High Noon (1952) Director: Fred Zinnemann "People gotta talk themselves into law and order before they do anything about it." ★★★★★ High Noon is a wonderfully intense American Western film. It is a movie about time, courage, and a forthcoming day of reckoning. The story amazingly plays out in almost precise real time -throughout the … Continue reading High Noon →

The Old Man and the Sea (1958) Director: John Sturges ★★★★☆ The film version of Hemingway's classic Pulitzer Prize-winning novella offers a surprisingly engaging take on the story. Click here to read my reflections on the 1952 novella as part of my Pulitzer Prize winners reading project. The film was directed by John Sturges, famous … Continue reading The Old Man and the Sea →

Escape From Alcatraz (1979) Director: Don Siegel “Some men are destined never to leave Alcatraz… alive.” ★★★★★ Escape from Alcatraz is an American realist film about the infamous 1962 prison break from America's most impenetrable prisons. The movie stars Clint Eastwood, Patrick McGoohan, Fred Ward, Jack Thibeau, Larry Hankin, and Danny Glover (his cinematic debut). … Continue reading Escape From Alcatraz →

The Searchers (1956) Director: John Ford "We'll find 'em, just as sure as the turnin' of the earth" ★★★★★ The Searchers has often been called John Ford's magnum opus and with good reason. It is a beautiful, expansive, and immensely complex story shot in technicolor and Vista Vision. The sweeping views of the film are … Continue reading The Searchers →

Limite (1931) Director: Mário Peixoto ★★★★☆ Limite (meaning "border" or "limit") is a beautifully shot experimental silent film created by Brazilian director, Mário Peixoto -the only film he ever made. He self-financed the project with the help of his wealthy family. He was 22 years old. It has sometimes been called the greatest Brazilian film. … Continue reading Limite →

The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) Director: Peter Jackson "May this be the hour when we draw swords together" ★★★★★ There are three brilliantly interwoven plot-lines in The Two Towers (or what Hitchcock once called the "meanwhile back at the ranch" film technique which is also employed to great success in Star … Continue reading The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers →