From the start, I have used this column to focus on moments, scenes, or sequences that tend to sum up the themes and subtext of any given film. They are moments that boil the entire film down to its very essence, encapsulating every idea the director wants to convey in a single short burst. But I realized that by doing […]
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Since the dawn of Man, we have used stories as a way of understanding both ourselves and the world around us. Many of the best stories are about journeys, both metaphorical and actual. Some follow a character or characters from one location to another, and others serve as a chronicle of the progression from one stage of a character’s life […]
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For most people, Christmas is a time for togetherness, a time to connect with friends and family, and bask in the warm glow of love, peace and friendship. For others, however, Christmas is just another painful reminder of how alone they truly are, and the holiday becomes a sort of existential nightmare for these poor folks who have nothing better […]
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Because if there’s one thing Hollywood is in need of it’s a little justice.
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It’s Christmas time in Hollis, Queens (and other non-Run-DMC approved locales), so in honor of this most beloved of holidays, Cinematic Soulmates will turn its attention to a couple of films that (at the time) put a fresh and fun spin on the most famous Christmas story of them all, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Both Scrooged (1988) and A […]
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People who did not grow up with the Muppets may have a hard time understanding why they mean so much to those of us who did. Hell, even some people who DID grow up with the Muppets may have a hard time understanding it, but for some of us, Jim Henson’s fabulous felt creations had a profound impact on us […]
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A word of warning before we begin: things are about to get schmaltzy here at Great Moments of Cinema, so if you’re one of those heartless cynical types who hates all that sappy emotional stuff, you might want to stop reading right now. Now that that’s out of the way, let’s dive right into this month’s column, in which I […]
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For some people, fame is like a drug, and their desire to attain it becomes the driving force of their lives. This has been the case for a very long time, but it seems to have reached a sort of fevered pitch in the modern era. The rise of “reality television” would seem to bear this out. Indeed, for over […]
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Part of the brilliance of director Ridley Scott’s Alien (1979) is the way in which it demystifies space travel. His characters aren’t heroic astronauts or brilliant scientists or mystic space knights. Instead, they are blue-collar working stiffs who just happen to make their living on a mining ship that traverses the stars. It is a clever (if not wholly original) […]
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With Halloween right around the corner, it seemed like a good time to take a look at two films that not only redefined the horror genre, but also had a lasting impact on the culture as a whole. Director Herk Harvey’s Carnival of Souls (1962) has developed a strong cult following in the years since its release, but it is […]
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