(epix/Paramount+/tubi/VOD) LADY OF BURLESQUE is a delightfully self-aware adaptation of Gypsy Rose Lee’s sensationlist detective novel regarding the murder of a stripper in a burlesque stage show (the original novel was called THE G-STRING MURDERS). Barbara Stanwick leads, clearly loving the role. Honestly not sure if the Hayes code restrictions help or hurt the film.
HERBIE: FULLY LOADED (2012)
(HBO MAX/VOD) A surprisingly horny take on the HERBIE THE LOVE BUG franchise, penned by THE STATE’s Thomas Lennon and directed by DEBS’ Angela Robinson. Despite the story existing mostly to sell ESPN, NASCAR, Volkswagons, and Cheetos, it’s silly fun. While the cast is vastly over-qualified — including a blink-and-you’ll-miss-him Scoot McNairy — they give it their all.
THE GROUP (1966)
(epix/Paramount+/VOD) It’s an anachronistic mess, and certainly not one of Lumet’s finest, but I can’t get enough of this sort of epic sensationalism. Also, it’s the role that launched Candice Bergen’s career!
LOW DOWN (2014)
A brutal account of growing up surrounded by addicts, some genius and some not, handled with a fair amount of grace and buoyed by a tremendous cast that includes John Hawkes, Elle Fanning, Peter Dinklage and, yes, FLEA.
BUMBLEBEE (2018)
(epix/fubu/Paramount+/VOD) Yeah, it’s technically a TRANSFORMERS film, but it’s actually a winsome teen film, the modern HERBIE THE LOVE BUG we deserve. Also, unlike other TRANSFORMERS films, the action scenes are actually comprehensible, as opposed to a slurry of cuts, motion blur, and sound effects.
COHERENCE (2013)
(fubu/Prime/VOD) A smart and well-produced high-concept indie about living with the choices you’ve made in the past, the choices you could have made, and the choices you wish you had made.
WE TAKE THE LOW ROAD (2019)
(hoopla/VOD/vudu) Overpacked thriller about the cruelty of the US health care system, mental illness, and family. The script and performances are bit clunky here and there, and it doesn’t quite come together in the end, but its big swings are to be applauded.
STAY TUNED (1992)
(Prime/tubi/VOD) A surprisingly sweet script that’s basically an excuse for a bunch of blipvert parodies.
POINT BLANK (1967)
(VOD) Surprisingly experimental, not just with its visuals, but with its handling of passage of time and use of silence (especially the lack of ambient sound in the elevator sequence). I really didn’t expect it to be ‘arthouse action’.
A DREAM OF KINGS (1969)
(VOD) Recently watched A DREAM OF KINGS which I found notable for its use of Chicago. There’s a short scene where Anthony Quinn (playing a Greek again) riproars away from the old Lakeview Treasure Island — my local market when I moved to my Roscoe apt in Chicago — which absolutely delighted me. Quinn here feels like a proto-Tony Soprano, partially because of his bullying and selfishness, but also because of how Quinn carries himself, breathily lumbering through scenes.