Tag Archives: Howard Hawks

August 2021 Viewing Diary

Pig (2021; d. Michael Sarnoski) I wish I could write at length about some of these. I just don’t have the time these days. I absolutely loved Pig, about an isolated woodsman-truffle-hunter (Nicolas Cage) whose beloved truffle pig is stolen. … Continue reading

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She’s got legs. And she knows how to use them.

The Crowd Roars (1932) Viva Las Vegas (1964) Joan Blondell – whose legs we see in the first grab – lived long enough to appear – very entertainingly – in an Elvis movie (Stay Away Joe, 1968). She and Elvis … Continue reading

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Podcast: Watch With Jen: a Pre-Code discussion!

Had so much fun appearing as a guest on Jen Johans’ podcast, Watch With Jen, for a discussion of Pre-Code films, the Wild West of Hollywood in between (roughly) the years 1930 and 1934. I pitched a couple of ideas, … Continue reading

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Now on Criterion: Bringing Up Baby

The Criterion Collection just released Howard Hawks’ 1938 screwball classic Bringing Up Baby, in a new 4k restoration. The special features are EXTENSIVE, including a video-essay on Cary Grant by Scott Eyman (author of the new biography of Grant), as … Continue reading

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June 2021 Viewing Diary

La Notte (1961; d. Michelangelo Antonioni) Pauline Kael included La Notte in her infamous essay titled “The Come-Dressed-As-the-Sick-Soul-of-Europe Parties”. Now you can debate her on this opinion – and I think she’s off (although I think it’s a hilarious title). … Continue reading

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“X” Marks the Spot in Scarface

“In the papers, in those days, they’d print pictures of where murders occurred and they always wrote ‘X marks the spot’ where the corpse was. So we used Xs all through the film. When anyone connected with the picture thought … Continue reading

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Criterion July releases announced

And every single one (La Piscine, Working Girls, Deep Cover, The Mirror and Bringing Up Baby) is exciting and a welcome addition to the Criterion library. I was thrilled to have been asked to write the booklet essay for Howard … Continue reading

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January/February/March 2021 Viewing Diary

Better late than never. I moved at the end of January – a big interstate move – so I’ve been a bit, how you say, busy. Not too busy to keep up my viewing schedule but too busy to put … Continue reading

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Recommended: Biographies

For starters: My recommended Fiction books My recommended Non-Fiction books BIOGRAPHIES: American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson, by Joseph Ellis I’ve written a lot about Joseph Ellis’ work here. While I love David McCullough’s work so much, Ellis is … Continue reading

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100 Day Movie Challenge: Day 1

This was one of those things going around on Facebook, and it’s now caught on among my group of friends. It’s to post an image from a movie that “had an impact on you”. No explanation, no pontification, no dramatic … Continue reading

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