A biography of renowned escape artist Harry Houdini, examining his fascination with the occult and his promise to his wife on his deathbed that he would contact her from the great beyond, if it were at all possible.
rarefilmm | The Cave of Forgotten Films Posts
Penniless and without a future, an English teacher agrees to tutor a pampered woman, only to become enmeshed in a strange reality and a downward spiral of desire and illusion, guilt and self-contempt. Will the ugly truth set him free?
In this effective though still slightly uneven drama about mental illness, the worsening condition of a highly disturbed son wreaks havoc on the rest of the family. Dario has episodes when he becomes violently insane yet his mother refuses to put him in an institution where he can be professionally helped. Her desperate clinging to the belief that Dario will get better starts to wear away the equilibrium of the two other members of the family, the father and Dario’s brother, Gabriele. In the end, the continued presence of Dario and his mother’s near-fanatical insistence that he will recover create tragic consequences for everyone.
This valiant melodrama is the brilliant debut as a moviemaker of the great Japanese actress Kinuyo Tanaka, who also has a small role in the story. Based on a screenplay by Keinosuke Kinoshita, Koibumi explores the wounds of war, the limits of love and the need to forgive. A sad and troubled man, Reikichi Mayumi finds a new job five years after the end of WWII. He will write love letters for other people, which was not uncommon in post-war times His ideas about love and his personal principles will be tested when he reconnects with his former girlfriend, Michiko, a woman with a dark past marked by war and the further occupation of her country by the US military forces.
A group of down-home Italians from Brooklyn, with Anthony in the lead, settle into a vacation beach house with another group of teens from Philadelphia. Anthony finds his interest focusing on blond Philadelphian Cindy, and the rest of the film follows with the usual pairing off, disagreements, and discussions.
Before the word ‘cool’ was part of the American vernacular James Dean defined it. Rebel Without a Cause was the antidote to the clean-cut, cardigan wearing teenager of the ’50s, and became an icon to all those who opposed the establishment. With the help of archival photographs mixed with rare screen and wardrobe tests, this video shows a private side of the Hollywood legend who died far too young. Highlights include home movies and interviews with such famed actors as Julie Harris, Dennis Hopper, Sal Mineo, Rip Torn, Eli Wallach, Rod Steiger, Beverly Long and Joanne Woodward.
Filmmaker Joram ten Brink owes his existence to a letter flung from a train bound for the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz over 70 years ago. The letter to his grandparents from their 16 year old son, Leo, who was murdered soon afterwards, was written in Dutch under the eyes of Nazi guards. Yet hidden in the text was a single Yiddish word, “weyiverig”, meaning: “HIDE YOURSELVES!” It was enough to persuade the Jewish ten Brink family to flee and set in motion a rescue to compare with the inspiring story of Anne Frank.
Composer-lyricist Stephen Sondheim whose works include such Broadway hits as “A Little Night Music”, “Company” and “Follies”, talks about the origin of a song from his latest Broadway musical, “Pacific Overtures”. On camera with him are film critic Frank Rich and John Weidman author of “Pacific Overtures” as a straight play who expanded it to the musical book for the show. A highlight of the program is the performance of the song “Someone in a Tree.” with Sondheim at the piano sung by Mako, James Dybas, Geddie Watanbe and Mark Hsu Syers the men who sing it on the Broadway stage.