Now that The Man Who Invented Christmas has been released to theaters, which version of A Christmas Carol would be the best one to watch afterward? There have been countless movie versions of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol over the years. One of the very first releases was madeContinue Reading
*** 1/2 Stars Hidden Figures Breaking barriers with beautiful minds and the ‘right stuff.’ Short Take: A feel-good, populist historical drama about three African American women who worked as “computers” for NASA in the early days of space program. The film will remind you of how far we’ve come, howContinue Reading
As the song goes, ‘It’s the most wonderful time of the year,’ but for 2016 that’s not exactly setting the bar very high, except perhaps when it comes to film. The ‘Best of’ lists will soon be making the rounds and with them lots of recent DVD releases that youContinue Reading
Genius (2016) Short Take: The story of the friendship between renowned editor Max Perkins and the larger than life literary giant – and Asheville’s native son – Thomas Wolfe. REEL TAKE: Local readers may recall actor Jude Law’s visit to Asheville a while back to research Asheville’s native son ThomasContinue Reading
In conjunction with my feature article this month on Universal’s Silent Horrors, it’s only fitting that the DVD selection be a film from that genre. Plenty has been written about the original The Hunchback of Notre Dame and the original Phantom of the Opera so my choice isContinue Reading
The Golden Age of American horror films begins with Universal’s Dracula and Frankenstein in 1931 and ends in 1936 with the release of Dracula’s Daughter. While other Hollywood studios made horror films in the 1930s (like Paramount’s Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Warner Brothers’ Doctor X, and MGM’s Freaks), noneContinue Reading
Chip Kaufmann’s Pick: The Jungle Book (1967) Now that Disney’s new “live action” remake (see my review this issue) is in theaters and is on its way to becoming a worldwide megahit, it seems only fitting to revisit the original which will turn 50 next year. It was actually completedContinue Reading
Chip Kaufmann’s Pick: Bambi (1942) Having just immensely enjoyed Zootopia, the latest offering from Disney Animation (the company’s animation unit is now separate from the feature film division) which I reviewed this month, I was thinking of what to choose for this month’s DVD pick and then, suddenly, it occurredContinue Reading
Chip Kaufmann’s Pick: Roger & Me (1989) After seeing Michael Moore’s latest effort Where to Invade Next (see my review this issue), I was immediately reminded of his first effort, the playful but incisive documentary Roger & Me. Back in 1989 Moore was younger, slimmer, and not as overtly angryContinue Reading
