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There are so many movies popping up these days and most of them ride well-worn paths to fairly predictable endings. But every now and then you come across an indie like this that you've heard nothing about - and a simple line of dialog grabs you - and you have that "Hey - you just don't hear things THAT honest in movies" moment! Wow. This is such a film. "DEAR SIDEWALK" (an appropriately original title!) is one of those ever so rare pieces of original fiction that delivers on its own terms. You have not met these characters before! And their relationships are about to unfold honestly, without being burdened by the usual cliches. A terrific film experience, laced with unexpected humor, pathos, irony, and pretty much everything else that makes for a fine film experience.

I don't think some of those reviewing this show understand that TV was in the process of being born in the late 1940s and early 1950s. You have to take into account that this was the first experiment in kids' TV programming - the very first attempt to do a show that would entertain kids. Radio people, being the only "broadcasters" around, were basically trying to do their thing - but with cameras suddenly on them. Buffalo Bob Smith invented the Howdy Doody character on radio - the puppet we usually see as Howdy was the second version, the first one having been horribly crude. Budgets were next to nothing. When Buffalo Bob asked NBC to add a clown to the show, they turned him down. He hired Bob Keeshan (who later played Captain Kangaroo on his own program) to play Clarabelle the clown and paid him $5 a week out of his own pocket. To appreciate the impact of this show you need to close your eyes and listen to the content. Doodyville is an imperfect world with many surprises. Phineas T. Bluster is the mayor and the authority figure. He frequently does thoughtless things but often comes to see the error of his ways. Watch practically any episode of the hit show NORTHERN EXPOSURE and see the same character interactions! Contrary to several internet posts, Smith was not a ventriloquist. He simply voiced the puppet, Howdy Doody, when he himself was off-camera. At some point, actor Allen Swift took over the voicing of Howdy to facilitate more live interaction between Bob and Howdy. Those who know the reality of the early days of TV recognize Bob Smith as one of TV's founding geniuses for his insight into children's entertainment.

How many TV themes from 1958 can be instantly recalled and hummed by today's teenagers? This is the only one I know of. Not only is Henry Mancini's Peter Gunn Theme a jazz masterpiece, his (hot, cool, and sometimes even ethereal) jazz scores for the show are still as gripping as they were when they were composed and recorded - over half a century ago. Combine that with producer/creator Blake Edwards at his up-and-coming very best, big-screen quality cinematography, routinely spectacular stunt work, and just the right cast - and you've got an enduring treasure of a TV series. Craig Stevens as Peter Gunn is several notches smoother than James Bond - but also willing to tangle with anyone and also willing to take his licks. Pete wins some and he loses some. But he's always ready to slug it out with the best of them. Stevens is as athletic as any actor around and, supported by the best brawling stunt men you've ever seen, the fights are as real as you're ever going to get. And on this show violence doesn't just appear - it EXPLODES out of nowhere! With some classics of this era, people still debate whether they're truly "noir" or not. There's no debate here - Edwards gives us noir of a purity seldom seen anywhere else. Quirky character portrayals bring dark urban sets to life - alluring temptresses linger everywhere - and without any inclination to hide their sensuality. Pete, the tenacious, hard-nosed denizen of this dark urban world of low-lifes and gangsters - is a suave, lusty, gentleman playboy with the ladies. Oh, but for Pete, nightclub singer Edie Hart is special. He may earn his living competing in the testosterone driven world of the big-city private detective ... but it's a whole different scene when he slips into "Mother's" place where Edie sings every night. There he's welcomed by "Mother" herself and - wow - "Mother" has no problem with what Pete and Edie are up to! Pete moves effortlessly from the macho world of the mean streets to the gentie, warm, female environment of "Mother's" place. The dynamic is classic and the transition palpable. The technical quality is always superb. You'll not only see close, intense, intimate scenes - you'll see large scale exterior sets that would normally take half a day for a top cinematographer to light so exquisitely. Yet even with the extra limitations of shooting for the limited contrast range of black and white television, these amazing setups have been created somehow at TV production pace, on a TV budget. The atmosphere is delicious - the sensuality omnipresent - the action stunning. This show was way ahead of its time and, as you might guess, the outcries of "too hot for TV" were loud and many. But fortunately "PETER GUNN" delivers several seasons of stunning, delicious, unforgettable period noir drama we can treasure forever.

On first viewing, CARNIVAL OF SOULS may well appear to be just another low-budget creep-fest from out of the black & white past. However, those who have been intrigued enough to see it multiple times tend to see it as much, much more. In addition to some of the most fully realized nightmare images to ever haunt your dreams, there are underlying themes here that are remarkably profound: loneliness, isolation, obsession, religious faith... There are some heavyweight confrontations: What happens to us when we die? Is Christian faith the path to salvation -- or just a meaningless exercise in wish fulfillment? Is it free will that leads some individuals away from spiritual enlightenment or are some individuals just inexplicably doomed to an utterly soulless existence? I know of no other film that manages to deal as intelligently, intuitively, and viscerally with such serious ideas on this meager a budget. There are four key elements that make CARNIVAL OF SOULS a timeless mini-masterpiece: (1) the remarkably sophisticated ideas expressed in John Clifford's script, (2) the supremely ghoulish imagery conceived and realized by director Herk Harvey, (3) the truly compelling performance of Candace Hilligoss (the only paid professional actor in the film), and (4) Gene Moore's otherworldly organ score (reportedly composed in a single afternoon). To this day, CARNIVAL OF SOULS remains the only low-budget film on my list of all-time greats!

Very appropriately, there are some wonderful nods here to Arthur C. Clarke's and Stanley Kubrick's groundbreaking 1968 film, "2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY". "INTERSTELLAR" is truly the next chapter in the exploration of the future begun by that movie and it parallels "2001" its use of powerful metaphorical imagery along with meaningful technical content. I heard so much about this film being vetted by the top physicists that I actually expected it to have its science fully together. So let's begin with a basic correction: "Time" is NOT the "4th dimension"; the "4th dimension" is NOT "Time". Time has been clearly perceived from the emergence of conscious living beings - no one was aware of the 4th dimension until Einstein proposed its existence in the 1920s. To be clear, our sense of time is a direct result of our universal, unidirectional passage through that elusive 4th dimension. But time is merely a subjective artifact - one clearly perceivable to beings that can only directly perceive 3 dimensions. So, okay - in a movie so deeply concerned with the 4th dimension, would it have been so hard to take a moment to finally clear up that blurred distinction? Another scientific slip: the dialogue presents the creatures that experience a 5-dimensional existence as if they somehow possess the 5th dimension. No - they don't have a dimension that applies only to them. That 5th dimension, like all dimensions, should be presented as universal and ever-present. They, unlike ourselves, simply are able to perceive and presumably to operate in it. Aargh! How long are we going to have to wait for a another film like "2001" that really is written with a full understanding of how the space-time continuum really operates? I also have a more mundane complaint. There is a vast difference between a "great pilot" and a "mission commander". I would have replaced the opening scenes with some actual precision flying AND a demonstration of decisive thinking and outstanding leadership ability. All the agricultural exposition could have been accomplished with a bit of dialogue and/or some on-screen text of some kind. But the film really shifts into high gear with the arrival on other planets. You really FEEL the remoteness and novelty of the other worlds. "INTERSTELLAR" probes the supremely critical question of the future of humanity: Are humans capable of facing the daunting challenges of making our move out into the universe? The movie does an extraordinary job of taking on this colossal question, going much farther than any other work that I know of. And for me, the movie makes the actual answer supremely clear: "Absolutely not." I'm not sure that's really a spoiler because, though there may be one character in the film who agrees with me on this, it's not quite the conclusion of the movie itself. Some of the dialogue on this subject is so far beyond brilliant that I can't begin to express how deeply it struck me. This makes it a great work and worthy of 10 stars in spite of all my criticisms.

The premise seemed hollow and I'd heard that the film was very L O N G. Wow -- was I surprised. I was transfixed by the richness of the imagery and the resonance of the characterizations. Every performance in the film -- right down to each and every bit player - flawless! I haven't seen that in a long, long time. We expect Cate Blanchett to be brilliant but I was amazed to find Brad Pitt in the zone as well. He does the most amazing job of playing this unusual, demanding role with quiet understatement ... subtle yet so completely "present". It becomes clear fairly soon that the odd premise is a clever device for examining some of the deepest reflections about what life is ... and what it is not. And it works completely -- the reverse aging novelty allows for a fresh take on just about everything we might have previously thought -- about living and dying -- and about deep personal relationships.

There is so much here! I feel like I've gotten to see four or five great films for the price of one! It didn't seem at all long to me - - in fact, I'd look forward to an even more fabulous directors cut, if there is one. The story line is dazzling -- it's a wonderful ride, full of the highest and lowest adventures of youth and age. And the images are unforgettable: a scarred leg slipped inside a silk stocking ... a mysterious female face shaded by a wide-brimmed hat ... and on and on. There's naval battle scene that's incredibly short -- yet I have never felt such pure, dark, deadly evil -- and such physical vulnerability as I did in that scene. Everything works -- all the wardrobe -- every set -- superbly designed and visually managed. For years David Fincher has been in high demand for directing high-class commercials, where every frame is routinely produced to perfection. No one ever thought you could hold to such standards in a 2 to 3 hour feature film but Fincher seems to do it routinely now.

I would imagine the director happened to read this great novel and wanted to take on the daunting challenge of transforming it into a great film. Most would say "impossible". In the past, movies that follow a character over a lifetime have usually broken the part down for three different actors -- one plays the child, one plays the youth, and one more plays the adult. And there is invariably a huge jolt when the actors changeover. Well, being so focused on the aging process, this story obviously required a lot more than three versions of the character. Reportedly the film took a year to shoot -- and two more years to get the face of Brad Pitt onto all the other Benjamins. For me it works seamlessly.

This is not your feel-good movie of the year. This is not your latest thrills and spills blockbuster. If that's your thing, look elsewhere. But if you enjoy and appreciate meaningful, memorable, epic motion pictures -- in the tradition of The English Patient, Lawrence Of Arabia, and Citizen Kane -- you will be challenged and you will be moved. Great films stay with you forever -- this is a great film.

As often happens, this "story behind the movie documentary" is almost as compelling as the film itself. "Doomed: The Untold Story Of Roger Corman's The Fantastic Four" is a beguiling, superbly edited piece that will make you laugh and also maybe even make you cry - if you are a true lover of movies, that is. As well as being fully entertained, I learned a lot from this documentary about low budget Hollywood. "Doomed" chronicles one of the strangest production experiences American moviedom has ever generated. What you begin to realize from watching this documentary is that it really should not have been possible to make a movie that's this entertaining under these daunting – even harrowing – "Roger Corman Presents" conditions. Indeed, it's easy to see why Mr. Corman might not even want his mysterious "Fantastic Four" to ever be seen – it could well annihilate his reputation as the arch-purveyor of cinematic crap! Many of the better low budget films can deliver a few sparkling scenes – but there's always the inevitable point where it all falls apart and you just have to chuckle. It's clear that this does NOT happen in this original, "spartan" version of the "Fantastic Four" story. Clips from the film illustrate that, somehow, the story remains intriguing, the performances continue to be compelling, the special effects are exciting, and the delicious "comic book look" keeps you enthralled – all the way through! It is nothing short of a quiet little miracle. This energetic, fun-loving documentary features really absorbing interviews with key members of the cast and crew as it probes all the little corners of this intriguing semi-lost production. Now I know what I want. (A) To see the original "Roger Corman's Fantastic Four on the big screen, and (B) to buy the disc that has not only the movie itself – but also this beautifully done, dazzling documentary on it as well!