Saturday, October 29, 2016
New York
Firemen fighting a fire during icy weather. Location New York, NY, US. Date taken February 4, 1960. Photographer Al Fenn
First Lines: Margaret Mead - Coming of Age in Samoa
During the last hundred years parents and teachers have ceased to take childhood and adolescnce for granted.
Friday, October 28, 2016
The China Lake Murders (1990)
A small town sheriff has his suspicions in a murder case which involves a rogue cop who goes on a murder spree.
Above-average TV crime thriller with an unusual serial killer emphasizes the interplay between the sheriff and the killer over any criminal investigation.
Wednesday, October 26, 2016
First Lines: Douglas R. Hofstadter - Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid
One of the most central notions in this book is that of a formal system.
Tuesday, October 25, 2016
Raid on Rommel (1971)
In 1942 Libya, a German-speaking British Intelligence officer uses former British POWs, some dressed in German uniforms, to fulfill a secret sabotage mission inside German-captured Tobruk.
Mediocre war adventure on a B-movie level - quite a waste of talent.
Halliwell (no star): "Dispirited low-budget actioner apparently first intended for television."
Maltin*1/2: "Poor excuse to utilize old desert footage (mostly from TOBRUK) and new faces in worn-out WW2 actioner."
Schtonk (1992)
An art forger and a journalist desperate for a big story create biggest press scandal in German history: the Hitler Diaries.
Typically unfunny German satire that doesn't realize that the true story it is based on is in itself so unlikely and wildly amusing that it didn't need the exaggerations of a comedy.
Halliwell (no star): "The heavy-handed farcical treatment of an hilarious true story provides little amusement, although it was a great success in its home country."
Young Mr. Lincoln (1939)
A fictionalized account of the early life of the American president as a young lawyer facing his greatest court case.
Basically a courtroom mystery this movie has more to offer with its beautiful and poetic cinematography and a splendid cast, and Henry Fonda's portayal of Abraham Lincoln is meticulous.
Halliwell***: "Splendid performances and period atmosphere are rather nipped in the bud by second-feature courtroom twists, but this is a marvellous old-fashioned entertainment with its heart in the right place."
Maltin***1/2: "Not so much a historical document as a slice of Americana, filtered throuth the sensibilities of director Ford and screenwriter Lamar Trotti. The early episodic portion of the film, covering Abe Lincoln's formative years, includes some of Ford's most lyrical moments, luminously photographed by Bert Glennon."
