The A-Team Emergency (Weekly Links)

Best film of 1960; see radio link below.

Reviews I wrote for the Herald this week.

The A-Team. “Testosterone inflation.”

The Karate Kid.

Bass Ackwards. “A keen eye for a running gag.”

Living in Emergency. “Improvising in dire situations.”

Notes on the final weekend of the Seattle International Film Festival, here.

On KUOW’s “Weekday,” I talked with Marcie Sillman about the movies of 1960, and how they changed the landscape; archived here. The movie bit kicks in with the Psycho strings at 14:08 into it.

Movie Diary 6/10/2010

The Karate Kid (Harald Zwart, 2010). Jackie Chan makes an admirable effort to do a little character-making within this otherwise stillborn remake, which stars Jaden Smith in the role that made Ralph Macchio the anti-Christ. (full review 6/11)

Trash Humpers (Harmony Korine, 2009). Watching a Korine film, there is always the anxiety that someone is going to be killed onscreen while you’re watching it. That doesn’t happen here (I think), which is a relief. It would be easy to revile this movie if it didn’t have some sound cinematic ideas in play, dammit. (full review 6/18)