French filmmaker Luc Besson is audacious. Sometimes that means really good, as in 1994’s Leon: The Professional, which introduced young Natalie Portman to the world. Sometimes it means really, really bad, as in 1997’s The Fifth Element, which is crazy, puerile […]
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Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) ☆ ☆
Judging by its astounding 8.8 rating at IMDb (out of 10; it would currently qualify as the 10th – 13th best movie of all time by that parameter), people really, really like this intergalactic misfit superhero movie. I enjoyed it […]
Continue reading »Begin Again (2014) ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
Once in a while — a great while — a movie comes along that startles me with its execution, that kicks me in the head like a mule and makes me remember just why I love movies in the first […]
Continue reading »The Westerner (1940) ☆ ☆ ☆ 1/2
Our eleventh choice for 2014 is this comic western adventure that delves into the mythology of Judge Roy Bean. It is William Wyler’s The Westerner (1940), which stars Gary Cooper as one of the few suspected horse thieves that Roy Bean […]
Continue reading »The Westerner (1940)
by Barb Lentz. The five movies Bob provided for me from which to choose were these: The Dam Busters (1955) House Calls (1978) Laugh, Clown, Laugh (1928) Rosemary’s Baby (1968) The Westerner (1940) I chose The Westerner because I […]
Continue reading »Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
I really liked Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and this sequel, which occurs some ten years after the events of that film, is even better. The original 1968-1973 quintet ranged from astonishing to cheesy; 20th Century-Fox couldn’t or […]
Continue reading »Jersey Boys (2014) ☆ ☆ ☆
I’ve always enjoyed the music of The Four Seasons, especially after the band adapted the name Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. Their hits of the 1970s are bright and bold, and lots of fun to sing. Yet when the […]
Continue reading »Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014) ☆ ☆
Maybe because “Transformer” toys didn’t exist when I was a kid and I was too old for them when they did appear, I’ve never thought much of the concept. It doesn’t seem even remotely believable that big ol’ transformers can […]
Continue reading »My Extraordinary Ordinary Life (2012)
My Extraordinary Ordinary Life 2012, Hyperion. 271 pages. $26.99 Sissy Spacek, with Maryanne Vollers. As the studio system crumbled in the 1960s movies became more democratic, telling a wider variety of stories and featuring actors who probably wouldn’t have […]
Continue reading »Starlit (2010)
Starlit 2010, Gallery Books. 243 pages. $24.99 Lisa Rinna Soap opera actress and television personality Lisa Rinna has written a breezy novel that follows three young actresses looking for their big breaks in Hollywood. It’s called Starlit, and it […]
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