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- “I would rather take a photograph than be one.” — Lee Miller
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- Substack: On Radu Jude’s latest, Do Not Expect Too Much From the End of the World
- “After all, when God created Adam and Eve, they were stark naked. And in the Garden of Eden, God was probably naked as a jaybird too!” — Bettie Page
- “Good acting is thinking in front of the camera. I just do that and apply a sense of humor to it. You have to trust the audience to get it.” — Charles Grodin
- “What is important is to continue believing in the Irish language as a vibrant creative power while it continues to be marginalised in the process of cultural McDonaldisation.” — poet Michael Davitt
- March 2024 Viewing Diary
- “I don’t really know why, but danger has always been an important thing in my life – to see how far I could lean without falling, how fast I could go without cracking up.” — William Holden
- “I don’t like being approached by people who look at me too intensely, who needed something from me that I didn’t have. I don’t represent anything.” — Liz Phair
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Tag Archives: Japan
November 2023 Viewing Diary
After Everything (2018; d. Hannah Marks, Joey Power) In early November, I holed up in a cozy little house in Connecticut with Allison and Carol. I had to work the whole time, which was a bummer but the night was … Continue reading
Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television
Tagged animation, biopic, Chile, Christian Petzold, coming of age, David Fincher, documentary, drama, Elvis Presley, England, family, France, Germany, historical drama, Isabelle Adjani, Japan, Julianne Moore, July and Half of August, Mélanie Laurent, Mexico, Russia, short film, Sofia Coppola, South Korea, thrillers, Tilda Swinton, Ukraine, women directors
3 Comments
Talking 1953 movies with Jason Bailey and Mike Hull: A Very Good Year podcast
My pal Jason Bailey and his pal Mike Hull host a fascinating podcast called A Very Good Year, which they describe as: “Each week we invite a guest (filmmakers and actors, critics and historians, comedians and musicians) who loves movies, … Continue reading
Posted in Movies
Tagged Billy Wilder, coming of age, drama, France, Harriet Andersson, Ingmar Bergman, Japan, Marlon Brando, podcast, romantic drama, Stalag 17, Sweden, war movies, William Holden
12 Comments
April/May 2023 Viewing Diary
River of Grass (1994; d. Kelly Reichardt) Reichardt’s first film. Wendy and Lucy (2008; d. Kelly Reichardt) The start of Reichardt’s collaboration with Michelle Williams. Showing Up (2023; d. Kelly Reichardt) Reichardt’s latest. I reviewed for Ebert. It’s fine. Her … Continue reading
Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television
Tagged Ann-Margret, art, baseball, Belgium, crime movies, documentary, drama, Elvis Presley, France, friends, Italy, Japan, Little Richard, musical, reviews, silent films, South Korea, The Netherlands, women directors
14 Comments
It’s the birthday of “The Woman Who Wouldn’t Forget”: Iris Chang
Iris Chang’s research into the atrocities committed by the Japanese on the Chinese people – particularly Chinese women – during the “rape of Nanking” in 1937 – much of it dug out of buried archives and brought to light for … Continue reading
Posted in Books, On This Day, writers
Tagged China, history, Iris Chang, Japan, war, WWII
3 Comments
24 Great Performances of 2021
For the annual “Great Performances” piece over on Ebert.com, I wrote about Hidetoshi Nishijima’s performance in Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Drive My Car (for me, it’s THE movie of the year). It’s a great and diverse list – some surprises (so happy … Continue reading
NYFCC 2021 Awards
Early this month, the New York Film Critics Circle met up at Lincoln Center – in person – for the first time in over a year – to vote on our 2021 awards. The awards show is being held in … Continue reading
Posted in Movies
Tagged Afghanistan, animation, comedy, Denmark, documentary, drama, Japan, Lady Gaga, musical, Norway, Paul Thomas Anderson, Steven Spielberg, women directors
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November 2021 Viewing Diary
The Wire, half of Season 3 This is the busiest time of year in re: film-critic-land, so had to stop my re-watch of The Wire to make room for new releases. I’ll get back to it! All Is Forgiven (2007; … Continue reading
Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television
Tagged Amy Heckerling, Balkans, Dean Stockwell, documentary, drama, Ethan Hawke, Eugene O'Neill, France, Ingmar Bergman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Japan, Katharine Hepburn, literary adaptation, Long Day's Journey Into Night, Mexico, Mia Hansen-Løve, Mia Wasikowska, New Zealand, Paul Thomas Anderson, Quantum Leap, Rebecca Hall, Sidney Lumet, Spain, Sweden, The Beatles, Will Ferrell, women directors
22 Comments
July 2021 Viewing Diary
Sally, Mary and Irene (1925; d. Edmund Goulding) For some reason, I forgot to include this gem in my June viewing diary. Considered lost forever, it is one of Joan Crawford’s earliest films – and one where she is actually … Continue reading
Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television
Tagged Alfred Hitchcock, Ann Dvorak, Bette Davis, Billy Wilder, Bong Joon-Ho, comedy, dance movies, documentary, drama, France, Fred MacMurray, Fredric March, Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Jack Lemmon, Japan, Jimmy Stewart, Joan Blondell, Joan Crawford, Juliette Binoche, Marilyn Monroe, Mervyn LeRoy, Miriam Hopkins, Pre-Code, Shirley MacLaine, silent films, thrillers
16 Comments