Bad Day at Black Rock – The Movie Gourmet

Movies to See Right Now

January 22, 2022January 21, 2022 by movie gourmet

Photo caption: Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand in THE TRAGEDY OF MACBETH. Photo courtesy of A24.

This is simple: stream The Tragedy of Macbeth, Don’t Look Up or The Power of the Dog. If you’re game for a theater experience, see Drive My Car, Nightmare Alley or Belfast.

IN THEATERS

Drive My Car: director and co-writer Ryûsuke Hamaguchi’s engrossing masterpiece about dealing with loss – and it’s the best movie of 2021. Layered with character-driven stories that could each justify their own movie, this is a mesmerizing film that builds into an exhilarating catharsis.
Nightmare Alley: enough burning ambition for a thousand carnies.
Licorice Pizza: When nine years is a big age difference.
Belfast: a child’s point if view is universal. If you have heartstrings, they are gonna get pulled.
Red Rocket: a genius at burning bridges.
C’mon C’mon: In Mike Mills’ charming and authentic film, Joaquin Phoenix plays a well-intentioned, emotionally intelligent guy who gets an immersion course in parenting.
House of Gucci: Lady Gaga and Adam Driver shine in this modern tale of Shakespearean family treachery.
Benedetta: Paul Verhoeven’s entertaining parable of belief and class, wrapped in scandal and sacrilege.

ON VIDEO

The Tragedy of Macbeth: No surprise here: Joel Coen, Denzel Washington and Frances McDormand deliver a crisp and imaginative version of the Bard’s Scottish Play. AppleTV.

Styx: In this gripping drama, a skilled and resourceful woman embarks on an open-sea solo voyage, and we think we’re about to watch a survival tale. But then she is confronted with a situation that presents all bad choices – and, this time, she can’t fix it by herself. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu.

Western: In the evocative and thought-provoking German drama, an alienated man goes native. Western played the Cannes and Toronto film festivals in 2017, and then five US film fests, but never got a US theatrical release. Western can be streamed from The Criterion Channel, AppleTV, Vudu and YouTube.

Some of my choices for Best Movies of 2021 are already on video:

Riders of Justice: Thriller, comedy and much, much more. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu and YouTube.
The Power of the Dog: One man’s meanness, another man’s growth. Netflix.
Don’t Look Up: Wickedly funny. Filmmaker Adam McKay (The Big Short) and a host of movie stars hit the bullseye as they target a corrupt political establishment, a soulless media and a gullible, lazy-minded public. Netflix.
Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain: Bad ass romantic. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube and redbox.
Lamb : This dark, cautionary fable of karma is a brilliant and unsettling debut by writer-director Valdimar Jóhannsson. Amazon, AppleTV, Vudu, YouTube and redbox.

Movies to See Right Now

February 14, 2020February 14, 2020 by movie gourmet

Well, the Oscars were, for once, a happy surprise. As I wrote last week, I knew Parasite would win the Best International Oscar and I was rooting for Bong Joon Ho to win either for screenplay or directing, but I never dreamed that Parasite would sweep four major awards. As a bonus, the lovable Bong made the most classy and generous acceptance speech. Parasite is now streaming widely (and only $3.99 on Amazon Prime right now).

I do have two friends with good movie taste who, surprisingly, did not like Parasite. The film’s ending is shattering and not for everyone, I very much admired and enjoyed it. As I’ve been saying since I saw it on October 24, it’s a masterpiece.

Chaos caused by a family medical emergency kept The Wife and I from our traditional Oscar Dinner. But if we had, we would have taken advantage of our friend Keifer’s wicked suggestion of featuring shaved peach fuzz from Parasite. Since it’s February and I’m in North America, the challenge would have been to source a fresh fuzzy peach.

OUT NOW

The masterpiece Parasite explores social inequity, first with hilarious comedy, then evolving into suspense and finally a shocking statement of the real societal stakes. This is one of the decade’s best films.
Adam Driver and Scarlett Johannson are brilliant in Noah Baumbach’s career-topping Marriage Story. A superb screenplay, superbly acted, Marriage Story balances tragedy and comedy with uncommon success. Marriage Story is streaming on Netflix.
Martin Scorsese’s gangster epic The Irishman is tremendous, and features performances by Al Pacino and Joe Pesci that are epic, too. It’s streaming on Netflix.
Rian Johnson’s Knives Out turns a drawing room murder mystery into a wickedly funny send-up of totally unjustified entitlement. Knives Out is streaming.
Refusing to play it safe, director Francisco Meirelles elevates The Two Popes from would have been a satisfying acting showcase into a thought-provoker. It’s streaming on Netflix.
1917 is technically groundbreaking, but the screenplay neither thrilled me nor moved me.

ON VIDEO

My video pick, John Sayles’ City of Hope, is almost thirty years old, still searingly relevant on race in America and still one of the most incisive films on American politics. Life is complicated, so is America and so are politics. Most political films are NOT complicated, but Sayles respects the audience enough to give us a realistic story in a realistic community setting. City of Hope may be streamed from iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.

ON TV

Turner Classic Movies’ 31 Days of Oscar continues on February 15 with the John Sturges masterpiece Bad Day at Black Rock. Spencer Tracy investigates a disappearance in an especially hostile, racist and sinister town. Besides having Tracy at his best and being a great looking movie, Bad Day at Black Rock is notable for its menacing crew of Bad Guys – Robert Ryan, Ernest Borgnine and Lee Marvin.

Spencer Tracy and Robert Ryan in BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK

Movies to See Right Now

October 12, 2018 by movie gourmet

Lady Gaga illuminates Bradley Cooper’s triumphant A Star Is Born. Don’t bring a hankie – bring a whole friggin’ box of Kleenex. For an under-the-radar pick at the Mill Valley Film Festival , check out one of the most optimistic movies I’ve recently seen, the documentary One Voice: The Story of the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir on October 13.

OUT NOW

Spike Lee’s true story BlacKkKlansman is very funny and, finally, emotionally powerful.
The first-rate thriller Searching is more than just a gimmick (it entirely takes place on computer screens) and is filled with authentic Silicon Valley touches.
Jane Fonda herself spills her most intimate secrets in the irresistible HBO biodoc Jane Fonda in Five Acts.
Crazy Rich Asians is wildly popular for a reason – it’s damn entertaining and probably the year’s most appealing date movie. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry and you’ll wait for the chance to see Awkwafina in her next movie.

ON VIDEO

My Stream of the Week is the alternatively jaw-dropping and visually amazing documentary Brimstone & Glory, about fireworks manufacturing and the National Pyrotechnical Festival in Tultepec, Mexico. Brimstone & Glory can be streamed from Amazon (included with Prime), iTunes and Vudu.

ON TV

On October 14 Turner Classic Movies presents the John Sturges masterpiece Bad Day at Black Rock with Spencer Tracy investigating a disappearance in an especially hostile, racist and sinister town. Besides having Tracy at his best and being a great looking movie, Bad Day at Black Rock is notable for its menacing crew of Bad Guys – Robert Ryan, Ernest Borgnine and Lee Marvin.

Movies to See Right Now

July 8, 2016 by movie gourmet

Here are my (almost) ALL NEW movie recommendations.

Our Kind of Traitor is a robust espionage thriller with a funny yet powerful performance by Stellan Skarsgård.
Free State of Jones effectively combines the elements of political drama, romance and war movies into an absorbing Civil War drama, one which connects the dots between the 19th Century and the 20th and beyond. With a sizzling Matthew McConaughey.
NUTS! is the persistently hilarious (and finally poignant) documentary about the rise and fall of a medical and radio empire – all built on goat testicle “implantation” surgery in gullible humans.
Zero Days is a documentary on a jaw-dropping hacker mystery – who and how was able to get Iranian military computers to destroy the hardware for their own nuclear weapons program.
All the Way is a thrilling political docudrama with a stellar performance. It’s the story of President Lyndon Baines Johnson, warts and all, ending official racial segregation in America with the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Bryan Cranston brings LBJ alive as no actor has before. All the Way is still playing on HBO.
Finding Dory doesn’t have the breakthrough animation or the depth of story that we expect from Pixar, but it won’t be painful to watch a zillion times with your kids.

My Stream of the Week is the perfect companion film to Weiner – it’s the inside story of ANOTHER campaign – one of Anthony Weiner’s opponents in the same 2013 mayoral election. Hers to Lose: Inside Christine Quinn’s Bid for Mayor is an extraordinarily evocative political film, it’s only 30 minutes long and you can watch it for free here at the NYT.

Tonight Turner Classic Movies explores “America in the 70s” with four of the best films EVER – All the President’s Men, The Candidate, Network and The Conversation – along with the time capsule thriller Klute.

And on July 13, TCM presents the John Sturges masterpiece Bad Day at Black Rock with Spencer Tracy investigating a disappearance in an especially hostile, racist and sinister town. Besides having Tracy at his best and being a great looking movie, Bad Day at Black Rock is notable for its menacing crew of Bad Guys – Robert Ryan, Ernest Borgnine and Lee Marvin.

This Week's Movies To See Right Now

January 27, 2011 by moviegourmet

There are more excellent movies in the theaters RIGHT NOW than any other time of the year. Right now, you can see Another Year, True Grit, The King’s Speech, Black Swan, The Way Back, Somewhere, Biutiful, The Fighter, Rabbit Hole and Fair Game. It just doesn’t get any better than this for movie fans.

True Grit is the Coen Brothers’ splendid Old West story of Mattie Ross, a girl of unrelenting resolve and moxie played by 14-year-old Hailee Steinfeld in a breakthrough performance, and Jeff Bridges is perfect as the hilarious, oft-besotted and frequently lethal Rooster Cogburn. The King’s Speech is the crowd pleasing story of a good man (Colin Firth) overcoming his stammer to inspire his nation in wartime with the help of a brassy commoner (Geoffrey Rush). Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan is a rip roaring thriller and a showcase for Natalie Portman and Barbara Hershey. Another Year is Mike Leigh’s brilliant observation of the human condition, and asks why some people find contentment and others just cannot; Lesley Manville has the flashiest role – and gives the most remarkable performance – as a woman whose long trail of bad choices hasn’t left her with many options for a happy life.

Biutiful is a grim, grim movie with a great performance by Javier Bardem in a compelling portrait of a desperate man in desperate circumstance, directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (Amores perros, 21 Grams, Babel).

Somewhere is Sofia Coppola’s (Lost in Translation) artsy portrait of a man so purposeless that he can find no pleasure in pleasure. An A-list movie star (Steven Dorff) is living at the Chateau Marmont with his expensive toys, booze and drugs and an inexhaustible supply of beautiful, sexually available women, but without Without any purpose or connection to others, his debauchery is completely joyless. To his surprise and discomfort, his eleven-year-old daughter (Elle Fanning) moves in for a few weeks.

The Way Back is inspired by the story of a 1940 escape from a Siberian gulag by men who walk over 4,000 miles to freedom in India – a trek of 4000 miles. It’s beautifully shot by director Peter Weir (Picnic at Hanging Rock, The Year of Living Dangerously, Witness, Master and Commander) but, eleven months of trudging through dangerous, unfamiliar territory while suffering from starvation and exposure is really impressive, but not that engaging.

I strongly recommend Rabbit Hole, an exquisite exploration of the grieving process with great performances by Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhardt, Diane Wiest, Sandra Oh and Miles Tenner. The Fighter is an excellent drama, starring Mark Wahlberg as a boxer trying to succeed despite his crack addict brother (Christian Bale) and trashy mom (Melissa Leo). Fair Game, the Valerie Plame/Joe Wilson story with Naomi Watts and Sean Penn, is also excellent. All are on my list of Best Movies of 2010.

I Love You, Phillip Morris is an entertaining offbeat combo of the con man, prison and romantic comedy genres. Red Hill is a stylish contemporary Aussie Western. Season of the Witch is a bad Nicholas Cage/Ron Perlman buddy movie set among the plague, crusades and witch hunts of the 13th century.

For trailers and other choices, see Movies to See Right Now.

You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is The Trip. For my recent DVD choices (including trailers), see DVDs of the Week.

Movies on TV include Little Big Man, Bad Day at Black Rock, The Dirty Dozen, Marty The Wild Bunch, Five Easy Pieces and The Last Detail on TCM.

ALL NEW (mostly) Movies To See

July 29, 2010 by moviegourmet

inception1 — Joseph Gordon Levitt and Leonardo DiCaprio in Inception

I recommend the summer’s one high quality blockbuster, Inception. If you have followed The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, you will want to continue the trilogy with The Girl Who Played With Fire. The indie dramedy The Kids Are All Right is enjoyable, too. One of the year’s best, Toy Story 3, is still playing, but the equally great Winter’s Bone has become difficult to find. For trailers and other choices, see Movies to See Right Now.

My DVDs of the week are the gnarly Step into Liquid and the way awesome Riding Giants. For the trailers and other DVD choices, see DVDs of the Week.

Movies on TV include The Searchers and Bad Day at Black Rock, coming up on TCM. Before Sunrise is still playing on IFC.

Movies to See This Week

July 22, 2010 by moviegourmet

I can’t speak to the three most promising new films, because I haven’t seen them yet: The Kids Are All Right, Inception and The Girl Who Played With Fire. But that should be remedied by next week’s recommendations. In the mean time, I can say that the “must see” films in theaters remain Winter’s Bone and Toy Story 3. Winter’s Bone has been out for a while, so, if you haven’t seen it in a theater, you’d better see it soon. For trailers and other choices, see Movies to See Right Now.

My DVD of the week is Tortilla Soup. It’s the closest thing to a chick flick that I’ll be recommending for at least a month. For the trailer and other DVD choices, see DVDs of the Week.

John Ford's The Searchers

Movies on TV include The Searchers and Bad Day at Black Rock, coming up on TCM. The Crying Game and Before Sunrise are still playing on IFC.