In Part One, which I’m sure provided you with a drug-like high that’s yet to wear off, we covered foot chases in such varied films as The Last of the Mohicans, Raising Arizona, The Third Man, Point Break and The Bourne Ultimatum. Let’s dig right into six more, including the CFS’s choice as Greatest of All Time.
This week marks 29 years since the CFS was involved in an exciting foot chase at college, the circumstances of which should elicit sympathetic nods from this blog’s vast readership. Because who among you hasn’t spent a long evening drinking beer before attempting to pilfer a painted bed sheet (“Welcome Dorsey Dolls!”) hanging from a freshman dorm to use as a slipcover?
It seems the Conflicted Film Snob is among the smartest people on the planet. How do I know? Because a recent study found that those with “a big vocabulary of curse words [have] higher rhetorical skill, and those that can name the most swear words in one minute tend to have a greater overall vocabulary.” Thus, I’m really fucking smart.
If the advanced reviews and word-of-mouth are any indication, Edgar Wright’s Baby Driver looks poised to be a summer sleeper. For those unfamiliar with the film, the story revolves around a getaway driver with tinnitus (caused by a childhood accident), who, in order to drown out the constant ringing, listens to steady and eclectic stream of music via earbuds. Mayhem ensues. Of course, this being an Edgar Wright movie (he also
I’m a sucker for heist films. Why? Could be my anal-retentive nature responds to their inherently complicated, yet perfectly designed and executed machinations. Of course, they’re fun, too, which never hurts. Frankly, I’d struggle to name another cinematic genre quite as satisfying or addicting — who among us hasn’t stumbled across one of the recent Ocean’s trilogy (2001, 2004, 2007) and not settled in for the duration despite needing to hit the sack?
I don’t know about you, but the 1992 Kevin Costner/Whitney Houston vehicle, The Bodyguard, remains a guilty pleasure 25 years (!) on. Ably directed by Mick Jackson, the film features a reliably sturdy performance by Costner, a bunch of hit songs sung by Houston that more than compensate for her wobbly acting, a surprise appearance by Ralph Waite (Mr. Walton from The Waltons) during his late career renaissance (he also appeared in
News is spreading quickly that movie director Jonathan Demme has died to esphogeal cancer at the relatively young age of 73. Bummer. He was truly an original talent. That said, Demme’s career took a very interesting turn with the 1991 release of The Silence of the Lambs. Unfortunately, it was not necessarily a turn for the better. While this may sound a bit harsh, especially considering the poor man’s body isn’t yet cold, hear me out.
Today’s release and rhapsodic reviews of The Lost City of Z (“…a miraculous movie, at once moving, intimidating, and gorgeous to behold.” — The Atlantic) have conjured memories of Mountains of the Moon, a little-known 1990 film examining the arduous and, ultimately, contentious, search by explorers Richard Burton and John Hanning Speke for another great mystery of the Victorian age—this on the other side of the world—the source of the Nile River.
I’d been meaning to feature the little-known horror gem Near Dark (1987) in this series of goofy remembrances from my college days but never got around to it. Sadly, it’s taken the recent, untimely death of Bill Paxton to finally provide a proper kick in the pants.
As remembrances of Paxton’s most indelible performances came pouring in—Chet from Weird Science, Pvt. Hudson from Aliens, Dixon in One False Move, Hank in A Simple
I know, I know—it’s been forever since I last posted. Seven months, actually, an absence no doubt weighing heavily on my vast¹ and vocal² readership. (¹ Thirty-eight; ² Zero comments)
But for those of you keeping vigil in my front yard, it’s time to pack up the tents, scrape the candle wax off my sidewalk, head home to your parents’ basement to once again fire up those computers. Because I just watched a favorite scene from Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation for about the 20th time and feel the need to talk about it.