Pilgrimage
We had traveled from Australia to visit the ancient cathedral town of Canterbury in southeast England that has welcomed thousands of pilgrims since the Middle Ages. We were on a pilgrimage—not a spiritual one but a cinematic one. We were there to pay homage to the film A Canterbury Tale made during World War 2 […]
Another Agee on Film
James Rufus Agee (1909-1955), was the posthumous winner of the Pulitzer Prize for literature in 1958 for his autobiographical novel, A Death in the Family. He is our family’s most distinguished member and comes from the Tennessee side of the family. After reading A Death in the Family, I decided to read his collection of film […]
Fashionable myths and other misdemeanours
Certain contemporary fashion designers are exalted as gods. These hemline giants create clothing designs for women (and sometimes men) that are intended to transcend the staid ready to wear, the plaintive Peter Pan collar and other fashion faux pas. Certain designers are best known for collections which celebrate their obsessions. The poster child for this […]
The thinking woman’s crumpet
The term ‘the thinking woman’s crumpet’ always makes me laugh. I first heard it in London in the 1980s and since then I have used it sparingly but effectively to describe the elusive appeal of certain male actors. These performers exude something more than just sex appeal. Pardon my French but there is a ‘je ne […]
Audrey Hepburn has gone missing
We were visiting a friend in Vancouver, Canada and I was exploring the city. There was a commercial gallery selling studio portraits of Hollywood stars from the 1940s to the 1960s. I entered the gallery. It was a large, brightly lit space. Framed black and white photographs were displayed in single rows on the walls. As a serious student of […]