NASA, ESA, CSA, and STScI, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons “Living in Another World”: Film Review of Asteroid City By Geoff Carter There are only a few filmmakers working today whose style can be recognized within the first few frames of a film. This was possible with past artists like Stanley Kubrick, Jacques Tati, or …
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Category:Movies
The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: Magic Under the Stars
RoyBuchanan, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:112_Drive-In.jpg By Geoff Carter Whenever I’m near my hometown, I go past the site of the old Starlite Drive-in, which they torn down a while ago. I still miss the sight of the titanic blue structure towering on the horizon, and always remember the place where I spent a …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: The Films of Samuel L. Jackson
Attribution: pinguino k, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons Mr. Cool on Cool: The Films of Samuel L. Jackson Aside from Morgan Freeman, his voice is probably as distinctive as any in cinema. From the angry braying or insistent arrogance of Stephen Warren in Django Rising to the wheedling persistence or petulant whining of Gator in Jungle Fever, nobody …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: A Tribute to Father’s Day
Photo by Sabine van Straaten on Unsplash A Tribute to Father’s Day: Ten Unforgettable Celluloid Dads By Geoff Carter It’s that time of year when we’re once again celebrating the patriarch, the pater familia, the big man, the king daddy, and the head of the family. It’s Father’s Day. Master of the grill, wearer of the toolbelt, and …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: The Perverse Appeal of “Succession”
Maklay62, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons Absolutely Corrupt: The Perverse Appeal of “Succession” At first glance, HBO’s Succession is a series that seems to have it all. It features a hideously wealthy family whose grown children are struggling for control of a multi-national media conglomerate after the upcoming retirement—or demise—of their father, corporate patriarch Logan Roy (Brian Cox), …
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The Pen in Hand’s Guide to Going Above and Beyond the Call of Duty
Capt. Saska Ball, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (Originally published in June, 2019) By Geoff Carter “…that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain… –Abraham Lincoln, …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: The Cultural Work of Documentary Film
Photo by Jovaughn Stephens on Unsplash Truth Be Told: The Cultural Work of Documentary Film By Geoff Carter Elements of photojournalism, creative non-fiction, cinematic prose poetry, muckraking, and biography have all been crowded—by those who love categorization—under the vast umbrella of what is known as documentary film. Features like Bowling for Columbine, Harvest of Shame, Icarus, and Thirteen. are films that, …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: Review of “Lucky Hank”
Photo by Oscar Nord on Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/Sd87V72cJEU Stuck in The Middle: Review of AMC Streaming Series Lucky Hank By Geoff Carter Hank Devereaux, Jr., (Bob Odenkirk), the protagonist—he can hardly be said to be a hero, except perhaps in an accidental sense—is a man mired in the mixed blessings of the life of an academic. He is an …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: Review of “A Disturbance in the Force”
Photo by Jake Hills on Unsplash When Worlds Collide: A Review of A Disturbance in the Force By Geoff Carter Own work based on unknown original creator, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons Sitting in a crowded theater watching a movie is in many ways a solitary act. Viewers don’t—they’re not supposed to, at least—interact with each other during …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: Review of “Gods of Mexico”
Photo by Geoff Carter In Gods’ Country: Film Review of Gods of Mexico The term documentary is defined, according to Encyclopedia Britannica, as a “…motion picture that shapes and interprets factual material for purposes of education or entertainment.” For myself, the term “documentary” brings up images from An Inconvenient Truth, Gimme Shelter, Woodstock, Night and Fog, Harlan County, U.S.A., Nanook of …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: The Milwaukee Film Festival
Something for Everybody: Festival Season Photo by Jake Hills on Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/23LET4Hxj_U By Geoff Carter Milwaukee Film, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons For the Milwaukee film fan, or any cinephile who enjoys straying off the beaten path occasionally, the Milwaukee Film Festival is one of the best times of the year. I like to think of this event …
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The Pen in Hand Guide to the Movies: Review of Oscar-Nominated Short Animated Films
Miscellaneous Items in High Demand, PPOC, Library of Congress, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons The Broadest of Spectrums: Reviews of Oscar-Nominated Short Animated Films By Geoff Carter My wife and I have made it an annual tradition to trek to the local movie theater and see the Oscar-nominated Best Short Subject Films, both the animated …
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