John Crowley’s aching coming of age drama “Brooklyn” starring Saoirse Ronan may well be the film of the year.
by Sam Juliano
While prognostications of a mild winter have surfaced in recent weeks, stateside we are now immersed in the atmospheric glories of the autumn season with colorful leaves, brisk temperatures and Thanksgiving preparations in full swing. Football fans are engaging in the heart of their season, while denizens of the arts are at the height of their obsessions. The past few days have been unconscionable on the world stage, what with the barbarism in Paris, but there are no words that can accurately gauge what we are all thinking.
A final decision has finally been reached on the manner of administration that will be applied to the execution of the late Spring/early Summer Greatest Science Fiction films countdown. After discussing the matter with some others at the site and reviewing the general sentiments of the likely writers we have decided to stay the course. That is we will have an open vote for all those on the current e mail chain, and any others attending the site who wish to cast a ballot. No doubt this will mean there will be in upwards of 35 to 40 ballots in the final mix and an open schedule for all writers to claim. This method will follow in the footsteps of the hugely successful musicals, comedies, westerns, romances and childhood/adolescent countdowns that been staged at Wonders in the Dark over the last four and a half years. I urge all prospective participants at their convenience to survey the science fiction field in the coming months. I plan to send out some copies of relative rarities to the interested parties as soon as I begin to take this project more seriously after the holiday season. Ballots will be accepted on the chain beginning on April 1st, and ending on the final day of that month, at which point they will be tabulated by Angelo D’Arminio Jr. The projected starting date for the countdown will be May 21st. We are figuring for this poll, a Top 50. This would mean the project would run till around mid August or so.
The Caldecott Medal Contender series has been moving forward quite nicely, with several of the reviews being posted and shared enthusiastically with the author-illustrators on Facebook and other channels. I am not sure how many reviews will actually be written at this point, but I will sort that out as it progresses. The page view totals have spiked dramatically over the past two weeks, in large measure because of the reviews of Ida Pearle’s The Moon Is Going to Addy’s House and Sergio Ruzzier’s Two Mice. The former review has amassed a total approaching 400 page views in the three days since it published.
Lucille and I were proud to witness our darling daughter Jillian’s high school play “Fine Dining” staged on Thursday and Friday nights at Cliffside Park High School. Jillian played “Gladys” in the production’s second segment “Stephen King Goes to Lunch.” Jillian is only a freshman, so we are anticipating some wonderful times ahead. (pictures below)
Lucille and I saw two films in theaters this past week, and both were widely praised in the critical circles:
Brooklyn ***** (Saturday afternoon) Montclair Bow-Tie Cinemas
Spotlight **** 1/2 (Saturday evening) Chelsea Cinemas
John Crowley’s Brooklyn, an Irish-British co-production adapted from an acclaimed novel by Nick Hornby and starring the extraordinarily talented Saoirse Ronan, may well be the film of the year. An aching and unbearably poignant romance set in the 50’s and involving a young Irish woman who emigrates to Brooklyn to find romance is classically filmed and splendidly detailed, and boasts what is surely the best score of the year by Michael Brook. Unsentimental, timeless, old-fashioned and provocative the film is slowly and powerfully enveloping.
Tom McCarthy’s Spotlight is a stunning newspaper film, procedural, and investigative work into one of the most shocking scandals of our time – the clergy abuse scandals that rocked the Catholic Church and the nation. No real lead, but a bevy of superlative supporting performances. The final scroll of the city where sex abuse occurred is mind-boggling, but this thriller and mystery is altogether riveting.
My darling daughter Jillian at right, in high school drama club play “Fine Dining” staged on Friday night at Cliffside Park High School.
Jillian at right playing “Gladys” is high school play “Fine Dining.” She starred in second segment “Stephen King Goes to Lunch.”
At Noirish, the renowned writer John Grant has penned a superlative review on the 1935 film “Crime Unlimited”: https://noirencyclopedia.wordpress.com/2015/11/13/crime-unlimited-1935/
At FilmsNoir.net Tony d’Ambra has posted a full list of films noir in US Library of Congress National Film Registry: http://filmsnoir.net/film_noir/list-of-films-noir-in-us-library-of-congress-national-film-registry.html/
Stephen Mullen offers up a terrific post on music titles “Take Some Time and Learn How to Play” at The Listening Ear: http://listeningear.blogspot.com/2015/11/take-some-time-and-learn-how-to-play.htm
Joel Bocko has published a superlative review on Ken Burns’ “The Civil War” at I Lost It At the Movies: http://thedancingimage.blogspot.com/2015/11/the-favorites-civil-war-81.html
At Mondo 70 Samuel Wilson has written a probing piece on “The Kidnapping of Michel Houellebecq” which I saw at Tribeca last April: http://mondo70.blogspot.com/2015/11/the-kidnapping-of-michel-houellebecq.html
At It Rains…….You Get Wet Robert Tower offers up a delightful post titled “Reprise: The “Fidel Castro” of Parties” in honor of his daughter’s upcoming ;sweet sixteen’ birthday: http://le0pard13.com/2015/11/13/reprise-the-fidel-castro-of-parties/
At Filmacability Dean Treadway has offered up a brilliantly authoritative examination of the year 1961 in the cinema: http://filmicability.blogspot.com/2015/11/1961-year-in-review.html
At Tuesdays with Laurie, our great friend Laurie Buchanan offers up a terrific post titled “Showing Up”: http://tuesdayswithlaurie.com/2015/11/10/showing-up/
At Overlook’s Corridor Jaimie Grijalba has concluded another magnificent Horror Madness countdown, concluding in grand fashion with the 1952 Finnish film “Valkoinen Peura”: https://overlookhotelfilm.wordpress.com/2015/10/31/october-overlook-madness-31-valkoinen-peura-1952/
Over at Attractive Variance Jamie Uhler’s monumental post on horror films watched during October leads the way: https://attractivevariance.wordpress.com/2015/11/02/october-2015–horror-wrap-up/
At Movie Classics, Judy Geater is leading up with a terrifically comprehensive review of Mark Robson’s 1954 “The Bridges of Toko-Ri”: https://movieclassics.wordpress.com/2015/11/11/the-bridges-at-toko-ri-mark-robson-1954/
David Schleicher has penned an excellent essay of the new James Bond film “Spectre” at The Schleicher Spin: http://theschleicherspin.com/2015/11/11/inspecting-spectre
Our longtime friend the film maker and movie lover extraordinaire Jeffrey Goodman has posted the thirty-first four film roundup at The Last Lullaby, one that includes a Maurice Pialat film: http://cahierspositif.blogspot.com/2015/11/favorite-four-part-thirty-one.html
Jeff Stroud’s latest post at The Reluctant Blogger is a spirited one titled “Blank Page”: https://jeffstroud.wordpress.com/2015/08/30/blank-page/
Over at Patricia’s Wisdom, the terrific book reviewer and friend Patricia Hamilton has penned a terrific piece on “Stolen Years: Stories of the Wrongfully Imprisoned”: http://patriciaswisdom.com/2015/11/stolen-years-stories-of-the-wrongfully-imprisoned-reuven-fenton/
Over at Ferdy-on-Films, Roderick Heath has penned a fantastic essay on “Crimson Paek”: http://www.ferdyonfilms.com/2015/crimson-peak-2015/26446/
J. D. Lafrance’s offers up a terrific review of the new James Bond movie “Spectre” at Radiator Heaven: http://rheaven.blogspot.com/2015/11/spectre.html
Shubhajit Lahiri has penned an excellent review of Wim Wenders’ 1975 “Wrong Move” at Cinemascope: http://cliched-monologues.blogspot.com/2015/08/the-wrong-move-1975.htm
Terrill Welch’s incomparably beautiful Creative Potager blogsite leads up with “Paiting and then selling paintings are done on a different breath: http://creativepotager.com/2015/10/06/painting-and-then-selling-paintings-are-done-on-a-different-breath/
Sachin Gandhi has penned a terrific review on the Brazilian “She Comes Back on Thursday” at Scribbles and Ramblings: http://likhna.blogspot.com/2015/10/she-comes-back-on-thursday.html
At Enic-Cine, our good friend Murderous Ink in Tokyo has written yet another fabulous piece of scholarship – the third part of “Ozu, Pickles and Rice Bran”: http://www.enic-cine.net/ozu-pickles-and-rice-bran-part-3/
At The Seventh Art the exceedingly gifted writer Srikanth offers up reviews on two Hindi films under the banner grouping titled “Love in the Time of Gonorrhea”: http://theseventhart.info/2015/08/02/love-in-the-time-of-gonorrhea/
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