tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60580694549388618432024-03-13T00:34:22.541-04:00Cinema Uprising by Steve EvansWelcome film lovers!
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Award-winning writer and film historian Steve Evans celebrates current, classic, cult, and forgotten film in these freewheeling essays on the cultural significance of the cinema. Special features include reviews of foreign films, noteworthy Blu-rays, 4Ks and concert discs.
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If you love movies, then come experience the wild enthusiasm of film writer Steve Evans, still raising a ruckus after all these years.
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Thanks for stopping by.Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.comBlogger254125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-21826076760192688172021-02-14T18:50:00.008-05:002021-02-14T19:19:19.822-05:00Silence of Lambs at 30: Still Crazy After All These YearsBy Steve EvansHaving seen more than 15,000 films in a lifelong love affair with the cinema, I
can say to a certainty that only four have truly terrified me and one of those
is The Silence of the Lambs, released 30 years ago today. Like Alien (1979),
Jaws (1975) and Psycho (1960), it is difficult to convey the sensation of dread
that Silence of the Lambs invokes in the first-time viewer. You have Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-9554225584394536032021-01-04T15:30:00.002-05:002021-01-04T15:31:13.676-05:00Ridin' a Carousel with Gerry and the PacemakersBy Steve Evans
Famed composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist Oscar
Hammerstein created the Broadway musical Carousel in 1945 when a little fellow
named Gerry Marsden would have been three years old. The musical was adapted 11
years later into a major motion picture filmed in a stunning, ultra-widescreen
process known as CinemaScope. Carousel also features, hands-down, the greatest
composition to Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-51012164752581708382020-12-28T10:23:00.002-05:002020-12-28T10:23:45.485-05:00A nod to Murnau, who'd be 132 today By Steve EvansRemembering F. W. Murnau, German expressionist director born on this day in 1888. He is perhaps most famous for directing Nosferatu (1922), the original Dracula film. For my money, Faust (1926), pictured here, is his masterpiece. It is an adaptation of Goethe’s famous tale of a kindly man who
sells his soul to the devil in exchange for curing his village of plague. Except Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-75604236029109738282020-12-10T14:09:00.001-05:002020-12-10T16:19:28.100-05:00Hanging Out with D.A. Pennebaker By Steve EvansWhen I met one of my idols about four years ago, documentary
filmmaker D. A. Pennebaker, we talked for a bit about his film Monterey Pop,
which chronicles the legendary rock music festival in the summer of 1967. It’s
my favorite concert film, the template by which all others are judged. The vibe
really resonates in my spirit. And the music is fantastic. Woodstock has
flashier Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-60390636555548813392020-12-04T13:43:00.000-05:002020-12-04T13:43:29.839-05:00Wither the Theater? By Steve EvansNever thought I’d live to see the demise of movie theaters, though now that it’s on the horizon the prospect bothers me much less than I would have imagined. This observation comes on the news yesterday that Warner Bros., the second-largest movie studio in the world (behind Disney), will simultaneously release all its films next year both in theaters and on the streaming Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-33032153146539081002019-11-07T09:01:00.000-05:002019-11-07T09:01:15.280-05:00A Picture for a Dollar on the Boulevard of Broken DreamsBy Steve Evans
About a decade ago I watched a wildly entertaining and mildly
disturbing documentary called Confessions of a Superhero (2007). The film
follows four street performers who dress up in costumes and prowl Hollywood
Boulevard, offering to take photos with tourists for tips. Sometimes they get
aggressive in their pursuit of those tips and police get involved.
Aside from the obvious Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-61156277046834399042019-10-27T10:49:00.000-04:002019-10-27T11:13:53.025-04:00Eddie Murphy is 0utta Sight in My Name is Dolemite
By Steve Evans
“I believe in America.”
That’s the opening line in The Godfather (1972). It’s also a sentiment I share. Because of that belief, I’ve always rooted for the underdog and embraced rags-to-riches stories.
I’ve also been a fan of the late comedian Rudy Ray Moore since before I was old enough to buy and listen to his records legally. Rudy told absolutely filthy jokes in a wild, Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-52754303873214891522019-07-10T18:51:00.000-04:002019-07-10T18:51:09.238-04:00Walking the WalkBy Steve Evans
When I was 10 years old, in 1973, I experienced the heart-stopping fear of vertigo during a visit to the observation deck of the Empire State Building in New York City. That terror of heights stopped only when I cured myself 12 years later by skydiving from the first plane I ever flew in.
It is nothing compared to tonight’s double feature, the Oscar-winning documentary Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-72371352001779450862019-05-21T14:52:00.000-04:002019-07-10T15:23:14.613-04:00Tarantino's Greek ChorusBy Steve Evans
Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino
understand how to use songs in a film like no other living director. Take your
pick: Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Casino, Jackie
Brown, The Departed, Django Unchained. Brilliant music in every one. Great song
selections underline the storyline without bludgeoning home the point.
Both men have new films coming out Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-79857578622726120722019-05-19T17:10:00.000-04:002019-05-19T17:14:52.038-04:00Want to Live? Then Die in L.A.
By Steve Evans
Summer blockbuster season is upon us and I am mostly
unimpressed with the cinematic slate. I’ll go see Scorsese’s latest and
Tarantino’s, too, but that’s about it. Summer is a time for action films, and
for my money, the more violent the better. Many terrific action films have been
made over the last half century and you’d best believe I’ve seen ‘em all. The
Bond films hold up Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-23231954364250930802019-04-16T17:41:00.000-04:002019-04-16T17:41:59.760-04:00Thoughts after a church fire in FranceBy Steve Evans
Yes, The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939) was filmed entirely on the RKO Studios backlot. Yes, they actually built the front of the cathedral to scale for the film, which is the essential cinematic version of Victor Hugo's immortal classic -- the novel that is directly responsible for saving the Notre Dame Cathedral in the early 1800s during but one of the many threats to its Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-49045183883927751312019-03-28T16:24:00.000-04:002019-03-28T16:24:29.444-04:00Half of the Coen Bros. to Direct Another MacbethBy Steve Evans
Most intriguing film news of the day... Joel Coen, sans brother Ethan, is set to direct yet another film adaptation of Macbeth. He is also writing the screenplay, again, without his brother. This represents a first in their 35-year collaboration. Two-time Oscar winner Frances McDormand, Joel's wife, is to play Lady Macbeth. Two-time Oscar winner Denzel Washington is in talks to Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-16360771583457649072019-03-07T08:24:00.000-05:002019-03-07T08:24:41.126-05:00Remembering Kubrick
By Steve Evans
I remember exactly where I was 20 years ago today when I
learned that Stanley Kubrick had died. First order of business was to phone in
a bogus illness at the office and squander a sick day. I spent the balance of
that morning and afternoon watching Paths of Glory, Dr. Strangelove, 2001 and A
Clockwork Orange, his four greatest films. Over the remainder of that week I
watched Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-44152783166671971752019-01-01T16:09:00.000-05:002019-01-01T16:09:14.950-05:00Bad Cinema for a Happy New YearBy Steve Evans
It’s something of a tradition for me to start off the first week of the New Year by watching a bad movie. Bad, as in incompetent. Poorly produced. Ineptly acted. Lousy direction. Ridiculous special effects. The idea is my film watching can only improve as the year progresses. Not really. I just have a dangerous and evidently incurable addiction to really dreadful flicks.
Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-53110639341420517682018-12-26T12:19:00.000-05:002018-12-26T12:19:04.421-05:00At 2 1/2 Hours 'Infinity War' Earns Its TitleBy Steve Evans
I’ve long since
outlived the core demographic for superhero films, yet when I find out
such-and-such a movie is one of the most expensive ever made, I’m drawn to it
like moth to flame. So I squandered more than 2 ½ hours of life watching
Avengers Infinity War on Netflix. This is a movie that cost almost $400 million
to make and has so far recouped more than $2 billion – with a B –Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-82209372804159558222018-12-03T12:29:00.000-05:002018-12-03T12:29:07.213-05:00No Rush, Thanks
By Steve Evans
I love rock documentaries. Any chance I get to learn context and meaning behind
the music, I jump on it. Sometimes I get lucky and encounter an unintentional
comedy disguised as a rock doc, leaving me sputtering with laughter. Rob
Reiner’s great mockumentary This is Spinal Tap (1984) relentlessly skewered
rock and roll pomposity and stupidity, of which there remains no shortage.Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-91479499621860321252018-11-15T09:36:00.003-05:002018-11-15T09:36:46.903-05:00Keeping Four Wheels on the Road at High Speed
By Steve EvansI love learning new bits of film history. I live for it.
Better than birthdays and Christmas. So I was reading about the short career of
James Dean, which got me to thinking about the guy’s death 63 years ago, which
led to the discovery that on his fatal drive in that Porsche Spyder he was the
lead car in a caravan of friends heading to a race track. About two minutes
behind him Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-5786980944570700732018-11-03T12:16:00.001-04:002018-11-03T12:17:34.613-04:00Play Misty for Me at 47By Steve Evans
Big Clint Eastwood's directorial debut, the moody thriller Play Misty for Me, was released OTD in 1971. Somewhat dated in tone, Misty explores romantic obsession and a woman's psychotic breakdown as the lover who spurns her, then comes under violent attack, struggles to evaluate his increasingly dwindling options.
I've visited many of the locations where Misty was filmed in Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-43982838609584379022018-09-09T12:28:00.000-04:002018-09-09T12:29:04.139-04:00Check Your Baggage for Destination Wedding By Steve Evans
Destination Wedding, an experimental film now available on Video on Demand, is the best rom-com of the last 40 years. I mean this most sincerely; no hyperbole. It has an essential edginess that eluded Sideways, which had been the genre's gold standard since 2004, and before that, Annie Hall from 1977.
Sharp, acerbic, jet-black and cynical, Destination Wedding will appeal to anyoneSteve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-84993612461679012652018-07-17T17:35:00.000-04:002018-07-17T17:37:08.062-04:00"No, I did not borrow Laura's Mercedes"
By Steve Evans
Alfred Hitchcock’s immortal classic North by Northwest premiered 59 years ago
today. I first saw the picture on television in the ancient pre-Internet year
of 1982 and was instantly smitten. Time has done nothing to diminish my love
for this film, still my favorite out of some 15,000 movies I’ve seen in a
lifelong affair with the cinema. North by Northwest is close to a perfect Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-69060086431227495462018-07-08T13:29:00.003-04:002018-07-08T13:29:43.442-04:00Can't Cure Insomnia With Psychomania
By Steve Evans
Stayed up way too late last night laffing at the great guilty pleasure that is
Psychomania (1973). This movie is a riot -- an occult, horror-thriller biker
flick starring Malcolm McDowell lookalike Nicky Henson in a role not dissimilar
to McDowell’s in A Clockwork Orange, made two years earlier. I saw Psychomania decades ago on late-night teevee and was delighted to catch it Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-76349500133319145112018-06-07T08:35:00.000-04:002018-06-07T12:49:37.826-04:00Reflections on Dead Home-Entertainment Technology
By Steve Evans
On this day in 1975 Sony introduced the Betamax 9300, a
"video recorder" almost the size of a footlocker and priced at $2,295
(about $11,000 in 2018 dollars). It had fat piano keys for controls and a crude
LCD numeric screen. Made a fair amount of whirring noise, too. With the release of this brute of a component, Sony began the
era of the home theater concept and forever Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-47554687680280382852018-05-23T09:52:00.002-04:002018-05-23T09:53:32.988-04:00Today in History: Bonnie, Donnie and Clyde
By Steve Evans
Let's play a game of perception v. reality.
On this day in 1934 the murderous bank robbing duo Bonnie
and Clyde were machine-gunned to death in an ambush set by a posse of Louisiana
and Texas law enforcement.
Arthur Penn's celebrated 1967 film that bears their names
did no favors for the historical record, although accuracy was not Penn's
intent. Though possessed of low Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-35877518965328404212018-05-14T17:09:00.001-04:002018-05-14T17:25:33.772-04:00Perils of Fortune and GloryBy Steve Evans
We are giddy with the acquisition of The Man Who Would be King (1975) in hi-def. A magnificent entertainment from the twilight of director John Huston's mighty career.
Michael Caine and Sean Connery have made many enduring classics through more than six decades of working in cinema. The Man Who Would be King is equal to all of them and better than most.
Huston in the 1950s Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6058069454938861843.post-67835969309464591502018-03-03T14:21:00.000-05:002018-03-03T17:51:02.795-05:00Handicapping This Year's Best Picture Oscar NomineesBy Steve Evans
Out of nine Best Picture nominees this year, The Shape of
Water is favored to win tomorrow night. It’s lavishly produced, weird and
strangely compelling in its love story.
Because the Academy has been quirky of late, I’ll say Shape will indeed win.
Here’s
my annual effort to break down the contenders and handicap the race. Let me be clear. These thoughts have
less to do with Steve Evanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02681681758454351980noreply@blogger.com0