What They Had is an authentic and well-crafted dramatic four-hander with Hilary Swank, Michael Shannon, Blythe Danner and Robert Forster.
Quincyis Rashida Jones’ intimate biodoc of her father, that most important and prolific musical figure Quincy Jones.
Museo is a portrait of alienation that plays out in a true life heist, but the alienation is just not that compelling.
If you haven’t caught it yet, you can still find Spike Lee’s true story BlacKkKlansman – very funny and, finally, emotionally powerful.
ON VIDEO
My Stream of the Week is the Norwegian suspense thriller Revenge, one of the world cinema high points of the 2017 Cinequest. Revenge can be streamed from Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
ON TV
Turner Classic Movies is all-horror, all-the-time this week. But the best is Diabolique from director Henri-Georges Clouzot (often tagged as the French Hitchcock). The headmaster of a provincial boarding school is so cruel, even sadistic, that everyone wants him dead, especially his wife and his mistress. When he goes missing, the police drain the murky pool where the killers dumped the body…and the killers get a big surprise. Now the suspense really starts…
The year’s best movies are about to flood the theaters.
OUT NOW
Lady Gaga illuminates Bradley Cooper’s triumphant A Star Is Born. Don’t bring a hankie – bring a whole friggin’ box of Kleenex.
Spike Lee’s true story BlacKkKlansmanis 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.
ON VIDEO
My Stream of the Week is the Norwegian suspense thriller Revenge, one of the world cinema high points of the 2017 Cinequest. Revenge can be streamed from Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
ON TV
On October 22, Turner Classic Movies brings us Beyond a Reasonable Doubt, another film noir from the great Fritz Lang: seeking to discredit capital punishment, a reporter (Dana Andrews) gets himself charged with and CONVICTED of a murder – but then the evidence of his innocence suddenly disappears! Crackerjack (and deeply noir) surprise ending.
Dana Andrews and Joan Fontaine in BEYOND A REASONABLE DOUBT
Spike Lee’s true story BlacKkKlansmanis 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.
Spencer Tracy and Robert Ryan in BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK
Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga in A STAR IS BORN[/caption]
I just saw A Star Is Born last night – and you should, too. I’ll be writing about it this weekend. I’ll also be heading to the Mill Valley Film Festival to see three of the most exciting Prestige Season releases: Cold War, Roma and Shoplifters.
OUT NOW
Spike Lee’s true story BlacKkKlansmanis 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 appealing transgender dramedy Venus, which won the Cinequest award for best narrative feature. Venus is available for streaming from Amazon and iTunes.
ON TV
Tune into Turner Classic Movies on October 6 for director Robert Altman’s underappreciated California Split. Elliott Gould plays a guy deep in the throes of gambling addiction, and George Segal plays another guy well on his way. The two join up and play the LA-area card clubs before heading to Reno for a poker game that may be too big for them. Gould is at his manic, wise cracking best, and plays off the more reserved Segal in a very funny adventure. Of course, their decision-making is influenced by their addiction.
Actor Joseph Walsh wrote the screenplay about his own gambling addiction and plays the bookie you don’t want to owe money to. Real card club and casino patrons play the poker players, so the verisimilitude of the poker games is unmatched. The real Amarillo Slim elevates the big game.
California Split was the first non-Cinerama movie to use eight tracks for sound, which was perfect for Altman’s style of overlapping dialogue and tidbits of side and background conversations.
The poker is both authentic and entertaining. The two guys “read a table”, analyzing the other players in one particularly funny moment.
Reliable character actor Bert Remsen has a memorable bit in drag. Mickey Fox is memorable as a suspicious poker loser. Look for a young Jeff Goldblum, too.
Elliott Gould (center left) and George Segal (center right) in CALIFORNIA SPLIT
Henry Golding and Constance Wu in CRAZY RICH ASIANS
This week have two reliable audience pleasers that have been in theaters for a while. To preview the year’s biggest movies, make your plans to attend the Mill Valley Film Festival.
OUT NOW
Spike Lee’s true story BlacKkKlansmanis very funny and, finally, emotionally powerful.
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 psychological thriller Beast, with its blazing, breakout performance by Jessie Buckley. It’s a heckuva ride. You can stream Beast on Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
ON TV
On September 24, Turner Classic Movies airs my choice as the best ever concert movie, The Last Waltz. (OK, Monterey Pop, Woodstock and Stop Making Sense are all in the conversation, too.) The Last Waltz is the documentary of The Band’s 1976 farewell concert at San Francisco’s legendary Winterland venue.
This was a big deal because The Band was one of the most respected and influential rock bands of the late 1960s and 1970s. They are primarily remembered for being Bob Dylan’s electric band and for their own hits Up on Cripple Creek, The Weight and The Night They Drove Dixie Down, Stage Fright and The Shape I’m In.
The occasion brought a Mt Olympus of rock musicians: Dylan himself, of course, and also Eric Clapton, Emmylou Harris, Joni Mitchell, Ringo Starr, Dr. John, Muddy Waters, Paul Butterfield, Ronnie Wood and The Staple Singers – and even Neil Diamond. Van Morrison is unforgettable in his unflatteringly tight scoop-neck t-shirt under an oddly sparkly burgundy cowboy leisure suit.
My favorite song is The Band backing Neil Young on his Helpless. A silhouetted Joni Mitchell provides ethereal backing vocals from offstage. It’s spine tingling.
The Last Waltz was directed by no less than Martin Scorsese (between Taxi Driver and Raging Bull!). The great cinematographers László Kovács and Vilmos Zsigmond operated cameras.
Of The Band’s original members – Robbie Robertson, Levon Helm, Rick Danko, Garth Hudson and Richard Manuel – Robertson and Hudson still survive.
The interviews with the charming and authentic Levon Helm are delightful highlights in The Last Waltz. I’ve written about Levon’s later acting career, with his performances in Coal Miner’s Daughter, In The Right Stuff, and The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada.
Levon Helm in THE LAST WALTZDr. John, Neil Diamond, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Rick Danko, Van Morrison, Bob Dylan and Robbie Robertson in THE LAST WALTZ
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. Other choices in theaters:
OUT NOW
Spike Lee’s true story BlacKkKlansmanis very funny and, finally, emotionally powerful.
Three Identical Strangers is an astonishing documentary about triplets separated at birth that ranges from the exuberance of discovering siblings to disturbing questions of social engineering.
The hyper-violent and stylized Belgian thriller Let the Corpses Tan is a contemporary thriller that pays loving homage to the Sergio Leone canon. Essentially a soulless exercise in style, more interesting than gripping. It’s a visual stunner, though, and the Leone references are fun.
The coming-of-age drama We the Animals is imaginative, but a grind.
ON VIDEO
My Stream of the Week is the cheeky and original sex comedy Threesomething, which I saw at its world premiere at this year’s Cinequest. Comedy is hard to write, especially comedy as smart and original as this. Threesomething is now available to stream on Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
ON TV
On September 1, Turner Classic Movies presents the iconic 1946 film noirThe Postman Always Rings Twice. An essential element in film noir is a guy’s lust for a Bad Girl driving him to a Bad Decision, and when John Garfield first sees Lana Turner in The Postman Always Rings Twice, you can tell that he’s hooked. She’s a Bad Girl, and a Bad Decision is on its way.
John Garfield’s first look at Lana Turner in THE POSTMAN ALWAYS RINGS TWICE
John David Washington and Laura Harrier in BlacKkKlansman, a Focus Features release.Credit: David Lee / Focus Features
OUT NOW
Spike Lee’s true story BlacKkKlansmanis very funny and, finally, emotionally powerful.
You can still see the best movie of the year: the emotionally powerful coming of age drama Leave No Trace from Debra Granik (Winter’s Bone). Superbly well-crafted, impeccably acted, thoughtful and emotionally powerful, it’s a Must See. Still at one theater in Silicon Valley and one in San Francisco.
The savagely funny social satireSorry to Bother You carries the message that humans are more than just their commercial value as consumers and labor to be exploited.
The political documentary Dark Money exposes the growing threat of unlimited secret money in political campaigns.
Puzzle intelligently and authentically traces one woman’s journey of self discovery.
The surprisingly emotional biodoc Won’t You Be My Neighbor?is about Fred Rogers’ fierce devotion to the principle that every child is deserving of love and our protection.
Three Identical Strangers is an astonishing documentary about triplets separated at birth that ranges from the exuberance of discovering siblings to disturbing questions of social engineering.
RBG is the affectionate and humanizing biodoc about that great stoneface, Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
ON VIDEO
My DVD/Stream of the week is the period thriller The Two Faces of January, a Patricia Highsmith tale of dark hearts in sunny Greece. The Two Faces of January is available on DVD from Netflix and streaming on Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, YouTube and Google Play.
ON TV
Turner Classic Movies is airingRequiem for a Heavyweight(1962). Anthony Quinn is Mountain Rivera, a fighter whose career is ended by a ring injury by Cassius Clay (played by the real Muhammed Ali). His manager, Jackie Gleason, continues to exploit him in this heartbreaking drama. There’s no boxing in this clip, but it illustrates the quality of the writing and the acting.
Adam Driver and John David Washington in BLACKKKLANSMAN
In BlacKkKlansman, Spike Lee takes the stranger-than-fiction story of Ron Stallworth and soars. Stallworth was a real African-American rookie cop in Colorado Springs who infiltrated the local Ku Klux Klan in the 1970s.
Stallworth (John David Washington) seduces the KKK with a racist rant on the telephone, and then has his white partner Flip Zimmerman (Adam Driver) impersonate him at the KKK meetings. Stallworth and Zimmerman race against the clock to quash KKK violence. Along the way, Stallworth tries to romance the comely cop-hating militant Patrice (Laura Harrier).
All of the actors are excellent, but it’s Spike Lee who is the star here, taking this oddball novelty story and transforming it into an exploration of hate in America – then and now.
The local KKK is a bunch of clowns. Paul Walter Hauser (Shawn in I, Tonya) plays a member of the Colorado Springs Klan posse, which tells you all you need to know about their efficacy. Suffice it to say that this gang who can’t burn a cross straight will get their comeuppance. Even their media-slick national leader, David Dukes (Topher Grace), is ripe for an epic prank.
As the moronic Klansmen bumble around and even name Stallworth their leader, BlacKkKlansman is riotously funny. But Spike makes it clear that racial hatred is not going to be wiped out in the 70s with the Colorado Springs KKK. When David Dukes lifts his glass to “America First”, it’s chilling.
At the end of the film, Spike lets go with his patented dolly shot, and we are sobered by a racist symbol unbowed. Then, Spike takes us seamlessly into the present with some actual scenes from contemporary America. It’s very powerful, and, when I saw it, many audience members wept.
John David Washington and Topher Grace in BLACKKKLANSMAN
Spike is inclusive – inclusive with intentionality – and this goes beyond the Ron/Flip buddy partnership. The Civil Rights movement benefited from Jewish support, and Black leaders like Thurgood Marshall and Martin Luther King Jr. worked hand-in-hand with Jewish colleagues. But Jews (and all whites) were less welcome in the Black Power age. In BlacKkKlansman, Spike makes it clear that African-Americans and Jews are natural allies in the struggle against bigotry, and seeks to revive the alliance.
Spike also celebrates the Afro. BlacKkKlansman boasts the most impressive assembly of Afros, perhaps ever, especially Harrier’s. Oscar Gamble, Franklyn Ajaye and Angela Davis would be proud.
Spike also masterfully employs period music to tell this story: Ball of Confusion, Oh Happy Day, and, of course, Say It Loud -I’m Black and I’m Proud. Somehow, he even found a place for Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl). But Emerson Lake and Palmer’s Lucky Man may be the most perfectly placed song. It’s all pretty stellar.
Spike Lee has made two cinematic masterpieces: Do the Right Thing and 25th Hour. BlacKkKlansman may not be a masterpiece, but it’s right at the top of Spike’s other films and it’s perfect for this age in America.
Adam Driver and John David Washington in BLACKKKLANSMAN
My top choice this weekend is Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman, which I’ll be writing about this weekend.
OUT NOW
You can still see the best movie of the year: the emotionally powerful coming of age drama Leave No Trace from Debra Granik (Winter’s Bone). Superbly well-crafted, impeccably acted, thoughtful and emotionally powerful, it’s a Must See. Still at one theater in Silicon Valley amd one in San Francisco.
The savagely funny social satireSorry to Bother You carries the message that humans are more than just their commercial value as consumers and labor to be exploited.
The political documentary Dark Money exposes the growing threat of unlimited secret money in political campaigns.
Puzzle intelligently and authentically traces one woman’s journey of self discovery.
The surprisingly emotional biodoc Won’t You Be My Neighbor?is about Fred Rogers’ fierce devotion to the principle that every child is deserving of love and our protection.
Three Identical Strangers is an astonishing documentary about triplets separated at birth that ranges from the exhuverance of discovering siblings to disturbing questions of social engineering.
RBG is the affectionate and humanizing biodoc about that great stoneface, Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
ON VIDEO
My Stream of the Week is a tale of magical Mormon runaways in Vegas. With Electrick Children, first-time feature filmmaker Rebecca Thomas has created an entirely unique teen coming of age story. Electrick Children employs an element of magical realism that requires the audience to accept a premise which cannot be real. The result is a highly original success. Electrick Children can be streamed from Amazon (included in Amazon Prime) and can be purchased from several other VOD platforms.
ON TV
On August 22, Turner Classic Movies presents the still-powerful 1943 The Ox-Bow Incident, a parable about mobs acting rashly on the basis of fear and prejudice (which certainly resonates in today’s political environment). Henry Fonda and Harry Morgan lead an excellent period cast with Dana Andrews, Anthony Quinn and Jane Darwell, along with Frank Conroy and Harry Davenport, whose performances are perfect little gems. Which character most resembles Donald Trump?
Henry Fonda and Harry Morgan in THE OX-BOW INCIDENTTHE OX-BOW INCIDENT
