Movie Mondays
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Movie Mondays: African American Films you may have missed
~posted by Frank 2014 was another banner year for African American films and filmmakers, capped off by Chris Rock’s hysterical turn as star and director of Top Five and Selma, which has earned a Best Picture nod at this year’s Academy Awards as well as a nearly perfect 99% score on Rotten Tomatoes. While you’re waiting for these on… Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Unofficial Trilogies
~posted by Frank Most trilogies are in-depth stories told over the course of three films. But some films that we accept as being part of a trilogy were not originally conceived that way. The links between the films in these trilogies are the cinematic style and themes of four outstanding directors rather than a continuous story line. Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Swohs VT Sdrawkcab = Backwards TV Shows
~posted by Library Staff In last week’s post, we looked at movies that use reverse chronology—telling their stories in backwards order. This device has also been used to great effect in several TV shows. The most famous example is “The Betrayal,” an episode of Seinfeld in which a series of romantic misadventures unfold in reverse order.… Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Seivom Sdrawkcab = Backwards Movies
~posted by Library Staff I love movies that play with time: the “parallel-universe” narratives of Run Lola Run and Mr. Nobody, the event-shuffling of (500) Days of Summer, the dizzyingly-intercut centuries of Cloud Atlas and The Fountain, the decade-hopping of The Hours, the surreal repetitions of Groundhog Day and Edge of Tomorrow, or the real-time… Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Love on the Rocks
2014 brought audiences three excellent, and disturbing, portraits of marriages tested and challenged. These three films are smart, mature works that are sure to make every couple examine their relationships, with blinders off. Gone Girl needs little introduction, but for those unfamiliar with the phenomenal bestseller that the movie is based on, here we go. Nick (Ben Affleck)… Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Top 10 DVD releases of 2014
MIKE’S TOP 10 1. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg. After years of unavailability on home video, French director Jacques Demy’s magnificent, one-of-a-kind musical gets a deluxe release from Criterion. This is what movies were meant for. 2. Sleeping Beauty. Disney opens the vault once again to give us another look at this gorgeous film, the last… Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: best of 2014 on hoopla
hoopla has been adding some noteworthy new releases to its collection. While they’re not blockbusters, these limited release films from 2014 include critical darlings and star power – and are available at this very moment! Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Holiday Edition from “The Spoiler”
By now, most everyone knows of both a traditional approach and perhaps a more cynical view of the holidays. Here are a few alternatives to the usual classics that may still brighten your days and lift your spirits, if you are so inclined. The Capra classic It’s a Wonderful Life emphasizes the power of redemption… Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: horror by hoopla
Don’t feel like waiting weeks or months in line for your favorite horror film on DVD? Have no fear, your fear is here. You can watch horror on demand on hoopla, the library’s streaming video service, without the wait. Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Honoring Steve Martin
The American Film Institute is awarding its 2014 Lifetime Achievement Award to Steve Martin. Martin is a true renaissance man: author of books for children and adults, fiction and non-fiction; Grammy-winning bluegrass musician; hilarious guest star on Saturday Night Live and other television programs; but he’s primarily known for his contribution to film for nearly 40 years. You… Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Slow Burn Thrillers
Slow burn thrillers aren’t for everyone. They require patience, and some viewers find them boring. They don’t always provide answers, leaving viewers to infer what’s really going on. They’re often tense, dark and brooding. For me, it’s the character development and moral ambiguity that makes these worth the investment. Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Writer Directors
Directors who pen their own screenplays are a dime a dozen. The Coen brothers write their own films as do Paul Thomas Anderson, Jia Zhangke, and Jim Jarmusch. And while there are a number of novelists who have tried their hand at directing, from Michael Crichton to Norman Mailer, few filmmakers have done the reverse… Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Movies about Movies
Last week, we looked at pictures about pictures — films about art and artists — and this week we look at movies about movies – documentaries about individual films. These four documentaries — two about classic films and two about films that were never made — are required viewing for cinephiles. Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Pictures about Pictures
Two critically acclaimed documentaries about art, Finding Vivian Maier and Tim’s Vermeer, have recently been released on DVD. The holds list for those titles is a bit long, so while you wait for your copy to come in feel free to check out these other fascinating documentaries about art and the lives of artists. Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Workers’ Plights, Workers’ Rights
Last year, Movie Mondays honored the day with a post about workplace comedies. This year, let’s take a look at six serious films – three dramas, three documentaries – that look at the plight of laborers and the working class in the face of corporate excess. Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: Wrestling with Religion
2014 has been called the year of the Christian film. We’ve seen an adaptation of the beloved bestseller Heaven Is for Real; the surprise indie hit God’s Not Dead; Son of God, a feature film edited from the popular miniseries The Bible; the Christian family-friendly Moms’ Night Out; and the controversial biblical epic Noah. Not to mention the reboot of the Left Behind series starring Nicolas Cage and Ridley… Continue reading
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Movie Mondays: What’s So Funny about Sports?
I love comedies. I don’t love sports. But I do love the sports comedy sub-genre. These four films rise to the top of the ranks in my book (along with the best sports comedy ever, Caddyshack, which I’ve blogged about previously and will probably write about again). The Bad News Bears (1976) was a favorite of mine as… Continue reading