By John H. Foote With Disney buying 20th Century Fox, one of the oldest, greatest studios in movie history has been brought to its knees, forever now a part of the conglomerates that destroyed Miramax after buying it, and will bring down Marvel, mark my words. As far back as 1935, Fox has been turning…
By John H. Foote (****) Eli Cross, as portrayed by the astonishing Peter O’Toole, never seems to touch the earth. The first time we encounter him he is shooting a scene for his film in a helicopter, his intense blue eyes locked on the escaped convict who has just ruined his shot. Even when walking…
By John H. Foote No one sets out to make a bad film, no one. The films I chose for this article are films that had no right to be so awful, there are talented people involved. Yet somehow, the work was terrible. Great directors such as George Stevens, Steven Spielberg, and John Boorman are…
By John H. Foote Tom Cruise has dominated the movies world box office for more than 30 years, so much so it is often forgotten what a bold, daring actor he has been, and with each new role is willing to be. He is what the greatest actors are, fearless, and when working with other…
By John H. Foote (**) Despite beautiful, lavish visual effects, the very presence of the sanctimonious #MeToo zealot Brie Larson made this a very difficult film to like. The hypocrisy of Larson taking on a super hero film, then making clear her disdain for the fanboys who will make her film a hit, was hard…
By John H. Foote (****) Watching this film filled me with revulsion, it disgusted and sickened me to the extent I thought I was going to be physically ill. It is an exceptional film, but one I will see just once. It explores the darkest side of one of the most gifted pop stars of…
By John H. Foote (**) Let me be clear, this film does not, in my world, exist. I am writing this at the request of a few loyal readers curious as to why I loathe the film entirely and have chosen to erase it from existence in my world. Michael Corelone’s fate is what we…
By John H. Foote Freshly minted Academy Award winner Spike Lee continued his track record of being a sore loser last week when he stormed angrily out of the Oscars when Green Book won Best Picture. Visibly upset, Lee strode up the walkway but was not permitted to exit until the acceptance speeches were finished.…
By John H. Foote (**) Isabelle Huppert is to French cinema what Meryl Streep is to North American film, a god of acting. Oddly, she might be best known to some of us for her work in Michael Cimino’s Heaven’s Gate (1980), but to others she is known for her array of truly brilliant performances through…
By John H. Foote (****) On film, by 1986 Vietnam had become a comic book war won single-handedly by action heroes John Rambo or Chuck Norris. The searing truth seen in Coming Home (1978) and Apocalypse Now (1979) had given way to the macho swaggering of Rambo: First Blood II (1985), Missing in Action – Part 1and 2 (1986-87) and…