From the earliest days of cinema, filmmakers have long been fascinated by the often contentious relationship that exists between Mankind and nature. Indeed, one simply has to look at director Robert J. Flaherty’s Nanook of the North (1922) for an early example of this, as it perfectly illustrates the give and take relationship we share with the natural world. Since […]
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It happens almost every time a movie comes out; “The book was better.” Often the change from one medium to another is at best mixed, and even more often lackluster. This is understandable, books go into far more depth and spend far more time building characters and plots and some of that is simply lost when it moves to film. […]
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It has been said that film has the ability to transport us. Whether it be to far off lands, other worlds, worlds that do not exist, or the distant past, films can take viewers to places they’ve never been before, or to places they could never visit in real life. However, nothing has the ability to transport a person back […]
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Futurama Head in a Jar isn’t technically a game, but I’m too big of a Futurama fan to pass up reviewing it. Besides, I had more fun playing with Head in a Jar than I did playing Prison Escape, which I reviewed last week. In Futurama Head in a Jar you create different heads for your own personal Head […]
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Good satire is often timeless, even when the package it comes wrapped in is horribly dated and square according to current standards. Such is the case with this month’s double feature. Both Death Race 2000 (1975) and The Running Man (1987) contain social commentary that is eerily relevant to the events of today, despite several aesthetic trappings that root them […]
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On February 28, 2011 the world lost an iconic beauty. Jane Russell was the original bombshell. She was voluptuous, witty, and sharp as a tack. The woman didn’t take guff from anyone. Her on-screen presence raised some eyebrows – and pulses – in her bosom-bearing roles. Her first feature film, The Outlaw, had Hollywood censors sweating. They delayed the release […]
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Human beings have long wrestled with the distinction between justice and revenge. This is a debate that has raged on for centuries, and it continues to divide people to this day. Countless articles have been written about the efficacy of the death penalty, with some seeing it as a just punishment for those who have committed heinous crimes, while others […]
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Now that summer is officially here and heating things up – albeit sporadically (crazy Chicago weather) – the cinema is heating up as well. We should all celebrate the fact that we made it through movie theater death – January through April at the theaters – with a look back at the hottest summer blockbusters of all time. Let’s start things […]
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Sometimes, the connections between two films are obvious, but there are other times when a little digging is required to find a common thread that links them. This can often yield even greater rewards, as it can open up entirely new ways of looking at both films, and can unlock things that you didn’t even realize were there. That brings […]
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My introduction to Woody Allen came from the 1977 classic Annie Hall. I knew nothing of the bespectacled man before then, even though his work has been around for – quite literally – ever. In the four films of his that I have seen there have been some common characteristics. (I am almost ashamed to admit that Annie Hall, Vicky […]
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