Confessions of a Not-So-Dangerous Mind*

The Great Movies: Psycho

New series for the podcast, "The Great Movies." What better for the first episode in the series than Alfred Hitchcock's groundbreaking horror classic Psycho?

Searching for Bobby Fischer Turns 31

OTD 1993: Steven Zaillian's fantastic adaptation of Fred Waitzkin's novel opens in theaters. Despite rapturous critical praise, the film bombs at the boxoffice, before finding its audience on VHS and cable.

Heartbreak Ridge (1986), "The Best Movie You've Never Seen"

Clint Eastwood's 1986 character study/war film Heartbreak Ridge is among his under-repped top-level films and performances: hugely rewatchable, featuring terrific work from the entire cast.

HBD, Dustin Hoffman!

Happy 87th 🎂 to the most resourceful actor of his generation, Dustin Hoffman. Whether in silly comedies, stately dramas, character studies, docudramas, period pieces, or even action thrillers, the 2x Oscar winner is a level above.

Unforgiven Turns 32

Eastwood's Unforgiven opened August 7, 1992. The revisionist anti-western drew widespread critical acclaim and (somewhat surprisingly) also crushed the boxoffice, grossing more than 8x its production cost. The film went on to capture the major awards at the 1993 Oscars - Best Picture and Director for Clint, Best Supporting Actor for the reliably brilliant Gene Hackman, and Best Film Editing for Joel Cox.

The Fugitive Turns 31

The Fugitive hit theaters on August 6, 1993. An immediate hit with critics and audiences, the film grossed $370 million and was nominated for seven oscars (including Best Picture), winning for Tommy Lee Jones' portrayal of US Marshal Sam Gerard, opposite Harrison Ford's Dr. Richard Kimble.

M. Night Shyamalan Birthday Retrospective

Today is M. Night Shyamalan's 54th birthday. Join me for a look back at the peaks and valleys of his career.

"A Film About Two Movie Stars"

Now nearly 7 decades old, Alfred Hitchcock's To Catch A Thief isn't among The Master of Suspense's best, but it's a highly entertaining romantic thriller... and stars Cary Grant and Grace Kelly bring the heat.

Space Cowboys Turns 24

OTD 2000: Space Cowboys opens. The film takes a piece of real history -- record-breaking air force flyers were ignored by NASA -- and paints a fascinating "what if": what if decades later, one of those spurned flyboys is the only man capable of fixing a Russian satellite hurtling from orbit, back to Earth? Clint Eastwood's original idea was to recruit Connery, Nicholson, and Beatty for the film. Although the 'legends tour' didn't pan out, Tommy Lee Jones, James Garner, and especially Donald Sutherland are great. Highly recommended 👍

Mr. Holland's Opus, "The Best Movie You've Never Seen"

The 20th entry in our ongoing series The Best Movie You've Never Seen is 1995's Mr. Holland's Opus, featuring my favorite performance from Oscar Winner (for The Goodbye Girl) Richard Dreyfuss. Although Dreyfuss snagged an Oscar nom for this one, he lost out to Nicolas Cage (Leaving Las Vegas).