The 1981 concert film Dance Craze anthologizes performances by many of the UK acts of the 80’s ska revival, many of whom were associated with the legendary record label 2 Tone. The name of that label emphasizes one of the most remarkable aspects of that ska resurgence in the UK: groups with black and white […]

In my previous work life, one of my favorite days on the job was spending the day at a small regional airport getting b-roll of planes taking off.  I was in the grass between the runway and taxiway, just getting one plane after another. I mention this because I know first-hand how difficult it can […]

I was reminded of Infinite Jest1 the entire time I watched 2012’s The Master2.  Both works are way too long and pretentious.  This Paul Thomas Anderson3 film stars Philip Seymour Hoffman4 and Joaquin Phoenix5. Dir: Paul Thomas Anderson Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams Watched on blu-ray 1 You know, the 1996 David […]

1948’s Ruthless is often categorized as film noir, but I found it to be a more of a straight drama, albeit with a sharper edge to it that most of the similar fare at the time. It apes the structure of Citizen Kane, though this time the object of everybody’s obsession is still alive.  Those […]

The 1991 comedy King Ralph opens with earliest incarnation of the Universal Studios logo before transitioning to each of three later iterations.  This is apparently intended to convey the rich legacy of this studio as it celebrates its 75th anniversary.  Myself, I thought this was the first joke in the movie, as the following picture […]

Needless to say, there has been a bit of obsession over The Beatles for decades now.  So many books and movies.  One would think there were no new avenues to explore in 1994, and yet Backbeat is, I believe, the first movie to concern their pre-fame years in Hamburg and the only true “fifth Beatle”, […]

Anthony Perkins may have been typecast as a result of the success of Psycho, but it’s only because playing disturbed persons seemed to come so naturally to him.  I don’t know what the man was like in real life—maybe he was as sweet and kind as Boris Karloff or Peter Cushing.  But you can’t deny […]

My wife’s dream car is a fully-restored original Volkswagen Beetle.  I also think they’re awesome, but I wouldn’t especially care to own one.  Still, they’re easy to anthropomorphize as having friendly, smiling faces.  It is that appeal which warrants the 2016 documentary The Bug: The Life and Times of the People’s Car. This well-paced film […]

“Garbo laughs” Greta Garbo’s persona of being a humorous ice queen was so thoroughly ingrained in the public consciousness of 1939 that all it took to sell a ton of movie tickets was this simple tagline. Fortunately, there is much, much more to Ninotchka than just Garbo’s advertised joviality.  This is a one of the […]

I have only vacationed in Canada once, taking a brief road trip to Toronto by way of Windsor.  We had apparently picked the wrong time to do this, as the country’s relations with the US was at a low, as result of a trade dispute.  Having always heard how polite Canucks are, I was stunned […]

On her last day in a recording studio, Janis Joplin did an acapella number asking the Lord to buy her a Mercedes Benz.  She didn’t specify whether the car should be bulletproof, as to better protect George Clooney and Nicole Kidman in 1997’s The Peacemaker while they seem to destroy half of Vienna while trying […]

Short answer: yes. I suspect the general impression most people have of the 1950’s America is it was hopelessly naïve.  Although I wasn’t there to experience it myself, I know there had to be a lot more going on with most people than obsessively looking out for an imagined communist menace while cruising in a […]

William Goldman was quite the prolific screenwriter.  Most famously known for The Princess Bride, he actually worked across a wide range of genres, authoring such screenplays as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Marathon Man and Misery.  So I was intrigued when I noticed he wrote a novel that was adapted into 1968’s No Way […]

When this 1997 anime appeared on Shudder, I did a double-take.  This movie has appeared on my radar occasionally for many years now, but I wasn’t curious enough to learn more about it.  I realize this is a bias, but Akira is the only anime I have enjoyed.  Yet I found myself intrigued when a […]

1980’s Melvin and Howard is based on a true story.  There are a couple of things I need to make clear from the beginning.  First, there needs to be some clarification that it is based on a true story and not based on hard facts.  Second, I am going to delve a bit into the […]