Monthly Archives: November 2017

No more Kevin Spacey. An Oscar winner replaced by an Oscar winner in Ridley Scott’s take on the infamous 1970s Getty kidnapping.

People griping about the glacial pace of change should take a peek at this trailer for a spring teen romance by a major Hollywood movie studio and featuring A-listers in supporting roles. Twenty years since Matthew Shepard and “Boys Don’t … Continue reading →

It looks serious-minded, sober. And if it aims for controversy, it’s soft-peddled in the film’s first trailer. Aside from, oh, Jesus played by Joaquin Phoenix and Chiwetel Ejiofor playing St. Peter. Rooney Mara has the title role, a “fallen woman” … Continue reading →

In America, we have been known to eat anything fried, to queue up for the films of Adam Sandler and the endless “Farewell” tours of Cher and KISS. And in France, they still savor the taste of snails, and never … Continue reading →

A good chase thriller isn’t so much scripted as diagrammed, mapped-out. Characters have to get from Point A to Point B. Make the journey viable and scenic. Create interesting obstacles for them to overcome — a police dragnet, a dangerous … Continue reading →

Not knowing that Dan Gilroy, writer-director of “Nightcrawler,” brother of Tony Gilroy (“Michael Clayton”) wrote and directed it would help “Roman J. Israel, Esq.,” simply by lowering expectations for the Denzel Washington legal drama. Strip away any pretense of “Oscar … Continue reading →

Charles Dickens is pacing his study, muttering loudly enough that the servants can hear. And giggle. “SCRATCH!” he says. “Scroooou-ples. SCRAMPLE.” It’s important work, a big part of his process. “Get the name right,” says Dickens, who delighted in “collecting” … Continue reading →

I was thinking, not long ago, that maybe it’s time we re-examined the life and work of Jim Carrey. And then Netflix releases this documentary which starts that process in earnest. “Jim & Andy: The Great Beyond” is a fascinating, … Continue reading →

    The trick to getting most any script turned into a feature film is finding “names” who are interested in doing it. But here’s a tip. If you’ve lined up Oscar winner Al Pacino, somehow, to make your movie, … Continue reading →

The most interesting “little known fact” about the lady Hollywood sex symbol Hedy Lamarr is this secret life she led, at least briefly, as an inventor. It all but dominated her obituaries when she died in Jan. of 2000, including … Continue reading →