LET’S GO TO THE MOVIES
DIE HARD (1988) For sheer non-stop action it is hard to go past the Bruce Willis 1988 film Die Hard. Few expected the wise-cracking star of the hit TV […]
gladiator
MOVIE TRIVIA – PT107.
Early western star William S. Hart One of the earliest stars of the cinema was a strapping 6’2” former New Yorker who lived for a while during the 1880s in the wild Dakota Territory, a man named William S. Hart. He began studying acting in 1888 and, from 1907 […]
My 30 favorite screen villains – PT2 (20-11)
20 JOAQUIN PHOENIX as Commodus in GLADIATOR (2000) I have often wondered if Joaquin Phoenix resents Russell Crowe for stealing his thunder in Gladiator. Crowe was so good in the title role that Joaquin tended to be forever in his shadow which must have been frustrating because Phoenix really gave […]
BEST PICTURE OSCAR WINNERS – THE BEST AND THE WORST.
There have been some quite wonderful ‘Best Picture’ Oscar winners since 1927/8 and there have been some shockers, too. Just for the heck of it, I went through the list and jotted down my top ten and my bottom ten. If anyone agrees with either list I shall be flabbergasted, […]
AUSSIES BORN & BRED? NOT REALLY.
TOM BURLINSON (1956 – ) as Tommy Woodcock in Phar Lap (1983) ‘Simply Sinatra’ After appreciating his playing of Tommy Woodcock; ‘strapper’ for the legendary racehorse Phar Lap in the 1983 movie of the […]
IN THE BEGINNING…PT 4.
STEVE IRWIN (1962 – 2006) Steve Irwin was born in Essendon, a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, in 1962, to parents who were wildlife naturalists. He was raised at the Queensland Reptile and Fauna Park where he learned how to handle crocodiles before his tenth birthday. His shortish life was devoted […]
Did you know?
Stephen Boyd Stephen Boyd was born the youngest of nine children of a Northern Ireland family in 1928 and will more than likely become immortalized in cinematic history because of his memorable performance as Messala in the enormously successful 1959 blockbuster Ben-Hur. Charlton Heston may have secured the Oscar […]
How important are the correct accents to movie-making?
I suppose if you asked movie buffs who is the best movie star when it comes to delivering a bona fide accent, the response would be a deafening roar of, ‘MERYL STREEP!’ And they would be right. But is an appropriate accent essential to the making of a fine […]
My top 50 favourite movies -Pt3
#10 Road to Perdition (2002) Tom Hanks, Paul Newman, Daniel Craig, Jude Law, Tyler Hoechlin Is there anything Tom Hanks cannot do? This period piece set during the Great Depression is beautifully crafted and, despite its gangland theme, is not a bloodbath. Hanks is simply the best. #9 My […]
Did you know? Points of interest. Pt 10
In 2010 Daniel Craig did something unique. He agreed to appear as James Bond before an estimated billion and a half television viewers in a sequence, opposite Queen Elizabeth II, as part of the Opening Ceremony for the London Olympics that year. ‘She was great’, he said. ‘A really […]