Random Film of the Week: The Twonky

Posted on May 14, 2013 by geelw

twonky I find it absolutely and awesomely hilarious that the word “Twonky” has been swiped by a few people who probably thought it sounded cool but never, ever saw this oddball 1953 flick that now pops up on Turner Classic Movies from time to time. I’m also sure that some of these hipsters with no sense of film history would be shocked (SHOCKED, I say!) to find out that the titular Twonky of this little film is a nasty alien machine that tries and nearly succeeds to take over the life of the poor sap of a professor who inadvertently ends up with a VERY self-aware robot instead of the TV his wife bought to keep him company.

Writer/director Arch Oboler tries a wee bit too hard to generate laughs and despite some interesting special effects (well, for 1953), the film’s seemingly anti-technology/anti-freedom message overwhelms any chance of it being anything more than a curious artifact of a more paranoid age. Then again, that age seems to have circled back around with a much bigger influence on the more information-rotted minds in today’s heads, so perhaps it’s worth a second (or first) look, hmmm?… Continue reading →

TCM Remembers 2012: More Stars Shining Down On Film Fans

Posted on December 25, 2012 by geelw

These TCM tributes get longer and harder to sit through each year, that’s for sure. Add Charles Durning and Jack Klugman to this too long list of folks who’ve brought many some great entertainment memories over the decades. I was actually thinking about some Odd Couple episodes this past weekend out of the blue (the one where Oscar calls a square dance and the one that ends with him with two steaks on his face), but I think he’ll be more remembered by certain TV fans for his outstanding performance in the Twilight Zone episode “In Praise of Pip”, one of the best episodes from that show’s fifth season. As for Durning (who was also a decorated WWII veteran), his “everyman” working class face and always solid acting no matter the genre always made him a pleasure to watch. Go rent “Tootsie” just to see his comic chops and Dog Day Afternoon for a bit of his dramatic work.

Random Film Of The Week: A Face In The Crowd

Posted on July 4, 2012 by geelw

While most Americans will be remembering the late, great Andy Griffith from his lengthy stints on two hugely popular CBS TV shows The Andy Griffith Show and Matlock, (both in perpetual reruns somewhere around the country) I’ll always be more fond of his much more compelling movie debut, A Face In The Crowd.

In this classic 1957 Elia Kazan film (which was Griffith’s big-screen debut), his character of Larry “Lonesome” Rhodes explodes onto the scene in a still amazing performance that makes the movie even more enthralling to watch today. What makes the film so important is how precisely it nails Rhodes’ rise from vagrant jailbird to media superstar with his own national TV show (with help from a small town news reporter played by the great Patricia Neal) and later, his fall from fame’s grace are so compelling that for me, nearly all of Griffith’s later TV work pales in comparison.

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It’s Nice To See Cable Getting Wiser About The Movies They Run. Keep it Up.

Posted on July 3, 2012 by geelw

I’ve started to notice that a lot of cable movie channels are FINALLY starting to present most or all of their movies in their original screen formats. This is a damn good thing, as TV edit “pan & scan” versions or VHS-era full screen cuts are pretty lame and hell, just don’t cut it in an age where download services get it right by preserving the true aspect ratio of the films they show. For those out there who still don’t get it, Turner Classic Movies did a wonderful video explanation of “letterboxing” a few years ago featuring some top Hollywood directors that’s required viewing for those confused about those black bars on the top and bottom of their TV screens. If you don’t have or watch TCM (shame on you!), well… courtesy of Guillotinepost.com (and of course, TCM) here you go – and you’re welcome.

TCM Remembers 2011: Fallen Stars Bring Back Wishes Of Film Dreams

Posted on December 31, 2011 by geelw

It’s pretty safe to say that if I wasn’t writing so much about video games, I’d probably be writing about film. These days, there are so many great cinema scribes out there that do that a lot better than I do in terms of covering the medium, so I reserve my talents to the interactive as I believe that a great game can have the same impact as a great film, book or other slice of entertainment that touches a few emotions. Growing up in front of the TV or at the movies for a good chunk of time exposed me to quite a lot of great actors, directors, writers and other talents in the film industry and as the years pass, some of these people fade away into history leaving only their work on screen as a legacy. Each year, Turner Classic Movies runs a nice tribute video on stars of stage and screen who have passed away and 2011 was pretty sad for film fans across the globe. I actually didn’t know some of these people had died, but I’m glad to have seen them at their best in some truly memorable films…