When Warner Brothers sent Mania the complete A Nightmare on Elm Street box set on Blu-ray I knew it was going to be a monumental task. How does one review seven films in such a franchise? Obviously, these films are not for every one.
DVD review: ‘The Jazz Singer’ Historically, the most important scene in the film is the one in which Al Jolson, as a cantor’s son turned secular entertainer, ad libs dialogue as he plays the piano and sings for his mother. The naturalness of that interchange followed by the stiffness of the silent sequence that followed was said to have doomed silent films.
DVD review: ‘Fear and Desire’ Fans of the great director Stanley Kubrick will want to have “Fear and Desire,” his first film, made 50 years ago and until recently available only in bootlegged copies. Four soldiers – their country is not identified – crash-land behind enemy lines and then develop a plan to get back to their unit. Look for Paul Mazursky as a private named Sidney who cracks under …
Which movies to see this weekend, March 1 Two unforgettable portraits of prostitution, early 1930s style, make up this Sunday double-header. The first features the lovely Mae Clarke, as a destitute American showgirl stranded in London and forced into prostitution in order to survive
New on DVD and Blu-ray, March 1 The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare This well-crafted documentary by Matthew Heineman and Susan Froemke offers an X-ray of what’s wrong with this nation’s health care system and suggests solutions – among them, that the medical industry needs to switch its focus from intervention to prevention and that patients should change their lifestyles.
DVD review: ‘The Duellists’ The film was considered a low-budgeter of limited popularity by the releasing company, Paramount. what made the movie for critics were its impeccable Napoleonic-era costumes and pastoral settings, and photography resembling paintings of the early 19th century
Which movies to see this weekend, Feb. 22 Another winner from talented director Eytan Fox, this intimate, engaging romantic drama is a follow-up to his groundbreaking movie “Yossi & Jagger.” The new film, which concerns an ex-Israeli soldier struggling to move on from the loss of his lover (who died on the front lines), features excellent acting and showcases a director who gets more assured …
Movies opening Friday, Feb. 22 Chronicle of My Mother: A writer with an iron grip on his family must confront his resentments when his mother shows signs of dementia