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Leonard Maltin
New And Notable Film Books, Part One
- By Leonard Maltin
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- March 14, 2012 1:00 AM
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- 3 Comments
As usual, books keep piling up much faster than I can possibly read them, so rather than wait until I can compose full-length reviews I’m going to highlight a handful of recent arrivals I’ve only had a chance to skim. I will have more for you shortly, as there is still a healthy stack of volumes awaiting perusal on my shelf. Meanwhile, these publications seem eminently worthy of your attention.
From Renoir To Ellington: Scanning Recent DVDs
- By Leonard Maltin
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- March 12, 2012 1:07 AM
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- 1 Comment
I haven’t been able to keep up with Twilight Time’s limited-edition DVD and Blu-ray releases since the company launched last year, so it’s ironic that the first disc I’ve spent real time with—Jean Renoir’s 'Swamp Water' (1941)—benefits least from the label’s innovative offering of isolated music tracks. That feature is much more valuable in other Twilight Time releases with scores by Bernard Herrmann, Franz Waxman, Hugo Friedhofer, et al., as well as 'Picnic', which I’ll discuss in a moment.
John Carter—movie review
- By Leonard Maltin
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- March 9, 2012 1:00 AM
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- 77 Comments
John Carter is far from the disaster it’s been made out to be in some circles…nor is it an unqualified success. It has enough visual effects and production values for three movies, and almost as much story material, which is one of its problems. But it does provide vigorous, eye-filling entertainment, and paves the way for Taylor Kitsch (best known so far from his work on the TV series Friday Night Lights) to become a major movie star.
Friends With Kids—movie review
- By Leonard Maltin
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- March 9, 2012 12:55 AM
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- 3 Comments
I became an instant fan of Jennifer Westfeldt after seeing the film she co-wrote and starred in, Kissing Jessica Stein, just over a decade ago. For her debut feature as director, writer, and star, she has assembled a powerhouse cast, and devised a comedy (with dramatic undertones) that manages to be on the cutting edge without sacrificing the qualities people look for in romantic movies.
Footnote—movie review
- By Leonard Maltin
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- March 9, 2012 12:30 AM
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- 0 Comments
Another of this year’s Best Foreign Language Film nominees, Footnote may not be as intense or soul-searching as A Separation or In Darkness, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t superior satisfying entertainment. Israeli writer-director Joseph Cedar mines the richest vein in the world for his material: the quirks and foibles of human nature.
DVD Discovery: The Silver Fleet
- By Leonard Maltin
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- March 8, 2012 1:00 AM
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- 5 Comments
I got my basic training in British cinema from the late, great William K. Everson, but to the best of my knowledge he never screened The Silver Fleet (1943), starring Ralph Richardson. Its recent DVD release from VCI gave me a chance to see it for the first time, and made me a fan. It is officially a presentation of The Archers, the production unit formed by Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. That automatically elevates its status, as the credited writer-directors, Vernon Sewell and Gordon Wellesley, had long but generally undistinguished careers. Of that, more later.
A Harpo Marx Flip Book…And More
- By Leonard Maltin
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- March 7, 2012 11:34 AM
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- 5 Comments
I don’t know if everyone shares my fascination with flip books, but I’ve never outgrown my youthful fondness for them. In recent years I’ve tracked down a number of unusual movie-related examples, but I’d never seen or even heard of one featuring Harpo Marx, let alone Chico and Marilyn Monroe! Now, thanks to fellow pop-culture fan, cartoonist and illustrator Drew Friedman, I’ve been exposed to the amazing Flip-O-Vision series. There were sixty of these in all, which did require assembly: you had to cut
Here Comes Napoleon!
- By Leonard Maltin
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- March 5, 2012 1:00 AM
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- 12 Comments
The San Francisco Silent Film Festival’s landmark screening of Abel Gance’s epic Napoleon with Carl Davis conducting a live orchestra is less than three weeks away. You don’t want to kick yourself afterwards for missing out on this experience: Kevin Brownlow’s 5½ hour restoration, in 35mm, with its revolutionary three-screen tryptich finale, in the beautifully restored, 3,000-seat Paramount Theatre in Oakland, California, accompanied by the Oakland East Bay Symphony. If you’re still on the fence about spending the money to travel there and purchase the not-inexpensive tickets, I would direct you to a list of Frequently Asked Questions about this two-weekend event.
Project X—movie review
- By Leonard Maltin
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- March 2, 2012 8:50 PM
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- 43 Comments
So, is this merely an extreme teenage version of The Hangover, or is it another sign of the end of civilization as we know it? How you feel about Project X will have a lot to do with your age and gender. If I were a hormonally charged 16-year-old boy, I might think it was...
Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax—movie review
- By Leonard Maltin
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- March 2, 2012 1:00 AM
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- 26 Comments
Have you noticed that (as often as not) when Hollywood moviemakers stray from their source material they insist on putting the author’s name above the title? To me, this only compounds the offense. No author has suffered more at the hands of Hollywood in recent years than Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss.
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