FIrst Rule of Movie Club is: you don't talk about Movie Club. But you do share, because sharing is caring.
Woody Allen: genius or pariah? Or both? One unfortunate casualty of the Allen saga is the slow but steady disappearance of his work online as streamers disassociate themselves from his name. Which is too bad- Allen has contributed so many great pieces to American Cinema and clearly influenced almost everyone who has come after, not … Continue reading Take the Money and Run
There's something great about that string of black-and-white movies from the early 60's that I'll never grow tired of. Shot in stark, sharp black-and-white, with intense, dramatic framing and balls-to-the-wall dialogue and situations, these movies have teeth in a way no other era of film quite manages. Movies like The Pawnbroker and Fate is the … Continue reading Ladybug Ladybug
A classic Bud Dry commercial from the 80's rhetorically asks "Why are foreign movies so... foreign?" while it throws as many tropes as possible on screen: poorly dubbed Italian, grainy black and white film, odd angles, melodramatic acting, and, of course... clowns. And while that particular reference is clearly Fellini, its point- and the point … Continue reading Dáblova Past (The Devil’s Trap)
Hollywood has made so many movies in the past 100 years, it's only natural that most of them will be forgotten as generations die out. 1964's Fate is the Hunter is fated to be one of those- a genre picture that these days, none of us remember. Which is too bad- it's a great film, … Continue reading Fate is the Hunter
Once upon a time, this really happened. That's how Až Přijde Kocour, directed by the Czech filmmaker Vojtech Jasný (who was later banned from filmmaking due to his anti-Communist messages) begins: a man in a clock named Oliva spies on the goings-on of his fellow townmates for a while, until Charlie, the school's headmaster, shoots … Continue reading Až Přijde Kocour (The Cassandra Cat AKA When the Cat Comes AKA The Cat Who Wore Sunglasses)
When I first read Gustave Flaubert's gorgeously melancholic Sentimental Education, I was struck by how modern it felt for something written in 1869 (and taking place in the 1840's.) His protagonist, Frédéric, feels like the original Emo poster child from which all young, disillusioned and weepy icons have sprung. From Morrissey and the Smiths to … Continue reading L’Éducation Sentimentale (Sentimental Education)
Steven Spielberg's The Fablemans might be the latest in a long legacy of artists making thinly-veiled autobio pics about their humble beginnings, but it's worth noting the great works that came before (and are mostly forgotten.) First and foremost is the late, great Carl Reiner's debut feature comedy, Enter Laughing- a sweet and hilarious look … Continue reading Enter Laughing
Despite our ever-shifting cultural norms, Monty Python remains the epitome of British comedy- the innovative trailblazers that set a standard even today's best sketch comedy fails to hit. You can watch their early training grounds on old BBC shows like Do Not Adjust Your Set and At Last the 1948 Show, which are fun and … Continue reading How to Irritate People
Does the world really need to spend any more time thinking about or examining the Beatles? Nobody- no matter how good or influential they may have been- really deserves so much scrutiny or attention. There are other bands out there; the myth-making has long run its course, and the cash-extraction that continues every 5-10 years … Continue reading Let It Be
"Exterminate all rational thought," commands the great William Burroughs as we enter Naked Lunch- sage advice, since not heeding his warning will leave you frustrated and confused as you wander around his mad, but brilliant world. Conrad Rooks' Chappaqua requires a similar mindset; an exploration of what it's like to go through drug withdrawal, the … Continue reading Chappaqua
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