Sydney Pollack month

Happy New Year. Thank God 2020 is over. For the month of January we will be discussing the works, mostly directorial but maybe some acting, of the late great Sydney Pollack, who tragically passed away in 2008 after a private battle with cancer. Like when we covered John Badham, Pollack is a director with a more sure subdued visual eye, who knew when to back the camera off and let the story serve itself. There's an art to the subtle cinematic eye. We have covered Pollack twice before, both times he worked with Harrison Ford, Sabrina and Random Hearts. So enjoy this tribute and exploration of the works of Sydney Pollack.

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John Travolta month: Saturday Night Fever

A retrospective by Brooks Rich So this was not the big start of John Travolta's career. That would be the classic sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter. But this did elevate Travolta to another level. For any of you going oh come on. This silly movie with a disco soundtrack? Come on, Brooks. Just wait. Have you ever actually seen this? This isn't about disco. Disco just happens to be the music of choice. This about the kind of people who are kings at the dance clubs and then losers the rest of the time. There is a lot of darkness and truth in this film. So if you've never seen it please. Do yourself a flavor and check it out. Just watch it and then come back to read this. This is a movie about the different types of people we become between our real lives and our weekend lives. Tony Manero is a regular working class guy in a Brooklyn neighborhood, struggling to make ends meet and dealing with his loving but at times overbearing family. He lives in the shadow of his priest brother. ...

John Travolta month

Get your dancing shoes on! Order a Royale with Cheese! Blow millions in an overblown sci-fi disaster built around a weird Hollywood religion! Because for the month of June we are discussing the filmography of the one and only John Travolta. A man saved from being a laughing stock in the early '90s by a director making one of the greatest American masterpiece. A man who then had a stunning run of films before blowing all his goodwill not once but twice. But we of course do not disparage the great John Travolta. We want to celebrate him like we do with all of our monthly subjects.

Forgotten Film Friday: Absolute Power

Clint Eastwood stars as Luther Whitney, a jewel thief who works in the Washington DC area. One night while he is stealing from a mansion he is forced to hide in a secret compartment with a two way mirror. From there he observes a sexual rezendevous with the wife of a powerful man and the President of the United States Alan Richmond (Gene Hackman) Suddenly the president gets aggressive and while defending herself the woman is shot to death by two Secret Service agents. Luther manages to get away with a letter opener the woman stabbed the president with. At first Luther plans to flee the country. But when he is disgusted by a statement the president makes, Luther decides to expose the crime. I miss these kind of films. The nineties was a great time for thrillers exactly like this. They are not the flashiest films but they are also not obsessed with big action scenes. It's all plot and character with them. Sure this plot might be a little out there but Eastwood makes it work. He's...

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