Peter Schilling Grindhouse, 2007. Written and directed by Robert Rodriguez (Planet Terror) and Quentin Tarantino (Death Proof). With additional trailers written and directed by Rob Zombie, Eli Roth and Edgar Wright. Starring Rose McGowan, Kurt Russell, Freddy Rodriguez, Josh Brolin, Marley Shelton, Jeff Fahey, Naveen Andrews, Michael Biehn, Stacy Ferguson, Quentin Tarantino (unfortunately), Michael Parks, Rosario Dawson, … Read more
You can find Mt. Holly on Google Maps, one lonely dot near the center of Shakopee. Zoom in and see that the city resides entirely on the corner of Third Avenue East and Holmes Street, across from the Scott County Jail. The town consists of a tidy 1940s bungalow and a single pine tree. Until … Read more
Once again, it’s a children’s holiday, film-wise, here in our lovely city. Saturday at 10:15, the library‘s showing the lovely Horton Hears A Who (1966) and Sneetches and Zax (1972). Both films are light years better than the horrible, hateful Jim Carrey and Mike Myers vehicles of the past few years. The two cartoons are … Read more
Being grouchy from both the inanity of the Oscars and the fact that Zodiac continues to fare poorly against 300 and Wild Hogs, I found myself playing the list game, hopefully releasing some of the bile that’s accumulated over the years. A caveat: some of these movies listed below are actually decent. In fact, a … Read more
There is nothing–I repeat, nothing!–more intriguing cinematically this weekend than the selection of children’s films at the Central Library. Oh, you can check out the movies you should have seen over the past few weeks, or haul your child to see Terabithia, which, for my money, ought to have left that mysterious book alone (and … Read more
Gwoemul (The Host), 2006. Directed by Bong Joon-ho, written by Joon-ho and Baek Chul-hyun and Ha Won-jun. Starring Song Kang-ho, Ko A-sung, Bae Doon-na, Park Hae-il, Byeon Hee-bong, the cockeyed Paul Lazar, and, as the voice of the beast, Oh Dal-su. Now showing exclusively at the Uptown Theatre. There’s a multitude of beasts in The … Read more
If you’re looking for a distraction from the misery of rain pounding snow into thick, icy crusts, well, you’ve got it in spades this weekend. On Friday night, the Alliance Francaise is going to have a screening of the little-seen (as of late) 1983 classic Rue Cases-Negres (Sugar Cane Alley) at 7pm (donations accepted). This … Read more
Zodiac, 2007. Directed by David Fincher, written by James Vanderbilt. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr., Anthony Edwards, Brian Cox, John Carroll Lynch, Chloe Sevigny, Dermot Mulroney, Philip Baker Hall and Elias Koteas. Now showing in theaters around town. There’s a scene early on in David Fincher’s masterful Zodiac, in which we see … Read more
This weekend, Deb Girdwood and Isabelle Harder’s throwing a little movie party at the Central Library downtown. Deb and Isabelle could be called the Queen of Children’s Films in the Twin Cities, responsible for the Childish Film Fest at the forthcoming Minneapolis-St. Paul International Film Festival. Harder believes, quite rightly, that there’s a dearth of … Read more
At the mention of his name, and with a look of profound relief and that usual squirrel-spark in his eyes, Martin Scorsese nods to himself, rises from his chair and makes his way to the stage. Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola and that tall brunette, whose presence speaks of sold souls, waits to … Read more