USA

  • William A. Berke – FBI Girl (1951)

    1951-1960CrimeFilm NoirUSAWilliam A. Berke

    Quote:
    A governor planning to run for U.S. Senate has a secret past that could prove damaging to his political aspirations: he’s a convicted murderer, and that will come to light if the FBI does an investigative check on him. He goes to a local crime boss for help. The racketeer arranges for a low-level FBI employee to take the incriminating file from FBI headquarters, but then she is conveniently murdered. Two FBI agents investigating her murder begin to think that something isn’t quite kosher.Read More »

  • Charles Guggenheim & John Stix – The Great St. Louis Bank Robbery (1959)

    1951-1960Charles GuggenheimCrimeJohn StixUSA

    Synopsis by Eleanor Mannikka
    Based on an actual bank heist (and even using the St. Louis policemen who took part in thwarting the original robbery), this fairly ho-hum caper film stars Steve McQueen as the driver of the getaway car for the four bank robbers. The four men go over their plan several times, including dry runs to cover every possible contingent. These preparations take up most of the film, so that by the time the thieves are ready to do it, the audience has been ready forever. The actual scenario when the thieves walk into the bank is fast-paced, and as might be expected, even the best-laid plans cannot foresee everything.Read More »

  • Robert Gardner – Screening Room: Bruce Baillie (1975)

    1971-1980Bruce BaillieExperimentalRobert GardnerTVUSA

    Bruce Baillie appeared on Screening Room in April 1973 to screen and discuss the films:

    On Sundays (excerpt, 11:40)
    The Gymnasts (excerpt, 6:45)
    To Parsifal (full film, 15:12)
    Tung (full film, 4:32)
    Castro Street (full film, 9:54)Read More »

  • Kent Mackenzie – The Exiles (1961)

    1961-1970DramaKent MackenzieUSA

    THE EXILES chronicles one night in the lives of young Native American men and women living in the Bunker Hill district of Los Angeles. Based entirely on interviews with the participants and their friends, the film follows a group of exiles – transplants from Southwest reservations – as they flirt, drink, party, fight, and dance.Read More »

  • Deborah Stratman – In Order Not to Be Here (2002)

    2001-2010Deborah StratmanDocumentaryExperimentalUSA

    Synopsis
    An uncompromising look at the ways privacy, safety, convenience and surveillance determine our environment. Shot entirely at night, the film confronts the hermetic nature of white-collar communities, dissecting the fear behind contemporary suburban design. An isolation-based fear (protect us from people not like us). A fear of irregularity (eat at McDonalds, you know what to expect). A fear of thought (turn on the television). A fear of self (don’t stop moving). By examining evacuated suburban and corporate landscapes, the film reveals a peculiarly 21st century hollowness… an emptiness born of our collective faith in safety and technology. This is a new genre of horror movie, attempting suburban locations as states of mind.Read More »

  • Scott King – Treasure Island (1999)

    1991-2000CultFilm NoirQueer Cinema(s)Scott KingUSA

    Treasure Island is an experimental, 16 mm black-and-white drama written, directed, and photographed by producer Scott King. The loosely constructed plot shows the private lives of two British code-crackers (Lance Baker and Nick Offerman) during WWII who decode letters and look for hidden meanings behind the words. As a counterintelligence ploy, they decide to drop a dead body off the coast of Japan before a discovered invasion. The film then turns to these men’s personal lives and the problems with the women they love, along with the secrets they hide.Read More »

  • Phil Agland – China: Beyond the Clouds (1994)

    USA1991-2000DocumentaryPhil Agland

    Quote:
    Travel to Lijiang and learn about life in China of the 1990s. At first, this small town may seem strange to you and its residents very different, but you’ll quickly discover that people in Lijiang care about the same kinds of things as you. Watch the drama of the Lu family as they live and work. Follow Mr. Mu as he deals with the aftermath of his nephew’s murder, and observe the official inquiry into the young teenager’s death. See Dr. Tang use acupuncture to treat Little Swallow, a young girl with cerebral palsy. CHINA: BEYOND THE CLOUDS is an intense journey into the dreams, anxieties, and joys of ordinary people living in an extraordinary time.Read More »

  • Preston Sturges – Christmas in July (1940)

    1931-1940ClassicsComedyPreston SturgesScrewball ComedyUSA

    A workplace practical joke goes awry when an office clerk (Dick Powell), believing he has won a $25,000 prize, takes his girlfriend (Ellen Drew) on an extravagant Christmas shopping spree…in the middle of July! When the truth comes out, he’s not prepared for the consequences.Read More »

  • Arthur Hiller – The In-Laws (1979)

    1971-1980Arthur HillerComedyUSA

    Quote:
    Peter Falk and Alan Arkin make for a hilarious dream team in this beloved American sidesplitter. Directed by Arthur Hiller from an ingenious script by Andrew Bergman, The In-Laws may at first seem like a generic meet-the-parents comedy, as Arkin’s mild-mannered dentist suspiciously eyes Falk’s volatile mystery man, whose son is engaged to his daughter. But soon, through a series of events too serpentine and surprising to spoil, the two men are brought together by a dangerous mission that takes them from suburban New Jersey to Honduras. Fueled by elaborate stunt work and the laconic, naturalistic charms of its two stars, The In-Laws deserves its status as a madcap classic—and has continued to draw ardent fans in the years since its release.Read More »

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