Frank B.

  • Movie Mondays: 2013’s Other Black Films

                    2013 has been called a banner year for Black film, with the critical and commercial success of 12 Years a Slave, Lee Daniels’ The Butler, Fruitvale Station and 42. But, as Slate’s Aisha Harris pointed out in her blog, not all Black films deal with the struggle for civil rights or battles… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Don’t Judge a Romance by most Rom-Coms

                      2013 was a year of great debates – about health care, gay marriage, recreational marijuana….and whether Love Actually is a good or a bad movie. It seems that for every person who defends its poignant charm, there is someone to deride it for its treacly sentimentality. In an effort… Continue reading

  • SPL Foundation funds 19,000 ebooks!

                            Have you noticed that there are a LOT more ebooks available through OverDrive recently? We hope so! Due to a generous award from The Seattle Public Library Foundation, we were able to take advantage of the recent decision by three major publishers — Penguin, Hachette and Macmillan — to make their ebooks available to… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Why so Blue?

                 Is there another color that has figured so prominently in a movie title? Possibly, but I can’t remember the last time three good movies with the same color in the name came out at the same time. Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: While you’re waiting…

    While you’re waiting for Nebraska, check out director Alexander Payne’s first feature, Citizen Ruth (1996).  Laura Dern is Ruth Stoops, an irresponsible gas-huffer who finds herself pregnant for the fifth time – and at the center of a tug-of-war between pro-life and pro-choice groups when a judge (Kurtwood Smith) orders her to get an abortion. This wicked… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Albert Brooks, “West Coast Woody Allen”

    Let’s take a look at the underappreciated Albert Brooks – director, actor and author. You’ll recognize his face from supporting roles in Taxi Driver, Broadcast News , Out of Sight and Drive, and as the voice of Marlin in Finding Nemo. He’s the author of the novel 2030. However, it’s his work as a director… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Literary Adaptations, Indie Style

          For every bestseller that makes it to the big screen, there are a number of novels whose adaptations can only be found in art house or independent theatres in major cities. These adaptions often fly under the radar and often receive mixed reviews from critics and audiences, but they’re worth a look. These six… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Kings of Comedy

    This fall we saw the publication of books about two comedy giants – the biography Furious Cool: Richard Pryor and the World That Made Him by Henry David and the autobiography Still Foolin’ Em: Where I’ve Been, Where I’m Going, and Where the Hell are My Keys? by Billy Crystal. The following films, some of their finest and funniest, are… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: HBO Original Films

    Although you won’t see them in theaters,  HBO produces original films that are on par with theatrical releases. Here are five original films produced by HBO in 2013. Behind the Candelabra is the most notable of HBO’s original films this year. Based on the memoir by Scott Thorson, it tells the story of Thorson (Matt Damon) and… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: The “Three Flavours Cornetto” Trilogy

                                         Never heard of the “Three Flavours Cornetto” trilogy? How about the “Blood and Ice Cream” trilogy? If not, you’re likely familiar with the quirky, genre-bending British films starring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost and directed by Edgar Wright, rather than the Cornetto ice cream flavors that appear in each film.… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Terrifying Television

    Last week’s Movie Mondays column highlighted three recent supernatural thrillers. This week, we’re taking a look at three creepy, sinister TV series to watch under our dark, rainy skies this fall. Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Supernatural Thrillers

    Looking for a new horror film for Halloween and beyond? Here are three supernatural thrillers that rely on dread, thrills and scares rather than explicit blood and gore. The Conjuring (2013) follows real-life paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga), who are called to examine the strange goings-on in an old farmhouse bought… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Hispanic Heritage Month

    September 15 – October 15 is National Hispanic Heritage Month. To celebrate, here are some notable Hispanic DVDs released this year. Bless Me, Ultima (2013) is a film adaptation of the classic and controversial young adult novel by Rudolfo Anaya set in New Mexico during World War II. Antonio (Luke Ganalon) is a boy who… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Criterion classics

    The Criterion Collection has been bringing films – classic and contemporary – from all genres to audiences since 1984. This year’s releases feature some prescient science fiction, sumptuous dramas, screwball comedies, and some of the best European and Asian cinema. Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: the hoopla about hoopla

    hoopla is the Library’s newest streaming video and music service. The video collection contains an eclectic mix of more than 3,000 films and television shows, from classics to the occasional new release. You can check out 20 videos per month, for 72 hours each, and watch videos on your computer, tablet or smartphone. Best of all,… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: At Sea

    Jen’s recent post on nautical fiction got me thinking of films set at sea. Not swashbucklers like Master and Commander and Pirates of the Caribbean, or blockbusters like Titanic and Jaws, but more modest tales that take place on the water. Kon-Tiki (2012) tells the true story of  Thor Heyerdahl’s successful crossing of the Pacific. In 1947, Heyerdahl (Pål Sverre… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Seattle loves BBC!

    This week’s Movie Monday column is switching things up to discuss TV again, specifically BBC. It’s no secret that Seattleites love all things BBC, and Seattle posted the highest ratings in the country for the season 3 premiere of Downton Abbey. Two other programs – Call the Midwife and Bletchley Circle – have been popular enough that… Continue reading

  • Movie Mondays: Workplace Comedies for Labor Day

    The last thing most people want to think about on Labor Day is work. Fortunately, the workplace has been the setting for some of Hollywood’s funniest and most incisive comedies. Here are four funny films that take place at work. 9 to 5 (1980) follows three secretaries – Judy Bernly (Jane Fonda), Violet Newstead (Lily Tomlin) and Doralee… Continue reading