Akira Kurosawa's Dreams

Eight nicely balanced vignettes. I especially liked the Village of the Waterwheels.

The Idiot

It may look Japanese but that is a trick played by Kurosawa. The Russian plot is evident in every frame. It takes a while to get a head of steam up but the payoff is there.

The Devil and Daniel Webster

Mannered and stagey but in a good way. Lively performances with particular praise to Walter Huston's palpably sinister turn as Mr. Scratch. See it just for his performance. See his performance just for his entrance.

THX 1138

Robert Duvall's character, because he is mildly competent, strides among his drugged and coerced fellow citizenss like Zeus among limpets. In the land of the flakey, the least zoned-out is king.
Much is made that the director is George Lucas which probably distracts from seeing its genuine qualities and indisputable flaws.

Vera Cruz

Because the role of the good guy was filled by Gary Cooper, Burt Lancaster had to be the bad guy. It's almost a buddy movie, so he is also the buddy. The finale was mostly satisfying in the way that Obi Wan's victory over Anakin wasn't. There was a great deal of exotic, empire-in-the Americas business with Cesar Romero but it's not important.

Judge strikes down part of Patriot Act

Will this make it easier for future administrations to disassemble the travesty that is the Patriot Act?

Judge strikes down part of Patriot Act

Tailor of Panama

I was a bit slow apparently and did not recognize that the movie was one of those arch serio-comic tales that allow one to laugh at terrible, awful, loathsome human beings. Jesus! What a load of crap. Brendan Gleason's character is a buffoon! Ha ha! Oh, that Pierce Brosnan and his way with the ladies! Tee hee! The parody of Colonel North - you know it's funny because it's true. Except it was inept and a waste of time. Meh.