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George Pal’s 1963 THE SEVEN FACES OF DR. LAO is an odd little fantasy film. Tony Randall plays Dr. Lao who uses his circus to solve the problems of a small western town. Using a variety of makeups and special effects he also plays a seer, the Madusa, Merlin the Magician, Pan, the abominable snowman, and a talking snake. Looked at today the mere fact of Randall made up to look Asian is pretty ha...

Andre de Toth’s 1953 CRIME WAVE is a taut noir. A reformed ex-con (Gene Nelson) is forced by former cellmates to rob a bank. He is pursued by an edgy cop (Sterling Hayden). Extensive use of LA locations gives the film an almost documentary feel. An early performance by Charles Bronson (billed here as Charles Buchinsky). Nelson, who was best known as a dancer at the time and later a director, i...

In Peter Weir’s MASTER AND COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD set during the Napoleonic Wars, a brash British captain (Russell Crowe) pushes his ship and crew to their limits in pursuit of a formidable French war vessel around South America. Based on Patrick O'Brian's series of novels this is a superb adventure film. There is a realism which gives us a real sense of what seafaring life was like...

Tim Burton's MARS ATTACKS is probably the only movie ever based on a series of trading cards. This all star sci fi parody is still fun and the special effects hold up well. The opening credits are a great little film by itself. Danny Elfman's theremin laced score sets the perfect cheesy tone. Favorite scene: Lisa Marie as a martian disguised as a curvy woman with a huge bubble hairdo. Highly ...

François Ozon’s adaption of Albert Camus’ THE STRANGER is a beautifully shot bore. The novel is probably not going to adapt well to film. It is hard to feel anything when your main character is so completely detached. This can be done in a novel as you can convey the interior thought and emotion but that can be hard to do cinematically. Of course the novel is a classic of existentialism so thi...

David Frankel’s THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA 2 is the extremely slick sequel about life in a high fashion magazine. Meryl Streep again plays the imperious editor and Anne Hathaway her foil. The script traffics in changes in publishing and how social media has affected it. With most of the original cast back everyone with predictable story arcs. There is some dried eyed sentiment here and there. All...

I must admit I have never been that much of an Elvis fan even though there is no denying his influence on music and pop culture. Baz Luhrmann’s EPIC: ELVIS PRESLEY IN CONCERT shows that under all the layers of tacky and grotesque outfits and hair styles and disturbing deification he had real talent. The film is a major feat in film editing, stitching together a variety of performance and rehears...

The elaborate and lavish 1935 Warner Brothers production of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM is an interesting amalgam of Shakespeare and Hollywood which despite some longueurs is still pretty amazing. Directors Max Reinhardt and William Dieterle use most of the studio’s stock company to blend the characters in the play with the established personas of the various stars. The chief among these are James...

Frank Perry’s 1969 LAST SUMMER is an adaption of Evan Hunter’s novel with a screenplay by his wife Eleanor Perry. Set on Fire Island three teenagers (Barbara Hershey, Richard Thomas, and Bruce Davidson) bond and fall into ever darker behaviors. They meet another teen (Cathy Burns) who they slowly bring into their group. The finale, which is still shocking, originally gave the film an X rating. ...

Alain Resnais’ STAVISKY is a 1974 French biographical drama film based on the life of the financier and embezzler Alexandre Stavisky and the circumstances leading to his mysterious death in 1934. Jean-Paul Belmondo plays the charismatic and yet mysterious lead. By turn fascinating and confusing it is beautiful to look at with lovely period settings and costuming. This has a rare film score by St...