American Western is first and foremost about a hero. The hero of an American Western isn’t a whiny reluctant pussy like Frodo Baggins, but rather an assured, immensely capable…
Read MoreMonthly Movie Reviews – March, 2009
Here are some two sentence reviews of the movies I watched in March, 2009. Stats Movies watched – 26 Movies that were new to me – 20 Versions of a Western I didn’t really like – 2 Monthly Masterpieces – Some Like it Hot, All That Heaven Allows, The Maltese Falcon, Mon Oncle March 31 Hot Water…
Read MoreMonthly Movie Reviews – February, 2009
Here are some two sentence reviews of the movies I watched in February. Stats Movies watched – 37 Movies that were new to me – 31 Silent Film Fest movies – 11 Monthly Masterpieces – There Will Be Blood February 28 The Family Entrance (1925) – I’m not sure the exact title of this one but it…
Read MoreWoman of the Year and The Thrill of it All: Keeping Women in their Place Since 1942
Now I like a good old fashioned battle of the sexes comedy as much as anyone, but it never really sits right with me that the woman always seems to end up “learning her place” at the end of any movie made before 1968. Now I know that times were different and all that, but…
Read MoreMonthly Movie Reviews – January, 2009
Here are some two sentence reviews of the movies I watched in January, 2009. Stats Movies watched – 27ish (missing data from the first week of the month) Movies that were new to me – 11 Silent comedies about backstage hijinx on the set of a play – 6 Monthly Masterpieces – Le Deuxième Souffle…
Read MoreKristmas Movie-Watchin’ Kumite 2
So, Christmas came and went and I saw my usual random assortment of films over the holiday break. Some of them were great, some not so much, but the chosen few (ie the ones I could think to put into logical pairs for the eight man bracket) have gathered here for the second annual “Kristmas movie-watchin’ Kumite! This…
Read MoreMy Favorite Movies 9 – It’s a Wonderful Life (Frank Capra, 1946)
I wasn’t sure whether to write a “My Favorite Christmas Movies” post, a “My Favorite Christmas Movie” post or just a “Christmas Movies” post. Finally I realized that I really just wanted to write about It’s a Wonderful Life, and since there was no point in needlessly qualifying it, I might as well give it a…
Read MoreFort Apache – Accountability Schmaccountability
This review is full of spoilers, so if you like classic westerns crossed with classic war films, Fort Apache is fine cinema and you should watch it first. Check it out and then come back to check out this post if the ending outrages you! Fort Apache is the first movie in John Ford’s cavalry…
Read MoreBad Boys 2 – The Lost Scripts: Bergman, Rohmer and Herzog
The world film community was rocked this year when pieces of three alternate movie scripts for Bad Boys 2 surfaced. It seems the producers, in an attempt to cash in on the “indie movie” craze, had sought out 3 of the most respected European art house directors to rewrite Michael Bay’s original script. Small sections…
Read MoreDisaster Movie – Guaranteed Box Office Afterbirth
I’m really not too snobby about my humor (comparatively speaking). Sure I think Woody Allen is great, but I love his earlier more broad comedies just as much as his later films full of razor sharp dialog. Chaplin kicking someone in the ass in his early Keystone pictures is about as funny as his most…
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