Author Archives: Mark DuPré

About Mark DuPré

Retired (associate) pastor at a Christian church. Retired film professor at Rochester Institute of Technology. Husband for nearly 50 years to the lovely and talented Diane. Father to three children and father-in-law to three more amazing people. I continue some ministry duties even though retired from the pastoral staff position. Right now I'm co-writing a book, co-writing a serious musical drama, and am half-way through writing (on my own a month-long devotional.

Maestro

Posted on January 6, 2024 by Mark DuPré

Maestro, the film directed by, starring, and co-written by middle-aged wunderkind Bradley Cooper, is one of the most anticipated films of the year. Coming as Cooper’s sophomore effort after his wildly successful A Star is Born with Lady Gaga, it … Continue reading →

Posted in Film Reviews, Newer films | Tagged A Star is Born, Aaron Copland, Adolph Green, All About Ever, Auntie Mame, Bells are Ringing, Betty Comdon, Black Swan, Bradley Cooper, Candide, Capote, Carey Mulligan, Carol Lawrence, Chita Rivera, Fancy Free, Felicia Montealegre, First Man, Good News, it's always fair weather, José Carreras, Josh Singer, Judy Holiday, Kari Te Kanaway, Killers of the Flower Moon, Lady Gaga, Larry Kert, Lily Gladstone, Maestro, Mahler, Matthew Libatique, Netflix, on the town, On the Waterfront, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Sarah Silverman, singin' in the rain, Spotlight, Tanglewood, The Band Wagon, The Barkleys of Broadway, The Post, West Side Story | Leave a comment

Three Quick Takes: May December, Godzilla Minus One, and The Killer

Posted on December 29, 2023 by Mark DuPré

Note: This entry is dedicated to my “cousin-in-law” Ryan (R.T.). “It’s the most wonderful time of the year…” for film folks, anyway. The films putting their hands up for awards attention reach their greatest number in the last six weeks … Continue reading →

Posted in Film Reviews, Newer films | Tagged Body Heat, Charlie Melton, Collateral, Eric Messerschmidt, Far From Heaven, Godzilla Minus ONe, Gone Girl, Julianne Moore, Locke, Mank, Mary Kay Latourneau, May December, Michael Fassbender, Natalie Portman, Safe, Se7en, Stanley Chan, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Killer, The Social Network, Todd Haynes, Tom Hardy | Leave a comment

Napoleon (2023)

Posted on December 15, 2023 by Mark DuPré

Ridley Scott’s new film Napoleon can be compared in many ways to his Gladiator (2000). Some of the comparisons are helpful, but most show the newer film to also be the lesser film. Like Gladiator, Napoleon has artfully crafted and … Continue reading →

Posted in Film Reviews, Newer films | Leave a comment

All the Light We Cannot See

Posted on December 6, 2023 by Mark DuPré

Louis Hofmann in All the Light We Cannot See Yes, I know it’s technically a mini-series and not a film per se. But as we joke in our house, it’s not a series, but it’s a movie in four parts … Continue reading →

Posted in Film Reviews, Newer films | Tagged 1917, All the Light We Cannot See, comedy, film, films, france, Hugh Laurie, Louis Hofmann, Mark Ruffalo, Michael Fassbender, movies, reviews, The Diary of Anne Frank, Titanic, World on fire | Leave a comment

Since You Went Away (1944)

Posted on October 21, 2023 by Mark DuPré

I thought for years that I had been missing a “must see” film, one produced by Gone with the Wind producer David O. Selznick, nominated for nine Oscars, and featuring, as the trailer tells us, “The Most Distinguished Cast of … Continue reading →

Posted in Film Reviews, Older Films | Tagged Claudette Colbert, David O. Selznick, deep focus, Duel in the Son, Gone with the Wind, Hattie McDaniel, It Happened One Night, It's a Wonderful Life, Jennifer Jones, Joseph Cotton, Lee Garmes, Lionel Barrymore, Monty Woolley, Mr. Potter, Mrs. Miniver, Portrait of Jennie, Rebecca, Robert Walker, Scarface, Shanghai Express, Shirley Temple, Since You Went Away, Stanley Cortez, Strangers on a Train, The Magnificent Ambersons, The Paradine Case, The Song of Bernadette | Leave a comment

Oppenheimer

Posted on October 2, 2023 by Mark DuPré

Yes, I haven’t written anything in a long time. It’s not for lack of time to write, but more a lack of time to see movies in the theater. With two musicals I’m helping with, plus five deaths of folks … Continue reading →

Posted in Film Reviews, Newer films | Leave a comment

Sound of Freedom

Posted on August 6, 2023 by Mark DuPré

Jim Caviezel as Tim Ballard in Sound of Freedom I am way behind on seeing currently running films, and have decided to jump back in now that I have the time. Sound of Freedom comes first, partly because I didn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Film Reviews, Newer films | Tagged Alejandro Monteverde, Bella, Chicago PD, Eisenstein, Jack Ryan, Jim Caviezel, José Zúñiga, Little Boy, Luke 17:2, Mira Sorvino, Person of Interest, Psycho, QAnon, Sound of Freedom, The Passion of the Christ, Tim Ballard | Leave a comment

Johnny Belinda (1948)

Posted on June 10, 2023 by Mark DuPré

This film nearly dropped from my “I really should see this movie sometime” list, as it has seemed to drop from the film-goer’s consciousness over time. I remembered that lead actress Jane Wyman (Mrs. Ronald Reagan at the time) won … Continue reading →

Posted in Film Reviews, Older Films | Tagged A Patch of Blue, Agnes Moorehead, Alan Arkin, Audrey Hepburn, Billy Boy Thornton, Born on the Fourth of July, Brad Pitt, Charles Bickford, Charly, Citizen Kane, Cliff Robertson, Coming Home, Daniel Day-Lewis, East of Eden, Eddie Redmayne, Edward Norton, Elizabeth Hartman, Emmanuelle Riva, Forrest Gump, Gary Sinise, Gregg Toland, Holly Hunter, Jamie Foxx, Jane Wyman, Jarid Leto, Jessica Lange, Joanne Woodward, Jodie Foster, John Malkovich, John Mills, Johnny Belinda, Jon Voight, Leonardo DiCaprio, Lew Ayres, Marlee Matlin, Matthew McConaughey, My Left Foot, Ray, Rembrandt, Rinko Kikuchi, Robin Williams, Ryan's Daughter, Samantha Morton, Sandra Bullock, Sean Penn, Stage Fright, The Blind Side, The Long Voyage Home, The Lost Weekend, The Miracle Worker, The Piano, The Sound of Music, The Theory of Everything, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Tom Cruise, Wait Until Dark, What's Eating Gilbert Grape?, Wuthering Heights | Leave a comment

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Posted on May 26, 2023 by Mark DuPré

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 GG3 is not near the bottom of the Marvel barrel, as some have attested. Neither is it a “great send-off,” as others have called it. It’s a generally funny, overlong, and overstuffed film, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Film Reviews, Newer films | Tagged Adam Warlock, Bradley Cooper, Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Drax, Elizabeth Debicki, Groot, Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Karen Gillan, Kraglin, Mantis, Nebula, Pom Klementieff, Quill, Rocket, Saving Private Ryan, Sean Gunn, Ted Lasso, The Crown, The Searchers, Vin Diesel, Will Poulter | Leave a comment

2023 Oscar Predictions

Posted on March 10, 2023 by Mark DuPré

Until recently, there has been no film that has captured critical, awards, and audience consensus and has thus seemed bound for Oscar glory. That’s changed in the past month or so, as Everything Everywhere All at Once has landed on … Continue reading →

Posted in Film-Related Articles | Tagged All About Eve, All Quiet on the Western Front, Angela Bassett, Anthony Hopkins, Applause, Austin Butler, Avatar: The Way of Water, Babylon, Bette Davis, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Born Yesterday, Brendan Fraser, Cate Blanchett, Daniel Kwan, Daniel Scheinert, Elvis, Everything Everwhere All at Once, Fire of Love, Gloria Swanson, Guillermo del Toro's PInocchio, Jamie Lee Curtis, Judy Holliday, Ke Huy Quan, Martin McDonagh, Michelle Yeoh, Naatu Naatu, Navalny, Oscars, Parasite, RRR, Sarah Polley, Stephanie Hsu, Sunset Boulevard, Tar, Tell It Like a Woman, The Banshees of Inisherin, The Fabelmans, The Father, The Whale, Top Gun: Maverick, Women Talking | Leave a comment