The Lasting Appeal of ‘I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang’
How a 1930s classic inspired a young film lover […]
Tail Pop
The Making of ‘Groundhog Day,’ as Remembered by Music Editor Sally Boldt
Music Editor Sally Boldt recalls the making of ‘Groundhog Day,’ again and again and… […]
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.” […]
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. […]
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. […]
Maya Deren’s ‘Meshes of the Afternoon’
One afternoon, they showed Maya Deren’s ‘Meshes of the Afternoon’ (1943), and it amazed me! It’s a short film directed by wife-and-husband team Maya Deren and Alexander Hammid. […]
David Cronenberg’s ‘The Fly’
Nineteen eighty-six was a particularly good movie year for me. I worked in a video store after school and on weekends, so I saw a lot them — especially horror films; the more outrageous the better. […]
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. […]
Terrence Malick’s ‘Days of Heaven’
October 1978. A weekday afternoon in Manhattan. I stumble into daylight, having just experienced something which has so floored me that I’m numb, twisted around, and can’t remember which subway takes me back downtown — so I start walking, trying to make sense of what I’d just seen. […]
Albert Lamorisse’s ‘The Red Balloon’
There was a time, in the 1980s in San Diego, when there weren’t any theatres that showed foreign, independent or avant-garde films except for one place: the Unicorn Theatre. […]