From Showtime and Kino Lorber comes what is basically a fun primer of adult cinema for folks that might want to either re-visit the genre, or perhaps learn where to start their collection. “X-Rated” is a very R rated look at some of the greatest Adult movies of all time, and manages to interview many of the surviving cast members of films like “The Opening of Misty Beethoven,” “Deep Throat,” and the once very controversial “Taboo.” Its surprising to see how much involvement many of the cast members had in making these classic porn movies, and how affectionately a lot of modern adult stars discuss these movies with a lot of insight and enthusiasm.
Tag Archives: Biography
Quadrangle – A Short Film by Amy Grappell (2013)
Director Amy Grappell digs deep in to her childhood and touches upon a part of her young life that normally might hurt others or inspire discomfort. In 1969, Amy Grappell moves from Brooklyn to Long Island with her mother and further. Both parents were struggling with their own marriage and were working hard to stay together. After meeting another couple at a local beach club, both her mother and father Paul and Deanna eventually found kindred spirits in Eleanor and Robert, both of whom were also struggling with their own marriage at the time.
La Bamba (1987)
I admittedly have a lot of sentimental value and nostalgia attached to Luis Valdez’s “La Bamba” as it’s a film that not only was continuously played in my family, but the soundtrack on record was also constantly replayed. “La Bamba” itself is a solid bio pic of Ritchie Valens, an LA teenager and Chicano rock and roll star who skyrocketed to fame, and died in one of the most infamous plane crashes in world history. Valens’ life was cut short way before he could even reach his twenties, but director and writer Luis Valdez does his best to explore the life of Valens before he stepped on to the ill fated “American Pie” with Buddy Holly and the Big Bopper.
Amazing Journey: The Story of The Who (2007)
From their early days as The Detours, the friendship between Townshend and Daltrey, and their inevitable struggles along the way with Keith Moon, Paul Crowder’s “Amazing Journey” is the fantastic story of The Who and how they were formed into this opposite teaming of talented musicians. Like “The Kids are Alright,” Crowder examines the foursome as a more than human rock band whose music was only half of what made them so incredible on stage.
Gerry (2011)
Gerry Boulet is credited as being Quebec’s first rocker. Of course he was not the only one at the time per se as the province saw that rise of Plume Latraverse, Michel Pagliaro, Robert Charlebois, etc. Gerry Boulet and his cohorts made an impact on French-Canadian culture and music. Boulet and his band Offenbach were a radio staple and strong concert presence in the 1970s and 1980s. Boulet died of cancer in 1990 at what could be considered the peak of his solo career. The film titled simple Gerry covers his life from childhood, through important events that shaped him, then through his career with Offenbach (2 different member line-ups) and his solo career. The film portrays him in a way that seems genuine, with his good moments, his bad ones, and his problems.
The Beatles: Eight Days A Week – The Touring Years (2016)
Not many directors are able to capture the “mania” in Beatles Mania, but director Ron Howard is not only able to capture how much the Beatles ruled the world, but how their influence continues to echo in new generations. “Eight Days A Week” isn’t so much about the entire story of The Beatles, but more about their tumultuous days following their debut in America and how hellish it was to perform live. The Beatles were so popular that performing live became too much of a burden for the “fab four.” The audience was so rabid, in fact, that they just stopped performing live altogether since the people in the crowd spent more time screaming and charging the stage than actually listening to the music they were performing.
Tim Burton: The Iconic Filmmaker and His Work [Hardcover]
For the respective Tim Burton enthusiast comes “Tim Burton: The Iconic Filmmaker and His Work,” a comprehensive biography and study of the master’s work by author Ian Nathan. Courtesy of Aurum Press, the book is a hardcover encyclopedia of everything Tim Burton, chronicling pretty much every film he’s ever made, from his short films in school, to his work in animation, right down to major projects like “Batman Returns” and “Dark Shadows.” Fans of Burton will be pleased to read about the interesting life Burton has led, and how he was often drawn to the Gothic and ideas about the outcasts in “normal” society.