Movie Reviews
Another Fine Mess
Stan Laurel had not quite put the finishing touches on his child-like personality in this two-reeler. The boys, fleeing the police, enter the mansion of one Colonel Wilberforce Buckshot (James Finlayson, master of the “double-take and fade away”) who is off to ... Read more »
Annie Get Your Gun
The star of this show bears little resemblance to the real Annie Oakley, who was a remarkable woman, but what musical comedy has ever striven for accuracy? I think we can all be thankful that Ethel Merman didn’t repeat her stage role (I’ve got nothing against Ethel, ... Read more »
The Animation Show, Volume 1
- Mt. Head. (Atama Yama.) Koji Yamamura. See 75th Annual Academy Awards Short Films.
- Brother. Adam Elliot. Claymation. A sweet and silly little rumination on the film-maker’s brother, who died at a ... Read more »
Angels in America
A two-parter from HBO, 6 hours long in total. This is the acclaimed saga about AIDS, set in Reagan America 1985. It’s an acting extravaganza, with Al Pacino, Meryl ... Read more »
The Anderson Tapes
This movie shouldn’t be as obscure as it is. I loved it when it was new, and not only does it hold up, it turns out to be amazingly prescient. Sean Connery is a thief who decides to take down this entire apartment building in one operation, six luxury flats filled with treasure. But from his very first move he is recorded and ... Read more »
An Andalusian Dog
In 1928 Luis Buñuel and Salvador Dalí made this 16-minute film, and it rocked the world. It has recently come out on DVD, along with all sort of documentaries and commentaries by experts on Surrealism. We didn’t watch ... Read more »
And the Ship Sails On
Federico Fellini was incapable of composing an uninteresting scene, framing a dull shot, shooting a single frame of film that wasn’t fascinating to look at. But he sure could make some stinkers. Beautiful, ravishing stinkers, but stinkers nonetheless. Satyricon, ... Read more »
And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself
In 1914 a movie studio (in Fort Lee, New Jersey, the movie capital of the world!) contracted with Pancho Villa to film his revolution. Unfortunately (according to this movie, which is based on fact but probably takes some liberties) the real stuff wasn’t exciting, the ... Read more »
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy
I was looking forward to this. The reviews were good. After 30 minutes, my breaking point for comedy, I’d laughed once, smiled a couple of times. Hit the eject button, thought it over, and tried the bloopers. Not even the bloopers were funny. This could have been wickedly amusing if it weren’t so cartoonish, if it had been just a little smarter. Instead it goes for broad humor, ... Read more »