It could be said that Quentin Tarantino is a pervert. And not just in the “Wow, he sure likes long lingering shots of his actresses’...
Film
Most deft vs. tone deaf
Ah, 2015 — to paraphrase “The Simpsons,” it was the best of times and also the blurst of times. The amount of new shows, reboots,...
Fair warning
Editor’s note: Warning: there be spoilers here. For almost as long as there have been movies, they have been warning us about the robots. But have...
Video Vault: The Star Wars Holiday Special
The Star Wars Holiday Special 20th Century Fox/CBS Television, 1978 Starring: Bea Arthur, Art Carney, Harvey Korman, Harrison Ford, and Peter Mayhew Directed by: Steve Binder...
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
It should never be forgotten that “Star Wars” was conceived by a motor head. George Lucas was raised a long time ago on a diet...
Game on
It’s a Tuesday night at The Press Room in Portsmouth, and Josh Rose is about to attempt something difficult. “No,” he says, with a hint...
A very special Eight-bit junkyard Christmas
games The Legend of Zelda (Nintendo, 1987) The TV commercials had started in late August. Despite the start of a new school year, all my friends and...
Video Vault: Three Days of the Condor
“Three Days of the Condor” Paramount Pictures, 1975 Starring: Robert Redford, Faye Dunaway, and Max von Sydow Directed by: Sydney Pollack The plot: Joe Turner (Redford)...
Short and sweet
In “Bighorn,” Dover filmmaker Alfred Thomas Catalfo’s 2010 short film, a haunted coronet transports a Harvard professor back to the Battle of Little Big Horn...
Eight-bit junkyard
“Fester’s Quest” (Sunsoft, 1989) Have you ever had a tortured relationship with a video game? If you’ve ever played a video game, then your answer...
Video Vault: Vampire Circus
“Vampire Circus” Hammer Film Productions, 1972 Starring: Robert Tayman, Adrienne Corri, David Prowse, and Thorley Walters Directed by: Robert Young The plot: Handsome vampire Count...
Granite roots
When Nicole Gregg joined the New Hampshire Film Festival team as executive director in 2003, “it was pretty much only known locally.” The festival, which...
The Martian
You might not think that spaceflight and movie-making have much in common. But, turns out, the success of either relies heavily on planning, preparation, ingenuity,...
Eight-Bit Junkyard
“Little Nemo: The Dream Master” (Capcom, 1990) Hey, Capcom! It’s 1990, and you’re coming off two of the most critically and commercially successful video games...
Fresh films
When Telluride Film Festival founders Bill and Stella Pence moved to Portsmouth in the late 1990s, they wanted to do something special for the new...
Video vault
“In a Lonely Place” Columbia Pictures, 1950 Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Gloria Grahame, Art Smith Directed by: Nicholas Ray The plot: Dixon “Dix” Steele (Bogart) is...
Eight-Bit Junkyard
Is there, in recorded human history, an example of an adjective that so despoils a noun as thoroughly as “educational video game?” No, there is...
The End of the Tour
There are few cinematic genres trickier to navigate than biopics. How can any film, no matter how artfully crafted, capture a person’s whole life in...
Mr. Holmes
Longevity can be measured in many ways. The character of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes first saw print in 1887, making him 128 years...
Video vault
1974: On the Road With The Beach Boys MFM Productions, 2011 Starring: Carl Wilson, Dennis Wilson, Al Jardine, Mike Love, Blondie Chaplin, and Ricky Fataar...
Eight-Bit Junkyard
“Back to the Future” (Nintendo) Thirty years ago this summer, “Back to the Future” debuted in theaters. The massive hit led to two more films,...
In the moment
If you want to see Colony of Light, a collective of more than a dozen artists who gather once a year to create an ongoing...
Video Vault
“The Umbrellas of Cherbourg” 20th Century-Fox, 1964 Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Nino Castelnuovo, Ellen Farner, Marc Michel Director: Jacques Demy The plot: It is the late...
Eight-Bit Junkyard
“StarTropics” (Nintendo, 1990) When people ask me what my favorite video game is, I usually don’t hesitate: “Kid Icarus.” There you go. Easy as that....
Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp
In 2001, “Wet Hot American Summer” was the 252nd most successful movie of the year. “Corky Romano” bested it by 158 spots and $25 million...