The General (1998)

John Boorman had been getting more explicitly political for about a decade, but he moves his focus from far-away jungles to close to home, namely his adoptive home of Dublin. Based on a book by Paul Williams, Boorman wrote his script about the brazen and notorious criminal Martin Cahill with a particular emphasis on a…

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Where the Heart Is

Part of that weird 80s and 90s subgenre of rich people having to interact with the homeless, John Boorman's Where the Heart Is is actually one of the more successful efforts, in the lines of Mel Brooks' Life Stinks. It's more clear-eyed and realistic in its portrayal of the issue while having something to say…

Excalibur: A Second Look

It's been obvious that John Boorman had his own little cinematic world. It was less distinct visually than someone like Fellini, especially across the films, but he was operating in a distinctly unique thematic space. In Excalibur, Boorman found the most distinct visual presentation of his style, embracing Romanticism and operatic theatrics to bring the…

Point Blank

John Boorman, supposedly based on a positive review from Pauline Kael for his first film Catch Us if You Can, started receiving offers to work in Hollywood, and he attracted the attention of Lee Marvin who, at the height of his fame, was offered complete creative control over the adaptation of The Hunter by Richard…

Catch Us if You Can

I've got to admit that I resisted John Boorman's first film, an effort to replicate the success of The Beatles' A Hard Days Night by fellow British Invasion band the Dave Clark Five. It was hard to figure out what was even going on with five, young British men that all kind of looked alike…