Big Screen Berkeley: In ‘The Traitor’ a Mafia foot soldier turns on the Cosa Nostra
This Italian film is about a Cosa Nostra loyalist who willingly assassinates his enemies, only to turn on the Italian Mafia when his two young sons disappear.
John Seal is Berkeleyside’s film critic. A movie connoisseur with a penchant for natty hats who lives in Oakland, John writes a weekly film recommendation column at Box Office Prophets, as well as a column in The Phantom of the Movie’s Videoscope, an old-fashioned paper magazine, published quarterly. He also writes regular film reviews for IMDB, which can be read here.
Big Screen Berkeley: More SF IndieFest
This week's movies encompasses everything from traditional arthouse fare to the ultra-outré.
Big Screen Berkeley: Oscar-nominated short subjects; SF Indiefest
Landmark Shattuck Cinemas will once again show the shorts in contention for an Oscar. SF IndieFest has a number of films it is worth crossing the bay for.
Big Screen Berkeley: A day at the Pacific Film Archive
See two long-unseen films by Fritz Lang, a Frederico Fellini masterpiece, and a Romanian drama set on the eve of the downfall of the government of Nicolae Ceaușescu.
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘Clemency’, ‘Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project’
There's wonderful ensemble acting in a powerful new film about the death penalty. Also opening Friday: the incredible story of a deep thinker and news junkie who was an early adopter of video tech.
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘Three Christs’
Richard Gere, Peter Dinklage, Bradley Whitford, Walter Goggins, Kevin Pollack and Julianna Margulies star in this film that was made a few years ago but failed to find a distributor until recently.
Big Screen Berkeley: Our critic’s 15 favorite films of 2019
An Italian mob movie, a 'Hitler comedy,' a bleak science-fiction film and a drama about Colombia’s indigenous Wayuu people — just four of John Seal's fave films of the year.
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘Mr. Klein,’ ‘The Brink,’ ’63 Up’ and ‘Midnight Family’
Four interesting films open this week, ranging from a documentary on a Mexican family who drives ambulances to a 1961 film about the Beats.
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘The Changin’ Times of Ike White,’ ‘Black Circle’
An appealing documentary focuses on a musical prodigy who spent his life in prison; and a Swedish movie is laden with 70s-style imagery: both part of the Another Hole in the Head film festival.
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘The Man with the Silver Case’ and ‘8’
The Another Hole in the Head film festival, which presents an 'excursion into the realms of science fiction, fantasy, and horror' is showing two of the best films of the year.
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘The Invisible Witness’
This "absolutely terrific" Italian suspense film, produced by a major studio, isn’t getting the wide release it deserves.
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘Scandalous’, ‘Synonymes’, and ‘Crime 1978’
This week: A documentary about a scurrilous, hugely popular supermarket tabloid; an uneasy absurdist comedy; and 34 minutes of essential viewing for punks young and old.
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘Collisions’
A family reels after a single mother is detained by ICE in this locally produced gem set in San Francisco.
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘Seance on a Wet Afternoon’ & ‘Greener Grass’
A British New Wave classic starring Kim Stanley as a psychic at Pacific Film Archive, plus 80s-sitcom-style weirdness.
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘La Flor’ and ‘Where’s My Roy Cohn?’
Mariano Llinás' film 'La Flor' runs well over 14 hours, but this critic can't wait to see it again; meanwhile one of the nastiest men of the 20th century is the subject of a documentary by director Matt Tyrnauer.
Big Screen Berkeley: ‘The Dead Center’
Despite its only partially satisfying conclusion, this horror flick is a must-see for genre fans this Halloween season.
