(1922) dir. Robert J. Flaherty
viewed: 06/19/09
The best silent documentary about Eskimos that I’ve ever watched.
Seriously, though, Robert J. Flaherty’s classic film, Nanook of the North, is deemed to be the first feature-length documentary film, following the life of a Canadian Inuit and his family as they hunt walruses and snow foxes, build igloos, and romp [...]
Archive of entries posted on June 2009
Nanook of the North
Le bonheur
(1965) dir. Agnès Varda
viewed: 06/15/09
Le bonheur is another really interesting film from the great Agnès Varda, the lone woman affiliated with the French New Wave. As I’ve mentioned in past comments, I’d first seen her film Vagabond (1985) back in film school, but for some reason didn’t get around to really exploring her work until [...]
The Hidden Fortress
(1958) dir. Akira Kurosawa
viewed: 06/14/09
My continued travels in the realm of the samurai film bring me back yet again to the Japanese master director, Akira Kurosawa, whose own works in the genre make up for almost half of the notable films listed on Wikipedia. And while other directors have been quite interesting, Kurosawa, as noted, [...]
A High Wind in Jamaica
(1965) dir. Alexander Mackendrick
viewed: 06/12/09
I rented the 1965 film A High Wind in Jamaica after having only just recently finished reading the novel from which it was adapted, published in 1929 by Richard Hughes. The novel struck me immensely. It’s probably one of the greatest novels that I’ve ever read, a vivid, Surreal horror comedy [...]
Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus
(2009) dir. Jack Perez
viewed: 06/12/09
The YouTube trailer sensation that is/was Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus may be so like two weeks ago or something, but it took Netflix that long to send it to me. The direct-to-video piece of pure garbage and genius is something indeed. Quite amusing. Quite bad.
Starring Deborah Gibson (of teen pop [...]
One Million Years B.C.
(1966) dir. Don Chaffey
viewed: 06/10/09
This cult caveperson film from 1966 features special effects from the legendary Ray Harryhausen, but as it is best known, the best special effect in the film is simply Raquel Welch is a leather bikini. And yeah, that figure is something else!
This movie has got it all: giant tarantulas, giant iguanas, [...]
Valkyrie
(2008) dir. Bryan Singer
viewed: 06/08/09
Valkyrie is a film based on real events in World War II, when German military officers attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler and stage a coup to stop the Nazi regime and end the war. It stars Tom Cruise as Claus von Stauffenberg, the leader of the plan and national hero who [...]
The Bad News Bears
(1976) dir. Michael Ritchie
viewed: 06/05/09
My son just finished his first season of little league the week before and is more into and excited about baseball than he ever has been. I’d thought of renting The Bad News Bears some time ago, but I remembered it being a bit rough and rangy with language and wasn’t [...]
Changeling
(2008) dir. Clint Eastwood
viewed: 06/01/09
Director Clint Eastwood’s film Changeling is an adept and effective film about a fascinating, horrifying story. Adapted from facts about a nototious series of murders from 1928 known as the Wineville Chicken Coop Murders and the true life account of Christine Collins, a single mother whose son disappears, only to be [...]
Up
(2009) dir. Pete Docter, Bob Peterson
viewed: 05/30/09 at the Castro Theatre, SF, CA
Pixar has been, since 1995’s Toy Story, the tops in the biz regarding digital feature animation filmmaking in the United States and doubtlessly the entire world. Even with their weaker efforts, they are still miles ahead in the storytelling and development, visual aesthetics, [...]
