March 2nd “Truly,” Sherif Ali says to Lawrence, “for some men nothing is written unless they write it.” It’s one of the most profound, haunting, and countermanded lines in cinematic history, and in a film which does not include any female characters, it’s noteworthy that the line refers only to “men.” Ala Kachuu adds “and… Read More Movie Diary 2023 (3/2-3/6): Benediction
To see the intro to this project, as well as links to other decades, click here. 9) “Go Down, Moses,” from Sullivan’s Travels (1941) Writer-directors throughout movie history are rarely good at just shutting up and letting the work speak for itself, and Sullivan’s Travels is proof that even the best of them can stumble… Read More Listen to America: The 1940s
Dir. Vincente Minnelli. Starring Judy Garland, Lucille Bremer, Leon Ames Meet Me in St. Louis is not my musical cup of tea. It belongs to that old-fashioned, basically extinct form of movie musical in which the songs exist as ditties to hum while leaving the theater and as future sheet music, not as vehicles to… Read More Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
Seeing Things Secondhand 