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![]() Genre movies get no better than Black Widow, a noirish crime drama that delivers just what its title promises. A stunning woman seduces rich men to marry her, kills them, absconds with their fortunes and finds her next mark. You hardly want her caught, especially if you’re a guy and she’s not…
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Black Widow in Bridal Mode
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![]() American Gigolo kickstarted the Eighties. It made the Seventies suddenly – instantly – yesterday. Unkempt & brassy gave way to sleek & sophisticated, disco to New Wave. How? Gere wearing Armani, driving a Mercedes, listening to Blondie in Schrader’s glimmering California masterpiece, that’s…
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The Call Me intro defined the Eighties
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![]() Dangerously seductive, visually intoxicating, intellectually playful, Pauline at the Beach is très français. Bien sûr, very, very French. Éric Rohmer was past 60 when he made it, but his cinematic vision of an older man seducing a hot Parisian blonde proved he hadn’t lost touch with his inner…
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They also found time to talk.
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![]() Charismatic, disorienting and brooding, Animal Kingdom presents the truthy tale of an infamous crime family, including their murder of two Melbourne cops. The brooding gets a bit much by the third reel, weighing down what would otherwise be a great true-crime movie. The charisma comes from …
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Infamous crime family, charismatic movie
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![]() The world’s greatest rock & roll band – at the peak of their powers – glimmers brightly in Hal Ashby’s awkwardly titled movie documenting their massive 1981 stadium tour. Promoting a just released Tattoo You, the 25 song set draws six tracks from that kickass album, along with three from the u…
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Start Me Up as virginal stadium anthem
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![]() Here’s Johnny – blessedly again – in a documentary that reveals the man behind the curtain and reminds us why we treasured him above all others in front of it. It also suggests that his position as arbiter of pop culture will never exist again. Hundreds of cable channels and the web have seen t…
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Everybody wanted to laugh with Johnny
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![]() The complete story of Quadrophenia is essential viewing for Quadropheniacs. You know who you are. Pete Townshend takes us on an hour-plus tour through his magnum opus, the greatest of rock operas, followed by twenty minutes of Quadrophenia concert outtakes from the decades. Felt complete to …
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Daltrey & Townshend talk Quad in July...
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![]() We Americans are blessedly unfamiliar with the “most violent prisoner in Britain,” a nut called Charles Bronson. I’d of happily gone on that way had Tom Hardy not become an actor whose riveting performances demand that his every great role be viewed. And his feral performance as Charles Bronson…
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One more bystander hurt by Bronson
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![]() So big it came down to YES or NO. A national referendum on authoritarian rule, YES or NO? NO won, a shock to Chile, many Latinos and the world. Turns out that pop was the way to nail the weasel. The weasel was General Augusto Pinochet, the strongman who had fixed the economy but crushed diss…
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Selling Liberation Like Toothpaste
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![]() Precious few movies about life in communist countries have made an impact in America. Barbara should be one of them. It’s a compelling drama – and a sexy one – about a glamorous doctor torn between two men and the different lives they represent. It’s also an insightful lens into the grim reali…
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Every Move Watched
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