Tag Archives: History

How to Get to Watching Sesame Street’s Fantastic History on VOD

1 May

Friday Film Review--"Street Gang: How We Got To Sesame Street" | KPCWBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Coming to VOD on May 7
Pre-order on Amazon USA

Nearly everybody has watched the educational program Sesame Street, and it’s pretty much in everybody’s childhood for some length of time. It was a product of Joan Ganz Cooney and Carnegie Foundation vice president Lloyd Morrisett. Through many meetings with child educators and psychologists of the 70s, they had a solid idea on what to construct. Many talents worked behind the scenes–namely puppeteers Jim Henson, Caroll Spinney, and Frank Oz (to name a few) and important to this series success is writer/director Jon Stone. In front of the camera, the list is enormous.

Marilyn Agrelo‘s excellent documentary, Street Gang, is a fascinating look from this series humble beginnings to where it is now. The breadth of information compressed to 107 minutes is very comprehensive. If there’s anything missed, it’s only because it didn’t fit into the narrative about what made this show special to children and adults alike.

No show is without some controversy; maybe the play on a Beatles song was too much. At least it’s humorously addressed.

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That Crazy Samurai is Headed to Home Video March 2nd!

26 Feb

Available on
Hi-YAH! Streaming Service.

WELL GO USA
Physical/VOD/Digital
Release Date: March 2, 2021

Please click on this link to read a review of this movie.

Anyone who missed out in seeing Crazy Samurai Musashi at film festivals can now see it on streaming or on home video! This film has been renamed though, and anyone feeling confused at why Crazy Samurai: 400 vs 1 is used for the Well GO USA release is best to ask this company.

Perhaps it’s to ideally identify what this movie is about. It’s a one take slug-fest of one man versus an entire village. Although this company doesn’t always offer extras in every Asian cinema release, this work is one I wished it had additional material from the Japanese physical media release.

 

I’d love to see what was needed to prepare for filming this movie in one long take. There’s hardly time to breathe given the amount of battles Musashi (Tak Sakaguchi) have to endure. Yuji Shimomura’s film is unique such that he has to coordinate everything through walkie-talkie and hidden headphones. The Japanese home video release offers more and can be purchased through YesAsia, This edition includes a bonus DVD of special features including making-of, audienceless event, first day press meet and trailer.

 

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Freiheit! The White Rose Remembered! A Graphic Novel Review

16 Feb
Image result for Freiheit!: The White Rose

Available to order on Amazon USA

PLOUGH PUBLISHING HOUSE
Released February 16, 2021

Resistance is not futile, and a group of students in Germany do not believe the Reich is right. They formed the White Rose, a group of non-violent intellectuals, to change public opinion about who is best to govern this country. Their goal was to say we don’t have to follow the status quo, and the leaflets they handed out quoted many historical figures, whether they be philosophers or writers, to present how to move forward.

By using the words of the past, these young adults hoped to spur a better future for Germany.

Anyone who’s studied German History knows their fate, and this work by Andrea Grosso Ciponte shows the origin of how this opposition started. I’m blown away by the artwork because the presentation is like watching a piece of old cinema. It truly puts readers into this old world, the problems these kids faced (it was black and white), and the terror which wasn’t of their design!

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Bullied: You Are Not Alone on VOD. A Documentary Review

10 Feb

Available On Demand on Select Streaming Platforms

Coming to Tubi on Feb 12, 2021

For updates, please visit their Facebook page.

Bullying in any form is socially unacceptable, and the nerd/geek community is often the target because we continue to love stuff that other people have outgrown. Filmmaker Thomas Keith‘s documentary Bullied: You Are Not Alone examines the nature of the beast, and I feel it’s a must for every high school curriculum to show in Social Studies. It’s important for teachers to also encourage discussion so everyone can have an easier time in school instead of doing something they may regret later, like dropping out of society (and life). This subject really should be relabelled History, but I digress.

This work brilliantly shows us how bullying behaviour developed over time, and the range is from the cave man days to where we’re at in the 21st Century with cyber-bullying (on any social media platform). When looking at the statistics revealed about Americans, the numbers concerning those being harmed are terrible! Correcting this universal problem is not easy and in what makes this work special is that it shows us possible solutions to change this troubling aspect of society.

The stories we see here aren’t about those facing a challenging social life in school. There’s also workplace bullying and how people treat others when one may have a disability or other characteristic (like race) the other doesn’t like.

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VFFOnline: What’s in the Jukebox? An American Dream Made in Quebec

6 Feb

Image result for Jukebox: The American Dream, Made in QuébecBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

Streaming Online
at the Victoria Film Festival
Get your pass here to view beginning Feb 5th, 2021

Note: Available to view for residents in British Columbia

C’mon baby, let’s do the twist with Denis Pantis, the son of a Greek immigrant who took Montreal’s music scene by storm back in the 60s. His presence was everywhere. From producing to finding new talent, the names he discovered said something not only for the times but also for his pocketbook.

Jukebox: An American Dream Made in Quebec is a wicked look into the past, with a personality in its presentation to boot. Directors Éric Ruel and Guylaine Maroist expertly delves into Pantis’ influence throughout his many ventures, and although he never wanted to be a musician himself, he had the talent to promote others and turn hits from elsewhere into francophone delights.

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