By John H. Foote In previous years many of the Transformers films made my ten worst list, deservedly so as they were noise movies, with little plot, no characters and lots of crashing metal transforming into cars or whatever the writers could dream up. I was not a fan of the animation, nor was I…
By John H. Foote She was Laverne in the seventies to fans of the beloved Laverne and Shirley show, but she became a formidable film director by the end of the eighties. Penny Marshall died today at just 75, far too young to be leaving us. She directed three truly great films: Big (1988) which netted…
By John H. Foote It must be remembered that no one sets out to make a dreadful movie. No one. Something goes wrong somewhere, usually starting with the script or the director, and like a domino effect, it all collapses in on itself, leaving disaster on the big screen. Of the 292 films I saw…
By John H. Foote The autobiography of Bruce Springsteen was akin to sharing an open wound with the writer, his anguish and pain written on the page in blood, his life laid bare for the reader. Who knew the Boss was wracked with depression, sometimes unable to function? Who knew of debilitating self doubt that…
By John H. Foote When Warner Brothers announced Clint Eastwood’s new film The Mule was getting a year-end release, obviously, the rumour mill began talking Oscar. And why not? In 2004 the frontrunner for Best Picture and Best Director was Martin Scorsese’s The Aviator (2004), a dizzying entertainment about the Hollywood years of Howard Hughes. In late…
By John H. Foote To be clear, I do not believe Black Panther is the year’s best film, for me it is not even in the top 10. In fact, to go a step further I do not consider the film the best superhero film ever made, that distinction still belonging to The Dark Knight…
By John H. Foote The surprises went both ways, to who was included and who was snubbed when the nominees for the 25th annual Screen Actors Guild Award Nominations were announced this morning. Emily Blunt was nominated twice, for Best Actress in Mary Poppins Returns and Supporting Actress in A Quiet Place. Denzel’s son John…
By John H. Foote Arguably the year’s finest documentary, this film is a warm, affectionate look into the career of the great Hal Ashby, one of the seventies finest filmmakers, yet sadly, among the least known to today’s audiences. Unlike Coppola, Spielberg, Scorsese, De Palma and Lucas, Hal Ashby did not move into the eighties…
The Los Angeles Film Critics Association stunned the movie world with some out of left field choices that left me wondering what they might have been ingesting at their voting session? Was the lox spiked with LSD? Seriously folks, Debra Granik, Best Director for Leave No Trace?? A fine film, nicely directed but not even…
By John H. Foote Walking out of the screening for First Man at TIFF, I was not alone in my effusive praise for this extraordinary film. More than one critic was heard stating they had just seen this year’s Best Picture winner and, quite frankly, I agreed with them. Yet after several major awards being announced First…