By John H. Foote (***) Let me begin by stating that the extraordinary iconic title song of this film, a huge part of the very identity of New York City was ignored as a nominee for Best Song. So too were any of the songs from Saturday Night Fever (1977) that same year, but ignoring…
By John H. Foote (****) The first thing I wanted after seeing this astonishing film about addiction was a shower. How I wanted that hot steamy water to wash away the horrors I had just witnessed on the screen in this harrowing, ultra realistic film about addictions, not just to drugs, there are so many…
By John H. Foote When he exploded, and it was an explosion of seismic proportions, onto screens in the seventies he was instantly the biggest star on the planet. Overnight. Oscar nominated for his first leading role in Saturday Night Fever (1977), Travolta was both actor, blazing with talent, and movie star, burning bright. Over…
By John H. Foote I would like to extend a warm welcome to our newest critic and staff writer Marie-Renee Goulet! Hailing from Quebec City, Marie-Renee and I have known one another for more than twenty years, beginning when she was a student of mine at Trebas Institute, where she graduated at the top of…
By John H. Foote (****) Streaming on Netflix It took two viewings of this new film from Spike Lee for me to truly understand the power, perhaps because as a white man I will never understand the black experience and what it was to be black and fighting the war in Vietnam. History has shown…
By John H. Foote (*** ½) Revered as a filmmaker for almost his entire career, there is no debate as to the genius of Stanley Kubrick. Though he made just 11 films in the years spanning 1957 until his passing in 1999, at least four of them are among the 30 greatest films ever made.…
By John H. Foote Director Joel Schumacher often blamed for the demise of the Tim Burton started Batman franchise died of cancer yesterday. The lanky, friendly filmmaker was always smiling and an excellent interview, willing to field the tough questions. I first interviewed Schumacher for his brilliant independent film Tigerland (2000) which introduced Colin Farrell…
By John H. Foote (***) Director Brian De Palma earned his true breakthrough with this film, a rock and roll version of the famous Phantom of the Opera, filmed three times before this wild version, before the long running Broadway play and subsequent film. Cleverly merging the work with Faust, and The Picture of Dorian…
By John H. Foote (****) There are several love stories weaving their way through the narrative of this superb Civil War drama, each unique in its own right, each with a profound impact on the characters and the story. Directed by Academy Award winning director Anthony Minghella, who won his Oscar for the wildly overrated…
By John H. Foote It should come, really, as no surprise that the great Martin Scorsese has five of the fifteen films on this list, while Francis Ford Coppola has two within the top three. Each man revolutionized the gangster genre with their films through the last near 50 years. While Quentin Tarantino arrogantly declared…