bloggin' and tumblin'

Just watched: Cadence by Martin Sheen (1991) starring his son...

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 22:22:00 +0100

Just watched: Cadence by Martin Sheen (1991) starring his son Charlie Sheen. Enjoyable drama taking place in a military prison. This does not deal with violence and other inhuman conditions in jail but with father and sons and unmet expectations. A decent film.

Just watched: Bright Leaf by Michael Curtiz (1950) starring Gary...

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 16:00:00 +0100

Just watched: Bright Leaf by Michael Curtiz (1950) starring Gary Cooper in the part of a cigarette maker who aims to make money in order to seduce the wrong woman. Once o top, he realizes he missed more important goals. Classic dramatic structure but that’s American’s Cinema Golden Age: it just works!

Just watched: Blood Work by Clint Eastwood (2002) Not a...

Sat, 31 Oct 2009 16:00:00 +0100

Just watched: Blood Work by Clint Eastwood (2002) Not a masterpiece, just a strong crime story. It’s well done, well acted, well scripted and still raises interesting questions. Three Clint in a week, I feel fine!

Just watched: the Complete Monterey Pop Festival by D.A...

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0100

Just watched: the Complete Monterey Pop Festival by D.A Pennebaker (1968) Looks and sounds like Woodstock’s kid brother (not in quality but in length at least). Favorite performance: Janis Joplin followed by Shankar and Hendrix.

Just watched: Anywhich Way You Can by Buddy Van Horn ( &...

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0100

Just watched: Anywhich Way You Can by Buddy Van Horn ( & Clint ?) (1980) I don’t care who you are, that’s funny. My favorite line “You are a walking infraction to the laws of Nature. But we don’t enforce these laws”.

Just watched: Everywhich Way but Loose by James Fargo ( &...

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0100

Just watched: Everywhich Way but Loose by James Fargo ( & Clint Eastwood?) (1978) Hard to turn down any Clint movie, even if he has a pet monkey. Plus, it’s funny.

Just watched: 21 by Robert Luketic (2008) A MIT teacher trains a...

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0100

Just watched: 21 by Robert Luketic (2008) A MIT teacher trains a team of students to win at BlackJack. They have a system. Greed eventually sets in and the student has to betray the master. Nothing you’ve never seen before but it remains enjoyable to watch.

Just watched: The Harder they Come by Perry Henzell (1972) Jimmy...

Sat, 24 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0200

Just watched: The Harder they Come by Perry Henzell (1972) Jimmy Cliff stars in this moving portrait of a young Jamaican who came to the city to become a reaggae singer but finds out that the music business, much like everything else, is under strict control and that singing won’t get him what he thinks he deserves. He wants to make it big and he’s willing to die trying.
He tries his luck on the wrong side of the law but there are rules there, too and he is still the lowest guy on the totem pole. Great film, great soundtrack!

Just watched: How Sweet the Sound, the PBS American Masters...

Sat, 24 Oct 2009 16:00:00 +0200

Just watched: How Sweet the Sound, the PBS American Masters Series episode about Joan Baez. She is great, I saw her live two years ago and it was a fantastic show. The documentary focuses on her impressive involvment in pacifism and fight for freedom and her musicianship which she considered second to her political stands for a long time.
The relationship with Dylan (already well hinted at in No Direction Home) is again discussed. He even agreed to be interviewed which is a nice surprise. The other witness of Joan’s career are David Crosby, Roger McGuinn and Steve Earle. Great stuff!

Just watched: Man’s Favorite Sport by Howard Hawks (1964)...

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0200

Just watched: Man’s Favorite Sport by Howard Hawks (1964) A light comedy taking place around a lake during a fishing tournament. Rock Hudson can’t fish but he has to and thanks to a tree, a book and a bear, he might just be good at it.

Just watched: Silence of the Lambs by Jonathan Demme (1991) I...

Thu, 22 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0200

Just watched: Silence of the Lambs by Jonathan Demme (1991) I had never watched it so I finally did (it took guts, I usually skip horror and serial killers movies). This one is well done and Hopkins is perfect. I enjoyed it and will remember the line “I’m having an old friend for dinner”.

Just went to Albert Lee’s concert in Ivry sur Seine. It...

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0200

Just went to Albert Lee’s concert in Ivry sur Seine. It was Rythm and Blues, Country, Bluegrass, everything to make us feel right at home. Cool show and cool concert hall, too.

Just watched: Harlan County, USA by Barbara Kopple (1976) This...

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0200

Just watched: Harlan County, USA by Barbara Kopple (1976) This was a shock! I would never have imagined the conditions for minors in America could have been that bad some 35 years ago. It looks a lot rougher than what is described in How Green Was My Valley.
The corruption and violence these people are the victims of is revolting. They fight for their rights and their lives while the rest of the country listens to Rock’n Roll, eats popcorn watching Jaws and buys their third car. Nobody seems to know about what’s going on in this forsaken place.

Just watched: Felon by Ric Roman Waugh (2008) American Cinema...

Sun, 11 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0200

Just watched: Felon by Ric Roman Waugh (2008) American Cinema must release one movie a year (at least) about the barbaric prison condition yet things keep getting worse.
This movie was a good surprise (I hadn’t heard of it) ; it works pretty well to have all the drama taking place in the same two locations (the cell, the yard) and a very reduced cast. It’s terribly oppressing.

Just watched: End of the Line by Jay Russell (1987) “I...

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0200

Just watched: End of the Line by Jay Russell (1987) “I pledge allegance to these here United States, … God Bless America, … for which she stands” That’s it and that’s fun. And it stars Levon Helm!

Just watched: A Simple Plan by Sam Raimi (1998) Say you found...

Sun, 04 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0200

Just watched: A Simple Plan by Sam Raimi (1998) Say you found 4.4 millions in a gym bag in the wood and had reasons to assume it was drug money. What would you do? For evey miss judgment, you’ll have to commit murder. That’s what this one is about: greed and lies. Billy Bob Thornton is great.

Just watched: The Missiles of October by Anthony Page (1974) The...

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0200

Just watched: The Missiles of October by Anthony Page (1974) The day by day report of what happened in the White House and in the U.S.S.R government during the Cuban Missiles Crisis. The way JFK does everything possible to avoid War by leaving Krutschev an open door to gracefully withdraw his missiles is fascinating. (The opposite situation is depicted in Stone’s W). The movie, whether it is true or not, could not emphasize more the influence of Robert Kennedy in his brother’s administration. He appears like the best President America could ever have (the fact that he is protrayed by Martin Sheen might have something to do with that, too)

Just watched: The Departed by Martin Scorsese (2006) To make a...

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 18:00:00 +0200

Just watched: The Departed by Martin Scorsese (2006) To make a long story very short: this is AWESOME and if you follow this tumblr blog I have no doubt the Departed holds no secret from you. I just hope than one day I can edit a sequence as concise and intense as the first ten minutes of this movie.

Just watched: Driving Miss Daisy by Bruce Beresford (1990) The...

Sat, 03 Oct 2009 14:00:00 +0200

Just watched: Driving Miss Daisy by Bruce Beresford (1990) The acting is good and the subject surprising at first: A black man and a jewish elder woman, meet in the Old South. She needs a chauffeur (though she refuses to admit it at first) and he needs a job. Their relationship grow into a strong friendship that runs through the sixties (and MArtin luther King speaches). The most surprising thing in the end, is that nothing surprising happens. He doesn’t get in troubles bcause he is black when pulled over in Alabama, nor does she refuse to let him drive around when the times change. The story keeps going as if time had frozen. In the end, the movie just wasn’t about that, that’s it, I ruined your surprise.

Just watched: Classic Albums: The Making of the Dark Side of the...

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 22:22:00 +0200

Just watched: Classic Albums: The Making of the Dark Side of the Moon (1997) I love this serie “Classis Albums”. The first one I saw was about the Band which a friend found by accident and bought for me. I’ve been on the lookout for more episodes since. The Pink Floyd one is among the best document in the serie.