Days of Terrence Malick (Part 1): The Thin Red Line (1998)
Terrence Malick directed two highly acclaimed films in the 1970’s (Badlands and Days of Heaven, neither of which I’ve seen, but I plan to remedy that soon — more on this later), and then he dropped out of sight for twenty years. Mr. Malick finally returned to the w
From the DVD Shelf: Josh Reviews the Animated Adaptation of Batman: Year One!
Back in 1986, Frank Miller turned the comics world on its ear with the release of Batman: The Dark Knight Returns. This four-issue prestige-format limited series, which Mr. Miller wrote and pencilled (with inks by Klaus Janson and gorgeous colors by Lynn Varley), told the story of a
From the DVD Shelf: Josh Reviews Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop
As you’re probably aware, back in 2010 Conan O’Brien’s stint as host of the Tonight Show was unceremoniously cut short when he refused to comply with NBC’s plan to move the Tonight Show to 12:05 AM in order to give Jay Leno back the 11:30 PM time-slot. After
From the DVD Shelf: Josh Reviews Zodiac: The Director’s Cut (2007)
After having such a good time re-watching David Fincher’s films Se7en (click here for my review) and Fight Club (click here for my review), I decided to take another look at Zodiac. It was Zodiac that cemented David Fincher in my mind as one of the most amazing directors working
From the DVD Shelf: Josh Reviews The Sting (1973)
This was a fun one! Last week I watched The Sting, the 1973 film starring Robert Redford and Paul Newman, for the first time. I’m a big fan of David Mamet’s con-man films (like House of Games and The Spanish Prisoner — click here for my thoughts on those films an
From the DVD Shelf: Cradle Will Rock (1999)
Last week I wrote about the disappointingly mediocre Me and Orson Welles, and I commented that the film covered familiar ground as Cradle Will Rock, the 1999 film written and directed by Tim Robbins. After writing that blog post, I realized that it had been years since I’d las
From the DVD Shelf: Synecdoche, New York (2008)
Charlie Kaufman wrote Being John Malkovich, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (one of my very favorite films, and the film that made me forever a fan of Sam Rockwell), Adaptation (click here for my review), and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. He also wrote the 2008 film Synecdoch
From the DVD Shelf: Me and Orson Welles (2009)
In Me and Orson Welles, directed by Richard Linklater, high school student Richard Samuels (Zac Efron) somehow finds himself cast in a small role in Orson Welles (Christian McKay)’s 1937 production of Julius Caesar at the Mercury Theatre. As the brash, brilliant, egocentric We
From the DVD Shelf: Fight Club (1999)
After re-watching David Fincher’s 1995 film Se7en (click here for my review), I couldn’t resist taking another look back at Fight Club. As with Se7en, I had seen Fight Club only once before. I’d really enjoyed it, but because of the violence and the extraordinari
From the DVD Shelf: Se7en (1995)
I saw Se7en on the big screen back in 1995, and it freaked the hell out of me. I’m not sure what prompted me to go see it in the first place, but I know that I was entirely unprepared for the brutal film that unfolded before my eyes. It was tough, shocking stuff, and [&helli