Essays and reflections on movies, their impact and influence, and the people who created them.
It’s spring 1865, and the American Civil War is winding down. Factions have sprung off, and the frontier is rife with outlaws and gangs. Stuck in the middle is Border City, a town straddling the Arkansas and Missouri state lines, … Continue reading WOMAN THEY ALMOST LYNCHED
Liberal, Kansas is in disarray. The farmers, backed by banker Allen Harper (Robert Ryan), are trying to turn the hard, dry land into fertile soil. The cattlemen, financed by Logan Maury (Steve Brodie), are trying to run them out—either by stampeding … Continue reading TRAIL STREET
There are Hollywood icons, and then there’s James Stewart. He was the guy who told Donna Reed he’d “throw a lasso around the moon” and bring it to her. He convinced more than a few people that a 6-foot-tall rabbit … Continue reading Anthony Mann Directs James Stewart
A lonely man drifts into town. So begins countless westerns written for the page and made for the screen. But this one’s a little different. This time that lone soul isn’t a gunslinger making his bones, a mysterious man trying … Continue reading THE WESTERNER
Boston was in a panic. Thirteen women were murdered from June 1962 to January 1964. All were in their homes; all were alone. There was no evidence of forced entry, and though the cabinets and dressers were ransacked, police couldn’t … Continue reading THE BOSTON STRANGLER
The revolution as seen through the eyes of the those revolved out in Memories of Underdevelopment and Tár The year is 2022, and conductor Lydia Tár is a foot from the top. Her memoir, Tár on Tár, will be published in … Continue reading Sympathy for the Devil
Change your mind. For once in your life, change your mind. Those are the words Fen hurls at Thomas Dunson, a hardheaded man with money on his mind. Fourteen years later, another woman will say something similar to Dunson, only this … Continue reading RED RIVER
Past, present, and future moviemakers will gather on March 12 at the Dolby Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard to celebrate the best of 2022. Ten movies will contend for the Best Picture prize, 20 actors will compete in four categories—you know … Continue reading Salute Your Shorts: 2023 Oscar Nominated Short Films
One of the most terrible things is that in fact, whether I like it or not, I am an American. —James Baldwin That line comes from the 1968 documentary from Horace Ové, Baldwin’s Ni**er, a provocatively titled conversation featuring one … Continue reading James Baldwin On-Screen
Michael J. Cinema 
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