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In America, we love our gangsters. Even today, nothing captures our attention like a good real-life crime story. The O.J. Simpson saga dominated the news for over a year, and O.J. has none of the allure ascribed to some of the "greats." More Amer...

1950 was a very good year for movies that took a look behind the showbiz scene. Both Sunset Blvd. (films) and All About Eve (theater) collected their share of Oscar nominations, with Eve beating out Sunset in the key Best Picture category. Howeve...

In 1927, with much fanfare, The Jazz Singer was released. As every movie-lover knows, this otherwise unremarkable motion picture possessed one crucial asset: it was the first film to use recorded sound, and ushered in the "talkie" era. The trans...

When it comes to comedians, everyone has their favorite. Mine is John Cleese. In fact, he has held that place in my esteem since the first time I watched an episode of Fawlty Towers on PBS, some twenty years ago. Up to that point, I knew Cle...

With the freedom offered to him by Netflix, Martin Scorsese has crafted a narratively complex, visually arresting account of mob hitman Frank Sheeran (Robert De Niro) and, in the process, reunited with some old friends and brought new ones to ...

What movie-goers find funny has changed since the end of the silent era. Many of the pratfalls and hijinks that so delighted audiences in the 1910s and 1920s have long since ceased to provoke anything more full-bodied than a chuckle. Neverthel...

Grand Illusion looks back on the 20th century’s first global conflict from the perspective of a world on the brink of an even greater war. This film, which was cited by Joseph Goebbels as “Cinematic Public Enemy No. 1” when he sought to ...

"Whatever you do, don't fall asleep." - Nancy The dream - or nightmare - is a staple of the modern horror movie. After all, even as manipulative as the device is, it's still a proven way to jolt an audience. Filmmaker Wes Craven understood th...

Against all odds, The Big Short works. In fact, “works” is an understatement for what director Adam McKay has achieved with his improbable adaptation of Michael Lewis’ nonfiction book about the 2008 global financial crisis. Writing ...

Edward Zwick is probably best known for his work on television. Along with Marshall Herkovitz, he was a driving force behind two long-running TV series (thirtySomething and Once and Again). He was also an important contributor to many others (inc...