Digging into the detritus of a lifetime unearths some interesting memories.
Down Memory Lane
Author: Kenneth George Godwin
A mixed bag from Screen Archives
The discovery of a previously unknown documentary, Robert Kaylor’s Derby (1971), plus a Blu-ray edition of Stephanie Rothman’s Terminal Island (1973), a rough-and-ready exploitation B-movie, are of much greater interest than Jack Cardiff’s Holiday in Spain (1960), a bloated mainstream Cinerama showcase which dresses its travelogue in a tissue-thin “mystery” plot.
Twilight Time goes West
Recent Twilight Time releases trace the western from the frontier myth to post-’60s cynicism, with a side trip to post-war racial tension in Los Angeles.
Pulp Epics
Big budgets don’t necessarily guarantee success in genre filmmaking; in fact, the bigger the budget the more likely a genre movie will be met with derision which is often undeserved.
Orson Welles’ Othello (1952/55): Criterion Blu-ray review
Criterion’s exemplary release of Orson Welles’ Othello on Blu-ray presents both versions of one of the filmmaker’s most important films with an impressive collection of supplements which delve into the production and meaning of one of the most original cinematic adaptations of Shakespeare’s work.
Late summer viewing: more short takes
An eclectic assortment of recent viewing, including an obscure short feature from England, a couple of westerns old and new, and a pair of Elmore Leonard adaptations.
Fractured dream: Georges Franju’s Spotlight on a Murderer (1961)
Arrow Video has released an excellent Blu-ray edition of Georges Franju’s little-known third feature, Plein feux per l’assassin (Spotlight on a Murderer, 1961), which adds surreal touches to a country house mystery centred on the missing body of a dead nobleman and the bickering relatives who gather hoping to inherit.
David Lynch/Eraserhead interview
I was interviewed this week by Nathan Wardinski for his show Sounds of Cinema, broadcast on a couple of public educational radio stations in southern Minnesota. The topic was David Lynch and the making of Eraserhead and I was initially a bit intimidated – both by the idea of being interviewed (I’ve interviewed quite a […]
No, it’s definitely not a rom-com
Darren Aronofsky’s mother! (2017) is a religious allegory disguised as a horrific comedy of social unease. Original and completely unhinged, it features an excellent cast and audacious imagery which has been unsettling and confusing audiences and critics.
David Lynch: The Art Life (2016): Criterion Blu-ray review
The Art Life is a relaxed and nuanced portrait of filmmaker David Lynch’s evolution as an artist which, like his work, is both revealing and enigmatic.
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