Tag Archives: history

Classic Film Review: Edwards and Sellers crash “The Party” in Hollywood (1968)

A wicked thought crossed my mind midway through re-watching the Blake Edwards/Peter Sellers farce “The Party,” one of three times the great British funnyman donned brownface to play Indian characters. What would have happened had Sellers, a comic legend and … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews, previews, profiles and movie news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Documentary Review: “Chris and Martina: The Final Set” of a Love Match built on Sportsmanship

The recent news that former tennis champ Chris Evert’s cancer has returned for the third time adds more real-life poignance to a lovely new documentary about her and her longtime foe and friend, Martina Navratilova. “Chris & Martina: The Final … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews, previews, profiles and movie news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Series Review: Snails, AgBots and Rich Farmer Guy/Old Guy Problems — “Clarkson’s Farm 5”

The novelty’s mostly worn off but some of the charm remains on “Clarkson’s Farm” as the British TV series about a rich and famous novice farmer’s misadventures in Oxfordshire returns for its fifth season. Veteran TV presenter and “Top Gear” … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews, previews, profiles and movie news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Series Review: Snails, AgBots and Rich Farmer Guy/Old Guy Problems — “Clarkson’s Farm 5”

Movie Review: The “Pressure” of D-Day Weighs on Ike and his Weathermen

“Pressure” is the sort of , stoic World War II drama that Hollywood and Britain used to turn out in the days when the World War II generation was still going to the movies. It’s built on a formula and … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews, previews, profiles and movie news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Movie Review: The “Pressure” of D-Day Weighs on Ike and his Weathermen

Documentary Review: An Environmental/Farm Economy Parable from Macedonia — “The Tale of Silyan”

An ancient parable is remembered and acted-out in modern day Macedonia in “The Tale of Silyan,” the latest documentary from the director of the Oscar-nominated “Honeyland.” Writer-director Tamara Kotesvka documents the collapse of her country’s small farm economy and sees … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews, previews, profiles and movie news | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Documentary Review: An Environmental/Farm Economy Parable from Macedonia — “The Tale of Silyan”

Classic Film Review: A Theatrical Cold War Anecdote turned TV Bon Bon — “An Englishman Abroad”

An actress on tour with “Hamlet” is “recruited” by Britain’s most notorious spy in 1950s Moscow in “An Englishman Abroad,” a delightfully droll tragi-comedy from the writer who gave us “The Madness of King George,” “The Lady in the Van” … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews, previews, profiles and movie news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Classic Film Review: A Theatrical Cold War Anecdote turned TV Bon Bon — “An Englishman Abroad”

Have you donated to Wikipedia this year?

Wikipedia, the secondary/overview font of much of the “knowledge” available on the Internet, is 24 years old this year. Growing pains and legitimate complaints lodged against its “crowdsourced” biographies, histories, science and facts in its early years notwithstanding, it’s endured … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews, previews, profiles and movie news | Tagged , , , , , | Comments Off on Have you donated to Wikipedia this year?

Documentary Review: A Son Hunts for the WWII Pilot Father he Barely Knew beyond “The Green Box: At the Heart of War”

As World War II fades into history and the numbers of those who lived through it and can bear witness about it decline by the hour, the lessons of that era seem doomed to be forgotten. Generations have grown up … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews, previews, profiles and movie news | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Documentary Review: A Son Hunts for the WWII Pilot Father he Barely Knew beyond “The Green Box: At the Heart of War”

Documentary Review: Entrancing “Trains” is a History of Europe through its Rails and Rolling Stock

“Trains,” the new dialogue-free “found footage” documentary by the Polish filmmaker Maciej Drygas, is one of the most original pieces of movie-making you’re likely to run across. Drygas tells a history of Europe through the first half of the 20th … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews, previews, profiles and movie news | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Documentary Review: Entrancing “Trains” is a History of Europe through its Rails and Rolling Stock

Movie Review — “Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale”

Lady Mary makes one more most-unladylike sexual mistake, “Mum-MAH” dishes up one more serving of proto-feminist American common sense and one last “season” in London town is experienced for “Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale” of the highbrow British/PBS soap opera … Continue reading

Posted in Reviews, previews, profiles and movie news | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Movie Review — “Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale”