Midge Costin’s documentary “Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound” is a compelling and instructive peek into a world hitherto unknown to most of us.
FILM
DANCING AT THE VATICAN
Dancing at the Vatican, a 38-minute documentary directed by Brian Moore and produced by Amanda Spencer, showcases the plight of those suffering from Huntington’s Disease (HD), a progressive neurological disorder. A parent with HD has a 50/50 chance of passing it on to his or her offspring.
LETTERS TO FATHER JACOB
Watched a wonderful Finnish film the other night, directed by Klaus Härö, and recommended by a reader: Letters to Father Jacob. Synopsis: “Set in the early 1970s and based on a story by Jaana Makkonen, the film tells the story of Leila, a pardoned convict, who becomes an assistant to a blind priest, Jacob. The film […]
BEHIND THE BULLET: A NEW PERSPECTIVE ON GUN VIOLENCE
Says director Heidi Yewman: “I feel there’s a false narrative to the effect that you can be the good guy with a gun and save the day killing a ‘bad guy’ with your gun. In the film, Kevin shows very clearly that you don’t just kill someone who’s threatened you or your family, and move on with your day and your life. A moral injury occurs.”
A FIELD TRIP TO BEVERLY HILLS: THE PALEY CENTER FOR MEDIA
Here’s a fun thing to do on the Westside: The Paley Center for Media, smack in the middle of Beverly Hills.
The minute you step up to the desk, one of the welcoming ladies there will usher you over to a camera, shove a mic in your hand and snap a promote-the-Paley pic.
ANDY GOLDSWORTHY’S LEANING INTO THE WIND
“Leaning Into the Wind” is a 2018 documentary about Andy Goldsworthy, a self-proclaimed “British sculptor, photographer and environmentalist producing site-specific sculpture and land art situated in natural and urban settings.”
MY END OF THE YEAR FILM LIST!
The other day I watched a film called “Caught” (1949), by the great German-born director Max Ophüls. I’ve seen “The Earrings of Madame de” (1953) (originally at The Brattle in Harvard Square, circa 1979) and “Letter to an Unknown Woman” (1948) multiple times. But “Caught” was new to me, and afterwards I thought to share with all […]
WHISTLE DOWN THE WIND
One of my favorite books as a kid was Whistle Down the Wind (1958) by Mary Hayley Bell. In it, three children from a working-class English village find an escaped criminal in the barn and think he’s Jesus. Here’s how the story starts: “I am ten, and they call me Brat. Of course, that isn’t […]
REMEMBERING LA LEGEND JONATHAN GOLD
Jonathan Gold, the city’s beloved Pulitzer-Prize winning food writer, died on July 21. The cause was pancreatic cancer that had been diagnosed only weeks before. Gold, 57, was most recently the restaurant critic for the “Los Angeles Times.” But he was way more than a food critic. He was an LA treasure: erudite, articulate, eccentric, […]
JEAN VANIER’S ARK FOR THE BROKEN AND THE FRAGILE
Jean Vanier is the now 89-year-old founder of L’Arche (the Ark). L’Arche is many things. A sanctuary for the developmentally disabled in which they and their assistants, as they are called,, live together as members of the community. An international federation that has spread throughout 37 countries and burgeoned to 149 communities. A sign. A […]
LACO@THE MOVIES: BUSTER KEATON’S “THE GENERAL”
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra (LACO). LACO is pulling out all the stops. There’s a “Campus to Concert Hall” all access season pass, offering students thirty concerts for just $30. There’s the $1.5 million gift from philanthropists Carol and Warner Henry for the Principal Oboe […]
“THE HUMAN BODY” AT IMAX
In these dog days of summer, who doesn’t want to sit in a darkened, air-conditioned theater for an hour? I sure do. Thus I recently found myself at the IMAX down near USC watching “The Human Body.” (Showtimes are at 10 AM, 12, 2 and 5 PM through September 4). For those of us drawn […]
GENERATION WEALTH AT THE ANNENBERG SPACE FOR PHOTOGRAPHY
Here’s an exhibit that will make you want to go home, take a shower, and give thanks for your humble existence: “Generation Wealth” at the Annenberg Center for Photography. “A Visual History of the Growing Obsession with Wealth That Has Come to Define a Generation” is the subtitle. ”Generation Wealth” spans two and a half […]
SCIENCE IS FICTION: 23 FILMS BY JEAN PAINLEVÉ
Jean Painlevé (1902-1989) was an early visionary in the genres of educational, science, and nature films. A 3-disc set from Criterion, available on Netflix, is called “Science is Fiction: 23 Films by Jean Painlevé.” In an Introduction to the essay collection Science is Fiction: The Films of Jean Painlevé, editor Marian McDougall writes: “The joy […]