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jimnycla
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Reviews
Bathtubs Over Broadway (2018)
A Rare Look at Amazing Industrial Shows
The General Public has never seen the likes of these shows. Now for the first time everyone can delight in this Marvelous Musical Madness. Bravo/a.
El fantástico mundo de Juan Orol (2012)
Brilliant Comedy from Mexico
I had the great pleasure of seeing this film which was shown only twice at MoMA in NYC as part of their Global Lens 2013 film series. In this film, Mexico's half-forgotten B-movie master, "involuntary surrealist" Juan Orol (1897-1988) , receives a pitch-perfect tribute which is a love letter to a self-made man of showbiz, whose career spanned nearly sixty films (1935-1968) . In a black and white flashback mingling movie-tainted memories of his Galician childhood, forced exile to Cuba and arrival in Mexico, intrepid "Juanito" pursues failed careers as baseball player, boxer, bullfighter and gangster before landing in the movies ---where failure kind of works for him. As Orol (and his alter ego), Roberto Sosa, who is a combination of Cantinflas, Fernandel and Chaplin, brilliantly exudes droll underdog charm, anchoring a fast-moving comedy where every frame is an infectious homage to a golden age of cinema, the wiles of memory and the art of fantasy. Director Sebastian de Amo has made a classic film which introduces the amazingly imaginative Orol to film-goers all over the world. This is a must see for anyone who loves the movies.
Sunnyside Up (1929)
One of the First Film Musicals a "Classic"
This was the first talkie for Charles Farrell and Janet Gaynor, who starred in numerous romantic silent films together. Their chemistry is wonderful. This film was also one of the first film musicals. The supporting cast is terrific and there's a fun cameo by little Jackie Coogan who recites a poem (or at least starts to recite). The "Turn Up The Heat" dance sequence is a hoot. Very pre-code sensual with chorines writhing on the floor and palm trees complete with bananas shooting erectly up out of the floor (the movie theater audience howled) . Saw this film today at The Museum of Modern Art here in NYC as part of their "To Save and Project" series. The film has been beautifully restored and future generations will now be able to see this "classic" pristine print. Thank You MOMA.