First off let’s try and clear up the obvious confusions. The Adventures of Tintin should not be confused with The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin. The later is about a dog. The former has a dog in it but he doesn’t slobber as much. TATT is based on stories by Herge, not Herve. Herve was … Read more
When Dr. No (1962) opened at the box office, it created a sensation that is still rolling along. The James Bond franchise found a way to tell a story while maintaining a level of action and fun that had never before been equaled. The original MI film (1996) was a set piece film that delivered … Read more
Steven Spielberg crafts beautiful films. War Horse is no exception. It looks rich and it took riches to film all the sumptuous big scenes. Like other SS movies it suffers from a severe case of Sesame Street Itis. WH has a lot of location changes with new characters entering then departing the story. Only a … Read more
Garry Marshall, now 75 years old, is still trying to make ends meet. His latest effort to supplement his Social Security check is a directorial job at the helm of New Years Eve. According to the IMDB.com database GM is a pretty busy guy. Besides helming 28 movies as a director, he has been in … Read more
It’s a Wonderful Life, Director Frank Capra’s all time Christmas classic has a lot in common with Joe Dante’s Gremlins. Both have long finales which take place on Xmas Eve. G was written by Chris Columbus, directed by Joe Dante and produced by Steven Spielberg. It also sported a landmark score by Jerry Goldsmith. And … Read more
Hugo is two movies in one. How this works will be explained without giving anything important away. Director Martin Scorsese presents his first movie in 7 years not starring Leonardo DiCaprio. It is his first movie in 18 years that is rated PG, as usually his films are violent and bloody. With Johnny Depp as … Read more
For those in the age group of 14 to 18 when this film premiered in December of 1961, the effect was profound. The movie earned 10 Oscars including Best Picture. As far as movie-making, musicals and impact on the culture of American society, this film has had a long lasting and well deserved reputation as … Read more
J. Edgar is Clint Eastwood’s annual bid for more Oscars. He has won for Unforgiven and Million Dollar Baby. His bid last year was the stinker Hereafter, which I sat through and am still not ready to forgive him for. This is the story of John Edgar Hoover (1895 to 1972). From 1924 to 1935 … Read more
Tower Heist opened in theaters on November 4th. One national theater chain declined to book the film because the studio decided to make this film available on demand for download and viewing at home within three weeks of its release. By the time you are reading this review you may be able to turn on … Read more
Not sure what it wants to be, In Time seems to have put 24,000 one-sentence ideas on slips of paper into a large hat, then drew out about a dozen slips and created a storyline. They started out by aping Logan’s Run (1976) then mixed in Minority Report, any version of Robin Hood and any … Read more