An extension of the themes that dominated films of the late 1960’s—youthful alienation and disillusionment—1971’s Two-Lane Blacktop is set against the vast, open spaces of America’s highways. Director Monte Hellman, a veteran of the Roger Corman school of filmmaking (Corman…
Patricia Highsmith had a dream career. Her first book, Strangers on a Train was made into a successful film by Alfred Hitchcock. French critics—who respected Hitchcock more than Americans did at the time—began looking for more material by the woman…
David Cronenberg and dull aren’t two words you see together very often, but the writer/director’s latest effort, Cosmopolis, left me wondering how characters can talk for so long and say so little. Cosmopolis offers up plenty of gratuitous nudity, but…
Released in 1995, Heavyweights is a real throwback to the Disney live-action films of the late ‘70s and ‘80s. You know the ones. They were happy to provide lightweight entertainment and a few laughs and leave it at that. Written…
Currently in its twenty-fourth season, The Simpsons is the longest-running American sitcom, the longest-running American animated program, and the longest-running American primetime, scripted television series. At the height of its popularity, every episode was a quotable feast. While the show…
Michael Caine has often claimed that 1979’s Ashanti was was “the only film (he) did purely for the money” as well as “the worst film he ever starred in.” The last point could certainly be debated, but there’s no denying…
Often considered one of the great early takies, The Blue Angel will always have a place in history as the film that brought Marlene Dietrich to international stardom. When the film was being made in 1929, it was seen as…
Butter is one of the movies that had the potential to be both interesting and funny, shining a spotlight on the people who participate in the somewhat odd hobby of butter competitions. Instead, the movie goes for the lowest common…
An indication of things to come, Christopher Nolan’s Following gives us a taste of the deep, occasionally twisted insights into human nature that would later become a staple of his films. Shot in 16mm black-and-white for just $6,000 in 16mm…
By the early 1970’s, Looney Tunes cartoons were regularly seen on television. Gone were the days of showing them in theaters. Unfortunately, at the time, it didn’t occur to anyone to preserve the original negative. Filmmaker Larry Jackson decided that…