Cinesation 2009 Festival Report, Part Two
by HELEN GEIB
Part two of my Cinesation 2009 festival report. The spotlight is on Sessue Hayakawa, star of the fest’s final two silents. Read more 
DVD of the Week – The Wizard of Oz (1939)
by HELEN GEIB
Billed as the 70th Anniversary Ultimate Collector’s Edition, this new DVD edition of The Wizard of Oz is a re-release of the 2005 3-disc restoration edition with yet more extras. Extras from the 2005 set, all repeated in this set, include a “behind the scenes” feature on the restoration, a commentary track by film critic John Fricke, profiles of the actors and clips of their work in other films, vintage interviews with the cast, outtakes and deleted scenes, a documentary on the making of the film and other behind the scenes features, and complete versions of four silent film adaptations of Oz stories. And much more. Read more
Cinesation 2009 Festival Report, Part One
by HELEN GEIB
The silent film program for Cinesation 2009 offered a strong lineup of star vehicles featuring Mary Pickford, Constance Talmadge, Ronald Colman, and Sessue Hayakawa. Colleen Moore appeared in an early supporting role while veteran character actor Edward Everett Horton was elevated to the starring part. There were also several of the obscure titles favored by the festival organizers, some of which were good. Read more
Movie Review – Harvey (1950)
by NIR SHALEV
We see them all the time walking down the street and talking to themselves, arguing with themselves, and only sometimes is there a Bluetooth piece in their ear. We think that they’re crazy but we know they’re harmless to others; we’re used to them. Watching Harvey, I was wondering how audience members from 59 years ago had reacted originally. Well I can assure everyone that audience members had a ball with this film because it’s so utterly wonderful and warm that anyone would enjoy it in any decade. Read more
Thinking Outside the Multiplex
by MIKE MACCOLLUM
So what’s in store for Indiana moviegoers this week? Two new art movies at the Keystone Arts in Indianapolis, several Indian movies at the Georgetown 14, a number of interesting film festivals, and the usual assortment of documentaries and one-time-showings all across the state. For more on these films and others – and the complete listing of limited release films opening around the country – read on below…. Read more
DVD of the Week – Review of Sugar (2009)
by HELEN GEIB
Sugar is the nickname of Miguel Santos, the teenaged Dominican hero of Sugar, the latest film from the writing-directing team of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck (Half Nelson). Sugar (played in a remarkable debut performance by Dominican and amateur ballplayer Algenis Perez Sato) is an aspiring major leaguer and already a professional ballplayer when the film opens. He is on the lowest rung of the farm system of the Kansas City Knights, a fictional MLB club that closely resembles the real ones. Sugar has been training for some months at a baseball camp in the Dominican Republic, run by the Knights to scout local talent, when he is called up for a trial period in the U.S. The story follows him through a summer playing Single A ball in a small town in Iowa. Read more
Movie Review – Kaminey (2009)
by HELEN GEIB
Kaminey stars Shahid Kapur in a dual role as twin brothers Guddu and Charlie. When the film opens the brothers are bitterly estranged and have not seen each other for several years. Each also has his own problems, largely of his own making, but as each brother gets unwillingly drawn into the other’s life it becomes increasingly clear that events are conspiring in mysterious ways to bring about a family reunion. Read more
Thinking Outside the Multiplex
by MIKE MACCOLLUM
This week sees the arrival of Blood Creek at our two area Cinemarks and the Georgetown 14, along with the debut of a Bollywood romantic comedy at the Georgetown 14 and the first public screening of the made-in-Indianapolis romantic comedy Amanda. There will also be a number of other interesting things to see in Indianapolis and around the state, as usual. Read on below for more on these films and for the complete listing of limited release films opening around the country. Read more
Anime Feature Film Review – Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989)
by HELEN GEIB
The Kiki of Kiki’s Delivery Service is a sweet-natured, 13 year old witch with an entrepreneurial spirit. Following an old witches’ custom, she leaves home to live on her own for a year to develop her magical talents and gain independence. Her only companion is her familiar, a sassy black cat named Jiji. She settles in a large seaport town where she starts the titular flying broomstick delivery business. A small town girl, Kiki is at first in equal measures excited and daunted by her new home. However, she adapts quickly with the aid of good people who befriend her: a nice young couple who own a bread bakery; an adventuresome boy named Tombo who dreams of flying; an eccentric young woman artist; and a grandmotherly customer. Read more
DVD of the Week – Wagon Master (1950)
by HELEN GEIB
Today’s DVD pick warrants a hearty “at last.” While it has its partisans, Wagon Master is one of director John Ford’s least known Westerns. Its obscurity is due in large measure to its relative unavailability, making this first-time-on-DVD release long overdue. Wagon Master assembles a collection of social outcasts: Mormons in a westward-bound wagon train; the horse trader who agrees to act as wagon master and guide with his partner; the itinerant players in a medicine show they pick up in the desert; a Navajo band; and a vicious outlaw family. Read more
