Columns

Andrew Davis’ ‘The Fugitive’

At my high school, admission to advanced placement (AP) classes was by invitation only. I tried four times to be admitted into AP English. The head of the department, a sour and exhausted woman named Ms. Gallagher, eventually told me, “I wouldn’t feel good about myself if I encouraged you to pursue something at which you won’t succeed.” […]

Columns

Bernardo Bertolucci’s ‘Last Tango In Paris’

I fell in love with Last Tango in Paris in the summer of 1973 when I was 20 years old. But now, decades later, I’m sorry to say I’ve fallen out of love with the film much as one eventually discovers that Old Spice aftershave (and the guy who wore it) wasn’t that cool after all. […]

Columns

Elia Kazan’s ‘East of Eden’

I grew up at the movies. I lived in a neighborhood where most of the children were younger than I was, and therefore I had few friends my own age. I spent my time reading and going to the movies. These pursuits were my companions. […]

Columns

Ridley Scott’s ‘Alien’

As a seven-year-old living in the jungles of Matute, Colombia, I was surrounded by an exotic land. My pets weren’t limited to the three dogs and six cats that roamed but also included a macaw named Ludwina, a howler monkey named Tarzan, several tortoises and an assortment of parrots and parakeets. […]

Columns

Sofia Coppola’s ‘Somewhere’

When Sofia Coppola’s ‘Somewhere’ was released, I was out of town, and I knew I’d rush to see it the moment I got back home. But by then, it was playing only at the Summerfield Theatre in Santa Rosa, about two-and-a-half hours from where I lived in Santa Cruz. […]