Projections Movie Blog

'Source Code' director inherited love of sci-fi from dad David Bowie March 31, 2011 | Comment on this article

By Gene Triplett Duncan Jones came by his affinity for science fiction almost naturally, having had it instilled in him by the man who portrayed “The Man Who Fell to Earth” and recorded “Space Oddity” and “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars.” Jones’ father, David Bowie,... Read More

‘The Hollywood Sign’ – From real estate sign to American landmark

March 31, 2011 It is perhaps one of the most recognizable city landmarks in the world, right up there with the Eiffel Tower and Empire State Building. The Hollywood sign, that behemoth of white block letters set in a hillside overlooking Sunset Boulevard, is instantly identifiable as a symbol of the hope, fantasy and glamour that... Read More

Under the Radar DVD of the Week: 'Dennis the Menace: Season One'

March 28, 2011 This week, the oddest DVD to appear on release lists is: “Dennis the Menace: Season One” Dennises of the world, rejoice! Our patron saint of boyhood mischief is still up to his old tricks in “Dennis the Menace: Season One,” the DVD collection from his premiere TV season due out on Tuesday. From 1959... Read More

DVD review: 1952 thriller ‘Kansas City Confidential' is back with a vengeance

March 26, 2011 Julliard-trained singer John Payne started out in the frothy Fox musicals of the ’30s and ’40s starring opposite the likes of Alice Faye and Betty Grable before his boyish face hardened with age, making him better suited to the kind of tough guy role he plays in director Phil Karlson’s 1952 noir nugget,... Read More

Tulsa author enjoys launch of two movie books this spring

March 25, 2011 Prolific Tulsa author John Wooley should limber up his autographing arm as two movie-related books he penned are coming to bookstores this spring. On March 15, Wiley Publishing released Wooley’s new biography, “Wes Craven: The Man and His Nightmares.” On April 7, the University of Oklahoma Press will issue... Read More

DVD review: ‘All the President's Men' (Blu-ray 35th anniversary edition)

March 24, 2011 A key reason why “All the President’s Men” is one of the most powerful political thrillers of all time is, of course, that it’s an incredible true story that literally unfolded before millions of astonished newspaper-reading Americans as two young, lower-rung reporters on the staff of The Washington Post... Read More

Under the Radar DVD of the Week: 'Affluenza'

March 21, 2011 This week, the oddest DVD to appear on release lists is: “Affluenza” What better way to strike back against the rampant consumerism and materialism that afflicts the American soul than to rush out and purchase an updated version of the 1997 documentary “Affluenza,” due out on DVD Tuesday? Hailed as a... Read More

DVD review: ‘William S. Burroughs: A Man Within’

March 21, 2011 As a writer, William S. Burroughs was a beat era icon – a skeletal, literary grim reaper – celebrated for such postmodernist, misanthropic, semi-autobiographical works as “Naked Lunch” and “Junkie.” As a man, he was an equally iconic and enigmatic figure of mid-20th century bohemia who embraced a life... Read More

DVD review: 'Network'

March 18, 2011 Back in 1976, dynamite-lobbing dramatist Paddy Chayefsky was predicting the advent of a reality TV a bit more horrific and soulless than the fare being beamed to the home screens of the 21st century. But only a bit. Under Sidney Lumet’s direction, and with the fiercely on-target performances of a stellar cast,... Read More

‘Spider-Man’ suffers slings and arrows of Broadway critics

March 18, 2011 BY DENNIS KING NEW YORK – Will they ever officially turn on the lights for the problem-plagued, perpetually-in-previews Broadway production of “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark?” That’s a subject of animated discussion at virtually every bar, bistro and boite up and down the city’s neon-lit theater... Read More

Movie review: ‘Lord of the Dance 3D’ more Vegas glitz than Auld Sod

March 17, 2011 Judging from the massive, stadium-sized crowds, the jubilant faces of the audiences and the standing O’s, seeing a performance of “Lord of the Dance” in person must be the equivalent of Irish nirvana. The bedazzling, high-tech dance concert – every bit as garish and overproduced as a multi-truck stadium... Read More

Fly Fishing Film Tour to make stop at Fort Smith, Ark.

March 16, 2011 As Oklahoma anglers gear up for the opening of trout season, it’s a good time to also plan a spring trek to Fort Smith, Ark., to sample the cinematic excitement of the fifth annual Fly Fishing Film Tour. The tour, featuring 10 short films about fly fishing in some of the most exotic locales on the globe,... Read More

Michael Flatley overcame Irish skepticism with freewheeling dance

March 16, 2011 BY DENNIS KING NEW YORK – Though he was born and grew up on Chicago’s South Side to Irish immigrant parents, Michael Flatley has always held close to his Irish roots. As a lad, he enjoyed frequent visits to family in Ireland, and with a mother and grandmother who were championship Irish dancers, he learned... Read More

Under the Radar DVD of the Week: 'Sharktopus'

March 14, 2011 This week, the oddest DVD to appear on release lists is: “Sharktopus” Legendary schlock producer Roger Corman is up to his old tricks in “Sharktopus,” a tongue-in-cheek creature from the deep thriller produced for the Syfy Channel and due out on DVD Tuesday. Corman enlists the mainline acting talents... Read More

Farrelly Brothers readying Stooges saga

March 10, 2011 BY GENE TRIPLETT BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Peter and Bobby Farrelly say they’re close enough to a final line-up of cast members for their Three Stooges biopic to poke ‘em in the eyeballs. At least that’s what the writing, producing and directing team of brothers were hinting at during a press... Read More

Under the Radar DVD of the Week: 'The Sinister Eyes of Dr. Orloff'

March 07, 2011 This week, the oddest DVD to appear on release lists is: “The Sinister Eyes of Dr. Orloff” Every country’s film culture has its marginal mavericks and exploitation auteurs, and in Spain Jesus “Jess” Franco is the reigning cult king of blood, gore and nudity. His rarely seen “The Sinister Eyes of Dr.... Read More

'Rango' voice cast donned costumes, played out actions of their animated characters

March 05, 2011 BY GENE TRIPLETT BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. – Acting can become a lonely artistic endeavor when it comes to doing voice work for an animated film. Each of the cast members usually work separately and alone and at different times, sitting in a recording studio booth, reading their lines... Read More

‘Adjustment Bureau’ stars ponder fate versus free will

March 04, 2011 BY DENNIS KING NEW YORK – While neither Emily Blunt nor Matt Damon profess to be New Age-y advocates of either free will or fate, each star of the cosmic-romantic thriller “The Adjustment Bureau” can relate a personal story in which the hand of providence appears to have steered them on a path that... Read More

Johnny Depp equally adept as lizard king or ‘Belieber'

March 04, 2011 BY GENE TRIPLETT BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — If anyone could give voice to a timid, chronically lying, disaster-prone chameleon in a Hawaiian-print shirt, it would have to be Johnny Depp. When casting voice talent for animated characters, call Tom Hanks for the smiling rag doll cowboy, or... Read More

Movie review: ‘Adjustment Bureau’ tips hat to romance, sci-fi

March 04, 2011 Beware of men in sharp suits and snappy fedoras. They just might be efficient and officious agents of The Big Boss, assigned to keep us on fate’s straight and narrow path and prevent us from straying off into the thorny thickets of free will. That’s the core idea behind “The Adjustment Bureau,” a smart if... Read More

2 3 Next

About the writers

Dennis King

Movie Critic

King spent 31 years as an ink-stained wretch working for newspapers in Seminole, Ada, Oklahoma City and Tulsa. He holds a B.A. degree in English from the University of Central Oklahoma and for 16 years served as an adjunct instructor in journalism and English at Tulsa Community College. For 20 years, he was full-time film critic at the Tulsa World.

In 2006, he left Tulsa and along with his wife, Suzan (a retired English professor), moved to a cabin in Dingmans Ferry, PA. There, along the banks for the Delaware River, he chased after two rambunctious Labrador retrievers, fly fished the waters of the Poconos and did his best to become a full-time trout bum. Still scratching a writer’s itch, he freelanced articles for Explorer magazine and Gray’s Sporting Journal and wrote a stage play about classic movies and old movie theaters, titled “Spirits of the Coronado” (after his long-gone boyhood theater at 39th Street and MacArthur Boulevard).

In December, he and Suzan moved into an apartment in upper Manhattan, where they plan to eat bagels for breakfast and street-cart hot dogs for lunch, haunt the Angelika Theater and the Film Forum, go to plays and museums, ride the subways, complain about the subways and generally live like true New Yorkers.

Gene Triplett

Entertainment Editor

Gene Triplett is another Oklahoma newspaper dinosaur who's been cranking out copy for 34 years, first at the upstart, long defunct Oklahoma Journal, covering just about every news beat imaginable, then at The Oklahoman, where's he's bounced back and forth from features to the news side as assistant city editor, city editor and entertainment editor, managing to hold down the latter position for more than 10 years. He holds a B.A. degree in journalism -- also from the University of Central Oklahoma -- and, also like his colleague King, chases after two loony Labrador retrievers. He does not live by a trout-filled river, but he and his wife Carol do own a swimming pool, much to the delight of their dogs.

The Tripletts enjoy gourmet outdoor cooking year-round (rain, sleet or snow), entertaining friends, road trips to scenic wooded parks that rent rustic lakeside cabins, listening to music, watching classic movies and, in the summertime, swimming with their dogs.