06 March
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On
In Special Series

THE NINTH ANNUAL HITCHCOCK FILM FESTIVAL Take-Up Productions has brought back their Hitchcock Film Festival for another year. It’s always a joy to see the Master of Suspense back up on the big screen, and this year they have some of his very best playing. Rear Window is a personal favorite of mine. A few years ago I caught their presentation of Vertigo in 70mm, and it was well worth it. They partner with the Heights Theater and the Riverview Theater each year and bring in a rousing crowd. You’ll hear people applaud during his cameos or when Bernard Herrmann or Edith Head’s names appearRead More →

17 November
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On
In My Criterion Collection

CRITERION COLLECTION SALE AT BARNES & NOBLE It’s that time of year again for the fall Criterion Collection sale at Barnes & Noble. It happens twice a year when their entire catalog is 50% off. Plus, you can save another 10% with your member card. Sorry to say that no other coupons can be added on. Apparently Criterion has caught on to the sneaky tricks we’ve all been pulling over the last few years. The sale has been going strong all month and will conclude on November 28th. I’ve only picked up two titles so far, Robert Altman’s McCabe & Mrs. Miller and Richard Linklater’sRead More →

12 April
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On
In Special Series

THE MINNEAPOLIS HITCHCOCK FESTIVAL It’s that time of the year again where the fine folks at Take-Up Productions present their annual Hitchcock festival. I probably say this every year, but they have another great slate of films from the Master of Suspense. It opens Thursday, April 14 with a film considered by many as his crowning achievement, Vertigo. Once again, it’s being present in glorious 70mm. I saw it in this format last year, and it’s stunning. You don’t want to miss out on this opportunity. Strangers on a Train, another one of my favorites, is also showing half way through the festival. Here isRead More →

17 April
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On
In Dear Readers, Special Series

THE MINNEAPOLIS HITCHCOCK FESTIVAL       Trylon takes pride in the fact that they are the Twin Cities classic film specialists. Every year they partner with the Riverview Theater and Heights Theater to present a variety of films from the Master of Suspense himself, Alfred Hitchcock. He is one of my favorite directors, so I always think it’s a treat to see his films on the big screen whenever opportunity arises. No matter how many times I’ve seen some of these, they never get old and I usually notice something new with each viewing. Plus, we will get those classic Bernard Herrmann scores, SaulRead More →

17 April
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On
In Twin Cities Live

TWIN CITIES LIVE April 16, 2014         As I mentioned in last week’s Dear Readers column, I am the new movie critic on “Twin Cities Live”. Today marked my fourth appearance and it has been a complete joy. Today’s movies include: – Draft Day starring Kevin Costner, Jennifer Garner, Denis Leary – Philomena starring Judi Dench, Steve Coogan – The Sixth Annual Minneapolis Hitchcock Festival presented by Take-Up Productions Here’s the video for my appearance this week: ENJOY!  Read More →

15 April
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On
In Uncategorized

THE SIXTH ANNUAL MINNEAPOLIS HITCHCOCK FESTIVAL Take-Up Productions is a local non-profit film company that screens classic, foreign, and independent films in multiple venues catering to a wide range of moviegoers. The majority of their programming is at the Trylon microcinema, located in Minneapolis’ Longfellow neighborhood. They also partner with The Riverview Theater in Minneapolis and The Heights Theater in Columbia Heights. Part of their programming includes marathons/retrospectives devoted to various actors, directors, and themes. Coming up soon is their sixth annual Hitchcock festival. My mom and I try to go to a couple of them each year, and it makes for great mother/son bondingRead More →

03 December
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On
In Movie Reviews

HITCHCOCK Director: Sacha Gervasi Starring: Anthony Hopkins, Helen Mirren, Michael Stuhlbarg, Danny Huston, Scarlett Johansson, Jessica Biel, James D’Arcy We take Hitchcock’s masterpiece Psycho as an important part of film history. Many regard it as his best movie. Many people probably do not know the trouble that the master of suspense had while making the movie, let alone even getting Paramount interested in distributing it. After the release of North By Northwest, Alfred Hitchcock (Hopkins) was looking for his next big movie. Numerous industry insiders questioned if he could deliver another successful movie. Was he getting too old to keep making hit movies? Hitchcock startedRead More →