Category Archives: Movies

Fans of the Sharpe Chronicles will be glad to see Sean Bean return for the first time in 8 years as Richard Sharpe. In 1817, Wellington sends Sharpe, a veteran who has already seen action in India in 1803, back … Continue reading →

Captain Corelli’s Mandolin (2001) – dir. John Madden; Nicholas Cage, Penelope Cruz, John Hurt, Christian Bale, Irene Papas Captain Corelli’s Mandolin is a love story, set on the Greek island of Cephalonia during the overwhelming events of World War II. … Continue reading →

Let me start out by saying that Miyazaki’s Howl’s Moving Castle is one of my all-time favorite marvelous terrific films, viewable over and over. And I say film, advisedly. It does not fall into any particular genre (anime, animation, fantasy), … Continue reading →

A friend sent me a link to a piece that mentions the relationship between Frodo and Sam in Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. I wrote back: I’ll comment on just one aspect among many: Wolfe looks at Tolkien’s work (and … Continue reading →

Thomas Hardy serves up a pretty thick soup, thick and bitter; the kind of soup that talks back to you when your plate is served, saying “You’d better mean it before you start in on me.” I’ve just been watching … Continue reading →

I saw the trailer for the movie Paycheck, noted it was based on the story “Paycheck” by Philip K. Dick, and read the story. It’s a fine story, and it joins the growing list of his fiction pieces that have … Continue reading →

“Lord of the Rings” is for boys …. A New York Times critic falls for lazy gender-typing. [Salon.com] Randy just forwarded this link to me. Its author’s well-taken point about not attempting to gender-type reactions to movies is one Randy … Continue reading →

This time, when I watched the Two Towers extended version, the performance that shone like a jewel for me was that of Bernard Hill as Theoden, King of Rohan. Every part of this character’s role is interesting, and gives plenty … Continue reading →

I just got back from seeing Return of the King, and I was staggered by it. At least as important as that, the whole theater full of people — and it was FULL of people — were carried away, completely … Continue reading →

I’ve just scuttled back from seeing X2. From the opening title — Marvel’s credit alone is almost worth the price of admission — to the supported but unexpected climactic scene and the denouement, and all the way in between, this … Continue reading →