Author Archive: Mark R. Hasan

Two Troubled Teens: Blue Denim (1959)

Blue Denim (1959), the earnest, cautionary tale of unwanted pregnancy among teens finally gets a proper release on Blu via Twilight Time.

Viva Amiga’s Zach Weddington (and a bit of gear talk)

Podcast interview with Zach Weddington on Viva Amiga, his affectionate documentary on the pioneering multimedia computer (plus a bit of gear talk).

Bruno Mattei’s Rip-Off Trilogy, Part I: Shocking Dark (1989)

Part 1 of Bruno Mattei’s Rip-Off Trilogy begins with Shocking Dark / Terminator 2 (1989), new on Blu from Severin Films.

Jacques Demy’s Two Shades of Ennui: Lola (1961) + Model Shop (1969)

Reviews of Jacques Demy’s Lola diptych: the eponymous 1961 classic (via Criterion Blu) and his lone American film, the grim Model Shop (1969), new from Twilight Time.

TJFF 2018: Postwar Tales Dramatic + Darkly Comedic

Reviews of two contrasting tales of post-WWII refugees screened at TJFF 2018: the dark comedy-drama Bye Bye Germany (2017) + struggles in postwar Palestine in the forgotten Italian drama The Earth Cries Out (1949).

Viva Amiga’s Zach Weddington (and a bit of gear talk)

Podcast interview with Zach Weddington on Viva Amiga, his affectionate documentary on the pioneering multimedia computer (plus a bit of gear talk).

Patricia Rozema’s Singing Mermaids & White Room + Bonus Audio from NCFD 2018

Review of the CanCon classic I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing (1987) and much-maligned White Room (1990) + Q&A audio of director Patricia Rozema & journalist Kiva Reardon during National Canadian Film Day.

ArtScopeTO 07: Interview with Photographer Andre Vittorio

Aprils ArtScopeTO podcast features photographer Andre Vittorio, whose series Abstractions on Metal can be seen at Toronto’s Urban Gallery until Sat. April 28, 2018.

BR: Blue Denim (1959)

You could argue that when Fox chose to adapt James Leo Herlihy and Willam Noble’s eponymous play a year after its 1958 Broadway run under the stage direction of wonderboy Joshua Logan (Picnic), it was an attempt to transcend the wave of sordid, exploitive teen-centric dramas which packed upbeat music, titillating behaviour…

BR: Shocking Dark / Terminator 2 / Terminator 2: Shocking Dark (1989)

As Shocking Dark’s screenwriters testify with amusing reticence in Severin’s newly recorded interview, the film was borne out of the producer’s request to make an Aliens knock-off, and be as close to James Cameron’s 1986 original plus integrate a bit of The Terminator (1984)…

BR: Model Shop (1969)

After the success of The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964) and its sequel Les desmoiselles de Rochefort (1967), Jacques Demy took the offered carrot from Columbia and settled in Los Angeles for his first U.S. studio picture, but what emerged was a film that may have reflected the tone of time…

LP: John and Mary (1969)

Written during his busiest period (1968-1970), Quincy Jones’ score for John and Mary was quite sparse, leaving obligatory space for the film’s myriad dialogue exchanges and source music, but the score is memorable for being atypical of the material Jones was writing at the time: action comedies (The Italian Job, The Hell with Heroes), comedies (Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice,Cactus Flower), and the funky style of They Call Me MISTER Tibbs!

CD: Runaway Train (1985)

For some soundtrack fans, it was a bit of surprise to learn the composer of pioneering synth scores had begun his career with large orchestral scores for John Boorman’s Excalibur (1981) and Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal (1982)…

LP: Bourne Identity, The (2002)

The first film in the enduring franchise gave John Powell the perfect opportunity to write what remains both his definitive action sound, and the definitive action score of that decade, blending large orchestral sounds with layers upon layers of electronics…