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| FEATURED ARTICLES BY JOHN H. FOOTE | ||
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| | THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING NABS PRODUCERS GUILD AWARD Continuing its quest to likely Oscar glory, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) has won the Producers Guild Award, paving the way to a likely win at this years’ Academy Awards. |
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| | A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN (1992) The film is both a deft social study of the sexism of the time, a ribald comedy and a strong film about commitment and belonging. |
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| | ALIEN VS PREDATOR In the forties, when studios had played out their monster franchises with sequel after ridiculous sequel, they began paring their monsters off in films such as Frankenstein meets the Wolfman (1944), House of Frankenstein (1944) and House of Dracula (1945). |
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| | ANGEL HEART (1987) Released in 1987 in a storm of controversy, audiences and many critics saw only the storm and missed the fact that Angel Heart (1987) was a superior thriller. |
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| | ARE WE THERE YET? Some movies are just insulting..... |
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| | AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 DAYS It will only seem like eighty days have passed once the end credits roll in this horrible film, supposedly based on the novel by Jules Verne. |
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| | AVIATOR TAKES BEST PIC; EASTWOOD BEST DIRECTOR Martin Scorsese’s soaring Howard Hughes biography won best picture (drama) at last night’s Golden Globes Awards, though the tiny though brilliant director did not win best director... |
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| | BAD SANTA (2003) or BADDER SANTA (2004) Black comedy is among the forms of comedy, very likely the most difficult and most under appreciated. There exists audiences who are offended by the taboo topics tackled by black comedy, but if done properly, I find it to be the funniest form of comedy in existence. |
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| | BEING JUILA TO OPEN TORONTO FILM FEST 2004 |
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| | BEING JUILA TO OPEN TORONTO FILM FEST 2004 Istvan Szabo's Being Julia will open the 2004 Toronto International Film Festival, with a Gala Presentation at Roy Thomson Hall on September 9. |
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| | BEING JULIA Annette Bening dominates every frame of this film from beginning to end in a saucy performance that allows this fine actress to flex her considerable acting talents, delivering her finest performance since American Beauty (1999) |
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| | BEING JULIA Annette Bening dominates every frame of this film from beginning to end in a saucy performance that allows this fine actress to flex her considerable acting talents, delivering her finest performance since American Beauty (1999 |
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| | BEING JULIA The Opening Night Gala Presentation at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, Being Julia was marred with late coming actors as Warren Beatty worked the line outside Roy Thomson Hall and audio troubles plagued the film. I saw the film again recently at a press screening free of audio issues. |
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| | BEYOND THE SEA Film biographies are tricky beasts because there is no way a two hour film can encompass a life. Many of the Hollywood biographies we have seen play like a "greatest hits" of that person's life, usually with an actor cast in the lead role because they bear a slight...... |
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| | BRANDO : THE GREATEST SLEEPS Marlon Brando, arguably the greatest actor in cinema history died Thursday, July 1 of lung failure in Los Angeles after several months of poor health. |
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| | BRIDGET JONES: THE EDGE OF REASON I like Renee Zellweger. I think she is among the most talented actresses in film today, having broken through with a scene and heart stealing performance opposite |
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| | CANADIAN FILMS HIGHLIGHT FILM FEST Despite the lack of major names such as David Cronenburg and Atom Egoyan, there is an abundance of major homegrown talent at this year’s 29th annual Toronto International Film Festival... |
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| | CATWOMAN A few weeks ago I gave Garfield (2004) another feline oriented film a scathing review in which I referred to the film as a hairball thrown onto the movie screen. ... |
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| | CHARIOTS OF FIRE (1981) I clearly remember being stunned, STUNNED, when Chariots of Fire (1981) won the Academy Award in 1981 over Warren Beatty’s Reds (1981) |
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| | CHILDSTAR Don McKellar's second feature, his first since the superb Last Night (1998) may end up the most celebrated film of the festival, owing much to the knowing and astute |
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| | CLOSER Mike Nichols is enjoying something of a career renaissance this past year with the enormous success of his television film for HBO Angels in America(2003) ... |
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| | COLD MOUNTAIN Though nominated for seven Academy Awards last year, Renee Zellweger taking home best supporting actress for her performance as Ruby, Cold Mountain (2003) never really found the audience it deserved, either.... |
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| | COLD MOUNTAIN A brilliant Civil War epic that is astounding in its intimacy, the film traces the impact of the war on a group of people and those they encounter on their journeys back to one another. |
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| | COLLATERAL Tom Cruise deserves an Academy Award. Though nominated three times, Cruise has yet to take home the little golden man. |
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| | CONNIE AND CARLA I was not among the millions who fell in love with My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), which I concur grossed in excess of two hundred million dollars and remains the highest grossing independent film of all time |
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| | COPLAND (1997) There was a time when Sylvester Stallone was being compared to the likes of Marlon Brando and Al Pacino as the next great American actor. His performance as boxer Rocky Balboa in Rocky |
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| | DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES (1962) |
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| | DEADWOOD Over the last ten years, HBO has produced some of the most astonishing, groundbreaking programs for television in the history of the medium. Beyond their extraordinary made for television... |
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| | DE-LOVELY In the wake of such brilliant and honest biographies such as Malcolm X (1992), Nixon (1995) and Monster (2003), I find it repulsive when..... |
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| | DIRECTORS GUILD NOMINATIONS The Directors Guild of America announced their awards for excellence in motion picture directing just an hour ago. As expect, both Clint Eastwood and Martin Scorsese were nominated for Million Dollar Baby and The Aviator |
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| | DOWNFALL He is one of the most hated, notorious and repellant figures in all of mankind's history.... |
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| | EASTWOOD TAKES DIRECTORS GUILD AWARD In what could be the last move before winning his second Academy Award for best director, Clint Eastwood... |
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| | ED WOOD (1994) How ironic that one of the best films of the nineties was a biography of one of cinema’s worst directors, Ed Wood. After two false starts and two times being pulled from release, Ed Wood (1994) finally comes to DVD as one of the most sought after films to come to the digital realm. |
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| | ELEPHANT |
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| | ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND (2004) A motion picture masterpiece that is so original one feels giddy after seeing the picture.... |
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| | FAHRENHEIT 9/11 Did we really need Michael Moore to tell us President George W. Bush is an idiot?..... |
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| | FILM FEST ANNOUNCES DOC LINE-UP From such timely films as a documentary on current presidential candidate John Kerry, through to the a documentary on the making of one of Hollywood's biggest disasters, the Documentary line up as this years Toronto International Film Festival looks impressive.... |
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| | FINAL CUT: THE MAKING AND UNMAKING OF HEAVEN'S GATE I walked into this film with great anticipation and high hopes. Here at last was an expose of what really happened on the set of Heaven's Gate, and finally Michael Cimino |
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| | FREAKS (1932) Banned and unavailable for years, Freaks (1932) one of the most original and alarming horror films of the thirties, is now available in a beautifully restored print from Warner Brothers Home Entertainment.... |
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| | GARFIELD Like the disgusting, sticky mess of a hairball spewed onto the big screen, Garfield is little more than one mess of a movie. |
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| | GLOBE NOMINEES ANNOUNCED!! The Hollywood Foreign Press Association announced their nominations for their annual Golden Globe Awards this morning, beginning the countdown to the move awards season which climaxes with the Oscars... |
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| | GOLDEN GLOBES BOW TO KING The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King was crowned at last nights annual Golden Globe Award ceremony, moving a step closer to the winners circle Oscar night. |
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| | GONE WITH THE WIND (1939) Arguably the most famous film in movie history, Gone with the Wind (1939) gets the special treatment from Warner Brothers Home Entertainment, the undisputed leader in presenting classic films on DVD. |
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| | GOODFELLAS (1990) One of the earliest releases on DVD, Goodfellas (1990) has been available as what has become laughingly known as a "flipper", meaning the DVD must be turned over to watch the film. Can there be any further insult to this masterpiece? |
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| | HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN Handing the directorial reins over to Alfonso Cuaron for the third Harry Potter film was the best thing Warner Brothers could have done for the enormously popular franchise film.... |
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| | HEARTBURN (1986) The problem with Heartburn (1986), and there are so many to mention, is that the actors are not given characters to portray, but instead stereotypical characters in a marriage gone wrong.... |
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| | HEAVEN'S GATE (1980) Not the dreadful bomb it was attacked for being upon initial release in 1980, Heaven's Gate (1980) is part ..... |
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| | HOLLYWOOD NORTH |
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| | HOLLYWOOD PREPPING OSCAR CONTENDERS – FALL PREVIEW In the months spanning September through December, the major and minor studios will be releasing their year end prestige films... |
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| | I, ROBOT I was among those who cheered when Will Smith was nominated for an Academy Award as best actor for his riveting and sublime performance as the former heavyweight .... |
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| | INDIANA JONES THUNDERS ONTO DVD The Indiana Jones trilogy one of the greatest adventure films ever made. |
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| | INTOLERABLE CRUELTY (2003) I like George Clooney as an actor. In my humble opinion, Clooney is both a genuine film artist and movie star, something of a rarity in the business these days |
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| | JACKSON TAKES DGA; FAVOURITE FOR OSCAR FOR HELMNG RINGS |
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| | KILL BILL VOLUME ONE (2003) It is thrilling cinema, art in a manner one would not expect, and in the grand tradition of the Japanese action film, leaves the audience breathless but panting for more. |
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| | KING ARTHUR The great book, Le Morte Darthur, written by Sir Thomas Mallory, was first published in 1485; a brilliant telling of... |
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| | KING DOMINATES OSCAR NOMINATIONS With nominations in eleven categories, including best picture, director, and screenplay adaptation, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (LOTR:ROTK) leads the pack of films vying for Oscar gold February 29th |
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| | KINSEY Two of several new biographical films arrive in theatres this week, both with strong Oscar buzz surrounding them,... |
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| | KINSEY Kinsey may be the finest film at this year's film festival.... |
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| | LA FILM CRITICS HONOUR SIDEWAYS Sideways, Alexander Payne’s superb study of relationships collected five awards from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association this past Saturday. The film took home awards for best picture, best director (Payne), best screenplay, best supporting actor (ThomasHaydenChurch) and best supporting actress (Virginia Madsen). Often a harbinger of the Academy Awards, these wins dramatically increase the chances of the film to earn Oscar nominations. Liam Neeson won best actor for his riveting performance in Kinsey and Imelda Staunton won best actress for her performance in Vera Drake. Perhaps the biggest surprise was that Martin Scorsese’s critically lauded The Aviator won just a single award, for its production design, while Scorsese finished as runner up to Payne for best director. The Incredibles was named best animated film and also took the award for best musical score. |
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| | LEMONY SNICKET’S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS Though not a great work of fantasy on the level of The Lord of the Rings (2001-2002--2003) or Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2003), Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events |
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| | LUMET TO RECEIVE HONOARY OSCAR Sidney Lumet, one of the great directors of the modern era will receive an Honorary Academy Award |
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| | MAN ON FIRE Denzel Washington is such a magnificent actor one is quickly to forgive some of the logic in his latest film Man on Fire. |
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| | MATCHSTICK MEN (2003) Nicolas Cage remains one of the great modern actors of cinema, an actor who brings purity to each performance that is the mark of a true artist. |
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| | MILLION DOLLAR BABY Clint Eastwood became one of the great American filmmakers patiently and slowly through the seventies and eighties. He made interesting deals with the studios, agreeing to act in one of their Dirty Harry |
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| | MIRACLE As a Canadian, I though the greatest event in sport was Paul Henderson s game winner in Russia in 1972, giving Team Canada a 6-5 win. Or Wayne Gretzky s drop pass to Mario Lemeiux which number 66 drilled home giving Canada yet another 6-5 win over Russia |
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| | MONSTER (2003) Great actors often discuss in hushed tones the “genre of the truth” that governs the manner in which great actors work. Nothing matters more to them than the truth of the character...... |
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| | MORE FILMS ANNOUNCED FOR TORONTO FILM FESTIVAL Several more films were announced today as premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival, now in its 29th year. |
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| | MY FAIR LADY (1964) |
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| | MY LIFE WITHOUT ME (2003) Sarah Polley's luminous performance in this small, heartfelt film won her a Genie Award for best actress and attracted a great deal of attention in the United States |
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| | MYSTIC RIVER (2003) Quietly through over the course of the last three decades, actor Clint Eastwood has become one of the great American filmmakers. From The Outlaw Josey Wales (1976), through Bird (1988), his Oscar winning Unforgiven (1992) and adult love story The Bridges of Madison County (1995), and finally Mystic River (2003) |
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| | NEW YORK, NEW YORK (1977) In the days following the release of his dark and powerfully brilliant Taxi Driver (1976), Martin Scorsese was being hailed as the next great American filmmaker. In the heyday of the directors’ era, it seemed there was a great new director arriving every year... |
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| | NORMAL (2002) Made for HBO television, Normal (2002) is among the most powerful and deeply moving love stories I have ever seen. |
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| | ONE FROM THE HEART (1982) Though critically reviled when released theatrically in 1982, Coppola’s One From the Heart (1982) is now something of a curious lost masterwork from the great filmmaker |
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| | OPEN WATER The portrayal of terror is a tricky business, often difficult to convey without going radically over the top. The terror of the doomed teenagers in the Friday the 13th films i |
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| | OSCAR NOMINATIONS REACTION Where the hell is Paul Giamatti for best actor in Sideways?.... |
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| | OSCAR PREDIX This could be one of the most interesting years ever in the countdown for the Academy Awards, Hollywood’s biggest evening. Love them or hate them, |
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| | PENNIES FROM HEAVEN (1981) The characters in Pennies from Heaven (1981) are a depressing lot, who in brilliant fantasy musical sequences come to life to be as vibrant as the Hollywood musicals..... |
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| | PETER PAN In P.J. Hogan’s excellent new version of the superb book, Peter Pan is portrayed by a boy, quite well in fact, and the film will have you believing in fairies. |
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| | PHIL THE ALIEN Perhaps the most hyped and anticipated Canadian film of the Film Festival this year, |
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| | PLANET OF THE APES (1968) This 35th anniversary edition of the now classic science fiction thriller is a superb DVD for collectors and fans of the film; however, I do question the fairness of Fox Home Entertainment in releasing yet another DVD of this film |
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| | RAGING BULL (1980) Praise MGM Home Entertainment for releasing Raging Bull (1980) on DVD in the manner it truly deserves; a double disc set with tons of extras, including directors’ commentary, and several making of featurettes that will... |
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| | RAGTIME (1981) The year 1981 was dominated by Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), Steven Spielberg's superb adventure film that brought to audiences a new hero named Indiana Jones...... |
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| | RAIN MAN (1988) MGM Home Entertainment is about to release this special edition of Rain Man (1988) one of the most popular films of the eighties, and winner of four Academy Awards, including best picture, best actor (Dustin Hoffman), best director |
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| | RAY He was a musical pioneer, combining elements of blues, country, gospel, jazz and rock to create one of the most distinctive sounds of the last century. His story is one of enormous triumph over adversity, overcoming extraordinary odds to become what and who he was. |
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| | RAY Ray Charles was among the most important and influential musicians in the history of music...... |
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| | RAY (2004) ominated for six Academy Awards including best picture, best director and best actor, Ray (2004) has become one of the most beloved films of the year. After its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.... |
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| | ROBIN WILLIAMS TO RECEIVE CECIL B. DEMILLE AWARD Zany comic Robin Williams will receive this year’s Cecil B. Demille Award for his lifetime achievement in film and television at this year’s Golden Globe ceremony. An 11 time nominee for the Golden Globe and five time winner for his performances in The Fisher King (1991), Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Good Morning Viet Nam (1988), Goodwill Hunting (1997) and for his television work on Mork and Mindy, Williams is among the most respected and sought after performers in modern film. In addition to the nominations and awards he has received from the Foreign Press Association, he was awarded a special citation for his voice work in Aladdin (1991). Previous winners of this honour include Warren Beatty, Jack Nicholson, and Gene Hackman. |
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| | SAVING PRIVATE RYAN (1998) 60 ANNIVERSARY OF D-DAY SPECIAL EDITION The first time I screened Steven Spielberg’s extraordinary war epic Saving Private Ryan (1998) was very early in the morning at the old Uptown Theatre on Yonge Street in Toronto. |
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| | SCHINDLER’S LIST (1993) Perhaps the most acclaimed and honoured film of its time, Schindler’s List (1993) finally arrives on DVD next month making it the last of Spielberg’s great works to arrive in the digital forma |
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| | SCREEN ACTORS GUILD NOMINEES ANNOUNCED There were more than a few surprises when nominations for the tenth annual Screen Actors Guild Awards for excellence in performance for feature film and television were announced |
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| | SEABISCUIT (2003) |
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| | SHARK TALE Premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival as their first Gala Matinee, Shark Tale is an enjoyable romp that makes good use of the star voices used in the film |
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| | SHARK TALE Loaded with in jokes from films such as The Godfather (1972), Scarface (1983), Gladiator (2000) and even Jerry Maguire (1996), Shark Tale is an enjoyable film for the whole family |
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| | SHOWGIRLS (1993) What is it saying about a film when the handsome boxed set arrives with two shot glasses, a topless pin up, a set of nude shot lobby cards, a dark sleep mask, a deck of playing cards, and two pasties, which I assume are for use by female viewers after seeing |
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| | SIDEWAYS The last time Alexander Payne made a road film the result was About Schmidt (2002), one of the best films of its year, and containing one of Jack Nicholson's best performances |
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| | SIDEWAYS The character Miles, beautifully portrayed by the character actor Paul Giamatti is answering a question asked to him by Maya (Virginia Madsen) a fellow wine lover about why he so loves the Pinot grape |
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| | SIDEWAYS CONTINUES TO DOMINATE; WINS NYFCC AWARDS Sideways continues to dominate the critics’ awards, winning best picture from the prestigious New York Film Critics Circle earlier today. Sideways also earned the best screenplay awards for writers Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor. |
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| | SILVER CITY Sayles' vicious satire of American politics is timely and strong, crisply acted by a strong cast, but tends to get bogged down in the middle by perhaps its own self importance. |
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| | SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW A non-festival review folks! |
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| | SOPHIE’S CHOICE (1982) In my opinion, the performance of Meryl Streep as Sophie, the tragic heroine of Sophie’s Choice (1982) is beyond astounding and the finest performance given by an actress in the history of the cinema. Streep is breathtaking as this doomed survivor of Auschwitz, living in Brooklyn..... |
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| | SPIDER MAN 2 Without peer, this is the best film I have ever seen based on a comic book. For once I agree with Roger Ebert who says the same this week, blown away as .... |
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| | STAR WARS COMES TO DVD IN SEPTEMBER After months of rumours and speculation, 20th Century Fox and Lucasfilm Ltd. Have formally announced that the original Star Wars Trilogy will come to DVD for the first time September 21, 2004 |
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| | STARSKY AND HUTCH With Starsky and Hutch, the filmmakers go in an unexpected direction, using the action series as a template and going in the direction of a full blown comedy. With any eye towards spoofing the source material, it is clear everyone involved with this film had a great deal of fun with it, and while it is hardly Oscar bait, it was an enjoyable ninety minutes |
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| | STARSKY AND HUTCH (2004) Why the major studios insist on making feature films of long dead television series’ I have no idea. Is it about to stop? Not a chance. There are currently plans for Ving Rhames to assume the lollipop lovin’ |
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| | THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT TRILOGY When Chicago (2002) won the Academy Award for best picture it was the first musical to do so in thirty four years, the last being Oliver! (1968). Through the sixties, West Side Story (1961), My Fair Lady (1964) and The Sound of Music (1965) all musicals won the Academy Award for best picture. The art form of musicals died through the seventies as audiences became disenchanted with the idea of characters bursting into song. |
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| | THE ACCIDENTAL TOURIST (1988) This quiet little film opened in late 1988 and despite low box office figures went on to win the New York Film Critics Award for best picture, which was something of a shock in the industry that year. |
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| | THE ALAMO The famous rallying cry “remember the Alamo” will not apply to this film. Ever |
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| | THE ALAMO (1960) To coincide with the release of the new film The Alamo, currently in theatres though suffering under the attack of scathing reviews, MGM Home Entertainment has re-issued The Alamo (1960), John Wayne’s epic film. |
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| | THE ALFRED HITCHCOCK SIGNATURE COLLECTION In another of their massive collections in the tradition of The Chaplin Collection Volume One, and The Chaplin Collection Volume Two, Warner Brothers |
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| | THE ALIEN QUADRILOGY Fox Home Entertainment has outdone themselves with this nine disc collection of the Alien films. |
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| | THE ASSASSINATION OF RICHARD NIXON Sam Bick (Sean Penn) reminds me a great deal of Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro) in Taxi Driver (1976). There is that same sense of a lost soul struggling .... |
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| | THE ASSASSINATION OF RICHARD NIXON 1974. A time of growing unrest and paranoia in America as Watergate would unwind and bring to an end the presidency of Richard Nixon... |
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| | THE AVIATOR At long last, director Martin Scorsese should finally win a long overdue Academy Award for best director. |
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| | THE AVIATOR SOARS WITH 11 NOMINATIONS Martin Scorsese’s Howard Hughes epic The Aviator nabbed eleven Academy Award nominations this morning including nods for best picture,... |
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| | THE BARBARIAN INVASIONS (2003) Armed with Canada's first ever Academy Award for best foreign language film, the Genie Awards for best Canadian film, prizes at Cannes 2003, the adoration of film critics and audiences from a... |
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| | THE BEST ON DVD 2004 With DVD being a business onto itself, it seems only right that there be annual best list for the digital realm as well. |
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| | THE BEST PERFORMANCES OF 2004 John H. Foote picks the best performances of the year |
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| | THE BOURNE SUPREMACY Audiences seeking thrilling and yet intelligent cinema this season need look no further than The Bourne Supremacy, a taut and tight new thriller that is a sequel to the exceptionally good The Bourne Identity |
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| | THE CHAPLIN COLLECTION VOLUME TWO Charlie: The Life and Art of Charlie Chaplin (2003) premiered at the Cannes Film Festival last year, and was later screened at the Montreal World Film Festival to great acclaim. |
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| | THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK With the enormous success of the low budget science fiction thriller Pitch Black (2000), a smart and stylishly directed picture, some sort of sequel seemed obvious to ... |
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| | THE CLASSICS # 10 THE GODFATHER PART II (1974) A rare case of the sequel actually being superior to the first film, The Godfather Part II (1974) is, in my opinion, quite simply the most astonishing film ever made. |
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| | THE CLASSICS # 14 LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (1962) This magnificent biography is considered by critics around the world to be among the five best films ever made. In my opinion, David Lean’s Lawrence of Arabia (1962)... |
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| | THE CLASSICS # 8 AMERICAN GRAFITTI (1973) Responsible for the nostalgia craze of the seventies which would see a renewed popularity in music from the fifties and sixties as well as clothing, not to mention a popular television series called Happy Days, American Graffiti ... |
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| | The Classics #11 APOCALYPSE NOW (1979) APOCALYPSE NOW REDUX (2001) After first seeing Apocalypse Now (1979) at the now destroyed University Theatre on Bloor Street in 1979, I stumbled .... |
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| | The Classics #12 ALL THE PRESIDENT’S MEN (1976) Imagine having to create a screenplay based on the massive book of the same title written by investigative reporters of the Washington Post... |
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| | THE CLASSICS #13 BONNIE AND CLYDE (1967) One of the movies that led the Cultural Revolution within the film industry is this searing biography of depression bank robbers Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow...... |
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| | THE CLASSICS #2 ON THE WATERFRONT (1954) This is the second of a weekly series of reviews of classic films now available on DVD. Since the advent of home entertainment, be it VHS or BETA tapes, laserdiscs, and now the incredible DVD format, the past two decades have allowed an entire generation of audience to become better educated cinematically. It astounds me that so many young people have seen silent films, but more importantly is the fact that these great works are now available to them |
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| | THE CLASSICS #5 CITIZEN KANE (1941) Film critics and scholars revere Citizen Kane (1941) as do I, but it is not the greatest film ever made. It is certainly among them, |
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| | THE CLASSICS #6 THE WIZARD OF OZ (1939) Lying in a hospital bed in 2001, recovering from massive injuries sustained in a head on collision, I watched The Wizard of Oz (1939) on the tiny television close to my bed. It was Easter Sunday, my wife and daughters had just left and I decided to watch this beloved film |
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| | THE CLASSICS #9 NIXON (1995) The hallmark of a great film biography is whether or not the filmmaker possesses the courage to go all the way and show his subject as a human being, warts and all |
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| | THE CRYING GAME (1992) |
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| | THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW For a short time in the seventies, disaster films were among the most popular genres with audiences, who would flock to see an all-star cast placed in peril. Films such as Airport (1970), The Poseidon Adventure..... |
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| | THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW (2004) Has Roland Emmerich ever made a small film?... |
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| | THE DAY OF THE LOCUST (1975) After winning the Academy Award for best director for Midnight Cowboy (1969), for a short time John Scheslinger could do very little wrong in Hollywood. In 1975 he took the helm of The Day of the Locust (1975), ........... |
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| | THE DREAMERS John H. Foote reviews master filmmaker, Bernardo Bertolucci’s new controversial film |
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| | THE DREAMERS (2004) The Dreamers (2004) arrives on DVD this week, one of the most criminally under seen and under appreciated films of the last ten years. Whenever Bernardo Bertolucci makes a film it is an event worth |
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| | THE FILM NOIR COLLECTION Heat and cigarette smoke. Concrete and night. Gleaming streets freshly cleansed with night rain, an obvious metaphor of was |
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| | THE FORGOTTEN There are times when an actor or actress can elevate an otherwise ordinary film through the sheer power of their performance.... |
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| | THE GREAT CANADIAN FILMS During my life as a film buff, film historian, and then film critic, I have made it my mission to champion Canadian cinema when appropriate to do so. Granted I too had to get over the stigma that Canadian films stunk to high heaven, |
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| | THE GREATEST STORY EVER TOLD (1965) In the wake of the recent box office success of Mel Gibson’s searing The Passion of the Christ (2004); MGM Home Entertainment is re-releasing their epic The Greatest Story Ever Told (1965) |
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| | THE HAMMER HORROR COLLECTION Once again Warner Brothers Home Entertainment proves to be the leader in the industry when it comes to bringing classic cinema to the digital real. |
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| | THE HEART IS DECEITFUL ABOVE ALL THINGS Deeply disturbing and profoundly upsetting, The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things is a firebrand of a film that explores in graphic scenes a vicious form of child abuse. ... |
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| | THE HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG Sometimes unjust things happen to people due to one silly mistake caused by overlooking something that suddenly spirals wildly out of control |
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| | THE HUMAN STAIN (2003) Based on the best selling novel by Phillip Roth, The Human Stain (2003) revolves around ..... |
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| | THE HUNGER (1983) There was a time that Hollywood felt they could make a movie star out of rock star David Bowie.... |
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| | THE INCREDIBLES The Incredibles is, in a word, well…. incredible. Easily the finest film to emerge from Pixar Studios, the folks behind the ......... |
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| | THE INGMAR BERGMAN COLLECTION For years recognized as a dominant force in Swedish cinema and theatre, Ingmar Bergman has the rare distinction of being one the genuine geniuses of modern film, a man who has consistently created groundbreaking and innovative films that stir.... |
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| | THE JUDY GARLAND SIGNATURE COLLECTION Judy Garland was among the most gifted performers to come out of the Hollywood studio system. Though not necessarily a great actress, she was a born entertainer and gamely went at any assignment she was given. |
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| | THE KARATE KID COLLECTION In the mid-eighties, The Karate Kid (1984) was a solid box office hit amidst high profile blockbusters such as Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom... |
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| | THE KING OF KINGS (1927) From Criterion DVD comes Cecil B. Demille's silent classic The King of Kings (1927), which cemented Demille's reputation as the greatest showman of his day. Largely forgotten and lost, this release offers |
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| | THE LAST SAMURAI (2003) Cruise gives one of his best performances as Civil War hero, Nathan Algren, |
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| | THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING In years to come, I will tell my grandchildren about this film and the two before it, and I firmly believe that they will watch it over and over as my three year old does |
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| | THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING The winner of a record tying eleven Academy Awards is now on DVD, a celebration of one of the greatest film events in the history of the cinema, and bittersweet because the event has come to a close. |
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| | THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RETURN OF THE KING EXTENDED EDITION One of the great disappointments of 2004 was that at the end of the year there would be no Lord of the Rings film from director Peter Jackson released in theatres. |
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| | THE LOST BOYS (1987) There were two outstanding vampire films released in 1987, the first being this summer blockbuster from director Joel Schumacher, |
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| | THE MACHINIST The physical transformation of Christian Bale will be the thing people notice first and foremost about Brad Anderson's Kafka-esque film The Machinist, playing ... |
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| | THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE (2004) It took extraordinary courage for director Jonathan Demme to make the decision to remake the classic stud |
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| | THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE (2004) When it was initially announced that Academy Award winning director Jonathan Demme was going to direct a remake of the Cold War classic The Manchurian Candidate (1962), most of the film world was aghast. The question posed to Demme was “why tamper with perfection?”. |
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| | THE MARTIN SCORSESE COLLECTION Now to be fair, I believe any true collection of Scorsese’s work should contain Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980), The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), The Age of Innocence (1993), Casino (1995) and Gangs of New York (2002) but considering those titles are owned by other studios, I understand fully... |
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| | THE MERCHANT OF VENICE Something happened to Al Pacino’s acting after the failure of Revolution (1985)..... . |
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| | THE MERCHANT OF VENICE Listening to the comments of the audience leaving the screening of The Merchant of Venice, I was struck by how similar they were to my own opinions of the film. Praise was being lavished on the performances of Al Pacino and Jeremy Irons, |
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| | THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES After earning rave reviews at the Cannes Film Festival, Walter Salles splendid film The Motorcycle Diaries played at the Toronto International Film Festival..... |
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| | THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES Che Guevara once wrote that a true revolutionary was guided by great feelings of love.... |
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| | THE NAME OF THE ROSE (1986) Sean Connery brings a sad nobility to his best....... |
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| | THE NATIONAL SOCIETY OF FILM CRITICS NAMED MILLION DOLLAR BABY BEST PIC n something of a shocking turn of events, the National Society of Film Critics have named Clint Eastwood’s powerful drama Million Dollar Baby |
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| | THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST (2004) Released in February this year, usually the dumping ground for films the studios do not know how to release, or bad films, The Passion of the Christ (2004) was released by Newmarket Films to coincide with Ash Wednesday, and though the ....... |
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| | THE POLAR EXPRESS Destined to become a holiday classic, The Polar Express is based on the children's book by Chris Van Allsburg. This enchanting story is ..... |
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| | THE ROBOCOP TRILOGY From MGM Home Entertainment comes the Robocop trilogy, packaged as a lavish collection with crisp re-mastered prints of each film |
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| | THE ROCKY ANTHOLOGY From MGM Home Entertainment comes The Rocky Anthology; the saga of Rocky Balboa, the popular pugilist made famous by Sylvester Stallone in 1976, whose career path we have followed ever since. |
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| | THE SADDEST MUSIC IN THE WORLD How is it Guy Maddin’s magnificent film The Saddest Music in the World failed to earn a Genie nomination as best picture from the Academy of Canadian Filmand Television? |
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| | THE SHOOTIST (1976) The era of the great Hollywood western ended with this quiet little masterpiece that Paramount Pictures had no idea how to market or release. I first saw The Shootist (1976) at a drive-in because that was the only screen playing the film in the sweltering summer of ’76 |
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| | THE SNOW WALKER (2003) An outstanding Canadian film that first premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival last year, The Snow Walker is a masterful film directed by Charles Martin Smith, best known to film audiences for his performance as Terry the Toad in George Lucas’ American .... |
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| | THE STAR WARS TRILOGY The rush of seeing Star Wars (1977) for the first time in the late seventies in a crowded theatre is one of the most profound cinematic memories I have. |
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| | THE STEPFORD WIVES First of all I do not share the opinion of many in the business that former Muppet master Frank Oz cannot direct a film....... |
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| | THE SUNSHINE BOYS (1975) As I mentioned a short time ago while reviewing the recent DVD release of The Prisoner of Second Avenue (1975),..... |
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| | THE TARZAN COLLECTION Before he was a movie star, Johnny Weissmuller was a five time gold medal swimmer at the Olympic Games in 1924 and 1928, snapped up by Hollywood after they saw him in several sports shorts. Cast as Tarzan...... |
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| | THE TEN BEST FILMS OF 2003 |
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| | THE TEN BEST FILMS OF 2004 Great films from world class directors such as Martin Scorsese, Clint Eastwood, Robert Zemeckis, Alexander Payne, Walter Salles, Mike Nichols and Mel Gibson |
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| | THE TEN COMMANDMENTS (1956) This is the film that forever hooked me on movies. As hokey as it sounds, (and it does) this old picture galvanized me, forever changing the way I looked at film and the manner in which I viewed movies |
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| | THE TEN GREATEST PERFORMANCES - FEMALE Part 2 of the Greatest Performances |
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| | THE TEN WORST FILMS OF 2004 Being a film critic, my friends tell me is easy work. What they do not realize, is that I see all the movies. Everything. The good, the bad and the very ugly. |
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| | THE TERMINAL There has been an astonishing maturation in the work of Steven Spielberg since he won his first Academy Award for Schindler's List..... |
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| | THE TERMINAL (2004) Tom Hanks is among the most likable men in the movie business, a man who commands enormous sums of money to appear in movies, yet who has..... |
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| | THE TIN DRUM (1979) To see The Tin Drum (1979) in the late seventies if you lived in Ontario, you had to drive to Quebec or Buffalo because the Nazis known as the Ontario Censor Board decided to ban the film. |
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| | THE ULTIMATE MATRIX COLLECTION Not being a huge fan of the films I approached this massive collection with a tinge of dread, |
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| | THE UNTOUCHABLES (1987) Of the great directors to emerge from the seventies directors era, no one is quite as under appreciated as Brian De Palma... |
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| | THE VILLAGE Since Haley Joel Osment whispered in hushed, terrified tones "I see dead people", director-writer M. Night Shyamalan has been one of the film world's most sought after directors. |
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| | THE WARNER GANGSTERS COLLECTION Warner Brothers Home Entertainment has done it again with yet another superb boxed set of great films from years gone by... |
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| | THE WEST WING - SEASON TWO There are very few things I watch with any loyalty or regularity on television. I loathe sitcoms, despise variety programs, and consider hockey the only sport worth watching..... |
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| | THE WOODSMAN Being the father of two young daughters, reading the stories I come across in the newspapers about child predators and child molesters angers me. |
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| | THE WOODSMAN Demanding as it is, dealing with a socially unacceptable subject, that of a convicted pedophile trying to enter society after a twelve year prison term, |
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| | THEY SHOOT HORSES, DON’T THEY? (1969) Nominated for nine Academy Awards in 1969, including best actress (Jane Fonda) and best director (Sydney Pollack) the film somehow was snubbed for a best picture nomination |
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| | THX 1138 (1970) The story is told that Francis Ford Coppola and George Lucas brought this film to the executives of Warner Brothers ... |
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| | TOMORROW (1972) Robert Duvall was still relatively unknown in 1972 despite glowing reviews for his performances in To Kill a Mockingbird (1972) and M*A*S*H (1970). |
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| | TORONTO FILM CRITICS NAME SIDEWAYS BEST PIC Following the lead of film critics in Los Angeles and New York, the Toronto Film Critics Association has named Sideways the best film of 2004. |
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| | TRAINSPOTTING (1996) Exploding with ferocious energy and vibrancy, Trainspotting (1996) was a major pop-culture phenomenon when first released. Already a major hit in Britain when it reached .... |
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| | TROY Wolfgang Peterson’s massive Troy will no doubt leave more than a few viewers in awe with the sheer scope and size of the picture, and for hard core history buffs, there will be issues |
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| | TROY(2004) Remember that Academy Award Gladiator (2000) won for best picture? This film is the direct result of that. |
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| | TWIST First screened at the Toronto International Film Festival last September, Twist caused a minor stir with its up to date variation on Charles Dickens classic novel Oliver Twist. |
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| | TWISTED Once one of the great directors of the late seventies and eighties, Kaufman has gone from directing great, daring works of art, to duds that should never have been made in the first place. |
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| | UNFORGIVABLE: BLACKNESS: THE RISE AND FALL OF JACK JOHNSON The greatest documentarian of modern cinema, Ken Burns works has been hailed on television ... |
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| | VANITY FAIR Adapting a massive book such as Vanity Fair to the screen is an extraordinary endeavour. While watching the film I began to wonder if perhaps it was not better suited as a mini-series on television as opposed to a film just over two hours long. |
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| | WELCOME TO MOOSEPORT |
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| | WILD AT HEART (1990) On the heels of his cult classic Blue Velvet (1986) which earned him an Academy Award nomination for best director, David Lynch unleashed Wild at Heart ... |
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| | WYATT EARP (1994) Kevin Costner, it should be noted, brought the western genre back from the dead with his Academy Award winning Dances with Wolves (1990) which earned Oscars for best picture and best director for Costner |
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| | ZORBA THE GREEK (1964) Anthony Quinn had already won two Academy Awards for best supporting actor in Viva Zapata (1952) and Lust for Life (1956), when he found the role of a lifetime as a Greek peasant in Zorba the Greek (1964). His performance in Lust for Life (1956) as painter Paul Gauguin takes up..... |
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