The SS Ben Hecht, by Stephen Silver

Home
Notes
Archive
Leaderboard
About
‘This is the Tom Green Documentary’ revisits the life of the 1990s’ most notorious TV prankster
The new documentary, which Green directed himself, explores why Green was important, even as it at times resembles a glorified clip show.
 • 
Stephen Silver
30 years ago, ‘Before Sunrise’ was the start of something big
Richard Linklater directed Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy in the first of three chapters of a long romance.
 • 
Stephen Silver
Down with "Did 'Wicked' direct itself?"
Against today's most tiresome Oscars talking point.
 • 
Stephen Silver
Fin: Donald Trump's surprising approach to Hollywood
Plus: A film that's not "suppressed," Oscar nomination reactions, down with Razzies, an A.I. nothing-burger, and more in this week’s notes column.
 • 
Stephen Silver
'Grand Theft Hamlet' is Shakespeare in a violent video game
Plus: The wondrous 'Colleyville,' and thoughts on the Oscar-nominated documentaries
 • 
Stephen Silver
‘Inheritance’ is a sharp thriller- shot with an iPhone
Phoebe Dynevor is a plausible action hero in this thriller, which has a familiar plot but a unique look.
 • 
Stephen Silver
1
35 years ago, ‘Tremors’ combined sci-fi, horror, comedy and worms
Kevin Bacon battled giant worms in the low-fi monster movie.
 • 
Stephen Silver
“I heard you perfectly”: David Lynch (1946-2025)
‘Twin Peaks’ hit me like few other things. The key to the career of the man who made that, 'Mulholland Drive' and "Blue Velvet' was that he was always…
 • 
Stephen Silver
Fin: The AMC Fashion District lives!
Plus: "You cut it," the (possible) death of Film TikTok, you must remember Frank Capra and remembering Bob Uecker.
 • 
Stephen Silver
‘Diddy: The Making of a Bad Boy’ gets caught up in too much conspiracist nonsense
The unwieldy new Peacock documentary lays out much of the case against the disgraced impresario- and throws in a bunch of other nonsense as well.
 • 
Stephen Silver
'Wolf Man' is another quality take on classic horror
It's not quite on the level of 2020's 'The Invisible Man," but Leigh Whannel has made another well-done re-do of a Universal monster movie
 • 
Stephen Silver
'American Sniper,' a film that a great many people got wrong, turns 10
The Bradley Cooper Iraq War movie, an American version of what Israelis call a “Shoot and Cry” story, was widely misunderstood by left and right alike.
 • 
Stephen Silver
© 2025 Stephen Silver
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start WritingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture