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Remember the Night – 1940, Mitchell Leisen
by Allan Fish (USA 1940 94m) DVD1/2 (Italy only) A bit of hypnoleptic catolepsy p Mitchell Leisen d Mitchell Leisen w Preston Sturges ph Ted Tetzlaff ed Doane Harrison m Frederick Hollander...
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Dylan Thomas, James Herriot, and the Spirit of Christmas
by James Clark You might think that having the likes of Dylan Thomas (he of, “Do not go gentle into that good night”) drop by at Christmas would be tantamount to exclusively broaching Scrooge’s...
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Caldecott Medal Contender: The Matchbox Diary (ill. by Bagram Ibatouline)
by Sam Juliano I first encountered the remarkable Dr. Katherine Smith at the then Jersey City State College in the fall semester of 1977 in a class titled basically enough: “Children’s Literature.”...
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The Past, August: Osage County, The Wolf on Wall Street, Mandela and The...
Screen capture from Asghar Farhadi’s brilliant, lacerating Iranian dram “The Past,” one of the best films of 2013. Timeless classic “The Wizard of Oz” is a visual stunner in 3D. by Sam Juliano This...
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In Memoriam 2013
by Allan Fish In the fashion of most awards ceremonies, it seems only right, at this most reflective time of year, to look back and remember those who are not here to bring in the New Year. In every...
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Caldecott Medal Contender: ‘Journey’ by Aaron Becker
by Sam Juliano Wordless picture books are all the rage with the American Library Association over the past decade, with three such works claiming the top prize and others making their presence known...
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The Invisible Woman and Kill Your Darlings on Monday Morning Diary (January 6)
Screen cap from Ralph Fiennes’ ‘The Invisible Woman’ by Sam Juliano A ferocious blizzard blew through the metropolitan area on Thursday night forcing NYC and northern New Jersey schools to shut down,...
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Best Blu Rays and DVDs of 2013
by Allan Fish Last year I was unfortunately unable to do an annual review of releases, for a myriad of reasons, and while time is short, I shall endeavour to round up the great and the even greater of...
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“We’re mass communicatin”: THE COEN’S ‘O BROTHER WHERE ART THOU?
© 2014 by James Clark Approaching a film with such a plethora of reckless screwballs as displayed in the Coens’ O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000), we could iterate the boys’ Surrealist agenda as to...
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Caldecott Medal Contender: ‘Locomotive’ by Brian Floca
by Sam Juliano Trains have rivaled dinosaurs and bears as a subject of adoration among the youngest children spanning back decades and continuing all the way up to the present day. The Rev. W....
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Blue is the Warmest Colour – 2013, Abdellatif Kechiche
(France 2013 179m) DVD1/2 Aka. La Vie d’Adèle Tutoring in philosophy p Brahim Chioua, Vincent Maraval, Abdellatif Kechiche d Abdellatif Kechiche w Abdellatif Kechiche, Ghalia Lacroix comic book...
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Caldecott Medal Contender: ‘Building Our House’ by Jonathan Bean
by Sam Juliano Proudly displayed on a corner wall panel of their expansive ranch-style family room in a mansion-sized home situation on a scenic cul-de-sac in Butler, New Jersey are a cache of...
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Ninetta Nappi art exhibit and musical show in Hoboken, Beethoven’s 7th and...
George Washington Bridge: Scene of the crime Artist, photographer and musician Ninetta Nappi jams at Hoboken cafe with partner Barry at Friday night art exhibition by Sam Juliano Yes, the Fort Lee, New...
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The Best Films of 2013
by Sam Juliano Including the Tribeca Film Festival, where Lucille and I watched 38 films in 10 days, and several revival venues at the Film Forum and elsewhere, we watched just under 300 films in...
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The Act of Killing – 2012, Joshua Oppenheimer
by Allan Fish (Denmark 2012 115m) DVD1/2 There’s many ghosts here p Signe Byrge Sorensen, Joshua Oppenheimer d Joshua Oppenheimer ph Carlos Arango de Montis, Lars Skree ed Nils Pagh Andersen,...
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Caldecott Medal Contender: Stardines Swim High Across the Sky and other poems...
by Sam Juliano Inventive word play and poetry with an edge are gloriously on display in one of the past year’s most ravishing and imaginative picture books, Stardines Swim Across the Sky and other...
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Star Spangled to Death – 2004, Ken Jacobs
by Allan Fish (USA 2004 402m) DVD1 A film for people who like to read d/w Ken Jacobs ph/ed Ken Jacobs Jack Smith, Jerry Sims, Gib Taylor, Bill Carpenter, Cecilia Swan, Ken Jacobs, Ken Jacobs’ magnum...
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Caldecott Medal Contender: A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin...
by Sam Juliano Horace Pippin (1888-1946) was an African-American painter, who, faced with discrimination and segregation, taught himself the skills that brought him great renown and critical acclaim....
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The Top 20 Films of 2013 by Jaime Grijalba
by Jaime Grijalba. 2013 was a good year for movies, maybe not the best, and obviously not compared to something like 2012, that had many masterpieces under the names of ‘Amour’ (2012), ‘The Master’...
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Caldecott Medal Contender: Bluebird by Bob Staake
by Sam Juliano The very first film I ever saw in my very first cinema class remains vivid to me to the present day. The class was “Introduction to Cinema,” the teacher was Professor Anthony Esposito...
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