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Category Archives: Movies
“I sucked my fingers for 12 years. I never spoke … but I was a great observer.” — Cicely Tyson
It’s her birthday today. One of my earliest memories seeing a movie – I had to be 7 or 8 – was watching Sounder with my parents. I sat on the floor in front of the television. My parents sat … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies, On This Day, Television, Theatre
6 Comments
5 Things About Peggy Cummins in Gun Crazy
It’s her birthday today. 5 Things About Peggy Cummins in Gun Crazy Introduction Joseph Lewis’ brilliant, erotic, and influential Gun Crazy was originally called Deadly Is the Female (which could be an alternate title for almost every film noir ever … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies, On This Day
Tagged crime movies, film noir, Gun Crazy, Joseph H. Lewis, Peggy Cummins
52 Comments
Interview with Women in Horror about Frankenstein
Staci Wilson interviewed me about the whole Frankenstein experience for her excellent site Women in Horror. We talked about the brilliant artists behind the scenes – production design, costume, everything – who helped bring Guillermo’s vision to life. I love … Continue reading
“The best thing that can come with success is the knowledge that it is nothing to long for.” — Liv Ullmann
It’s her birthday today. In 2018 I was assigned by the Criterion Collection to write tributes to four of Ingmar Bergman’s actresses: Liv Ullmann, Bibi Andersson, (Liv and Bibi were paired together in one video – Bergman saw them as … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Directors, Movies, On This Day
Tagged Ingmar Bergman, Liv Ullmann, Norway, women directors
2 Comments
Let’s talk Frankenstein on the Slice of SciFi podcast!
Thanks so much, Summer Brooks, for having me on your legendary long-lasting podcast to talk about Frankenstein and my book. Great conversation!
Mirrors #26
Zoey Deutch and Aubry Dullin as Jean Sebert and Jean-Paul Belmondo in Richard Linklater’s Nouvelle Vague, one of my favorite films of the year. The film is a maze of mirrors, with mirror moments in almost every scene. There are … Continue reading
Posted in Movies
Tagged France, Jean-Luc Godard, Jean-Paul Belmondo, mirrors, Richard Linklater
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“I’ve never looked at myself as a woman in the business. I’ve just looked at myself as an editor.” — Anne V. Coates
It’s Anne V. Coates’ birthday today. One of the honors of my career thus far was being asked to write the narration (read by Diane Lane) for the tribute reel played at Anne Coates’ Lifetime Achievement Oscar ceremony in 2016. … Continue reading
Review: Merv (2025)
I reviewed for Ebert.
“The best actors in the world are those who feel the most and show the least.” — Jean-Louis Trintignant
It’s his birthday today. My first encounter with the intriguing, mysterious (and yet somehow still vulnerable) Jean-Louis Trintignant, was seeing The Conformist at The Music Box in Chicago, circa mid-90s. I was completely unfamiliar with him. Even just the look … Continue reading
August-November 2025 Viewing Diary
I haven’t watched much this year, beyond what I was assigned to review. Of course at end of year I have to scramble to catch up, which I am still doing. Instead I watched a lot of true crime, re-watched … Continue reading
Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television
Tagged baseball, Brazil, crime movies, documentary, drama, England, France, Frankenstein, Guillermo del Toro, historical drama, horror, Iran, Iranian film, Italy, Jafar Panahi, Jennifer Lawrence, literary adaptation, Martin Scorsese, Nick Nolte, Patricia Arquette, Roman Polanski, romantic comedy, Russia, Sissy Spacek, true crime, Ukraine, women directors, X-Files
12 Comments