Favorite films

Recent reviews

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  The Last Command 1928

  ★★★★½ Watched 21 Mar 2025

  I’m writing this review 4 days after I first saw The Last Command because I haven’t stopped thinking of it since then. Josef Von Sternberg is rapidly becoming one of my new favorite directors thanks to the 3 Silent Classics by Josef von Sternberg Bluray box set by Criterion. Emil Jannings was a Nazi, full stop. His performance as Grand Duke Sergius Alexander is a monumental achievement in the art of silent film acting. I’m a sucker for movie magic and The Last Command’s final act more than delivers!

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  Death Wish 1974

  ★★★ Rewatched 08 Feb 2025

  Death Wish is ugly, bleak, and contrived. There’s no subtlety to this story of a conscientious objector turned vigilante in the dirty streets of 1970’s NYC. Even the graphic home invasion & rape scene is now undercut by the fact that one of the hoodlums is a young, grinning Jeff Goldblum. I’m repeating my 3 star rating only because at the end of the day I’m a simple man who enjoys watching a brooding Charles Bronson shoot muggers.

Popular reviews

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  Why We Fight: Divide and Conquer 1943

  ★★★½ Watched 20 Apr 2017

  Part 3 of Frank Capra's Why We Fight series is much heavier on the propaganda than the first 2 installments. We hear the repetition of the phrase "The [nationality] will not forget!" after each country's conquest by the Nazis is shown. The strangest part is a quick scene where Hitler's habit of reneging on his promises is compared to John Dillinger's crime spree. I guess Capra wanted to appeal to the Americans who weren't captivated by the criminals of the…

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  Carried Away 1996

  ★★★½ Watched 04 Mar 2019

  Carried Away is far more poignant, emotional, and fulfilling than I expected it to be based on the simple plot description I read before renting it. Love, contentment, desire, sadness, self-reflection, and the feeling of being stuck in a purgatory of one's own making are all woven together into a beautiful film by Dennis Hopper and Amy Irving's soulful performances. Gary Busey also stands out in a restrained but solid role as a retired Army major with an unexpectedly nuanced understanding of human nature. And who doesn't like Hal Holbrook as a wise country doctor?