By Alan Hurst George Segal had a pretty terrific run in films in the late sixties through the seventies, acclaimed initially for his dramatic work and then finding a nice groove as a solid comic performer. He passed away yesterday at the age of 87, still working as part of the long running ensemble on…
By Alan Hurst Ann-Margret had been in films for about 10 years when she met with Mike Nichols about a role in his next film, Carnal Knowledge. It was to be a film that focused on two men (Jack Nicholson and Art Garfunkel) over a period of about 20 years, following them from their days…
By Alan Hurst This year marks the 40th anniversary of Natalie Woods tragic death. She was one of the biggest female stars of the sixties and, before that, one of the better child/teen actors of the late forties and fifties. But she is now more famous for the circumstances surrounding her death by drowning in…
By Alan Hurst For about 10 years Marsha Mason had a pretty decent run in films. She was in some major box-office hits, she received positive reviews and Oscar nominations for her work in both comedy and drama, and she usually projected a likeable and relatable screen presence. But by the mid eighties she had…
By Alan Hurst Christopher Plummer was perhaps the pre-eminent Canadian actor of his generation, one of the great Shakespearean actors in North America and England and a bona fide movie star for more than 55 years, thanks to a little film called The Sound of Music (1965). He passed away on Friday, ending one of…
By Alan Hurst William Holden and Robert Mitchum have always been two of my favourite film actors. They were just so deceptively easy to watch, and not just because they were both extremely good looking. They were both fine actors – Mitchum in his more laconic, subtle way and Holden in his more straightforward approach,…
By Alan Hurst Cloris Leachman passed away on January 27 after 94 well-lived years and a career that was in its eighth decade. Despite her age, the news came as a bit of a shock because she was still acting in major projects with surprising frequency – if you look at the credits on her…
By Alan Hurst The is the first in a series where I’ll attempt a very subjective selection of the best film comedy of each year – from the thirties up to present day. I’m starting with the thirties and the advent of both sophisticated and screwball comedies, as opposed to the dizzying physical and slapstick…
By Alan Hurst Remember the Night starts off as a snappy and fast paced comedy, very typical of the genre in the late thirties and early forties. But then it takes you places you aren’t expecting – first a little risqué (but not really) and then it becomes quite dark, almost threatening. But minutes later…
By Alan Hurst (***) Now Streaming on Netflix There are some problems with The Prom, the new musical that started streaming on Netflix on Friday, but you know what? It’s still a good time – a feel good, funny, campy tale of acceptance all wrapped up in a big rainbow-hued bow. Don’t scratch the surface…