Friday, March 28, 2014
By MICHAEL WALSH
THE GODFATHER — Marlon Brando gave an Oscar-winning performance in director Francis Ford Coppola's 1972 gangster epic, then shocked Hollywood's Academy by refusing their Award. (posted March 28)
STAR TREK IV: THE VOYAGE HOME — Though four days younger than his co-star William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy was the first to move into directing features for the popular science-fiction film franchise. (posted March 26)
ROMERO — Gunned down in 1980 for preaching social justice in El Salvador, Archbishop Oscar Romero is remembered in director John Duigan's powerful biopic and honoured in the simple style of the Roman Catholic Church's new Pope Francis. (posted March 24)
STAR TREK V: THE FINAL FRONTIER — Marking Canadian acting icon William Shatner's 83rd birthday, Reeling Back recalls his feature film directorial debut, and adds a 1973 interview with him in Vancouver. (both posted March 22)
SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT - PART 3 — A celebration of the sidekick, the third (and last) Smokey and the Bandit feature reunited most of the cast in a movie that starred Jerry Reed, elevating his Snowman character to full Bandit status. (posted March 20)
TOMMY — Recognizing the rock opera as a revolutionary opportunity, director Ken Russell turned The Who's concept album into a 1975 movie that reinvented the idea of the screen musical. (posted March 18)
THE NOTORIOUS BETTIE PAGE — Director Mary Harron's 2006 interpretive biography of the most influential photographers' model of the 1950s is the subject of a newly written review, exclusive to the Reeling Back website.(posted March 12)
THE COMMITMENTS — In adapting the first of Roddy Doyle's Barrytown novel's, director Alan Parker introduced "Dublin soul" to the musical playlist appropriate for a St. Patrick's Day celebration. (posted March 16)
THE PLAYER — Director Robert Altman's 1992 satire is a movie about movie-making that opens with an eight minute homage to Orson Welles and the cinema's most famous long take.(posted March 14)
THE NOTORIOUS BETTIE PAGE — Director Mary Harron's 2006 interpretive biography of the most influential photographers' model of the 1950s is the subject of a newly written review, exclusive to the Reeling Back website.(posted March 12)
THE ROCKETEER — Created by comics artist Dave Stevens as a tribute to the great pulp fiction heroes, an all-American icon came alive in director Joe Johnston's 1991 fantasy feature.(posted March 10)
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