I went out to the movie theater for the first time in months Thursday evening to see "Amazing Grace," the story of William Wilberforce and his crusade to abolish slavery in the British empire. Before I talk about the film, a couple of unrelated notes. First, movie tickets at my local theater are now $10, […]
It was perhaps the surest Oscar bet of the past 30 years. That Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth" would win the prize for Best Documentary. (Complete list of winners here.) Were the bookies in Vegas even taking bets on that category? Probably not, they're not that stupid. Last Monday, the Union-Tribune's new ombudsman wrote about […]
Just got back from seeing the latest James Bond flick. Sunday night is the best time to go -- I shared the theater with two other people -- it's almost like having your own private 80-foot big screen television set. Anyway, Casino Royale is possibly the best Bond film ever. Yes, I've seen them all. […]
Today we have the first-ever guest post on Hoystory. The following is "the rest of the story" about the Dixie Chicks (cumulative IQ = -3) and their claim that the Red Cross refused their money because they're controversial, courtesy my brother-in-law, Ronnie Short. I am bothered about a false statement the Dixie Chicks are making […]
I finally went out to see the latest "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" flick this afternoon -- I'm on vacation for the next couple weeks, so posting will be whatever it turns out to be -- and I must say that I'm rather underwhelmed. The special effects were excellent; lots of action; lots […]
Last week, federal district judge Richard Matsch ruled that three Utah-based companies that provide PG-rated, edited versions of feature films are an "illegitimate business." The quotes from Matsch in the CBC article are over the top. Judge Richard P. Matsch decreed on Thursday in Denver, Colo., that sanitizing movies to delete content that may offend […]
I haven't seen too many movies yet this summer in the theaters, X-men 3 was about it, but I'll see the new "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" when it opens this weekend mainly for Keira Knightly. Having said that, someone seriously needs to feed the girl -- that can't be healthy.
An upcoming film apparently has not enough sex, vulgarity and violence. A church-produced film about a school whose losing football team is turned around after the coach turns to God has been slapped with a "PG" rating -- for being too religious. The Reverend Alex Kendrick, who directed and stars in "Facing the Giants," says […]
Back in January I lamented the fact that Miramax had failed to release a Widescreen version of "The Great Raid," the story of the rescue of American POWs from a Japanese prison camp on the Philippines. Well, today I went out and spent some of my OT money and came across the widescreen version on […]
"United 93" hits the theaters this weekend, and it's gotten largely positive reviews. The movie review compilation site RottenTomatoes.com notes the movie, with a 93 percent positive rating, is the best-reviewed drama so far this year. Of course, there's that 7 percent who don't like the film. Among them is the Union-Tribune's own David Elliott. […]