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Will DiGravio

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The Dark Ocean Endures: <i>Finding Nemo</i> at 20

Happy Birthday

The Dark Ocean Endures: Finding Nemo at 20

May 24th, 2023 Will DiGravio

The Pixar classic ‘Finding Nemo’ turns twenty this month. A look at the film’s enduring legacy, and how the its depiction of the ocean captivates children and adults alike.

Looking Back

Mel Brooks' 'History of the World' Was Always (Basically) Television

Mar 6th, 2023 Will DiGravio

As ‘History of the World, Part II’ debuts on Hulu, we look back at Mel Brooks’s original film, which is a wonderfully strange and funny tale told at the expense of history’s sacred cows.

Timeless Teresa Wright: <i>Shadow of a Doubt</i> at 80

Happy Birthday

Timeless Teresa Wright: Shadow of a Doubt at 80

Jan 11th, 2023 Will DiGravio

Alfred Hitchcock’s personal favorite of his films celebrates its 80th anniversary this month - a gem of film noir that gets at one of the harsh realities of adulthood: learning that members of your family often aren’t who you thought they were.

ICYMI 2022: <i>Three Minutes: A Lengthening</i>

Movies

ICYMI 2022: Three Minutes: A Lengthening

Dec 21st, 2022 Will DiGravio

Director Bianca Stigter turns three minutes of home movie footage into a powerful feature documentary about a community soon to be murdered in the Holocaust, and an essayistic meditation on the moving image - one of 2022's best films.

Looking Back

Classic Corner: 1776

Nov 11th, 2022 Will DiGravio

Fifty years later, the 1972 musical ‘1776’ remains a film worth watching, both for the honest and dishonest ways it portrays American history.

Looking Back

Classic Corner: Wait Until Dark

Sep 23rd, 2022 Will DiGravio

The 1967 classic, now streaming on HBO Max, is so much more than its famous climax - it's a superb example of how to turn the theatrical into a cinematic spectacle.

Looking Back

Classic Corner: High Anxiety

Aug 12th, 2022 Will DiGravio

Critics like Pauline Kael and Roger Ebert did not appreciate what Mel Brooks was up to in his 1977 Hitchcock spoof. It's now streaming on HBO Max, so let's take another look at this under-appreciated gem.

<i>The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance</i> and the Lessons of American Myth-Making

Looking Back

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and the Lessons of American Myth-Making

Apr 13th, 2022 Will DiGravio

John Ford’s 1962 Western wasn't merely a team-up of legends John Wayne, James Stewart, and Lee Marvin; it was a pointed commentary on the stories America tells about itself.

Movies

A Cinematic Energy: The Case for Don Rickles, Actor

Feb 23rd, 2022 Will DiGravio

In Mr. Warmth: The Don Rickles Project (2007), Robert De Niro declares: “Don Rickles is a good actor.” Such a claim on its face should not raise an eyebrow. After all, Rickles’ comic persona, a self-described style of “exaggeration,” is a genius act in every sense of the...