Stella Starstruck

Stella Starstruck Movie reviews, news and entertainment tidbits from a movie-mad Canadian in a Japanese city. Join me!

With the Academy Awards coming in a couple of weeks, it might be a good time to look for the films they cover.One catego...
02/26/2026

With the Academy Awards coming in a couple of weeks, it might be a good time to look for the films they cover.

One category that I rarely am able to watch is the Live Action Short Film category. Some of the films are available on YouTube, so give them a watch. They may not be safe for children or work, so watch at your peril!

Here are the first two I have seen. I'll update when/if I find the other nominees on YouTube.

A Friend of Dorothy -Starring Miriam Margolyes, Alistair Nwachukwu and Stephen Fry
https://youtu.be/CMqUMXn7y5g?si=isjCje5Y20eCdox9
(Some bad language)

Jane Austen's Period Drama - A hilarious look at what would happen if one of Austen's heroines had to explain biology to her hero.
https://youtu.be/dxpjzOLVRR0?si=kqL1LpBG4OncbFyY

A satire by Julia Aks & Steve Pinder | 2026 Academy Award® Nominee - Live Action Short FilmEngland, 1813. In the middle of a long-awaited marriage proposal, ...

Words fail me...his movies were fabulous...The Princess Bride and This is Spinal Tap are two of the funniest films. The ...
12/15/2025

Words fail me...his movies were fabulous...The Princess Bride and This is Spinal Tap are two of the funniest films. The Princess Bride remains one of my favourite films ever...

He directed classic films including The Princess Bride, This is Spinal Tap and When Harry Met Sally.

Robert Redford, star of many great movies, founder of the Sundance Film Festival, died in Utah.He was one of my first mo...
09/16/2025

Robert Redford, star of many great movies, founder of the Sundance Film Festival, died in Utah.

He was one of my first movie crushes and even when that passed, I always respected his work and his work for movies in general.

The actor and filmmaker was known for his blockbuster films like Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid.

Coming out of my semi-retirement with some sad news about one of Canada's most famous actors, Graham Greene.
09/02/2025

Coming out of my semi-retirement with some sad news about one of Canada's most famous actors, Graham Greene.

Graham Greene, an Oneida actor from the Six Nations of Grand River in Ontario who was Oscar-nominated for his role in Dances With Wolves, died Monday in Stratford, Ont., at the age of 73.

I've been seeing a lot of these Criterion Collection posts on YouTube recently. Basically actors or directors are let lo...
04/21/2025

I've been seeing a lot of these Criterion Collection posts on YouTube recently. Basically actors or directors are let loose in the closet and are invited to take the films home with them. They explain why they like a certain film or what their connection to the film is. I've always enjoyed hearing about films I haven't seen or even better, films that I have seen, from someone else's point of view.

This actor plays one of my favourite characters in The Walking Dead, and now his own show. It's very cool to hear him talk about movies and why he likes what he does!

The actor and author raves about the visual beauty of THE COLOR OF POMEGRANATES, shares his love for Debbie Harry and her performance in VIDEODROME, and refl...

A great list of films that are directed by Canadians. I haven’t seen enough of them.
04/18/2025

A great list of films that are directed by Canadians. I haven’t seen enough of them.

So what is the greatest film ever directed by a Canadian?

That’s the question we posed to film critics, programmers, and journalists to create the ultimate list. Responses poured in from across the country, and these were the 50 films that topped their ranks.

The results may surprise you, or maybe they’re exactly what you expected. But either way, they make it extraordinarily clear that when it comes to the art of cinema, nothing quite compares to the Canadians lens.

🎥Read the full list of films: beacons.ai/cbcarts

Although I usually concentrate this page on Movies, I love stage productions as well. I've never been able to visit Broa...
04/10/2025

Although I usually concentrate this page on Movies, I love stage productions as well. I've never been able to visit Broadway, but I just read this article about the reach of the AIDS crisis on Broadway.
https://www.vulture.com/article/hiv-aids-epidemic-crisis-statistics-broadway-theater-community.html?_gl=1*zn3y02*FPAU*MTgxNzg3MTQyOS4xNzQzNzIyODU2*_ga*MTAyMTIyNDgzOS4xNzQzNzIyODU1*_ga_DNE38RK1HX*MTc0NDIwNzM2Ni4xMS4xLjE3NDQyMDczODEuMC4wLjE3ODUzOTk4Mzg.*_fplc*cEphMHIxWFIxciUyRmtwTHljMmQyeXNjemZRZXMxQ3R0bnRiaWhleG5rS1B1SGclMkZuemhNcmtnOUplNFd5MFBoZlpJZ1luSEZVTEw3MW9HSXJFZGJMalZZS1lUJTJCUml4JTJGTmRhSHZmckVJRE9GRklLRzR2U2Ewb2xVUEJJUjQ3aVElM0QlM0Q

It reminds me of the deeply moving film Longtime Companion which is one of the first films I saw that addressed the "men's health" situation.

The AIDS crisis shattered Broadway, and the scope of the loss has never been fully accounted for. Some kept their own records.

This is such sad news. Legendary actor Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home in New Mex...
02/28/2025

This is such sad news. Legendary actor Gene Hackman and his wife, Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home in New Mexico.

Although he was fabulous in so many films, I loved/hated him the most in The Quick and the Dead with Sharon Stone, Russell Crowe and Leonardo DiCaprio. What was your favourite Gene Hackman film and why?

Oscar winner Gene Hackman, one of the most versatile actors in film, was found dead along with his his wife and the couple's dog in their New Mexico home, authorities said Thursday. Foul play was not suspected, but authorities said an investigation was ongoing and that the two had been dead for some...

Another legend of the screen and stage gone. I loved her in Enchanted April and Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont.
01/17/2025

Another legend of the screen and stage gone. I loved her in Enchanted April and Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont.

She was one of Britain's most acclaimed stage and screen stars and the widow of Sir Laurence Olivier.

This is sad. Actress Olivia Hussey has died. She was MY Juliet...
12/28/2024

This is sad. Actress Olivia Hussey has died. She was MY Juliet...

The Golden Globe-winning actress was best known for her role as Juliet in the 1968 film adaptation of the Shakespeare play.

Found this interesting op-ed on why movie dialogue may be a little hard to understand these days.
12/25/2024

Found this interesting op-ed on why movie dialogue may be a little hard to understand these days.

Having trouble hearing movies? You aren't alone. Here's why movies are so difficult to hear.

No!!
09/27/2024

No!!

She won two Oscars and starred in the Harry Potter films and Downton Abbey.

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