Christopher Saunders

LATEST ARTICLES ( 659 )

• RIP Jacques Rivette

  

  French filmmaker and critic Jacques Rivette passed away at age 87. I haven't seen any of Rivette's movies, but I do remember enduring his insufferable essays... Read more

  Posted on 30 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• You're a Big Boy Now

  

  Francis Ford Coppola's second feature, You're a Big Boy Now (1966) earned him his Masters from UCLA, and a mainstream career after apprenticing with Roger... Read more

  Posted on 29 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Peggy Sue Got Married

  

  Francis Ford Coppola's director-for-hire work, The Godfather notwithstanding, matches his weakest personal films. Peggy Sue Got Married (1986) was Coppola's... Read more

  Posted on 28 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Tucker: The Man and His Dream

  

  (1988) mutated from musical to biopic over its 15 year gestation. Francis Ford Coppola couldn't find backing until George Lucas offered to produce. It offers a... Read more

  Posted on 27 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• RIP Abe Vigoda

  

  Since we've been reviewing Coppola movies recently, it's sadly appropriate that Abe Vigoda passed away. While his best-known film role is Tessio in The... Read more

  Posted on 26 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Gardens of Stone

  

  (1987) was another flop for Francis Ford Coppola. It's better-remembered for the death of Coppola's son Gio during production than the actual movie. Well-acted... Read more

  Posted on 24 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• One from the Heart

  

  Francis Ford Coppola derailed his career with One from the Heart (1982), an expensive flop that destroyed the goodwill from his '70s masterpieces. Read more

  Posted on 23 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Love & Mercy

  

  (2014) is an oddly bifurcated biopic of Beach Boys singer Brian Wilson. This approach seems unnecessary, considering that its subject is compelling without any... Read more

  Posted on 23 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Sicario

  

  For two-thirds of its runtime, Sicario (2015) is a well-conceived thriller. Denis Villeneuve's thriller is dramatically terse and beautifully shot; no... Read more

  Posted on 22 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• 42

  

  Baseball legend Jackie Robinson's a natural movie subject, with Robinson playing himself in 1950's The Jackie Robinson Story. His most recent biopic, 42... Read more

  Posted on 21 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Clockers

  

  Few of Spike Lee's movies fit easily into genres. Clockers (1995) has elements of a crime thriller, a whodunit and an urban drama, singed with searing... Read more

  Posted on 20 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Malcolm X

  

  At the height of his notoriety, Spike Lee directed Malcolm X (1992). Producer Marvin Worth had been trying to make it ;for 25 years; the project passed through... Read more

  Posted on 19 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• The Godfather Epic

  

  Tonight, HBO aired (uncut, commercial free and a staggering 434 minutes long) The Godfather Epic. The Godfather and its first sequel have seen numerous reedits... Read more

  Posted on 18 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Carol

  

  Todd Haynes' Carol (2015) revisits ground his earlier Far from Heaven (2002) covered much better. Another tale of homosexual repression in the '50s, it scores... Read more

  Posted on 16 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Foreign Correspondent

  

  "This is a big story, and you're part of it."Alfred Hitchcock earned two Best Picture nominations in 1940, a feat unmatched until Francis Ford Coppola's The... Read more

  Posted on 16 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Oscars and Other News

  

  Well, it's that time of year. The Academy Award nominations were announced today. Complete list here.Of the eight Best Picture nominees, I've seen four:... Read more

  Posted on 15 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• To Catch a Thief

  

  "My only comment would be highly censorable!"It's easy to like To Catch a Thief (1955), harder to defend it. Alfred Hitchcock sends Cary Grant and Grace Kelly o... Read more

  Posted on 14 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Dial M for Murder

  

  "May the saints protect us from the gifted amateur." Dial M for Murder (1954) was my first Alfred Hitchcock film. Not sure how much I appreciated it at age 12,... Read more

  Posted on 13 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Stage Fright

  

  "If there's one thing I cannot bear, it's insincerity."Critics typically rank Stage Fright (1950) among Alfred Hitchcock's lesser works. It's amusing light... Read more

  Posted on 12 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES

• Suspicion

  

  "If you're going to kill someone, do it simply." Alfred Hitchcock undertook Suspicion (1941) as a break from David O. Selznick's domineering supervision. Read more

  Posted on 11 January 2016 ENTERTAINMENT, MOVIES