THE DANMAN CAN

One of only a handful of screenplays by  Elmore Leonard  (and one of only a few that weren't based on one of his novels or short stories), John Sturges ' Joe Kidd (1972) is a perfectly serviceable but unremarkable western with a good, solid cast (including  Clint Eastwood ,  Robert Duvall , John Saxon , and Don Stroud ), handsome cinematography by Eastwood regular Bruce Surtees , and a great score by the always excellent Lalo Schifrin .  John Sturges Films Ranked

I made a tribute video which can be viewed  here . R.I.P. to a mensch Rob Reiner Feature Films Ranked

3615 Code Père Noël  (aka  Deadly Games  aka  Dial Code Santa Claus  aka  Game Over ) (1989) plays as a horror-centric  Home Alone  (1990) crossed with  Commando ,  Rambo: First Blood Part II  (both 1985), and  Die Hard   (1988) [ review ], filtered through the minds of directors like  Jean-Pierre Jeunet  and  Terry Gilliam .  French director  René Manzor  cast his own son ( Alain LaLanne ) to portray child prodigy Thomas, a tween boy who likes to play pretend war games in his widowed mother Julie's ( Brigitte Fossey ) mansion. When Julie is away on Christmas Eve, managing the  Printemps  department store where she works, Thomas, believing he's contacting Santa Claus via a  Minitel  (an online precursor to the World Wide Web), accidentally reveals to a deranged man ( Patrick Floersheim ) where he lives. When the killer Santa shows up at his home, it's up to Thomas to use hi...

The Muppet Christmas Carol   (1992) was the first  Muppet  movie made after Jim Henson 's death two years earlier (regular Muppet performer  Richard Hunt  also passed away earlier the year that  MCC  was released). The film, directed by Henson's son  Brian  and adapted from  Charles Dickens 's timeless  1843 novella , arrived eight years after the previous theatrical Muppet movie, 1984's  The Muppets Take Manhattan   [ review ]. It’s great that all of the remaining living Muppet performers were involved in this production and the artistry shows. I love the puppets, the sets, and a good deal about the film. But this film hit at an age where Muppets weren't really my thing (I loved them when I was younger and then picked them back up in my twenties), so I didn't first see it until 2014. Meaning, I don't have the same sense of attachment to it that I know many people do. Steve Whitmire  does a commendable job of per...

Breezy, charming, melancholic, and melodramatic.  Nobuhiko Obayashi  seems to be channeling  Douglas Sirk  a bit here. It drags a bit, but The Island Closest To Heaven (1984) does a great job of encapsulating the feeling of romantic film from a bygone era. Nobuhiko Obayashi Feature Films Ranked

"Look, Ma! I'm a Picasso!" "Gosh. I only axed you for a smoke." "Well, it ain't fucking Frosty!"

My favorite film. Every moment is forever ingrained in my brain (and heart).  Pure unfiltered joy. Tim Burton Feature Films Ranked The Danman Top 100 Films (2024 Edition) "I pity the poor fool who don't eat my cereal!" "You'll be sorry, Pee-wee Herman!" "I got some new items you might be interested in." "I'm a loner, Dottie. A rebel." "That's me. They call me Chuck." " FRANCIS! " "He's having' his bath." "Go ahead and scream your head off! We're miles from where anyone can hear you!" "Fruit, please." "Well, a deal's a deal. So fork over my money for lifting it for you, Bux ton !" "The mind plays tricks on you. You play tricks back !" " Is this something you can share with the rest of us, Amazing Larry?! " "You're here because you... want something." "The Alamo! In...the basemenT ." "I got a real bad temp...