Beautiful, 24 October 2003
Author: Bruce Karam (Bruce.Karam) from Tucson, Arizona 85710 USA
A beautiful story of love, that reminded me of Greta Garbo’s “Anna Christie”. I loved Vilma Bankee’s voice and accent. I felt that the film was charming in it’s “innocence” and simplicity, while dealing with a very complex issue. I hope that I may someday see it again.Read More »
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An interview with a Mormon Fundamentalist who shares a husband with her younger sister.Read More »
Tender, erotic, and pathetic, this reconstructed narrative examines the obsession to chronicle the details of an adulterous affair. Suitcase of Love and Shame is a mesmerizing collage woven from 60 hours of reel-to-reel audiotape discovered in a suitcase purchased on eBay. Recorded in the 1960’s, a Mid-western woman and her lover become reliant on recording devises to document and memorialize their affair. The film suggestively foregrounds the tape recorder as the confidant, witness, and participant that the couple come to depend on — always omnipresent, the recorder creates a welcomed ménage-à-trois.Read More »
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A fairy tale grounded in poignant reality, the magnificent, Manhattan-set The Fisher King, by Terry Gilliam, features Jeff Bridges and Robin Williams in two of their most brilliant roles. Bridges plays a former radio shock jock reconstructing his life after a scandal, and Williams is a homeless man on a quest for the Holy Grail—which he believes to be hidden somewhere on the Upper East Side. Unknowingly linked by their pasts, the two men aid each other on a fanciful journey to discovering their own humanity. This singular American odyssey features a witty script by Richard LaGravenese, evocative cinematography by Roger Pratt, and superb supporting performances by Amanda Plummer and an Oscar-winning Mercedes Ruehl, all harnessed by Gilliam into a compassionate, funny modern-day myth.Read More »
Following World War II, a northern cannery negotiates for the purchase of a large tract of uncultivated Georgia farmland. The major portion of the land ‘s owned by Julie Warren and has already been optioned by her unscrupulous, husband, Henry. Now the combine must also obtain 2 smaller plots; one owned by Henry’s cousin Rad McDowell, the other by Reeve Scott, a young black man whose mother had been Julie’s childhood nammy. But neither Rad nor Reeve’s interested in selling, and they form a partnership to improve their land. Although infuriated by the events, Henry remains determined to push through the big land deal.Read More »
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“Classical Period,” the second and (at barely more than an hour) longest feature from the offbeat filmmaker Ted Fendt (“Short Stay”), is technically in English, but it might as well be in liberal-arts-speak. Characters toss off lines like “I’ve never read the Borges book this quote is from” and “It’s actually the most comprehensive book about the freeway revolt in Philadelphia that I’ve read.” Such insights and humblebrags are the bulk of the dialogue. The title evokes the musical era that preceded Romanticism, and this highly original movie has been denatured of romance or even obvious dramatic incident.Read More »
Two aging playboys make a play to sway young Patty from her vow to remain a virgin until her wedding night. Yet while she remains oblivious to David and Donald’s ulterior motives for wooing her, Patty’s goodness tames the Lotharios instead. The Moon Is Blue was based on a stage play produced by Preminger, and he filmed English and German versions simultaneously using the same sets and different actors. The German version, Die Jungfrau auf dem Dach, was released the same year, starring Hardy Krüger and Joahnna Matz.Read More »
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Frankie Machine returns to his down-and-out neighborhood after a stint in rehab for heroin addiction. His wheelchair-bound wife, Zosh, doesn’t support Frankie’s dream to become a professional drummer now that he’s clean; old habits are hard to break when your support system wants you to keep feeding the monkey on your back. Graphic and unsettling, Elmer Bernstein’s jazz score is truly evocative.Read More »
The Films of Jess Franco
Contemporary Approaches to Film and Media Series
Edited by Ian Olney, Antonio Lázaro-Reboll
Paperback: 338 pages
Publisher: Wayne State University Press (June 4, 2018)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0814343163
ISBN-13: 978-0814343166Read More »