A documentary about the development of sound in motion pictures. The period covered extends from the mid-19th century until the release of The Jazz Singer. The English version is narrated by Leonard Maltin.Read More »

Quote:
On the Oregon Trail in 1845, three couples travel in covered wagons with slippery guide Stephen Meek (an unrecognizable Bruce Greenwood), but days pass, and water remains elusive. Emily (Michelle Williams, who anchored Reichardt’s Wendy and Lucy) laments that “he’s gotten in over his head.” Meek insists that relief lies around the next ridge, but that’s never the case, until an alkaline lake appears. Unfortunately, it’s unsuitable for drinking, so they push on. Always attuned to the rhythms of nature, Reichardt has produced a meditative take on the genre that feels more enigmatic than most–with the possible exception of Jim Jarmusch’s Dead Man–even if the period details always look right. With her focus on faded calico dresses and vast aquamarine skies, Meek’s Cutoff offers a beautiful vision of harsh times.Read More »

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For his directing début, Oleg Kovalov chose a very extravagant experiment. As a basis he took a propaganda film from the fifties, The Case of Corporal Kochetkov, dissected this as it were and gave the naked structure a new substance and new accents by re-cutting the shots and adding documentary material from the fifties, such as newsreel footage of Khrushchev’s visit to America and pictures of the visit by Yves Montand and Simone Signoret to Moscow. The film about corporal Kochetkov called on the Soviet citizens to be on their guard and showed how sly the enemy was: for instance it could pose as an innocent girl. Kovalov creams off the emotional froth from this melodrama, deconstructs its codes and subjects it to a thoughtful analysis. For instance he reveals paranoia and spy-phobia, complexes in the ‘collective Soviet unconscious’ that is still active even in relatively enlightened periods.Read More »

IMDB:
Interviews in the Michael Moore/”Roger and Me” tradition examine life in small-town America, class conflicts and the collapse of an upstate New York community, Dadetown, when the town’s once-prosperous factory, reduced to the manufacture of paper clips and staples, finally closes. Facing massive unemployment, the blue-collar Dadetown residents next find yuppies moving into town to staff the local division of a big computer outfit.Read More »

PLOT: The second part of Aki Kaurismaki “Finland” trilogy, the film follows a man who arrives in Helsinki and gets beaten up so severely he develops amnesia. Unable to remember his name or anything from his past life, he cannot get a job or an apartment, so he starts living on the outskirts of the city and slowly starts putting his life back on track.Read More »

Quote:
Though set in England, Flashman is another fun Italian production from the late 60s that leans on -attempted- humor and is heavily inspired by Batman. He’s even got a very Battish theme song… The somewhat convoluted plot concerns two gang of thieves who rob the same bank. One is a band of babes headed by a ruthless woman; the other is a group of thugs lead by a guy who has a serum that can turn anyone invisible. The employee they rob is none other than Flashman in disguise.Read More »

For an early 1970s sex flick, this one’s actually pretty good… ~SearchMyTrash

Synopsis:
After her uncle dies, a young woman visits his hedonistic widow and her aunt by marriage, Martine, who seduces her and shows her the pleasures of the flesh, which unfortunately leads to tragedy.Read More »

Details the early attempts, what worked, or why it didn’t, in the history of adding partial or full colour to films. Includes early film clips to illustrate how most tries appeared to audiences.Read More »

Plot:
Tony Curtis stars as Johnny Dark, a moody automobile designer. Rejected by a major auto firm because of his “radical” notions, Johnny sets out to prove the efficiency of his cars on the racetrack. He is aided and abetted by pretty Piper Laurie and less pretty Paul Kelly, while motor mogul Sidney Blackmer fumes and fusses until he realizes that Johnny’s designs will save his company. Most of the film is devoted to a marathon race, pitting Johnny against his friendly enemy Don Taylor. Johnny Dark is a must for racing buffs, as well as a prime example of Tony Curtis in his beefcake period.Read More »