Special
Listen to Pete's Song of the Week
Films
Some of My Favourite Underrated or
"Unknown" Movies
The Silent Partner
Canada
(Toronto), 1978
Director: Daryl Duke
Cast:
Elliot Gould
Susannah York
Christopher Plummer
John Candy
Music: Oscar Peterson
"Riveting cat-and-mouse psychological thriller."
"Probably
the best
film you have never heard of."
Gerry
USA
2002
Director: Gus Van Sant
Cast:
Matt Damon
Casey Affleck
Music: Arvo Pärt
Beautiful
photography of magnificent desert landscapes, the long takes are
spectacular.
Two
friends, both named Gerry, go for a walk in the desert (Death Valley).
They walk and walk and after some time they realize
that they are lost.
They continue walking, they hardly talk, not much happens, they walk -
and then ... !
Many
people consider this movie as dull or boring.
But, like many others, I was fascinated, not only because of my
admiration for desert landscapes.
Before
I saw the movie I was pleased to read that
the film music was by one of my favourite classical composers: Arvo
Pärt.
The Night Visitor
(Der
unheimliche Besucher)
USA/Sweden
1971
Director: Laszlo Benedek
Cast:
Max von Sydow
Liv Ullmann
Trevor Howard
Rupert Davies
A
brilliant thriller
The Stepford Wives
USA
1975
Director: Brian Forbes
Cast:
Katherine Ross
Paula Prentiss
Peter Masterson
The
act of losing one's personality while adjusting to conformity
is an important issue in this intelligent horror movie.
The
2004 remake is not as good as the 1975 original.
Man Hunt
USA
1941
Director: Fritz Lang
Cast:
Walter Pidgeon
Joan Bennett
George Sanders
A
great classic thriller with an unforgettable heart-pounding ending.
I
don't have this film and I don't know where I can get it.
I saw this movie only once, when I was twelve years old.
The great ending with the little golden arrow still remains a vivid memory.
Well, well. I have finally found the movie!
You can watch it on Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRK6522I4Ks
Two
very slow unconventional westerns with a strange and eerie atmosphere:
Ride in the
Whirlwind
(Ritt im Wirbelwind)
USA
(Utah) 1965
Director: Monte Hellman
Cast:
Jack Nicholson
Millie Perkins
Harry Dean Stanton
Three
cowboys mistaken as bandits are persued in the desert.
"Not
just a western but a political and social tale."
The Shooting
USA
(Utah) 1967
Director: Monte Hellman
Cast:
Warren Oates
Millie Perkins
Jack Nicholson
(I don't like Jack in this movie.)
An
interesting well crafted film, but painfully slow and disturbing.
Some of My Favourite Popular and Famous Movies
Alien
GB 1979
Director: Ridley Scott
Cast:
Sigourney Weaver
Tom Skerritt
John Hurt
Harry Dean Stanton
Ian Holm
Absolutely one of the very best scifi horror movies.
This also goes for the sequel, Aliens, directed by James Cameron.
Released August 2012:
Prometheus
Director: Ridley Scott
Cast:
Noomi Rapace
Charlize Theron
Although officially an original movie, this film can also be
considered as a prequel to "Alien"
Released May 2017:
Another Alien prequel (set between Prometheus and Alien)
Alien: CovenantDirector: Ridley Scott
new >>> Visit my Alien Timeline
It will help you if you are confused by the many Alien prequels and sequels.
Blood
Simple
USA
1984
Director: Joel Coen
Cast:
Frances McDormand
Dan Hedaya
Emmet Walsh
Coen's
first thriller turns out to be a masterpiece.
Fargo
USA
1996
Director: Joel Coen
Cast:
Steve Buscemi
Frances McDormand
William H. Macy
Peter Stormare
Another
great thriller and "Coen-Masterpiece"
The Pledge
USA
2001
Director: Sean Penn
Cast:
Jack Nicholson
Benicio Del Torro
Robin Wright Penn
Sam Shepard
Retired
detective Jerry Black (J. Nicholson) has made a promise
he can't break, to catch a killer he can't find.
A
masterful thriller
based on the book by Friedrich Dürrenmatt.
Touching
the Void
(Sturz ins Leere)
USA/GB
2003
Director: Kevin McDonald
Cast:
Nicholas Aaron
Brendan Mackey
The
compelling true story of an injured mountain climber's
desperate and lonely fight for survival.
A breathtaking trip through hell, snow and ice.
Walk the Line
USA
2005
Director: James Mangold
Cast:
Joaquin Phoenix
Reese Witherspoon
A
chronicle of country music legend Johnny Cash's life.
Record Company Executive: "Your fans are gospel folk, Johnny.
They're Christians, and they don't want to hear you singing to a
bunch of murderers and rapists, trying to cheer them up."
Johnny Cash: "Then they are not Christians."
Older Specials:
Total Eclipse of the Sun 1999
Total eclipse
of the sun in Salzburg, August 11, 1999, 12:40 P.M.
Don't miss this amazing and wonderful
event.
And don't worry, it's not the end
of the world.
W a r n i n g !
I
know, everybody is telling you not to look at the sun without an
appropriate sun filter.
I have my
own special advice for you.
If
you want to look at the eclipse with a telescope or with binoculars,
don't use any
makeshift
sun filters, not even the official eclipse sunglasses that you can buy.
If you
don't believe me, then hold such a filter to the lower end
of a
telescope that is pointed at the sun.
BUT DON'T LOOK THROUGH THE TELESCOPE!
The
filter will start to burn!
Peter Schinwald, July 28, 1999
Well now that the total Eclipse 1999 is over, some
of you who were amazed by the
beauty of the majestic event might
be longing to see
Future Total Eclipses
Future Total Eclipses of the Sun
