Category Archives: Movies

Review: O Horizon (2026)

Despite an appearance by Aimee Mann – playing herself – where she sings two songs in their entirety – O Horizon is a slow generalized chore. Plus there’s the Sackler connection, which has to be acknowledged. I reviewed for Ebert.

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“I really genuinely look forward to coming to work every day.” — Treat Williams

It’s his birthday today. His death is such a loss! In Sydney Lumet’s Making Movies, he talked about the choice to cast Treat Williams in Prince of the City: I wasn’t sure whether we were in drama or tragedy territory … Continue reading →

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Physical Media Booklet Essay: Being scholarly about movies that don’t exist

It’s okay now to talk about what I wrote about for Sean Abley’s zine PHYSICAL MEDIA BOOKLET ESSAY. Sean’s pitch was along the lines of: “You know how some movies show fictional movies within them?” Examples: the soap opera in … Continue reading →

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“If you have to be in a soap opera try not to get the worst role.” — Judy Garland

It’s the great, the irreplaceable, Judy Garland’s birthday. The screengrab above is from John Cassavetes’ 1963 film A Child is Waiting. This film is not really well-known, except among Cassavetes/Garland completists – but some serious Cassavetes fans don’t know about … Continue reading →

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“When people ask me if I am a feminist film maker, I reply I am a woman and I also make films.” — Chantal Akerman

It’s her birthday today. The news of the death of pioneering Belgian filmmaker Chantal Akerman in 2015 came as a shock. She was young. 65 years old. Even worse, it was reported as a potential suicide. Either way, it was … Continue reading →

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For D-Day: John Ford’s They Were Expendable (1945)

In 2019, for D-Day, I wrote about John Ford’s magnificent They Were Expendable, one of the best war movies ever made. Thank you to all those who sacrificed their lives — not just Americans — in the name of liberty … Continue reading →

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Review: Carolina Caroline (2026

Reviewing Dinner in America was one of those fortuitous little coincidences that come with this particular racket. I see a lot of good movies, a lot of even great movies, but then there are movies – for whatever reason – … Continue reading →

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“Rock n’ roll! It’s the music of puberty.” — Suzi Quatro

Suzy Quatro was born on this day. In July of 2020 , I reviewed the documentary Suzi Q, about Suzi Quatro. Because it was July 2020, the tour she had planned, alongside the doc, had to be canceled. Or, at … Continue reading →

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“I don’t want to show things, but to give people the desire to see.” — Agnès Varda

It’s the birthday of Belgian filmmaker Agnès Varda, a pioneering force in the development of the French New Wave – she was French New Wave before it was even named “French New Wave.” When she died at the age of … Continue reading →

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“I never made a message picture, and I hope I never do.” — Howard Hawks

It’s his birthday today. My favorite director. I’ve written so much about his movies, here and elsewhere, it’d be too much to link to all of it. I’ve seen it all. Only Angels Have Wings is my favorite movie ever … Continue reading →

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