‘Summer Rental’ – film review

When I see John Candy on screen, I feel warm inside. Whilst I can’t remember having ever seen Cool Runnings in its entirety, his presence in Brewster’s Millions and Splash makes those movies much more worthwhile watching than they might otherwise be. His scenes in Home Alone are some of the most memorable of the entire film. Planes, Trains and Automobiles, meanwhile, is …

The Influence of Martin Scorsese’s ‘Mean Streets’

I’ve had Mean Streets on DVD for over a decade. Despite at one time being very much interested in the works of director Martin Scorsese, I’m not sure if I ever got around to watching the 1973 film more than once. It’s the earliest of his films I own and the earliest of his full-length films I’ve …

A New Year’s Spark

“I left in love, in laughter, and in truth, and wherevertruth, love and laughter abide, I am there in spirit.” So wrote the comedian Bill Hicks, about whose life was one of the dozens of books I read in 2020. I also read about the lives of John Coltrane, Louis Theroux and Simon Armitage; poetry …