Sunset Blvd: The Walking Dead

Gloria Swanson. Photo: Paramount Gloria Swanson used to be big. She had a pretty decent career as a silent-movie star, but shortly after transitioning into talkies she was abandoned by…

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs 

When he finds three huge eggs, Sid's parental instincts kick in; however, the eggs belong to a dinosaur who comes looking for them – and takes the whole gang to…

Batman 

Four supervillains (Burgess Meredith, Cesar Romero, Frank Gorshin, Lee Meriwether) join forces to pose a deadly threat against both Gotham City and Batman (Adam West). The Batman TV show (1966-1968)…

Marty: Breaking the Rut

Betsy Blair and Ernest Borgnine. Photo: MGM Paddy Chayefsky originally wrote this story as a teleplay, which was filmed in 1953 as part of The Goodyear Television Playhouse, an anthology…

Ben-Hur: The Gospel of Judah

Charlton Heston. Photo: MGM The kind of film that starts with a five-minute overture, Ben-Hur is about as classic a 1950s Hollywood blockbuster as they come. Burt Lancaster was reportedly…

The Karate Kid 

Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) and his mother (Taraji P. Henson) move to China; the boy is bullied in school by a kid who doesn't like the newcomer, but Dre turns…

X-Men Origins: Wolverine 

In the 1840s, a young boy discovers that he has special powers; 160 years later, he's a veteran of every American conflict since the Civil War, but is about to…

Last Year at Marienbad: Haunting Memories

Photo: Cocinor I remember watching this French New Wave classic in film school, being oddly fascinated by it even though we watched many other similarly slow-going movies that were anything…

The Serpent’s Way 

In 19th century northern Sweden, a widow (Stina Ekblad) loses her home to a salesman (Ernst Günther) who makes her a deal; it’s the beginning of a humiliation that will…