In 1997, Curtis Hanson turned James Ellroy’s gritty crime novel L.A. Confidential into a universally praised Oscar-winning movie. If it didn’t have the misfortune of going up against Titanic, it probably would’ve won Best Picture and Best Director. So, when people wondered what would be Hanson’s follow-up, they might have been surprised he was goingContinue reading “‘Wonder Boys’ 25 Years Later”
Tag Archives: film
‘Cannibal! The Musical’ An Appetizer Of What To Come From Future Stars
A movie like Cannibal! The Musical is amateurish but not everyone gets it the right the first time. With the exception of Orson Welles, Harper Lee and the Coen Brothers, many filmmakers, writers and actors have to find their groove through trial and error. Reportedly after seeing a rough cut of Boxcar Bertha, John CassavetesContinue reading “‘Cannibal! The Musical’ An Appetizer Of What To Come From Future Stars”
SNL’s 50th Anniversary Show Is Golden
I think one of the most amazing things about Saturday Night Live isn’t its longevity. It’s that so many people of the original cast are still alive. While John Belushi and Gilda Radner passed away in the 1980s, others such as Dan Aykroyd, Chevy Chase, Garrett Morris, Jane Curtin, Larraine Newman and Bill Murray areContinue reading “SNL’s 50th Anniversary Show Is Golden”
‘Spamalot Diaries’ Is The Book Equivalent Of You Just Had To Be There
I’ve been a big Monty Python fan for over 30 years. Little did I know that some of my favorite movies as a kid like A Fish Called Wanda and Yellowbeard which I saw in the 1980s had that Pythonesque humor to it. (Ok, Yellowbeard is not so good once you get older.) And IContinue reading “‘Spamalot Diaries’ Is The Book Equivalent Of You Just Had To Be There”
‘Fallen’ Is A B-Movie With A-List Cast That Has Risen To Cult Classic Status
Sometimes, a movie like Fallen comes along that has an impressive cast with an fascinating premise, you just wonder what the hell went wrong. Well, if you look at the time frame in which the movie was release, that can answer a lot of the questions. It was released in the middle of January 1998Continue reading “‘Fallen’ Is A B-Movie With A-List Cast That Has Risen To Cult Classic Status”
‘Back In Action’ Lacking In Much Action And Originality
Back in Action had become more famous for the behind the scenes real-life drama that probably had the rest of the cast and crew worried if it could be finished at all. Jamie Foxx had been hospitalized in April 2023 while working on the movie in Atlanta. His family and close friends did a greatContinue reading “‘Back In Action’ Lacking In Much Action And Originality”
‘Running Man’ A Sensational Warning Of A Future Closely Approaching
Note: This post does contain spoilers to this and other movies. One the surface, a movie like 1987’s The Running Man seems to be more of a typical Arnold Schwarzenegger action fare. But under the surface is a satire and maybe a warning of a future that seems vastly approaching to a reality. Now thatContinue reading “‘Running Man’ A Sensational Warning Of A Future Closely Approaching”
‘Queer’ Is Quite Straight
I’m going to be brutally honest here. Just because a movie, TV show or literary work covers a subject matter that is (or in this case) was hardly ever discussed, it doesn’t make it automatically great. William S. Burroughs was part of the Beat Generation, but we have to wonder was he consider good becauseContinue reading “‘Queer’ Is Quite Straight”
David Lynch Made Avant-Garde Cinema/TV Mainstream
I’ve often said even when David Lynch made a bad movie, it was still a lot better than some other director’s best movies. I remember watching the 2002 Academy Awards telecast and very briefly there was a shot of Lynch standing next to Robert Altman as they were casually talking. It was one of thoseContinue reading “David Lynch Made Avant-Garde Cinema/TV Mainstream”
‘Ravenous’ Has A Huge Bite
A movie like Ravenous takes a very tender subject and turns it on its side. Cannibalism has always kind of been one of those odd topics for horror. The eating of human flesh is still a cliched trope but reports are coming out that it’s quite possible in the respective colonial and antebellum days ofContinue reading “‘Ravenous’ Has A Huge Bite”
Zane Says 