This week, we’re spending time with Melvin James Kaminsky, better known to the universe as comedy icon and director Mel Brooks! After lampooning westerns, monster movies, and world history, Brooks turned his signature sense of humor to the cinematic sci-fi outings of Star Wars, Alien, 2001, and Planet of the Apes. With an all-star cast…

Aside from the release of Christopher Nolan’s period piece magician caper The Prestige, the year 2006 had one more trick up its sleeve in the form of Neil Burger’s adaptation of Steven Millhauser’s short story “Eisenheim the Illusionist.” Set in turn-of-the-century Vienna, Austria, the film stars Edward Norton as a poor magician who falls in…

Nineteen Sixty-Four was a huge year for cinema, especially for movie musicals. Mary Poppins and My Fair Lady went one and two at the annual box office, with the French film The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and The Beatles’ first film, A Hard Day’s Night, becoming breakout hits. But for his birth year pick, Rum Daddy…