Lost and Found: Basic Instinct 2

In writing about Sharon Stone as crime novelist Catherine Tramell, a role she’s played twice, I was faced with two enticing choices. First, and most obvious, is to write about Stone’s electrifying, transcendent, and scandalous performance in her first Catherine Tramell film, Paul Verhoeven’s Basic Instinct (1992). That film is basically the gold standard for … Continue reading Lost and Found: Basic Instinct 2 →

Lost and Found: Call Me

The poster for the long-forgotten 1988 erotic thriller Call Me is one of the simplest, yet most effective of its era. A telephone cord wrapped around a woman’s long, nylon-sheathed legs, with the tagline, “Her fantasies could be fatal.” That’s a poster that knows what type of film it’s advertising and does it perfectly. That … Continue reading Lost and Found: Call Me →

Lost and Found: Fear City

Since I first discovered his work with King of New York (1990), Abel Ferrara has been one of my favorite independent filmmakers. His films’ provocative style and content defined the pre-Disney New York City for me. Ferrara documented on film the city I knew from my childhood and young adulthood, the one that scared me … Continue reading Lost and Found: Fear City →

Lost and Found: Fright Night Part 2

For a stretch in the 1980s you couldn’t visit the multiplex without tripping over vampires in the lobby. The Lost Boys, Near Dark, and The Hunger are among the classics of the era. Tom Holland’s Fright Night (1985) ranks near the top of that crowded field. A near-perfect horror comedy—a genre-blend that was perfected in … Continue reading Lost and Found: Fright Night Part 2 →

Lost and Found: Revolver

Few actors have ever commanded the screen with as much intensity as English actor Oliver Reed. For a long time growing up, I knew him mostly as “Uncle” Frank, from Ken Russell’s bonkers film adaptation of The Who’s Tommy (1975). Reed was mesmerizing in a performance that’s both menacing and hilarious. Over the years I’ve … Continue reading Lost and Found: Revolver →

Lost and Found: V.I.P.

The overwhelmingly positive response to the new documentary Pamela, A Love Story has been a pleasant reminder that people really do love Pamela Anderson. For years, decades even, she’s been reduced to a punchline in the media, thanks to everyone’s obsession in the nineties with a leaked, intimate tape featuring her and then-husband Tommy Lee. … Continue reading Lost and Found: V.I.P. →

Series A-Go-Go

Recently, I mentioned having a number of posts queued up for the next several months. Interestingly, many of them are part of different series. By my count, I have about seven series running concurrently here at the Starfire Lounge. This surprised me to learn, as it was never my intent to turn this site into … Continue reading Series A-Go-Go →