Film #146: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

Surely, the recent passing of superstar Elizabeth Taylor is reason enough to check out Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Taylor’s sultry, skimpily-dressed Maggie The Cat is one of her most iconic performances, and is certainly the definitive filmed (or televised) portrayal of scribe Tennessee Williams’ cunning heroine. Still, the film version of Williams’ Pulitzer Prize-winning 1955 play could be better.

Film #146: Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

Surely, the recent passing of superstar Elizabeth Taylor is reason enough to check out Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Taylor’s sultry, skimpily-dressed Maggie The Cat is one of her most iconic performances, and is certainly the definitive filmed (or televised) portrayal of scribe Tennessee Williams’ cunning heroine. Still, the film version of Williams’ Pulitzer Prize-winning 1955 play could be better.

Elizabeth Taylor and Film #139: Cleopatra

(Herbert Ritt's stark capture of Taylor after she had undergone surgery for a brain tumor.)

The recent passing of that movie icon known as Elizabeth Taylor got me musing on her place in my love of film. I never thought of her of one my favorite actresses per se but I definitely regarded her as one of my favorite cinematic faces. This chiefly arrives as such: throughout my life I think I've

Elizabeth Taylor and Film #139: Cleopatra

(Herbert Ritt's stark capture of Taylor after she had undergone surgery for a brain tumor.)

The recent passing of that movie icon known as Elizabeth Taylor got me musing on her place in my love of film. I never thought of her of one my favorite actresses per se but I definitely regarded her as one of my favorite cinematic faces. This chiefly arrives as such: throughout my life I think I've

The 20 Favorite Actors Meme begins...

Seeing as how the 20 Favorite Actresses meme has taken hold of my film-blogging cohorts so completely, I see no reason to delay in starting a 20 Favorite Actors meme, too. It was tough picking my crew (and remember: they're my faves, not the best), but without delay, here are my choices, with twenty runners-up close behind: Clint Eastwood (key films: Dirty Harry, The Good The Bad and the Ugly,

The 20 Favorite Actors Meme begins...

Seeing as how the 20 Favorite Actresses meme has taken hold of my film-blogging cohorts so completely, I see no reason to delay in starting a 20 Favorite Actors meme, too. It was tough picking my crew (and remember: they're my faves, not the best), but without delay, here are my choices, with twenty runners-up close behind: Clint Eastwood (key films: Dirty Harry, The Good The Bad and the Ugly,

Paul Newman

There is no celebrity calamity in my recent time--and I am including Stanley Kubrick--that has affected me more deeply than learning of Paul Newman's recently announced, soon-to-be fatal bout with lung cancer. It's difficult to imagine a world without Hollywood's greatest humanitarian and actor, but I suppose it's a feat we're all going to have to achieve. Today, it was announced that soon we

Paul Newman

There is no celebrity calamity in my recent time--and I am including Stanley Kubrick--that has affected me more deeply than learning of Paul Newman's recently announced, soon-to-be fatal bout with lung cancer. It's difficult to imagine a world without Hollywood's greatest humanitarian and actor, but I suppose it's a feat we're all going to have to achieve. Today, it was announced that soon we

Film #57: The Verdict

Paul Newman delivers a career-best performance in this comeback film from director Sidney Lumet (12 Angry Men, Prince of the City, Network). In it, he plays Frank Galvin, an alcoholic, ambulance-chasing lawyer whose recent string of lost cases has put him in a desperate situation. He's given one last chance at a moneymaker by a working class family who're suing a powerful, Catholic-run hospital

Film #57: The Verdict

Paul Newman delivers a career-best performance in this comeback film from director Sidney Lumet (12 Angry Men, Prince of the City, Network). In it, he plays Frank Galvin, an alcoholic, ambulance-chasing lawyer whose recent string of lost cases has put him in a desperate situation. He's given one last chance at a moneymaker by a working class family who're suing a powerful, Catholic-run hospital

Film #49: The Hudsucker Proxy

1994's The Hudsucker Proxy is still Joel and Ethan Coen's gentlest, most magical movie. Its fairy-tale ambitions mix tastefully with good ol' Capra-corn and the Coens' own brand of hyperkinetic filmmaking, resulting in a gigantic comedy with philosophical musings on time and fate. Tim Robbins plays bumbling mailroom nebbish and aspiring inventor Norville Barnes. After mere hours on the job at the

Film #49: The Hudsucker Proxy

1994's The Hudsucker Proxy is still Joel and Ethan Coen's gentlest, most magical movie. Its fairy-tale ambitions mix tastefully with good ol' Capra-corn and the Coens' own brand of hyperkinetic filmmaking, resulting in a gigantic comedy with philosophical musings on time and fate. Tim Robbins plays bumbling mailroom nebbish and aspiring inventor Norville Barnes. After mere hours on the job at the