To put the introduction in perspective, I think it's helpful to see how the perogatives of genre movies have changed. THEY CAME TO ROB LAS VEGAS was filmed genre movies tended to revise their content in order to make age old stories seem more contemporary.  The ersatz modern architecture and the retrofitted RV…

Actually, that was from ONLY ANGELS LIVE IN MY TOWN

Hollywood probably leans left when compared to other industries, but it isn't as monolithic as Newsmax leads you to believe.  In the 2000 Presidential campaign 40% of monies raised went to Republican candidates, a sizable sum if out of sync with most campaign sums coming from the financial/industrial sector.…

Very informative article. While a fan of Pentangle I really didn't know too much about the musicians behind it.  This news is very sad indeed,

He has used his name to author books that keep classic movies in the public eye.  Books like Great movies got me into movies as a kid and I'm greatful that he sees a role of a critic to educate people about film, not just to record his immediate impressions.

While the the framework of left wing vrs. right wing political poles makes sense in discussing eras in which class conflict and geopolitical turmoil were the issues of the day, more recent examples of celebrity activism show greater effectiveness, particularly among activists who might be described as "liberal".  Brad…

I remember once on "At the Movies" Siskel changed his thumb position upward on a movie based on Ebert's comments  In turn, Siskel tried to get Ebert to change his position upwards on a film discussed the previous week.  Ebert didn't budge—in fact he was visibly pissed off.

I appreciate that Ebert acknowledges that his reviews are based on an immediate, subjective impression of the movie watching experience.  At least he's forthright as to why, from time to time, his comments seem arbitrary and off topic (I'm thinking MOULIN ROUGE, and, most infamously, BLUE VELVET), but always…

Ones interest in a subject probably determines the level of enjoyment in Burns epic documentaries.  "Baseball" to me was a slog because the overall theme didn't cohere amongst the narrative strands and sports trivia.  I was hooked nonetheless on the war films.  I particularly liked the biographical pictures and the…

REally like DYL and LIA, but MODERN ROMANCE is Brook's purest film.  It could teach ANNIE HALL a thing or two about nerousis based rom-coms

I went to college in the mid 80s, but "September Gurls"  is the song I rememeber most from those years.

Ah, Lobsters, and on this movie I thought that we would reconcile our differences, and bask in the ecumenical glow that is—-er, whatever HATARI! is.

It comes up number 4 or 5 on my all time favorite movie of all time list, but it's view of romantic compatibility is fairly pessimistic.  In fact, Hawks' comedies tend to feel darker than his dramas.

Ther movie probably depicted cultural misunderstandings between tourists and Pueblos, who resided in a Fred Harvey fabricated "village" in proximity to the Santa Fe railroad depot.  There was, if memory serves a similar arrangement with the Navajos near the Grand Canyon.  Of course, the 1912 version of the Tea…

Drive carefully.  The cops have speedtraps all around that burg.

I too am glad to see some love for the BRO.  It's a pity that Fuller never got to edit a final version of the film.  While Schickel's reconstruction illuminates the arc of the Four Horsemen's journey much more clearly than the original theatrical version, it still feels a bit unfocused. 

Up until the 60s Hollywood produced a number of biblical epics with a loose, ecumentical appeal.  Of course during the 30s through the 50s liberal Protestant and Jewish organizations ( and conservative Catholics) were likely to consult with producers and what is now the M.P.A.A. as to what might be considered…

BUGSY, ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA, and the David Mamet scripted Meyer Lansky film that aired on HBO with Richard Dreyfus that has been mercifully forgotten.

A long time ago when I was just a lad, and its one I'd like to revisit. 

And yet—-here you are.