Movies@Home
Hitchcock-tober returns to the Angelika Film Center this month with five of the Master’s finest. Rear Window (1954) The rights to Cornell Woolrich’s short story “Murder from a Fixed Viewpoint,” were purchased by Hitch and …
This week’s selections represent the best 2008 had to offer, starting with an invitation to the wedding of the decade. Rachel Getting Married (2008) Many were quick to complain about Jonathan Demme casting a feature …
This week, I struck gold with Henry Silva. Johnny Cool is the swingingest Rat Pack neo-noir ever filmed without the active participation of Frank and Dean. Peter Lawford co-produced, Joey Bishop begged the question, “Would …
It’s over, Johnny. Rambo: Last Blood was the final nail in the Rambo coffin. This week, we look back on the first and fourth installments of Sylvester Stallone’s fivefold franchise. First Blood (1982) Abandoned, betrayed, …
Three things I know about Dracula. Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror (1922) It was not the famous bloodsucker’s first screen appearance: that distinction goes to the long lost Hungarian film Dracula’s Death, made a year …
Tom Palazzolo is one of Chicago’s foremost documentarians, but you don’t have to be a local to appreciate his films. Anyone who’s ever had the occasion to visit a bustling deli will find something to …
This week brings a pair of comedy duos: one legendary, the other with plenty of Hope (and Crosby) in their soul. Where the Truth Lies (2005) A fictionalized account of a murder that may or …
This week’s homework assignment finds Fred Astaire and company in peak form. Broadway Melody of 1940 (1940) If Orson Welles is credited with introducing the ceiling to cinema (he didn’t), then the “Begin the Beguine” …
This year, the Oceanside Film Festival goes virtual, with over 120 shorts and features. The festival runs August 15 and 16. Visit online for more information and reviews. The Devil’s Road: A Baja Adventure (2019) …
It’s game, set, and match with these three tennis-related films. Tennis, Anyone...? (2005) Things you learn at the movies: next time you’re at a strip club, walk up to the first exotic dancer you see …
Three variations on a cops-and-robbers theme from the early ‘70s The Super Cops (1974) Released three months after Serpico, Gordon Parks’ film followed a pair of successful Shaft scores with this real-life account of two …
Every now and then, a critic has occasion to treat a film that demands special treatment. The recent passing of Carl Reiner has provided just such an occasion. Where’s Poppa? (1970) When Robert Klane set …
La Mesa’s very own Reanimated Records was open, but only for curbside pickup. Owner Nic Friesen was a beautiful enough person to forward a photoset of recent acquisitions. What follows are but three jewels among …
This week, it’s Albert Brooks’ first and (hopefully not) last, plus a bit of Sinatra propaganda. Albert Brooks Famous School for Comedians (1972) Omnibus television at its finest, The Great American Dream Machine was a …
Do you miss the prospects of a football-free 2020? Not me, especially with this trio of celluloid scores to spike in celebration. Easy Living (1949) Jacques Tourneur had never seen a football game when RKO …
Finding this week’s selections was as easy as giving the old external harddrive a spin. There, nestled alphabetically in the “W”s, were a trio of “Wakes,” all new to me. There’s one to dream, one …