No Mickey Spillane, no Quentin Tarantino. Spillane’s writing had an edgy toughness, some might say sadism, that seemed to dovetail with the alternately explosive and nonchalant method acting of Marlon Brando, James Dean, Dennis Hopper, Lee Marvin, and Jack Nicholson to create a new anti-hero archetype. A handful of his novels were made into movies […]

Imamura was one of the icons of Japanese New Wave cinema, twice winning the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Concentrating on gritty social issues, he frequently raised eyebrows with his work, which included a piece based on the September 11th terrorist attacks as part of the 2002 short film compilation 11’09”01 (DVD 1329). […]

Garrett Scott’s most recent film Occupation: Dreamland is about the lives of army personnel fighting in Fallujah, Iraq. It is slated to air on the Sundance Channel next month.In 2002, his first film, Cul de Sac: A Suburban War Story (VHS 7270), was released. This unusual film starts with the news story of Shawn Nelson, […]

Parks, a multi-talented artist, first gained recognition as a photographer for Life Magazine, often focussing on individuals dramatically affected by living in poverty. He also directed two films of historic interest. His first feature, The Learning Tree (VHS 4291), was based on his autobiography and was among the first 25 films selected for the National […]

Most widely known for television roles on Gunsmoke, Gentle Ben, and McCloud, Weaver also delivered riveting performances in two extraordinary films. In Orson Welles’s Touch of Evil (1958, DVD 163), he is unforgettable as the quaking-in-his-boots night manager of the desert motel where Janet Leigh is being held captive by Mercedes McCambridge and her gang. […]