Criterion Blues Posted by Aaron West on February 2, 2014

Feb 2 Posted by aaronwest This was arguably one of the weaker years in the 80s. A lot of the American films were dominated by low quality crowd-pleasing flicks. Once Upon a Time in America is an example of how difficult it was to get a challenging film made from...   read more

The Stop Button Posted by on January 1, 2014

For such an “odd” movie, Repo Man is incredibly precise. Writer-director Cox has four or five subplots–depending on if Emilio Estevez becoming a repo man and his journey as one is considered the plot, as Cox downgrades it to subplot status about three-quarters through the picture.   read more

Journeys in Classic Film Posted by on October 16, 2013

I’m going to keep my review of Night of the Comet rather informal, because that’s the type of movie it is. It’s a loving tribute to B-movies, particularly in the sci-fi and horror genre, that ends up transcending its confines with a fun plot, and some surprisingly well-rounded acting. Those...   read more

4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on September 29, 2013

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4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on September 29, 2013

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4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on September 2, 2013

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4 Star Films Posted by 4 Star Film Fan on September 2, 2013

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Pretty Clever Films Posted by Toyiah Murry on August 26, 2013

The Brother from another Planet is a breath of fresh interstellar air. It’s the post-Blaxploitation era response to the rising social issues and growing changes within inner city communities in the 1980s. Written, directed and edited by John Sayles, The Brother from Another Planet depicts the comic   read more

The Stop Button Posted by on April 16, 2013

Splash has a strange narrative structure. The front’s heavy, likely because the filmmakers make a real effort to establish Tom Hanks as a listless young (well, youngish) man. Of course, Hanks is a listless man with an apparently great job as a produce whole seller, an amazing Manhattan apartm   read more

The Stop Button Posted by on March 12, 2013

So much of Romancing the Stone is perfect, when the film has bumps, they stand out. Even worse, it closes on one of those bumps. The finale is so poorly handled, one has to wonder if it’s the result of a rewrite. Anyway, on to the glowing stuff. The film’s...   read more

Journeys in Classic Film Posted by Kristen on January 16, 2013

I’m going to keep my review of Night of the Comet rather informal, because that’s the type of movie it is. It’s a loving tribute to B-movies, particularly in the sci-fi and horror genre, that ends up transcending its confines with a fun plot, and some surprisingly well-rounded acting. Those...   read more

Journeys in Classic Film Posted by Kristen on December 10, 2012

This review was originally published December 17th, 2011.  Gremlins is a fun movie, and this review is actually the most read in the site’s history (go figure).  It’s not a classic, and it’s fairly dark for a Christmas movie, but boy is it fun! Gremlins is an interesting Christmas   read more

The Stop Button Posted by on October 24, 2012

Lassiter suffers from a definite lack of charisma. Not from leading man Tom Selleck, who looks a tad too tall to be a jewel thief, but from his leading ladies, Jane Seymour and Lauren Hutton. Seymour plays the girlfriend, which should give Lassiter an edge–if Seymour and Selleck had any...   read more

Journeys in Classic Film Posted by Kristen on September 20, 2012

I believe I’ve mentioned this in previous reviews but several factors have to coalesce for a comedy to withstand the test of time.  A film like Sullivan’s Travels still works due to its universal themes and the lack of any type of technology or terminology that would date it.  Then...   read more

The Stop Button Posted by on June 23, 2012

The Best Legs in Eighth Grade aired on HBO. Apparently, their original programming has gotten a lot better since the eighties. It’s difficult to describe Legs. Bruce Feirstein’s script seems to be meant for stage–the biggest surprise isn’t just he’s had a career since,   read more

The Stop Button Posted by on May 4, 2012

Supergirl never really had a chance. The Superman-inspired opening credits lack any grandeur, ditto with Jerry Goldsmith’s lame music. Goldsmith improves somewhat throughout, but the lack of a catchy theme song hurts the film. The film has a few things going for it, however, including Helen S   read more

Journeys in Classic Film Posted by Kristen on March 24, 2012

This was a recommend from my fantastic podcast listeners and man was it a surprise to me.  There’s been a huge surge in the “revisionist” fairy tale movement that shows no signs of stopping as evidenced by the numerous Snow White tales we have coming out this year alone.  This...   read more

The Stop Button Posted by on January 2, 2012

I forgot how loose eighties comedies are in terms of filmmaking and narrative. I don’t think Wilson has a single good shot in the film. The best ones are workmanlike at best and the worst… well, he has these absurdly weak low angle closeups on David Graf, either to make...   read more

Journeys in Classic Film Posted by Kristen on December 17, 2011

Gremlins is an interesting Christmas movie as its equal parts family film, horror movie, and fantasy all dusted with Christmas magic.  There’s a thread of corrupting the innocence of nature, small towns vs. big business and all that, but at its core it’s about a boy and his gremlin! Gre   read more

Journeys in Classic Film Posted by Kristen on December 15, 2011

I enjoy a good B-movie, especially one built around a specific holiday (of course the only one I can think of right now is Mother’s Day but I know there are others out there).  Tonight’s Christmas film is the B-movie, cult classic, Silent Night Deadly Night.  This movie is extremely...   read more