Remember that TV show, Early Edition? The one about the guy who always got tomorrow's news a day early? Well, 1944's It Happened Tomorrow is a pretty similar concept, and as King Solomon once said, there's nothing new under the sun. It all opens in the then-present day, when Lawrence and Sylvia Stevens are celebrating … Continue reading You Saw It Here First
So-Bad-It’s Bad Shakespeare
Happy birthday to the Bard! It seems odd to say, but not every Shakespeare adaptation is wonderful and worthy of attention, even when it features topflight talent and suitably melodious classical delivery. Sometimes they just stink. The 1980 BBC TV movie of The Tempest is unfortunately one of those. It mostly sticks to the plot, and the … Continue reading So-Bad-It’s Bad Shakespeare
During World War Two: 1943 Movie Recs
1943 was, obviously, the height of the war, and it was also the year in which the most war-related movies were released in the United States, with a whopping one-hundred eighty-seven films. Yep, it was pretty hard to get away from the war, but escapism was occasionally a thing as well, and there were a … Continue reading During World War Two: 1943 Movie Recs
Announcing the Titanic In Pop Culture Blogathon!
Over a century after it sank, the Titanic remains a pop-culture phenomenon, and not just as far as movies are concerned. There have been books, documentaries, video games, TV miniseries, shorts, parodies, passing references (who hasn't heard the expression, "It's like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic"?). Goodness knows some of these iterations have … Continue reading Announcing the Titanic In Pop Culture Blogathon!
Some Things Were Lost (Three Out-of-Print Recipes)
It seems funny to us in this age of DVDs and Blu-rays, but there was a time when studios thought the moviegoing public wouldn't be interested in deleted scenes. In the documentary, When the Lion Roars, Debbie Reynolds remembered that MGM and other studios would burn trimmed scenes in trashcans. It's amazing any of it … Continue reading Some Things Were Lost (Three Out-of-Print Recipes)
Cooking With the French Chef: Great Beginnings and More Great Beginnings
Welcome back to Cooking With the French Chef, in which I review episodes of Julia Child’s original show, cook out of the new edition of the French Chef Cookbook and share the results with you. Past posts can be found here. I don't know about anyone else, but appetizers aren't something I've really considered before, because a lot … Continue reading Cooking With the French Chef: Great Beginnings and More Great Beginnings
Bob and Lucy, Together Again
Here we go... Bob Hope and Lucille Ball seem like a dream pairing, right? They really are. These two made four movies together, and the third was 1960's The Facts of Life, a cautionary tale about messing with the status quo. The film opens at the airport in Monterey, where Kitty Weaver (Lucille Ball) is waiting for … Continue reading Bob and Lucy, Together Again
My Top Ten Documentaries and Docuseries
I don't know about anyone else, but I like documentaries almost as much as movies. History is fun anyway, and a good documentary can be just as much of a cinematic experience as any movie. Here are some of my favorites. Not all, of course, but some, and in no particular order... Social Animals (2018) … Continue reading My Top Ten Documentaries and Docuseries
Life Is Pain
Westley in The Princess Bride once declared, "Life is pain. Anyone who says differently is selling something." Who doesn't remember that line, right? Something about March brings it to mind, because pain was definitely a theme last month. Pain for the characters. Pain for the audience. Pain for the box office. Oh golly, this month … Continue reading Life Is Pain
Taking Up Room 