Introducing first in the black corner, weighing in at 205 pounds, hailing from Galveston, Texas – they call him the Galveston Giant – it’s Jack Johnson. And now in the white corner, weighing in at 225 pounds and hailing from Carroll, Ohio, James “The Boilermaker” Jeffries. When Johnson boxed Jeffries for the “fight of the […]
Author Archives: William Thorne
Reels, Notes and Takes: Week 2
There’s no better place to keep a finger on the pulse of arts and entertainment happenings than Los Angeles. The A&E world is alive – it’s always buzzing, sometimes ready to implode with a hint of a surprise album or a celebrity’s controversial statement. Each week, the Daily Bruin A&E editors will discuss their views […]
One-take, unscripted German film ‘Victoria’ screened at UCLA theater
Strobe lights pulse hypnotically as the camera pans to Victoria swaying on the dance floor. Only the pumping bass breaks the silence, beating like her heart as she gathers her long hair and tosses it over her head. The camera follows her out into the bar to down a shot of schnapps and then up […]
Movie Review: ‘Bridge of Spies’
A wrinkled old man sits on a park bench in Brooklyn, painting the bridge he faces across the water. After a few deft strokes of his brush, he leans forward and pries a quarter stuck on the underside of the bench. When he returns to his shabby hotel room, the man takes a razor blade, […]
Westwood home to long history of Hollywood film debuts since 1931
Klieg lights circle in the sky above the the Regency Village Theatre, signaling for miles around that tonight is a special evening in Westwood. Polished limousines pull up and out spill the stars of Hollywood, their dresses shimmering and their expensive smiles beaming. As they tread the thick red carpet, they strike a pose as […]
Q&A: ‘The Final Girls’ director Todd Strauss-Schulson on horror comedy
When a raging fire breaks out in a movie theater, a bunch of teenage friends slash their way through the screen and step into the world of the film. In “The Final Girls,” Max (Taissa Farmiga) and her chums find themselves trapped in an ’80s sex-crazed slasher flick “Camp Bloodbath,” which stars Max’s mother as […]
Sam Smith brings drama to new Bond movie with “Writing’s on the Wall”
It all began with a low, brooding guitar riff in 1962. As a suave, mysterious secret agent walks across the screen, the guitar fades away and the rhythmic toots of the trombone become louder. Suddenly, the agent turns and shoots. Blood trickles down the screen while cymbols crash and trumpets blare. There has been 24 […]