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5 Reviews
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500+ Ratings
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Audience Member
Entertaining if overly reverent.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/21/23
Full Review
Audience Member
An amazing cinematic timeline that emphasizes the film contributions of many northern California filmakers; which is one history lesson you don't want to miss.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/10/23
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Audience Member
Solid, if overlong talking heads documentary about San Francisco filmmakers (did we really need a segment on Chris Columbus?) Most of this is stuff I already knew, but it's presented in a fun way, and there were a few nuggets of new information in there.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/26/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Well made documentary on San Francisco Bay Area filmmakers including George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, Clint Eastwood, Chris Columbus, and producer Saul Zaentz. Recommended
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/05/23
Full Review
Audience Member
A well done documentary. It's probably not the most honest it could be -- a little too much admiration for artists/condemnation of corporate hacks, not always enough attention to whether the art made is any good -- but I like its approach to San Francisco's film scene: from personal to professional to cultural, it's a nice progression. No matter the particular material at any one time, the city is not far from the documentarian's gaze, which is always a strength in a movie like this.
After a preface that gets a little excitable (just a mish-mash of clips: um... okay. I have no idea yet what you're saying about them), it manages to calm down and lay out a coherent story. George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, jumping back in time to Eadweard Muybridge, then forward to Clint Eastwood... it's a long list, but the thesis of the film (something like "SF is a great place for filmmaking because it's close to yet far from LA, and look at all these talented people!") comes through as a great paean to iconoclasm, independence, and the artistic gifts of "pure cinema" and "personal film."
I'm a little surprised by the seeming schizophrenia in its satisfaction with box office success. On the one hand, you're praising art and dismissing Hollywood, and at the same time indulging in one of Hollywood's stupid dances? Okay. That's a little more complicated, I suppose... so whatever, no big deal.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
01/24/23
Full Review
Audience Member
If you are interested in the spirit of indpendent film making u should enjoy this. Interesting subject matter. I enjoyed the George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola and Saul Zaentz sections the most. Wish they had gone into more detail as to why and how THX 38 failed at the box office, for it is possibly Lucas's best film ever.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
01/21/23
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Fernando F. Croce
Slant Magazine
When "maverick" is thrown around this cheaply, it's just a step for somebody to mount an auteurist case for Chris Columbus.
Rated: 2/4
Apr 4, 2008
Full Review
Sura Wood
Hollywood Reporter
Entertaining if overly reverent.
May 22, 2007
Full Review
Dennis Harvey
Variety
As adulatory as a testimonial dinner, pic looks at talents well deserving of more complex, balanced treatment.
May 3, 2007
Full Review
Emily Blunt
Blunt Review
This work reminds its lucky viewers why they fell in love with movie-going to begin with: the creative minds behind the frames that paint moving images to feed our imaginations.
Rated: 4/4
Jul 15, 2009
Full Review
Brian Orndorf
DVDTalk.com
Watching these well-known stories retold with fresh, innovative angles creates a very special, educational experience - absolute pure gold to anyone who has ever followed these careers with unabashed admiration.
Rated: A-
Mar 24, 2008
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