Friday, February 21, 2025

River's Edge (1986) ****

Perfectly cast and well scripted youth noir that often gets to unexpected depths. Keanu actually helps here.

Thursday, February 20, 2025

Forbidden Planet (1956) ***

Unfortunately quite dated script mars the overall production which is very well done. Probably the first sci-fi flick that a studio took seriously and produced it seriously. Beautifully made.

Suzanne Vega brings 'Old Songs, New Songs and Other Songs' tour to Ithaca for sold-out show

Q: At this point in your career you have a bunch of songs that could be considered your greatest hits, which you’re sort of obligated to play at your shows. But what are your thoughts on playing some of those older songs, some of which are almost 40 years old? Do you relate to them any differently? Do you still like playing them? Or are you tempted to change them up and do them differently?

SV: Oh, no, I'm not. Who needs to reinterpret the old material? That thing that Bob Dylan does is not for me. I like doing the old ones, and I do them sincerely, each time. A song like “Gypsy,” which I wrote when I was in my teens, I still feel it every time I sing it. It's about young love and first love and that's the reason to keep singing it because it sort of brings you back to that moment in time. So I love it.

Tuesday, February 18, 2025

Never Open That Door (1952) **

Argentinian portmanteau noir is well made but the effect is like watching a couple of good episodes of Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

Monday, February 10, 2025

Chilly Scenes of Winter (1979) **

Hard to watch but well made drama about a one way love affair and its effects. Nice to see Gloria Grahame in one of her final roles.

Friday, February 07, 2025

To Live and Die in L.A. (1985) ***

Starts off as almost a parody of an 80's cop actioner but gradually sucks you into its orbit and wallops you in the end. Terrific cast, beautifully shot.

Tuesday, February 04, 2025

The Outfit (1973) **

Top cast helps this gritty hoods v. hoods 70's revenge noir.

Friday, January 31, 2025

Maria (2024) ***

Angie Jolie is riveting in a riff on Maria Callas' last week alive. Beautifully filmed and produced.

Tuesday, January 28, 2025

Angel Face (1952) **

Jean Simmons makes a lovely femme fatale but the plot hinges on us believing that Bob Mitchum is a moron and that won't do.

Monday, January 27, 2025

The Princess Comes Across (1936) **

Sharp dialog and a quick pace keep this contrived romcom/whodunnit afloat.

Friday, January 24, 2025

To Die For (1995) ***

Beautifully shot look at one woman's single minded media ambition. Terrific Nic Kidman and always wonderful Illeana Douglas.

Sunday, January 19, 2025

The Pied Piper (1986) **

The animation is at times engrossing but more often is too generic and repetitive lessening the impact of the ending. Bleak, dark and not for kiddies.

Night Must Fall (1937) **

Bob Montgomery is very good and there's a witty script but it's a good 30 minutes too long, probably too faithful to its stage origins.

Trans-Europ-Express (1966) **

Satire of art house films and their filmmakers is watchable for the two leads and the snapshot of mid-60's Paris.

Tuesday, January 14, 2025

Killer's Kiss (1955) ***

Above average noir solely because of Stanley who did just about everything on this picture. The camera work is spectacular and quite remarkable given the budget, the methods and the results.

A Cold Wind in August (1961) **

Pretty good little potboiler with two terrific performances and a sharp script. The wildly variable quality of the direction is the only drawback.

Friday, January 10, 2025

A Complete Unknown (2024) ***

Enjoyable biopic is well photographed and produced with a superb Ed Norton, but Tim Chalamet can't quite dissolve into Dylan. Wonderful soundtrack.

Tuesday, January 07, 2025

Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (2024) ***

Another hilarious adventure with the cheese loving inventor and his trusty sidekick. Cracking finale.

Monday, January 06, 2025

The Universal Theory (2023) **

I would have liked it more if the soundtrack wasn't so overbearing and carelessly used. Could have used some trimming as well although it's nicely put together over all.

Saturday, January 04, 2025

Tesla data helped police after Las Vegas truck explosion, but experts have wider privacy concerns

The data collected by Musk’s electric car company after the Cybertruck packed with fireworks burst into flames in front of the Trump International Hotel Wednesday proved valuable to police in helping track the driver’s movements.
Wrong! The data was collected BEFORE the truck burst into flames. It was provided to the police after the explosion. Tesla is a surveillance company.

Friday, January 03, 2025

North by Northwest (1959) ****

Hitch at his best. The crop duster sequence may be his best ever.

Birth (2004) ****

Nic Kidman gives the female equivalent of George C.'s Patton performance in this beautifully filmed and produced examination of grief that cannot be overcome. Fine cast including the always welcome Betty Bacall.