Masterful Italian drama ‘Human Capital’ is one of the very best feature films of Tribeca Film Festival.
Young Samuel Lange in exceptional Venuzuelan film ‘Bad Hair’ screened at Tribeca Film Festival.
by Sam Juliano
Lucille and I saw more films on the big screens this past week than any other comparable period in our lives, and we are still alive to talk about it. The count for the seven day period is thirty-one (31) bringing the Tribeca total (with a second online at-home viewing) to 51. But heck, this year’s Tribeca catch-phrase that is seen on the cover of the official guide booklet and on posters around the city and on-line is appropriately Film Festivals: The Original Binge-Watching, and indeed such an event has taken place in the three prime locations around the Big Apple that are hosting the festival. Of course seeing 51 films fully entitles me to compile a Top Ten list, what will hardly any essential films not being seen, and it will be posted at the site this coming Thursday, May 1st. We would like to extend our deepest thanks to Pete Torres at Tribeca for his usual hospitality and all those troupers at the theaters who worked their tails off to make Tribeca 2014 the huge success it was.
The Tribeca Jury awards have been announced as has the final standings for the Heinecken Audience Awards, and many of these will be placing in my own Top Ten and honorable mention. Here is the full list and star ratings for the films seen this past week at the festival:
The Search for General Tso’s Chicken *** (Monday) Bow-Tie
1971 *** 1/2 (Monday) AV7
Mala Mala **** (Monday) AV7
Bad Hair **** 1/2 (Tuesday) AV7
Gabriel **** (Tuesday) Bow-Tie
Misconception ** (Tuesday) Bow-Tie
Gueros **** (Tuesday) Bow-Tie
Traitors **** (Tuesday) Bow-Tie
Miss Meadows *** 1/2 (Wednesday) AV7
The Battered Basterds of Baseball *** (Wednesday) SVA
Maravilla ** 1/2 (Wednesday) AV7
Starred Up **** (Wednesday) AV7
Palo Alto * 1/2 (Thursday) SVA
Bright Days Ahead *** 1/2 (Thursday) Bow-Tie
Zero Motivation **** 1/2 (Thursday) Bow-Tie
Electric Slide *** 1/2 (Friday) AV7
Land Ho! ** 1/2 (Friday) AV7
Regarding Susan Sontag **** 1/2 (Friday) AV7
Keep on Keepin On ***** (Friday) Bow-Tie
The Kidnapping of Michele H. **** (Friday) Bow-Tie
Ne Me Quitte Pas **** (Saturday morning) streaming
Lucky Them * (Saturday) Bow-Tie
Five Star **** (Saturday) Bow-Tie
Garnett’s Gold ** 1/2 (Saturday) Bow-Tie
Venus in Fur **** (Saturday) AV7
Glass Chin *** 1/2 (Saturday) AV7
Zombeavers ** (Saturday) AV7
Point and Shoot **** 1/2 (Sunday) Bow-Tie
Human Capital ***** (Sunday) AV7
Every Secret Thing *** (Sunday) SVA
Chef **** (Sunday) SVA
I will be presenting a comprehensive Top Ten of the Tribeca Film Festival post this coming Thursday, complete with a photo layout. Suffice to say that I was extremely impressed this past week with KEEP ON KEEPIN ON, HUMAN CAPITAL (both five star films) REGARDING SUSAN SONTAG, POINT AND SHOOT, BAD HAIR, ZERO MOTIVATION, CHEF, STARRED UP, GUEROS, FIVE STAR, THE KIDNAPPING OF MICHELE H., NE ME QUITTE PAS and VENUS IN FUR, all which will either place in the Top Ten or the honorable mention listing.
Must hear more about Human Capital!
David, first off it was based on a highly regarded Italian novel, whose author adores the film. I will report on it comprehensively on Thursday’s Top Ten posting. BTW I did wind up seeing EVERY SECRET THING (Amy Berg) and liked it to a point. Thanks as ever my friend.
Sam, this astounding demonstration of stamina leaves me speechless. And it seems apparent Lucille has accomplished a similar feat. I can’t wait for your ten best list posting.
Thanks Frank! Lucille wound up seeing 36, so she makes a comparable claim for commitment. Our friend Broadway Bob saw 8. Yes, that Thursday posting will get my full reactions framed. Have a great week my friend.
From what I am reading on this thread Sam, you have changed the plans for posting the best films of Tribeca. I will look for it on Monday.
Aye Frank, it will post on either Monday or Tuesday. No later than that! Thank you.
No wonder you’re exhausted! I’m surprised you had enough energy left last night to post the column above!
Here there’s not been much watching going on, just The Ringer (1952), Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) — which we both thought was a stinker, I’m afraid — and Portrait of Jennie (1948). I got halfway through Brian De Palma’s debut feature, Murder a la Mod (1968) when the most gawdamighty electrical storm started and I had to switch off the computer; I’ll get back to that one later when I’ve finished the current novelette. Oh, and I had the third and alas last of my weekly fixes of Neil Shubin’s Your Inner Fish; my weekly fix of Cosmos has had to wait until this evening because I lost track of the time last night.
Ha John! My eyes were burning for sure as I pounded the keyboard.
PORTRAIT OF JENNIE is a minor classic for sure, and I well know that FANTASTIC MR. FOX has its share of dissenters. That’s rather a freakish occurance while watching that De Palma feature (I haven’t seen it, though I have managed virtually every other DePalma) and I’d be quite interested what you make of it when you get back there. Still haven’t gotten to COSMOS nor INNER FISH, and happy to hear that are worth re-visiting every week! Thanks as always my friend. Have a great week!
That’s one hell of a lineup Sam- you’ve watched more movies in the span of 7 days than I have in the past 2 months! The only Tribeca films on my radar were/are the Björk and Nas documentaries, but I look forward to adding more films to the watchlist with your sure-to-be expertly informed top ten list. Your stamina and ambition (as well as your wife’s) through this festival as well as the Hitchcock and Truffaut retrospectives is legendary.
I’ve spent the past several weeks listening to a lot of music. Plugging gaps in hip hop (for a self proclaimed hip hop head, the number of classics that I have yet to listen to is embarrassing) as well as testing the waters of soul (mostly neo soul really, D’Angelo’s Voodoo has been in constant rotation) and rock (well, the only one that really stuck was Radiohead’s Kid A, but I did give some other major albums a try). But I spent the most time with jazz- my appreciation and knowledge of the genre increased significantly thanks to, well, the internet, and reading John Coltrane’s biography, plus a few episodes of Ken Burn’s documentary series on the genre. Now I feel comfortable calling in my second favorite form of music behind hip hop. Of course, I still have so much to explore and learn.
My own blogging will hopefully pick up soon, but May is shaping up to be pretty busy, so who knows how much time I’ll actually have to devote to writing. But summer’s just around the corner…
Oh and by the way, I wanted to offer up my essay slot for LETTER FROM AN UNKNOWN WOMAN in the romance countdown. If you were planning on re-running the essay I already wrote, than I’d like to at least offer it up for someone else if they’re interested. Peace!
Mike—-I am thrilled to see you back here my friend! I know you’ve been busy and well you should be. Well, while I won’t deny I have seen an ungodly number of films in the past two weeks, I realize that is what film festivals are about, and the press pass allowed us free reigns. Anyone who gives me free reigns can expect nothing but insanity on my part. Ha! In any case this was the strongest Tribeca ever, and my report will reflect that. As I just explained to John, I will delay that Top Ten and honorable mention post until Monday, as I need to see two more films that I inexplicably missed at Tribeca (one, the more urgent one THE OVERNIGHTERS only played twice there, while most films play 4 times) at the currently running Montclair Festival. Montclair (NJ) is a regular haunt for Lucille and I, and these two films are playing Friday and Sunday. I may even catch another one that Jaimie Grijalba has strongly recommended here on a past MMD (the Spanish Goya winning WITCHING AND BITCHING) but it is playing Friday night at midnight, and will depend on Lucille. I came very close to seeing the NAS documentary–very close, but will see it at first chance in the future. That reminds me—I must do review on that Hip Hop picture book as soon as I can! And I will! Thanks for the very kind words about out attendance at the various festivals. KID A is a great album, this can’t be contested! love it myself. And I am a huge soul aficionado. You have your entire life ahead of you Mike, and opera, and classical are there to be discovered! Jazz is spectacular stuff too, and one of the great films at Tribeca is in good measure about it. I own Ken Burns’ documentary and LOVE it along with THE CIVIL WAR and BASEBALL. Coltrane bio is fab too. Listened to Miles Davis Kind of Blue just recently again. I will mention LETTER to the group soon in an e mail and if there is a taker fine enough–if not we will go with your excellent previously-published review. Look forward to new posts at your blog. Have a great week my friend! many thanks as always.
Sam, it is an outstanding feat to cross 50 films at one festival which is not something I have known anyone do until now :) Congrats. Now, you can rest and not go to a cinema for a few weeks….of course, I know that won’t happen. Take a few days off though.
Your low rating for Land Ho! makes me glad that I skipped this at Sundance. Although, my reason for skipping it was more due to the fact that the film had gotten distribution and I wanted to pick something else which I knew would not make it to a cinema this year.
have a good relaxing cinema free week.
Ha Sachin! I did break my own personal record for sure, but I know there are others who perform festival miracles as well. I will be taking a scaled down position for a while, but I do have two very urgent films lined up for this coming weekend – two films that escaped me at Tribeca – and that I feel are essential. One of those films is a documentary titled THE OVERNIGHTERS, a film you saw at Sundance and passionately praised in your WitD re-cap!! Don’t ask me how or why I didn’t get this in at Tribeca, but this coming Friday I will see it at the local Montclair Film Festival in New Jersey. The other film at Montclair (also unseen at Tribeca) is INTRAMURAL, a sports end up comedy that many loved. Obviously if either or both of these films impresses me (my wager is on THE OVERNIGHTERS but we will see) they will make my Tribeca Top Ten or honorable mention list which has now been re-scheduled for Monday in view of the circumstances. Since both films played at Tribeca they will be counted as Tribeca, and this will raise my total to 53 Tribeca films now. Other Tribeca films that I did see are also playing at Montclair: VENUS IN FUR, CHEF and BENEATH THE HARVEST SKY among them. I have a question here for you Sachin: I am printing the link here to the Montclair Film Festival (it started yesterday and ends on Sunday). Are there any other films that you strongly recommend?
http://montclairfilmfest.org/
As far as LAND HO, it really is forgettable, though I know some loved it. We’ve seen this kind of thing before, and the film was padded. Thanks as always my very good friend. Have a great week!
Sam,
You and Lucille really ran the gauntlet with that amount of films. An unbelievable number! I definitely, look forward to your wrap up. I have been busy with a few things included the release of an e-book (Film Noir at Twenty Four Frames Per Second). It was released today as a Kindle over at Amazon.
Only two films this week….
Moonrise Kingdom (****) Both funny and melancholic. The two young actors grow on you as the film progresses. The adult cast were good and visually the film is stunning. I am not always a fan of Anderson’s work but this is certainly one of his better films.
Miss Pinkerton (**) Minor Warner Brothers mystery with Joan Blondell and George Brent..
Have a great week!
John—the past two weeks will never be forgotten, nor will the healthy number of outstanding films that appeared in the best Tribeca Film Festival lineup we have ever seen. Originally I had intended to published my Tribeca 2014 Festival Top Ten and honorable mention list with capsules and photos on Thursday, but now I will be delaying it until Monday, what with two crucial titles playing this weekend at the Montclair Film Festival that I missed at Tribeca. Should either or both of these films impress me greatly I would of course properly include them in the Tribeca wrap as they should be. The film are the widely-praised Sundance debuting documentary THE OVERNIGHTERS and the sports film sendup INTRAMURAL.
I was thrilled to read about your e book publication on kindle and am planning to avail myself of that great writing very soon! This has long been your particular genre of expertise, and I am proud to say I have seen these great reviews in advance! Best wishes on this fabulous work!
I don’t remember MISS PINKERTON, but completely agree that MOONRISE KINGDOM is one of Anderson’s very best films – for me it vies with BUDAPEST HOTEL for his best. Have a terrific week my friend! many thanks as always.
Hello Sam and everyone!
Wow, what a slate of films, can’t wait for the final top 10 and all the comments that you may have on them.
My week at the movies:
– Boardinghouse (1982, John Wintergate) *** Direct to Video Horror, the first one ever made, supposdedly, Watched on a whim. This is objectively bad, but for some reason it entrances you into something else, something crazy and highly watchable. Crazy.
– In Your Eyes (2014, Brin Hill) ***1/2 A movie that premiered at the festival, Tribeca, and then was released online for rent, I’ll review this for my blog soon.
– Snow Man Monster (1955, Ishiro Honda) ***1/2 Incredible monster sequences, lame adult situations, much like in a Godzilla film, but in this it feels that the humans have something much more important to do in terms of plot when compared to the horrible things (and sweet) that the monster does. We are cruel to this monster, and he doesn’t deserve it, but he’s one ugly motherfucker. There’s some social/racist reason as to why this movie hasn’t been released in Japan again, and it has to do with the natives that appear, that is somewhat aggressive towards. Also, apparently, this happens to be a King Kong recall that actually hates women and their power, so there you go, Japan.
– La langosta azul (1954, Various Directors) ***1/2 More about this one soon!
– Manga: Kobutori (1929, Chuzo Aoji, Yasuji Murata) **** A moralistic early anime that is very well animated and with flows and turns and twists that feel incredible. The expression of the faces are a favorite of mine, and the way that the characters dance is hypnotic.
– Narikin (1921, Kisaburo Kurihara) **** This was a great pseudo Chaplinesque film from Japan, that features a bum-like protagonist that suddenly comes forward with a great deal of wealth. It’s a shame that only 20-something minutes survive, it looked like a blast.
– Rapsodia satanica (1917, Nino Oxilia) ***1/2 Not horror. It has a sequence with the devil at the start of the movie and that’s practically it. The rest of the elements here are mostly ok, but not beyond that. The last 10 minutes have a poetic quality that raise the rest of the film, as if only you have to see this sequence, but you have to endure the first 30-something minutes to understand it. There’s a good concept of what do you bargain for beauty, how are you capable of giving up love for the fact of becoming and staying young.
– The Shining (1980, Stanley Kubrick) ***** Seen in BluRay with my girlfriend. What a splendid movie, it can’t stop being the most perfect absolutely best horror film that has ever been made in the history of cinema.
– Skhizein (2008, Jérémy Clapin) **** A good animation short that maybe was a bit too obvious in its ending regarding the true meaning of the affliction of its protagonist.
– Stage Fright (2014, Jerome Sable) ***1/2 A playful musical that devolves into a slasher and silly puns as the killings start in the second half of the film. But, for moments, the film inspires and brings forward many elements of fun and playfulness that aren’t exactly what you would call mainstream among the majority of the horror fiends, like the musicals, and how well sung and choreographed they are, how the acting, while overacted by most of the performers, surprises when it comes to the protagonist and some specific bit players. What a grandiose film that falls apart as it approaches more and more to the generic elements of the horror film that tries to replicate. Maybe something a bit different would’ve made this film the true surprise that it set out to be.
That’s all, have a great week Sam!
Thanks as always Jaimie!
Well, as I have stated I will post that Top Ten and honorable mention listing this coming Monday, what with the Tribeca catch up of two extremely important films that are overlapping into the week long Montclair Film Festival held in my own back yard. As we stated by e mail I am also eyeing the possibility of seeing the Spanish film WITCHING AND BITCHING at the Friday night midnight slot. But that will all depend on Lucille’s willingness to hang around that long. I re-read your fabulous capsule on the film from a past diary! As far as IN YOUR EYES I plan to watch it later today online thanks to your gracious directions to use Vimeo. That was another Tribeca film I couldn’t fit in, and will further help me collar practically every important film shown at the festival! I look forward to what you will say about the film in print! Ha, I loved your capsule of SNOW MAN MONSTER, though the silent NANKIN was apparently the big winner aside from Stanley Kubrick’s THE SHINING, which is surely one of the greatest horror films of all-time (and your own #1). It would at least compete for my #1 as well, along with a few other horror masterpieces. STAGE FRIGHT sounds moderately interesting as does LA LANGOSTA AZUL. And you have unearthed another rare silent there from 1917. I salute you for the way you have examined this period exhaustively over the past 18 months or so. Fantastic! All great capsules here too!
Thanks as always my friend! Have a great weekend!!!
Good morning, Sam –
I haven’t been on the Diary comments thread much lately, because I haven’t been seeing that many films. I think my recent viewing experience is the polar opposite of yours – 31 films in a week, holy cow! That’s a Herculean effort, and it sounds as though it was appropriately rewarding. A number of those Tribeca films are intriguing to me, particularly CHEF and the Susan Sontag documentary.
I’ve been a little overwhelmed here with school, work and last-minute preparations for next week’s trip to Germany, but have managed a few films. Finally saw Fassbinder’s THE MARRIAGE OF MARIA BRAUN, and also watched the disturbing and fascinating documentary THE WONDERFUL, TERRIBLE LIFE OF LENI REIFENSTAHL. Finally, I re-watched Tom Hooper’s superlative tele-film LONGFORD last night – fantastic performances by Samantha Morton and Jim Broadbent, of course, plus a brilliant script. It’s funny, when I first saw this film, several years back, it didn’t register with me how much of it is shot in close-up and extreme close-up; now, of course, I recognize this as Hooper’s signature technique. It really works to brilliant effect here, his actors (esp. Broadbent) know how to work with that kind of tight focus, giving us telling nuance in the most subtle facial movements.
Pat—–
You are preparing for that trip to Germany and are explaining why you may have missed one single week on the MMD??? LOL!!!! Your friendship and loyalty has been staggering right along, and I am amazed you can get on line at all at this time. But yeah, if you haven’t seen any or few films it is most understandable. Thanks for the very kind words about the insanity on this end for the past two weeks or further back than that when the activity at the Film Forum is factored in. I am 100% certain you will LOVE both REGARDING SUSAN SONTAG and CHEF. The documentary on the towering female icon was absolutely one of the best docs at the festival (it will finish high up on my list) and CHEF was just so irresistibly entertaining that whatever minor flaws it has should be ignored. I see it is already getting some terrific reviews at the compilation sites and no wonder. Normally this kind of film is not my cup of tea but this was definitely an exception! There are several others that you will like, no doubt. Nice that you watched some landmarks in German cinema before the trip. I wonder how your German is. As I recall you were there once before years ago. You are so well traveled and this will be yet another unforgettable time in your life. I hope to get a report and see some photos my friend! I certainly will be checking on Facebook for one. In any case MARRIAGE is a Fassbinder masterwork and the admittedly disturbing Riefenstahl movie is rather remarkable. LONGFORD is great stuff, and your passionate capsule here is dead on as far as I’m concerned. James Broadbent is simply one of the greatest living actors. He is wholly extraordinary. Have a FABULOUS trip Pat!!! I’ll be thinking of you. And thanks as always!
Sam-
An amazing accomplishment, 51 films in two weeks. Now that you’ve seen all the new films this year, I’ll just wait for your list of the best. Saves me a lot of work. Of course, most of these will never show up here. I’m lucky to have one film a month worth seeing in the theaters.
That one film for April was Under the Skin. A singular film, for sure, I don’t think I’ve seen anything else quite like it. I need to see it again but it’s gone already, having only played one week on the smallest screen in town. I would have thought there would be more interest in Scarlett here but I suppose most are content with seeing her in Captain America, and now I’ll have to content myself with that as well. Anyway, Under the Skin is extraordinary. (****1/2 – tentative rating)
Other things seen recently were:
Hitchcock’s Young and Innocent (***)
Hitchcock’s Suspicion (****)
Triumph of Love, 2001 (***1/2)
Repo Man, Alex Cox, 1984 (***1/2)
The Match Factory Girl (****1/2)
Ha Duane!!! I greatly appreciate your confidence, though I know the majority of great films still to come in 2014 won’t have played at Tribeca. Still I will say this: Tribeca 2014 was best ever in the history of this always-getting-better festival, and our delirious immersion yielded a remarkable number of worthy films, a fact that will be reflected in the post I will have up this coming Monday (I need to see two urgent films at the Montclair Festival over the weekend that played at Tribeca but missed there) to enable me to complete my list and I should rightly consider both for Tribeca if it turns out I like either or both. I am not at all surprised that you really connected with UNDER THE SKIN. I also went with the 4.5 rating, and I’d certainly say it is one of the best films of 2014 so far. I would love to see it again too as soon as I can. Alas, i am not surprised it has left your neighborhood as this kind of art house work doesn’t have the commercial legs to hang around. True though what you say about the Scarlet preference!
I also love THE MATCH FACTORY GIRL and consider it the best Kaurismaki. rather shocking the way things tuned there, very much akin to Chabrol’s LA CEREMONIE. 3.5 for REPO MAN is dead on, and can’t really argue with the ratings for those two Hitchcocks either. I recently saw SUSPICION and liked it quite a bit as I have in past viewings over the years. I don’t think I have seen TRIUMPH OF LOVE.
Have a great week my friend! Many thanks as always!
Sam – Goodness, gracious, sakes alive! That’s one heckova lot of films to see in such a short window of opportunity! You guys must have numb buns!
We arrived in Boise two weeks ago after a 5-day cross-country journey — we had numb buns too!
One week after our arrival, I flew to San Diego for a week to attend a pre-planned family event that had been on the books for over a year — my niece’s wedding. I just returned to our new home in Boise. Now I’m going to super glue my feet to the spot!
Laurie—-It is insanity incarnate. But such is the business of attending the annual Tribeca Film Festival, where you more or less concede 11 days of your life. If Lucille were not part of this equation I would not be doing it to this extent. All I can say is I did have my fill of veggie burgers. Ha! You are embarking on a new phase of your life and I wish you both a long and fruitful stay is that beautiful place! I know Mother Nature will be more accommodating than she was in Crystal Lake, though I know you will always have fond memories of your 20 years there. And a wedding trip to San Diego to boot at this time? Wow! You are more than entitled to a breather my friend. The best always. And thank you!
Sam! My friend I don’t know how you do it! That’s a ton of movies and you’ve outdone yourself this time. Haha. Just stopping in briefly to say that our house is now Sale Pending so we are quite excited about that. Must find a new place now though! So the hectic and crazy spring continues for us. So far, the kids are starting to show some signs of extra stress but they’re holding up well considering. Wish us luck! Have a great week!
Aye Jon, this was the most films we ever saw at Tribeca, and Lucille broke her own record too by seeing 36. Thanks you, but I must again question my sanity, even while we did have a great time for the most part. Congratulations on the sale of your home!!! I am assuming you will be re-locating in an area that isn’t far from the sold home, no? Yes, it is always somewhat of a issue when kids move, as the matter of friends is always a downer. But they will rebound soon enough, that’s for sure. I wish you all luck and happiness in your soon-to-be-resolved housing situation and look forward to hear all about it my friend. Thanks you as always!
Yes Sam we’ll be re-locating in the same general part of Michigan. So, yes that should help mitigate any significant issues for the kids. They’re more just worried about leaving their toys behind! Ha!
Sam – Last year I got a mini bike trainer – which I can use for my arms and leg exercise. I have just finished my 64th book read for 2014 – and I have to get up every hour to move around and keep blood clots from forming and my arms and knees from swelling – It is $150 purchase which has earned it’s weight in gold….I would think this little piece of equipment might just be the ticket for tired bum when movie watching too.
My theater also allows me to bring a baggie of frozen blueberries with me, which is my favorite reading snack – carrot sticks are too noisy! I had to get a note about dairy intolerance and allergy to corn, but they are working on finding their own supplier for next year.
I actually watched a movie this week. Ashton Krutcher in JOBS. We needed a bit of a lift after all the rain this past week. It gave us a boost of inspiration and then we were able to get back to reading and cycling when the sun popped joined us.
Yes Vit D is so important, I think I will have my lunch on the deck today!
Two more months of heavy reading and then quite a slow down. Happy days ahead and I added to my list of movies once again from your fine suggestions Thank you
Patricia—-
The mini bike trainer is a terrific acquisition for sure–I keep saying I will start my own exercise regimentation, but I keep stalling. Next week is the annual three-day school trip to Washington D.C. (Wed. through Fri.) so I’ll be walking until I drop. The trip through Arlington National Cemetery and to the Pentagon are prohibitive in that regard. The number of books you have read for 2014 is simply incredible, and I can well understand why you would wants to hold up the physical side. In any event I would agree that the purchase is worth is worth its weight in gold, as health is really everything. Nothing else can happen without it. I am no fan of corn, and I don’t think it is really all that healthy, but I eat blueberries practically every day. I agree that carrots come with some noise baggage. Ha! I think carrot juice is a good alternative (I bought some last week) but the organic variety is pretty expensive. ($8.00 for a large bottle) I actually haven’t seen JOBS, but would agree it might project the right vibes in view of what you subsequently say here. Lucille has been taking Vitamin D for quite a while now, and I completely agree it is vital. Enjoy all the upcoming books you have lined up. I am heading over to PATRICIA’S WISDOM now. Have a great weekend my friend. Looks like the rain you had has moved over here. It has been pouring all day, and will do so until the morning. Thank you my friend!
Sam, I haven’t been around in a while, but I will be in full throttle when the romantic countdown begins, since I have a stake after casting a ballot.
I see it is business as usual, and all I can do is offer you and Lucille congratulations for this unbelievable show at Tribeca. I wonder if Guiness should be contacted. Surely it might be nearly mathematically impossible to see more than 51 films over eleven days. Now I read that you will see a few more in Montclair that you missed in Tribeca before completing your post on the best films of the festival. You are truly incorrigible. I am excited to see the British prison drama ‘Starred Up,’ which you have rated highly and the documentary ‘Regarding Susan Sontag.’ I am assuming Jeremy is up and around again.
Great to hear from you Peter! Be rest assured you are missed. I am delighted to hear you will be following the romantic countdown that launches in 20 days. I’m sure that others have eclipsed my performance easily, so I am not expecting any Guiness representative at my front door. As far as the math is concerned it was definitely possible to do better than I did. On three weekdays, where I was at school I was unable to make good on some afternoon screenings, even though I did use personals on two other days. I bet I could way have broken 60 if I were at the festival every day during the full duration of those days. Yes I will be at Montclair this weekend to clean up a few I missed, and will watch IN YOUR EYES on Vimeo, so now my total will be 54 by Sunday. Ha! As far as being “incorrigible” I am guilty as charged. You picked two gems there!! Both the Susan Sontag documentary and that prison drama are top-rank and will be making an appearance in my top 10 without a doubt. Thanks again my friend! Much appreciated.
Sam that is an incredible feat you pulled off this particular week. Only those New Wave brats (Godard, Truffaut, Rivette, etc) could have potentially ever rivaled that run you just had. You are an inspiration to us all and for me personally one of the greatest cinephiles I know.
Ha Jeffrey! Those New Wavers were untouchable in that regard for sure! Thanks so much for those exceedingly kind words my very great friend!