ABOUT MY FATHER
By Marc S. Sanders Robert DeNiro meets the parents! Though it’s not what you’re thinking, probably. Comedian Sebastian Maniscalco co-writes and stars as a proud Italian named (what else?) Sebastian in a heartwarming, sometimes raunchy script, loosely inspired by the relationship he might have had with his real, Sicilian, immigrant father who specialized in hairdressing. DeNiro is…
MUTINY ON THE BOUNTY (1935)
by Miguel E. Rodriguez DIRECTOR: Frank LloydCAST: Charles Laughton, Clark Gable, Franchot ToneMY RATING: 9/10ROTTEN TOMATOMETER: 96% Certified Fresh PLOT: First mate Fletcher Christian leads a revolt against his sadistic commander, Captain Bligh, in this classic seafaring adventure, based on the real-life 1789 mutiny. For me, what makes the 1935 version of Mutiny on the…
EL TOPO (Mexico, 1970)
by Miguel E. Rodriguez DIRECTOR: Alejandro JodorowskyCAST: Alejandro Jodorowsky, Brontis Jodorowsky, Mara Lorenzio, Paula RomoMY RATING: 7/10ROTTEN TOMATOMETER: 80% Certified Fresh PLOT: A mysterious black-clad gunfighter wanders a mystical Western landscape encountering multiple bizarre characters. (THERE’S an understatement.) Having only seen one other film from Alejandro Jodorowsky (Santa Sangre, 1989), I thought I was prepared…
THE HURT LOCKER
By Marc S. Sanders Often the most effective war movies hardly focus on the enemy. It’s the environment that keeps us on our toes. Like Oliver Stone’s Platoon, Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker is a widely acclaimed depiction of the Iraq War, centrally located in Baghdad in 2004. Her film follows a frighteningly tense perspective of three…
MARKETA LAZAROVÁ (Czechoslovakia, 1967)
by Miguel E. Rodriguez DIRECTOR: František VláčilCAST: Josef Kemr, Magda Vášáryová, Frantisek VeleckýMY RATING: 5/10ROTTEN TOMATOMETER: 100% Fresh PLOT: In medieval central Europe, a young virgin promised to God is kidnapped and raped by a marauder whom her religious father seeks to kill in return. In an interview on the Criterion Blu-ray of Marketa Lazarová,…
K-POP DEMON HUNTERS (2025)
by Miguel E. Rodriguez DIRECTORS: Chris Appelhans, Maggie KangCAST: Arden Cho, May Hong, Ji-young Yoo, Ayn Hyo-seop, Ken Jeong, Lee Byung-hunMY RATING: 8/10ROTTEN TOMATOMETER: 91% Certified Fresh [plus a resounding 99% on the new “Popcornmeter”, but who’s counting…] PLOT: A world-renowned K-Pop girl group balance their lives in the spotlight with their secret identities as…
SOME CAME RUNNING (1958)
by Miguel E. Rodriguez DIRECTOR: Vincente MinnelliCAST: Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Shirley MacLaine, Arthur KennedyMY RATING: 7/10ROTTEN TOMATOMETER: 78% Fresh PLOT: A war veteran returns home to deal with family secrets and small-town scandals in his small Indiana hometown. Before getting into the nuts and bolts of Some Came Running, let’s just take a second…
BAD DAY AT BLACK ROCK (1955)
by Miguel E. Rodriguez DIRECTOR: John SturgesCAST: Spencer Tracy, Robert Ryan, Anne Francis, Walter Brennan, Ernest Borgnine, Lee MarvinMY RATING: 9/10ROTTEN TOMATOMETER: 97% Fresh PLOT: Shortly after the end of World War II, a one-armed stranger arrives in a tiny desert town whose residents, for no apparent reason, behave in a hostile way towards him.…
THE SECRET AGENT (PORTUGUESE, 2025)
By Marc S. Sanders I’m not going to pretend I understand all of the dynamics of the Portuguese film The Secret Agent. Most of the events occur in Brazil, dating back to 1977 – apparently a time of “mischief,” as the opening text describes. Mischief is not the term I would use, but perhaps it is how…
THE BAREFOOT CONTESSA (1954)
by Miguel E. Rodriguez DIRECTOR: Joseph L. MankiewiczCAST: Humphrey Bogart, Ava Gardner, Edmond O’Brien, Marius Goring, Rossano BrazziMY RATING: 7/10ROTTEN TOMATOMETER: 100% Fresh PLOT: The life of a Hollywood star whose candle burned briefly and brightly is told (mostly) by the writer/director who helped discover her. Towards the beginning of The Barefoot Contessa, I let…
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2 UNPAID MOVIE CRITICS!!!! 