Imagine: You’re in the theater to see a horror movie. Things are ramping up for a big scare. You’re just about spooked out of your mind. The sudden clash of the music cue hits, but instead of something terrifying all you see is a weird, messy digital effect where the movie’s villain should be. It’s … Read more
The Price Is Right has been on the air in some form or fashion since 1972 — and that’s a revival of a show that originally aired in the 1950s and 1960s. So we’re talking more than 50 years of episodes. That’s thousands of shows, and thousands of Showcases, the climactic battle between each show’s two winning contestants … Read more
With “Black Twitter: A People’s History,” Penny assembles numerous journalists, scholars, comedians, and internet personalities, including W. Kamau Bell, Amanda Seales, Jemele Hill, Roxane Gay, Sam Jay, Brad Jenkins, Alicia Garza, and April Reign. Given the celebration of inclusivity, its aura is disappointingly exclusive as most of the subjects’ opinions are high-profile people with blue checks. … Read more
“Bushman” was one revelation out of many. I felt excited over and over again as I found new gems to program for the Jacob Burns Film Center’s first festival celebrating film preservation and restoration, Restored & Rediscovered. Screening from May 13-23, the festival will highlight the important work of saving and restoring films so that … Read more
The following post contains spoilers for Unfrosted. You might think what follows is made up. It does not sound real. I assure you, it is. Unfrosted is Jerry Seinfeld’s new Netflix comedy about the origins of the beloved breakfast food, the Pop-Tart. While the film does mention real companies and alludes to actual historical events — … Read more
Stunts have been an integral part of filmmaking since the very beginning, providing the type of blood-pumping adrenaline rush that comes with seeing something unbelievable pulled off to perfection. There’s nothing we love more than staring openmouthed at a particularly incredible stunt, wondering how in the world they possibly did that without anyone getting seriously … Read more
The first evening show of the day was Frank Borzage’s “The Lady,” starring the incomparable Norma Talmadge. I first saw this film a few years back as part of the online component of Pordenone, but I may as well have never seen it for how much the big screen transformed the experience. Talmadge at one … Read more
This version, which still plays at rep cinemas to this day, includes songs performed by Pat Benatar, Jon Anderson, Adam Ant, Cycle V, Loverboy, Billy Squier, Freddie Mercury, and Bonnie Tyler, the later of whom received a Grammy nomination for her rendition of “Here She Comes.” Mercury recorded “Love Kills,” his solo contribution to the … Read more
I do not remember a time before movies and food were inextricably linked in my mind. As a kid, I ate cereal inspired by E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial. When I got a little older, I fixated on collecting cups from fast food restaurants emblazoned with the characters from blockbusters. (I still contend there has never been a more impressive … Read more
In 2024, a movie is often labeled a success or failure before it’s even “opened” in theaters. In the parlance of the film industry, we still say that movies are “opening Friday.” But most of the top tentpoles begin screening on Thursdays — sometimes as early as 3PM in the afternoon. The box-office receipts from those early exhibitions are … Read more