Musical Monday: Ballad in Blue (1965)

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A Patch of Blue (1965)

I hope my analogy does not get misconstrued, but A Patch of Blue plays like a sublime fairy tale. It’s set in New York, a city that often feels as much of a visual fabrication made out of magic and myth as it is a real place anchored in time and space. Here is the very same world that exists i... Read full article

Musical Monday: Rhapsody in Blue (1945)

It’s no secret that the Hollywood Comet loves musicals. In 2010, I revealed I had seen 400 movie musicals over the course of eight years. Now that number is over 600. To celebrate and share this musical love, here is my weekly feature about musicals. This week’s musical: Rhapsody in Blue (1945) ... Read full article

Yellow Submarine (1968): The Beatles Vs. The Blue Meanies

Like all the great fantasy stories, this one begins with “Once upon a time…” The world is Pepperland, 80,000 leagues under the sea, where people live in harmony frolicking across the hills with music wafting through the air. But there must be villains and there are no cartoonish ba... Read full article

On DVD/Blu-Ray: Ann Dvorak Steals the Show in Out of the Blue (1947)

Director Leigh Jason’s Out of the Blue (1947) aims for screwball comedy, but doesn’t have the pace or cast to fit the bill. Instead, it is an offbeat ensemble piece with a few plot points that haven’t aged well and a supremely silly performance by Ann Dvorak. Based on Vera Caspar... Read full article