For young boys in the Dominican Republic, baseball may be their only chance to raise their family and themselves out of poverty. There are lots of reasons to dislike Major League Baseball, and chief among them, for me at least, is the way in which the organization and its agents … [Read more...] about CIFF: Pelotero to Cape Spin
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Mid-week synopsis
In the last two days, I screened 6 films but won't spend much time discussing them since they have gone to movie heaven - or wherever they go when they are not picked up by a distributor. Here is the rundown. Apartment in Athens. A typical WWII movie that is good but nothing … [Read more...] about Mid-week synopsis
CIFF: Of Two Minds about . . .
Suppose you’re 11 years old and you find out that the man who raised you is not your "real" father. What feelings emerge? Surprise, anger, confusion? For Kattaka, it’s a terrible shock—enough to make her storm out of the room, slam the door, and wish her parents were dead. In … [Read more...] about CIFF: Of Two Minds about . . .
Come as you are to the Film Festival
This past weekend was another Film Festival winner, but not without its challenges. The French film "The Art of Love" arrived on-time, alas without sub-titles. Do the French really think that all Americans can understand... French? We are still working on English! Saturday … [Read more...] about Come as you are to the Film Festival
The value in a (slightly) more expensive can of tuna
I was at Dave's the other day at Cedar and Fairmount. This is the store that might have become a giant Giant Eagle a decade ago, if a small group of vocal citizens hadn't stood up to object. They succeeded in halting a proposal by the Pittsburgh-based supermarket chain to greatly … [Read more...] about The value in a (slightly) more expensive can of tuna
