theBCLMC     

The Long Island University Brooklyn Campus Library Media Center Newsletter 

 

We love movies, among other things.

August 2008, issue 36

"ATTICA!!  ATTICA!!"  Sonny Wortzik [Al Pacino], Dog Day Afternoon [1975] [soon to be added to the collection]. 

Dog Days

August.  Hot.  Hazy.  Humid.  Dog days.  Dog movies:

·         Amores Perros  Fine film of three intertwined lives in the wake of a car crash.  From Mexico. 

·         Animal Rescue Vol. 1: Dog Rescues  Title says it all.

·         Best in Show  One of Christopher Guest's best comic mockumentaries, set in a prestigious dog show with the usual outstanding ensemble, and especially great work from Fred Willard as a football commentator out of his element. 

·         A Boy and his Dog  Don Johnson and his dog struggling to get by in a post-apocalyptic world.  And the dog talks.  Cult fave.  From a Harlan Ellison novel. 

·         La Ciudad y los Perros = The City and the Dogs  From the Mario Vargas Llosa novel. 

·         The Compleat Tex Avery  Featuring Droopy the Dog, among other wacky cartoon greats.  Laserdisc only.

·         A Cry in the Dark  A famous Seinfeld catchphrase was lifted from this tragic story starring Meryl Streep as a mother whose baby is killed by wild dogs.

·         Dick  Two wacky teenage girls are hired as official dog walkers for the Nixon White House.  Very funny teen movie starring Kirsten Dunst and Michelle Williams.  And Dan Hedaya as Tricky Dick himself. 

·         Dogfight  Marines, about to ship to Vietnam, have a bet over who can find the ugliest date.  With River Phoenix and Lili Taylor.

·         Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai  Jim Jarmusch's samurai movie starring Forrest Whitaker.

·         My Life as a Dog  Charming coming of age story about young boy who must leave his recuperating mother to live with relatives in a rural village, and along the way he identifies with a dog shot into space as part of the Soviet space program.  Very affecting, truthfully observed look at childhood.

·         Nora Inu = Stray Dog  Kurasawa noir.  Rookie cop loses his gun to a pickpocket, must go to extreme lengths to recover it. 

·         Pavlov and the Conditioned Reflex  This documentary shows Pavlov's pioneering work in behavioral psychology, including the famous dog experiment, and provides rare documentary footage of Pavlov at work. {Ding!}  Did you hear a bell?  i heard a bell.  Hey, you gonna finish that sandwich?  Yeah?  Excuse me then, because I gotta get a cheeseburger.  Must get cheeseburger, must get cheeseburger....

·         Rembrandt Films' Greatest Hits One of the ten animated shorts included here: How to Live with a Neurotic Dog. 

·         Straw Dogs Brutal Peckinpah film about American couple in England.

·         Toy Story  Pixar's first still holds up, thanks in part to a great and underrated performance by Slinky Dog.

·         Training Day  Corrupt LA narcotics cop and fresh faced rookie. Snoop Dog in a supporting role.

·         Umberto D.  De Sica neorealism: The story of a government pensioner, living with only his beloved dog, and how he strives to retain his dignity in the face of hardship.

·         Wag the Dog Amusing bit of political and Hollywood satire, which has perhaps become all too familiar since then.

·         Vidas Secas  A family and their dog struggle to survive in drought-stricken Northeast Brazil.

·         Wallace and Gromit in the Curse of the Were-Rabbit  Brilliant, hilarious stop-motion animated film from Nick Park and Aardman Animations.  Gromit's the dog. 

·         Who'll Stop the Rain?  Tale of drug smugglers based on the Robert Stone novel, Dog Soldiers. 

·         The Wizard of Oz  "Toto too?"  "Toto too!!" 

"Now tell me, which one of these dogs would you want to have as your wide receiver on your football team?" Buck Laughlin [Fred Willard], Best in Show [2000]

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Farewell to Long Time Media Librarian Andrea Slonosky

Andrea and her family have relocated to Toronto [she is a native Canuck] and we'll miss them. 

Among other things, she was part of the Media Center's consolidation way back in 2002, and she oversaw a massive growth in the collection, as well as an expansion of formats and services. 

In her honor, we suggest to you one of her youngest son's favorite films, the one he always asked for when came to visit the BCLMC:  March of the Penguins. 

Au revoir and good luck, boss.  

 

Other sites we like:

 

This issue of  BCLMC is brought to you all the way from the back row by Media Assistant Patrick "Mad Dog" Jewell.  Tell your friends. 

 


The Media Center is located on the fifth floor of the Library Learning Center.  Come up and see us some time.

 

BCLMC  BROOKLYN CAMPUS LIBRARY MEDIA CENTER

Questions?  Comments?  Contact us. 
Media Center Staff:
Patrick Jewell,  Media Assistant  (718) 488-3392  Patrick.Jewell@liu.edu
Lisa Rivera,  Media Assistant  (718) 780-4378  Lisa.Cotton@liu.edu