Written and directed by Ingmar Bergman I’m going to pick 13 movies. They may be an influence on my writing, on my filmmaking, or on my thinking. They may just be movies I like. There may be more than 13. There are only three colors in Cries and Whispers. The women wear white. The men […]
Written and directed by Peter Hyams I’m going to pick 13 movies. They may be an influence on my writing, on my filmmaking, or on my thinking. They may just be movies I like. There may be more than 13. The black helicopters swoop down on the biplane like angry locusts. They communicate by turning […]
directed By Joe Johnston, written by Lewis Colick based on the book by Homer Hickam, Jr. I’m going to pick 13 movies. They may be an influence on my writing, on my filmmaking, or on my thinking. They may just be movies I like. There may be more than 13. Every man loves October Sky. […]
L.A. Confidential is a Christmas movie. It begins with a real event—1951’s “Bloody Christmas” beating of seven prisoners in the L.A. jail—and springboards from there into a sprawling epic weaving police corruption, show business, and scandal together into three, four, or five (I lose count every time I watch it) intertwining stories. L.A. Confidential is […]
Cinema is dreaming. You enter a darkened space, get comfortable, then experience a series of images and sounds. They may connect one after another into a coherent narrative. They could be disjointed images and sounds, linked thematically or through colors and shapes. They may be somewhere in between, a Strindbergian sonata of surreal meaning. We […]
On April 15, I drove to Chase City to meet cinematographer Roger Deakins. I have admired his work ever since seeing Barton Fink and especially Shawshank Redemption. Despite the name, Chase City is a town (not a city) of about 2,000 people in the south of Virginia, near the North Carolina border. No, there is […]
In 2008, I made a little movie called Election Day. It’s about a political campaign in which a murder is revealed. I didn’t think it was very good. I watched it again, and it’s not bad. The acting and photography are professional caliber. My direction isn’t half-bad. The “mystery” is the weakest part—the little “blank […]
Well, I lied. I did indeed let a year go by without a post, but it wasn’t 2020. I published chapters of a serial novel that year, plus posted a short story I’d written back in 2001. I have since removed those posts because I am working on expanded, improved versions of both those stories. […]
Behold, squires! The mighty music of John Winn, finally digitized for the 21st century! For musings on Beyond Expectations, see my last post. Theme from Beyond Expectations Time for Cake Gina and Rennie Gina and Rennie (Wedding Mix) Just Walk Away Penny and P.J. Chapter 1: The Way Things Are Penny and P.J. Chapter 2: Penny […]
Listen to “Finding Someone Else” Two decades ago, I made a feature film called Beyond Expectations (you can see a production still in my main page slider). It played at a few festivals and was a decent hit with 20-somethings. But it was a rough piece of work. Shot on 16mm film, I look at […]