Author:   Ken Hanke

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Starring: Alice Faye, Carmen Miranda, Eugene Pallette, Edward Everett Horton, Charlotte Greenwood, Phil Baker, Benny Goodman

The Gang’s All Here

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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In Brief: Busby Berkeley meets Technicolor in this almost surreal musical comedy. It's perhaps most famous for Carmen Miranda's "The Lady in the Tutti Fruiti Hat" number, with its pop art imagery and giant phallic bananas. But there are other pleasures -- some just as peculiar -- within its fast-paced, often silly confines. Ever hear…
Starring: Jane Fonda, Catherine Keener, Elizabeth Olsen, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chace Crawford, Kyle MacLachlan

Peace, Love, & Misunderstanding

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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The Story: An uptight lawyer being divorced by her husband goes to visit her aging hippie mother in Woodstock. The Lowdown: A frequently charming, but largely predictable comedy with some romance. The cast is a big help in making it all seem more worthwhile than it probably is.

Cranky Hanke’s Weekly Reeler June 13-17: That’s the Sound of Rock Hysteria

Posted on by Ken Hanke

Usually by this time of the year I’ve started giving some thought to what’s likely to qualify for a “Best of” list come the year’s end, but the truth is that so far the pickings have been what you’d call lean. We’ve had one sure thing and a couple of maybes — and leave us face it, that’s not so hot for a year that’s racing toward being half over. With that in mind, I’m pleased to announce that one more strong candidate opens this Friday. There are also three other titles that are not strong candidates.

Starring: Gene Robinson, Rowan Williams, Barbara Clementine Harris, Robert Duncan, Otis Charles, Mary Glasspool

Love Free or Die: How the Bishop of New Hampshire Is Changing the World

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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In Brief: As filmmaking, there's nothing very remarkable about Love Free or Die. However, the film is certainly solidly made and it focuses on a timely and important subject -- especially after the Amendent One vote -- since it deals with the impact of gays in the clergy, gay marriage and gay rights in general.…
Starring: Christopher Denham, Nicole Vicius, Brit Marling, Davenia McFadden, Richard Wharton

Sound of My Voice

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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The Story: A pair of aspiring documentarians infiltrate a cult led by a woman who claims to be from the future. The Lowdown: Very indie, very low-tech yarn that's sporadically successful and constantly watchable, but finally not completely persuasive.
Starring: Hugh Dancy, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jonathan Pryce, Felicity Jones, Rupert Everett, Ashley Jensen, Sheridan Smith

Hysteria

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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The Story: The somewhat factual story about the invention of the personal vibrator in Victorian England. The Lowdown: An utterly delightful, charming and funny film that manages to tackle a tricky subject without a false note, thanks to stylish direction and a terrific cast. A must-see film.
Starring: Hildegard Knef, Donald Wolfit, Terence Morgan, Derek Bond, Paul Rogers

Svengali

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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In Brief: Solid production values don't really make up for the fact that this is simply not a very good film version of George. L. Du Maurier's Trilby. The casting is often just plain wrong-headed, but it's impossible to deny that there's a certain amusement value to Donald Wolfit in the role of Svengali. It…
Starring: Lara Cox, Tim McCunn, Scott Lowe, William Slade

The Boy Who’d Never Seen Rain

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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In Brief: A minor-key little film about a struggling Australian sheep-farming family who are attempting to stay together and keep their heads above water, despite seemingly endless bad luck brought on by drought and the generally inhospitable climate of the Outback. Admirably done -- if a little on the film-school-project side -- and with an…
Starring: Alec Guinness, Kay Walsh, Mike Morgan, Renee Houston, Michael Gough, Ernest Thesiger

The Horse’s Mouth

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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In Brief: Ronald Neame's brilliant film -- with a screenplay by star Alec Guinness -- of Joyce Cary's novel is one of the best, if not the best, films ever made about a painter. Rich, wryly funny, shot through with perception, beautifully acted by a splendid cast and then perfectly topped off by the skillful…
Starring: Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Charlize Theron, Idris Elba, Guy Pearce, Logan Marshall-Greene

Prometheus

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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The Story: A corporation sends a small group of specialists into space to track down what may be the origin of life on Earth. The Lowdown: Never as deep, and certainly not as daring, as it seems to wish it was, Prometheus is still compelling as entertainment -- and boasts some incredible effects and design.
Starring: Boris Karloff, Zita Johann, David Manners, Edward Van Sloan, Arthur Byron

The Mummy

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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In Brief: The classic Universal horror about a 3,700-year-old reanimated mummy (played by Boris Karloff in one of his best performances) seeking his reincarnated love (Zita Johann) in modern Cairo. This is an eerie, atmospheric and even poetic horror fantasy that remains unique in the genre.
Starring: Stéphane Audran, Bodil Kjer, Birgitte Federspiel, Jarl Kulle, Bibi Andersson

Babette’s Feast

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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In Brief: The big art house hit of 1988, Babette's Feast is an undeniably charming and strangely touching film that at least comes close to retaining its original lustre -- and possibly even its Oscar win. It is, however, a film I'm not at all sure would really hold up under repeat viewings.
Starring: Aran Bell, Gaya Bommer Yemini, Michaela Deprince, Jules Jarvis Fogarty, Miko Fogarty, Rebecca Houseknecht, Joan Sebastian Zamora

First Position

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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The Story: A look into the lives of seven young ballet dancers as they prepare for and undertake an important competition. The Lowdown: Surprisingly compelling and entertaining documentary that benefits from characters you care about and a structure that gives it a strong dramatic arc.
Starring: Forrest Oliphant, Sadie Adams, Dom Flemous

If I Had Wings to Fly

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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In Brief: Locally made film that showcases folk music as it follows its young hero's path through the region as he searches to find his place in the world. An agreeable little movie with a pace and a vibe distinctly its own. It may not be perfect, but it's a worthy effort -- and one…
Starring: Jean Arthur, Edward Arnold, Ray Milland, Luis Alberni, Mary Nash, Franklin Pangborn

Easy Living

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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In Brief: Scintillating screwball comedy with Jean Arthur as a young woman who gets a dose of the high life when she's mistaken for the mistress of a banker (Edward Arnold). The great Preston Sturges provided the very funny screenplay, which director Mitchell Leisen brought to the screen with wit, charm and that glistening classic-era…
Starring: Alexandre Laigner, Alice Pehlivanyan, Jean-Pierre Loustau, Stéphane Rouabah

A.L.F. (Animal Liberation Front)

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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In Brief: Slick animal rights film structured to resemble a crime thriller. In the main, this works, but it sometimes seems too clever for its own good. The cutaways to scenes of animal cruelty will be too much for some, while the inevitable preachiness will be a downside for others.
Starring: Kristen Stewart, Charlize Theron, Chris Hemsworth, Sam Claflin, Sam Spruell, Ian McShane, Bob Hoskins

Snow White and the Hunstman

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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The Story: Another — much darker — retelling of the Snow White story. The Lowdown: Visually striking with some brilliant bits, but hampered by an ill-cast lead and a padded running time.
Starring: Roman Polanski, Isabelle Adjani, Melvyn Douglas, Shelley Winters

The Tenant

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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In Brief: Roman Polanski's 1976 psychological horror film about a Polish immigrant (Polanski) losing his own personality to that of the woman who previously lived in his apartment (and who committed suicide by throwing herself out of the window) may well be the director's best film. It is certainly his creepiest -- and made all…
Starring: Barry Fitzgerald, Walter Huston, Louis Hayward, June Duprez, Roland Young, Richard Haydn, Mischa Auer

And Then There Were None

Reviewed by Ken Hanke on
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The Story: Ten people are gathered in an isolated location where an unknown assailant is out to take the law into his or her own hands to execute them for crimes they haven't paid for. The Lowdown: Brilliantly stylish and witty adaptation of the Agatha Christie novel, played to the hilt by a perfect cast.…