Drama

I love books and movies about people marooned on a deserted island. More than just a tale of adventure, storytellers often use the idea of being trapped on an island as a metaphor for what it means to be or feel alone in life, desperately hoping to escape that solitude and find a way to connect with the world. For me, the movie Cast Away—made in 2000—is a terrific example of the island allegory at work. Tom Hanks gives a memorable performance as Chuck Noland—“no land”, get it

I’ve never been very interested in gambling. The idea of betting my money and maybe losing was always more painful to me than the imagined pleasure of maybe winning. But movies about gamblers and their compulsion to bet entice me like an ant to sugar, and one of my favorites is 1974’s California Split. Masterfully directed by Robert Altman, the film stars Elliott Gould as Charlie, an easy-going, die-hard gambler who only stops placing bets when he’s asleep….and George Segal i

1968 was a monster year for movie lovers. Releases that year included 2001: A Space Odyssey, Rosemary’s Baby, Planet of the Apes, Night of the Living Dead, Monterey Pop, Once Upon a Time in the West…and the granddaddy of all modern crime-action movies, Bullitt. Directed by Peter Yates and starring Steve McQueen, Robert Vaughn and Jacqueline Bissett, Bullitt is justifiably regarded as the film that gave birth to years of memorable Hollywood cop movies--from The French Connect

In the history of film, the stories of fights between filmmakers and the studios that financed their latest pictures are legendary; legendary and utterly commonplace. Once productions are complete, movies are often taken out of the hands of the frustrated filmmaker and recut into a version that the studio believes will make it more marketable. The results, as you might imagine, are often a mixed bag, or a downright mess. One of the most famous films that ended up in such a do

My love of good Italian food is in my DNA. My grandparents on my father’s side were full-blooded Sicilian, so I grew up loving everything about one of the world’s greatest cuisines. It should come as no surprise then that seeing a movie like 1996’s Big Night always fills me up like the biggest and best Italian meal. The story is set on the Jersey Shore in the 1950s where two brothers—who have immigrated from Italy—run a restaurant called Paradise. One of the brothers is Primo

In the cinema of the fantastique, one of the most fantastic, magical and enchanting of all movies is the 1946 French version of Beauty and the Beast. The fairy tale upon which it is based has been filmed and adapted for other art forms countless times, over hundreds of years. The story’s grip on our collective imaginations is timeless. The appeal of its message: universal. It’s a story about the power of love to set free the metaphorical beast trapped inside all of us, whatev

Baseball is my favorite sport. It’s the most perfect game ever invented. If you don’t agree, well, that’s okay—you just don’t understand it, the games within the game. So, it’s no surprise that I’m just as passionate about movies about baseball. There are so many great ones. but there’s one gem that often gets overlooked…and that’s Bang the Drum Slowly. Made in 1973, it was written by Mark Harris, which he adapted from his own novel. The story takes place during one season in

The brilliant Australian director and screenwriter George Miller created the legendary Mad Max films, such as The Road Warrior and Fury Road. Set in a postapocalyptic wasteland, the Mad Max movies are grim, violent, high-octane action epics about life in a world short on gasoline and water and plagued by barbarian outlaws. How extraordinary it is then that the very same George Miller is also responsible for creating a deeply heartfelt, loving movie that’s light years removed