“All That Jazz” Columbia Pictures and 20th Century-Fox, 1979 Starring: Roy Scheider, Jessica Lange, Leland Palmer, and Ann Reinking Directed by: Bob Fosse The plot:...
Film
Eight-Bit Junkyard
Shadowgate (Kemco, 1989) There is nothing about “Shadowgate,” a decades-old first-person role playing game, that should work. Nothing. It was a port of a two-year...
Level up
The first video game Jon Dearborn of Barrington officially sold through his design studio, DinoMage Games, was “Gladiator.” Originally an early 1990s PC game, “Gladiator”...
Video Vault
“3 Women” 20th Century-Fox, 1977 Starring: Shelley Duvall, Sissy Spacek, Janice Rule, Robert Fortier Directed by: Robert Altman The plot: Pinky (Spacek), an awkward mouse...
Eight-Bit Junkyard: plumbers and Pac-Men
With next week’s release of “Pixels” in theaters across the country, classic video games and their bright, blocky protagonists will be in the spotlight once...
The Wolfpack
When the six Angulo brothers step out of their Lower East Side apartment in Manhattan for a night out at the movies midway through the...
Video Vault
“Diary of a Country Priest” Brandon Films, 1951 Starring: Claude Laydu, Andre Guibert, Marie-Monique Arkell Director: Robert Bresson The plot: An awkward young priest (Laydu)...
Ex Machina
Ex Machina” is a total stealth bomb. It sneaks up on you, introducing a lot of familiar concepts about the potential impact of the development...
Eight-Bit Junkyard
“Super Mario Brothers 3” (Nintendo, 1988) “Frostbite” (Activision, 1983) “Ecco the Dolphin” (Sega, 1992) It’s summertime! School? Out. Temperatures? Rising. Swimmin’ hole? Still pretty cold...
Inside Out
One of the cardinal rules of storytelling is “Show, don’t tell.” The idea is that telling your audience a character is depressed is much less...
Video Vault
“Straw Dogs” ABC Pictures, 1971 Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Susan George, David Warner Directed by: Sam Peckinpah The plot: American college professor David Sumner (Hoffman) is...
Jurassic World
Few things are more excruciating than watching a half-wit attempt to act smart. It’d be bad enough if it was just Chris Pratt we were...
Eight-Bit Junkyard
“Excitebike” (Nintendo, 1985) “Super Hang-On” (Sega, 1987) They never tell you to beware the ides of June. But they should. Every year, like shiny metal...
Roar
1981, rated PG, 102 minutes Pop quiz, hotshot: Your family’s trapped in a plywood shack surrounded by 100 lions. When the lions get hungry,...
Video Vault: Don’t Look Now
“Don’t Look Now” British Lion Films, 1973 Starring: Donald Sutherland, Julie Christie, Hilary Mason, Clelia Matania Directed by: Nicolas Roeg The plot: After the accidental...
Eight-Bit Junkyard: Altered Beast
“Altered Beast” (Sega, 1988) I was a Roman centurion. I’m dead now. But death is no hurdle for the almighty Zeus. From the dark depths...
Ioka’s future still in doubt
The Ioka theater in downtown Exeter celebrates its 100th birthday this year, but it may have to keep waiting for its second act to begin....
Local screenwriter wins Nashville competition
Dover screenwriter Alfred Thomas Catalfo and Morgan Webster Dudley walked away with top honors earlier this month at the 2015 Nashville Film Festival Screenwriting Competition...
Video Vault
“Alice in Wonderland” 20th Century-Fox, 1976 Starring: Kristine DeBell, Larry Gelman, Bradford Armdexter Director: Bud Townsend The plot: This X-rated musical comedy opens when Alice...
Mad Max: Fury Road
There are many valid reasons “Mad Max: Fury Road” may not be the movie for you. In-world continuity is very important to you. You’ll need...
The final pitch
and the Golden Age of Television Mad Men” concluded its storied run on May 17 after 92 episodes, thousands of cigarettes, hundreds of cocktails,...
The D Train
In “The D Train,” Jack Black stars as Dan Landsman, a sad-sack loser living in the suburbs of Pittsburgh who’s in charge of his high...
Video Vault
“What’s Up, Doc?” Warner Brothers, 1972 Starring: Barbra Streisand, Ryan O’Neal, Madeline Kahn, Kenneth Mars, Austin Pendleton, John Hillerman, Liam Dunn Director: Peter Bogdanovich The...
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Consider the Hulkbuster. This latest version of Iron Man-Brand Power Armor is huge and heavy and metal, but not without some surprising degree of agility....
Eight-Bit Junkyard
“Gauntlet” (Atari, 1985) “Metroid”(Nintendo, 1986) Video games have never been known for their realistic portrayals of women. This isn’t up for debate. Their portrayals of...