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- “[My ambition is to] give something to our literature which will be our own.” — Walt Whitman
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- “I never made a message picture, and I hope I never do.” — Howard Hawks
- “If I am going to be a poet at all, I am going to be POET and not NEGRO POET.” — poet Countee Cullen
- Reviews: Currents (2026)
- Reviews: Forge (2026)
- “Only the bad directors tell you how to read a line, how to define your character. The good ones let you do your job.” — Carroll Baker
- “I never heard the term ‘rockabilly’ back then. Nobody did…When people asked what music we played, we were rock ’n’ rollers.” — Sonny Burgess
- “I am in a prison: one wall is the avant-garde, the other wall is the past, and I want to escape.” — György Ligeti
- An Acting Lesson: John Wayne and the “Reality of the Doing”
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- Mike Molloy on 2026 Shakespeare Reading Project: Much Ado About Nothing
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- Bryan Summers on “I never made a message picture, and I hope I never do.” — Howard Hawks
- Lyrie on “I just love telling stories. That’s what we do and it’s a good business to be in, especially if you know you have talent.” –Jensen Ackles
- Kendra Williams on Josh White, singer of “the fighting blues”
- sheila on “I dont want to just do just country type stuff the rest of my life. I want to do some different things.” — Charlie Rich
- sheila on The Books: “Awake and Sing” (Clifford Odets)
- Jincy Willett on “There’s nobody as good as the Ramones, never will be.” — Joey Ramone
- Bill Wolfe on “I dont want to just do just country type stuff the rest of my life. I want to do some different things.” — Charlie Rich
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- Pat on “Listen, I never meant to make money. I never wanted it. I’m a singer, man.” — Gene Vincent
- sheila on “There’s nobody as good as the Ramones, never will be.” — Joey Ramone
- Jincy Willett on “There’s nobody as good as the Ramones, never will be.” — Joey Ramone
- sheila on 2026 Shakespeare Reading Project: Hamlet
- Biff Dorsey on 2026 Shakespeare Reading Project: Hamlet
- sheila on 2026 Shakespeare Reading Project: Hamlet
- Dave on Review: The Chronology of Water (2025)
- Biff Dorsey on 2026 Shakespeare Reading Project: Hamlet
- sheila on “I just love telling stories. That’s what we do and it’s a good business to be in, especially if you know you have talent.” –Jensen Ackles
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Tag Archives: drama
Review: The Eight Mountains (2023)
I loved this movie. It makes me want to read the book. I reviewed for Ebert. I know I use that Yeats quote a lot but #sorrynotsorry no one said it better. Thank you so much for stopping by. If … Continue reading
Review: Everything Went Fine (2023)
I reviewed the latest by François Ozon.
Posted in Movies
Tagged Charlotte Rampling, drama, France, literary adaptation, reviews
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Review: Showing Up (2023)
I reviewed Kelly Reichardt’s latest, Showing Up, for Ebert. Thank you so much for stopping by. If you like what I do, and if you feel inclined to support my work, here’s a link to my Venmo account. … Continue reading
March 2023 Viewing Diary
March was a bitch. Working on a big single project which sucked up all of my attention. Marathon not a sprint. I can’t do things half-way. This project was never ever out of my mind. I’m close to the finish … Continue reading
Review: Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game (2023)
This was low-key, but also pleasing. It’s light. It’s not heavy. But effective nonetheless. A movie about Roger Sharpe, the man who basically went on a crusade to end the decades-long ban on pinball machines in New York City. I … Continue reading
Review: The Quiet Girl (2023)
I reviewed by Colm Bairéad’s The Quiet Girl (aka An Cailín Ciúin), an Irish-language film nominated this year for Best International Feature (a first for Irish-language films). Based on a famous short story by Claire Keegan (later turned into a … Continue reading
On Lili Horvát’s Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time
I haven’t been able to shake this beautiful Hungarian film, Horvát’s second. It’s streaming on the Criterion Channel right now. The film inspires RIFFS – I mean the title alone! – and so I wrote about it on my Substack. … Continue reading
Posted in Movies
Tagged As You Like It, drama, Hungary, newsletter, Sylvia Plath, What Happened Was
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January 2023 Viewing Diary
Friday Night Lights No time like the present. I binged this entire series in a couple weeks. This took commitment, and a couple days of sick leave, while trapped in my hotel room in Memphis, too sick to move. I … Continue reading
Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television
Tagged Aubrey Plaza, Baz Luhrmann, Bette Davis, biopic, Cary Grant, comedy, documentary, Dorothy Parker, drama, Eddie Cochran, Elvis Presley, film noir, Hedy Lamarr, Hungary, Italy, Jean Renoir, Little Richard, Poland, Pre-Code, Ralph Bellamy, Raoul Walsh, reviews, Spencer Tracy, Teresa Wright, true crime, William Wyler, women directors
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Review: Saint Omer (2023)
An incredible film, the first narrative feature from celebrated documentary filmmaker Alice Diop. I saw this last year and included it in my year-end list. It’s out in theatres today. I reviewed for Ebert.