Daliland (2022) **

Yet another constantly, annoyingly backlit flick which really hampers some good performances. Also unfortunate that the lead does not seem up to it.

Coherence (2013) ****

Starts off extremely annoying but give it until the comet arrives. Terrific ensemble acting and sharp, tight writing that explains but does not condescend.

The Straight Story (1999) ***

Commanding performance from Richard Farnsworth makes this flick which could have used a little tightening. The lead is so good the film's weaknesses stand out.

Gambit (1966) **

Heist flick with a nifty twist and a nifty Shirley scene where she proves her dancer's flexibility. No chemistry between the leads so the romantic turn is abrupt to say the least.

Willem Dafoe on Kinds of Kindness, Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone

When in my most sentimental mode, I always feel like we’re put on this earth to walk each other home. That’s what I always think, and if you really believe in that, you really practice that – and I don’t all the time, nobody does, it’s really hard – I think that that’s a good life. So that’s my response to making movies. I look for those opportunities. Hopefully, movies change, I change, the world changes. It’s new every time because of what I just said, not because of me.

‘Has this guy ever made a movie before?’ Francis Ford Coppola’s 40-year battle to film Megalopolis

As if that wasn’t enough, Coppola made life even harder for himself: “When he arrived in Atlanta, he was looking for accommodation for his extended family and he wasn’t finding anything he particularly liked. So he bought a drive-in motel which had just closed, and decided to renovate it. So all the way through the shoot, he lived there. The construction noise started at six in the morning.” When Figgis (who opted to stay in a different hotel) asked Coppola how he handled it all, “He said, ‘Look, it’s all the same thing. Movie business, construction business: it’s telling people what you want, and making sure they do it.’”

Bringing Out the Dead (1999) ***

A primer on how to shoot a "dark" movie and still be able to always see the actors faces even when backlit! Terrific, typical Scorsese flick in all the best ways. Only quibble is it could have been trimmed a bit.

What a Way to Go! (1964) *

I remember liking this film when I first saw it. At age 10. And that's about the age limit they're aiming for. A waste of Shirley at her loveliest and the great Margaret Dumont.

Vengeance Is Mine (1984) ****

Two powerhouse performances drive this odd, brilliantly understated family drama. Powerful, thrilling film.

Pretty Poison (1968) **

Terrific leads keeps this rather ridiculous tale afloat.

Past Lives (2023) **

Nicely shot K-weepie featuring a marvelous Greta Lee. Could have been a little tighter.

For Clara

What is life?
It is the flash of a firefly in the night.
It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime.
It is the little shadow which runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset.
    -- last words of Crowfoot (Blackfoot warrior and orator, 1890)