Schirmer Cinema – A Century of Cinema: Reviews by Scott Schirmer

Fantasia (1940)

[7] Walt Disney was somewhat ahead of his time experimenting with music and animation in Fantasia, an experimental achievement of artistry, craftsmanship, and innovation in animation. It's essentially a series of MTV-style music videos -- some narrative, some more abstract…

May 7, 2026

Licence to Kill (1989)

[7] Timothy Dalton is out for revenge in his second and final outing as James Bond. Continuing the more serious tone set by The Living Daylights, Licence to Kill opens in the Florida Keys with a fatal attack on Bond's…

May 6, 2026

The Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb (1964)

[4] British archaeologists unearth a mummified Egyptian prince and bring him back to England where their American financier plans to exploit the corpse to a paying audience. But when someone uses a mystical amulet to bring the mummy back to…

May 5, 2026

Rebel Without a Cause (1955)

[10] James Dean gives one of the most iconic performances in movie history as Jim Stark, an angst-ridden teenager who quarrels with his parents almost as much as he tangles with high school bullies. I normally hate tough guy movies,…

May 4, 2026

Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)

[7] Michael Rooker (Slither, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2) gives a chilling performance in this gritty, 16mm film based loosely on the confessions of convicted murderer Henry Lee Lucas. As Henry, Rooker lives in a dingy apartment with a…

May 3, 2026

Missing (1982)

[7] Jack Lemmon and Sissy Spacek star in this true story about the disappearance of American journalist Charles Horman (John Shea) who disappeared during the U.S.-sponsored 1973 Chilean coup. Spacek plays the missing man's wife and Lemmon plays his father.…

May 3, 2026

Backdraft (1991)

[6] Director Ron Howard (Cocoon, Apollo 13) delivers peak-level pyrotechnics wrapped in corny melodrama with Backdraft. Kurt Russell and Daniel Baldwin co-star as quarreling brothers who follow their late father into firefighting careers. Baldwin plays the younger brother, embarrassed by…

May 2, 2026