Film Reviews Episodes
May 24, 2020
The Streets of San Francisco. Michael Douglas. Karl Malden. 1972-1977.
The 119 episodes of the TV series were filmed on location in San Francisco. To retain San Francisco authenticity, a sound stage was built in the City to film non-location, indoor scenes. Early 1970s San Francisco comes alive…
May 17, 2020
Bullitt. Steve McQueen. 1968
Bullitt starring iconic 1960s King of Cool Steve McQueen is set in San Francisco. A Chicago mobster is being guarded by Lt. Frank Bullitt (McQueen) and his team pending his appearance as chief witness before a Senate subcomm…
May 10, 2020
Towering Inferno. Steve McQueen. Paul Newman. Faye Dunaway. 1974
The dedication ceremony of the worlds tallest high rise at 138 stories in San Francisco, is the setting for this 1974 disaster film. The film unintentionally provides an eerie foreshadowing of the events of 9/11 and the Twin…
May 2, 2020
Mrs. Doubtfire. Robin Williams. 1993
Robin Williams was an accomplished comedian and dramatic actor who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in “Good Will Hunting.”. A comedic genius, he died in 2014 at the age of 63. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor…
April 23, 2020
Milk. Sean Penn. 2008
Sean Penn’s Oscar winning portrayal of slain gay rights leader Harvey Milk is a powerful dramatization of the last 10 days of his life in November 1978. Milk continues to inspire both Americans and global citizens like Leo V…
April 18, 2020
The Maltese Falcon. John Huston/Dashiell Hammett, 1941
This film noir is set in 1941 San Francisco and stars Humphrey Bogart in the title role of private investigator Sam Spade, Mary Astor as the manipulative fortune seeker Brigid O’Shaugnessey, Sidney Greenstreet and Peter Lorr…
April 11, 2020
The Birds. Alfred Hitchcock 1963
Hitchcock’s thriller and horror film was filmed on location in San Francisco and Bodega Bay, Sonoma County in 1962. The themes of the film, a world out of joint, nature attacking humans, inhabitants seeking shelter from terr…
March 29, 2020
Vertigo, Alfred Hitchcock 1958
In this episode I discuss the greatest film of all time, Vertigo, as judged by the British Film Institute in 2012. Set in 1957 San Francisco, it is a technicolor travelog of the City by the Bay. It provides a magnificent phy…