To see my running list of the hundred greatest movie stars in American film history, click here All stars are listed with a single film which is particularly important, though not exclusively so, to understanding what makes them vital to American movies. 85) Marilyn Monroe / Key film – Gentlemen Prefer Blondes A minor spoiler… Read More Better than AFI’s 100 Years…100 Stars: 81-85
Dir. Chloe Zhao. Starring Frances McDormand, David Strathairn, Bob Wells Nomadland is a movie in two halves, both of which I found confusing. In the first half, a woman named Fern (McDormand) gets into a lifestyle called vandwelling, which as far as I can tell is exactly what it should be called, and meets a number… Read More Nomadland (2020)
The following is from my series of Oscar Best Picture rankings, as well as my strongly worded suggestions for what should have won from among the nominees. For an introduction to the project, click here. For a way to vote on some Oscar-related ideas, click here. If I’ve written a review on any of the… Read More Better than the Oscars: 5-2
The following is from my series of Oscar Best Picture rankings, as well as my strongly worded suggestions for what should have won from among the nominees. For an introduction to the project, click here. For a way to vote on some Oscar-related ideas, click here. If I’ve written a review on any of the… Read More Better than the Oscars: 20-16
You can read up on the basis for this series here, and also find links to other posts in the series. Movies I’ve reviewed on this site have a link in the title which you can follow to read my full review. 5) Groundhog Day (1993), directed by Harold Ramis “What if a man… Read More 100 Exceptional American Movies in 10 Genres: Speculative, 5-1
Dir. Joel Coen. Starring William H. Macy, Frances McDormand, Steve Buscemi I think it can be easily forgotten that in 1996, Fargo must have burst onto screens like a sudden cold front. The Coens had made five movies – Blood Simple, Raising Arizona, Miller’s Crossing, Barton Fink, and The Hudsucker Proxy – which are regarded well now… Read More Fargo (1996)
The following is part of an overview of the top 100 American narrative fiction feature films, from my perspective. For an introduction to the project and an index of other entries in the series, click here. For a list of more than 800 films which I considered for the top 450 and my eligibility qualifications, click here.… Read More Better than AFI’s Top 100: 20-16
Dir. Robert Altman. Starring Tim Robbins, Annie Ross, Julianne Moore Pesticides are being dropped on Los Angeles,and God defend the right. Julianne Moore’s character is safely inside at a concert (with Alex Trebek!), but there’s a similar motif to what you find in Safe a couple years later. Sherri (Madeleine Stowe) yells at her husband,… Read More Short Cuts (1993)
Seeing Things Secondhand 