Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
They are everywhere in NYC; I just bought a Powerball ticket at a building’s newsstand that advertised notary services. But I had the same experience years back when my mom died.
Film critic; NSFC, NYFCC. Bylines at Criterion, Sight & Sound, Noir City, my own Substack, and wherever fine film geeks are found. https://selfstyledsiren.substack.com/
14,968 followers 1,627 following 4,964 posts
view profile on Bluesky Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
They are everywhere in NYC; I just bought a Powerball ticket at a building’s newsstand that advertised notary services. But I had the same experience years back when my mom died.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
How hard is it to find a notary in Alabama?
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
My close personal friend @glennkenny.bsky.social is a big admirer of this film and will be most pleased to see it touted.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Absolute darling
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
Cheer yourself up with Kitten Lee Marvin 🧵
Ray Newman (@raynewman.bsky.social) reposted
Now watching: ‘Possessed’, dir. Curtis Bernhardt, 1947. Beautiful location shots of Los Angeles at the beginning, with litter in the gutters and stains on the paving. 🎬🎥
Postcard From The Past (@pastpostcard.bsky.social) reposted
It is a long time ago since I heard anything from you. I fear you are ill again.
[UNOFFICIAL] Now Playing on Criterion 24/7 (@upnextcriterion.bsky.social) reposted
Now playing (04:25 AM PST): "The Munekata Sisters" (1950) By Yasujirō Ozu Runtime: 112 min.
Art History Animalia (@arthistoryanimalia.bsky.social) reposted
More for #GingerCatAppreciationDay 🐈: Another trio of #OrangeCat art by another favorite artist, Eileen Mayo (England / Australia / New Zealand, 1906-1994): Cats in Trees, 1931 Spring Morning, 1952 Early Morning, 1981 #CatsInArt #WomenArtists
Dr. Peter Paul Rubens (@peterpaulrubens.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
2/2 Antwerp cathedral, a real building painted in 1609 by Hendrick van Steenwyck the younger. And the lively figures by my pal Jan Brueghel.
Liz Shannon Miller (@lizshannonmiller.com) reposted
this does not seem like a good thing mail.bigdeskenergy.com/p/substack-j...
Glenn Kenny (@glennkenny.bsky.social) reposted
I’m sure you’ll find my avoidance of any puns on “smashing” in my latest Venice dispatch both welcome and refreshing www.rogerebert.com/festivals/ve...
Forever Louise Brooks (@foreverlouiseb1.bsky.social) reposted
Betty Blythe chilling in Chu-Chin-Chow (1923). #botd
Luke Epplin (@lukeepplin.bsky.social) reposted
A good time to reup this "Peanuts" strip from January 7, 1967, back when there was ample living memory of how terrible measles was and why we should want to eradicate it.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Me too! Plus he has the best apartment, for my taste anyway.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Bond has such a huge fantasy element that I always liked the way Moore leans into that. I admit that there was no one like Connery for being able to play the dark and the light of the character, but Moore is my boy all the same.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
OMG that Hitchcock pullquote, I'm dying! Somebody at Hollywood Mag had fun plastering that on a photo of the decidedly un-cow-like Tyrone Power. 🤣
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
I bookmarked it myself. I have read Black Narcissus and that's it, I believe. The list does feel very right for autumn somehow.
Craig M. Ranapia (@craigmranapia.bsky.social) reposted
Flawless starter pack for an exploration of the fertile land of spinster-lit. I'd also add LOLLY WILLOWES by Sylvia Townsend Warner (along with every other word she wrote)
Matt Zoller Seitz (@mattzollerseitz.bsky.social) reposted
"...an exhilarating riposte to the conventional wisdom about dream projects. The writer-director makes something almost new, and definitely rich and strange, out of a story we all thought we knew well." -- @glennkenny.bsky.social on Frankenstein www.rogerebert.com/reviews/fran...
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
Happy to see that New York's Metrograph is running a September series for one of my favorite actresses, Romy Schneider; eight films including Cesar and Rosalie, Ludwig, La Piscine, and The Things of Life. Schedule here: metrograph.com/category/rom...
Richard Chambers (@newschambers.bsky.social) reposted
Protect Journalists in Gaza. rsf.org/en/rsf-and-a...
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
Happy Labor Day to all who labor. All my life I've had a burst of renewed energy in September. The "back to school" season still feels like a second new year, better in some ways than Jan. 1. Here's Deborah Kerr at home with a pile of books, ready to re-start the year.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
I maintain it's the hair that makes the women look, I am sorry to say it, frumpy. There's a reason those bouffant styles have never come back.
Andrew Pope (@andrewpope.bsky.social) reposted
My review of Yanis Koussim’s ROQIA, the dark, brutal exorcism tale that’s a visceral reckoning with Algeria’s Black Decade, and the best horror playing at this year’s Venice Film Festival.
William Shakespeare (@shakespeare.lol) reposted
Why, Hal, ’tis my vocation, Hal, ’tis no sin for a man to labor in his vocation.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
This one might be well worth revisiting in light of Our Current Situation.
brfaucette.bsky.social (@brfaucette.bsky.social) reposted
97th: One Day Everyone Will Have Been Against This is a powerful book that is part memoir, part essay. It is a book that everyone should read as it speaks to the uncomfortable truths of these moments as the world grappled with Gaza, rise of authoritarianism, and climate change. 1/2 #booksky
Sara Foss (@sarafoss.bsky.social) reposted
"By silencing the press – those who document and bear witness – Israel is silencing the war." According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 189 journalists and media workers have been killed in the war in Gaza www.theguardian.com/global-devel...
JacquiWine (@jacquiwine.bsky.social) reposted
New on the blog this week, I've written about some of my favourite SPINSTERS in literature for @pear-jelly.bsky.social’s #SpinsterSeptember, which starts today. Featuring books by Barbara Pym, Ann Schlee, Russell Hoban, Vivian Gornick and more! #BookSky 💙📚 jacquiwine.wordpress.com/2025/08/31/s...
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Solidarity 👊
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
And a "head of security" who spoke to the NY Times. It's infuriating, considering Rudy still owes a considerable amount in (entirely deserved) legal judgments.
Randi Mayem Singer (@rmayemsinger.bsky.social) reposted
The Marvelous Mrs. Measles, Cheryl Hines, must be so proud!
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
I get the most enjoyment out of Roger Moore's Bond.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
I love it too! Why were you reluctant, did you think it'd be sappy?
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
❤️❤️❤️
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
God have I been there. But growing up where I could be watching a movie released *last week* and have some people reacting like I was an epic weirdo (if, say, it had subtitles)—well it helped put me on the path to eventually just saying “Your loss, toots.”
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
If I needed a bottle of good liquor and a store to buy it from, I too would flag down the long cool woman in a red dress, are you kidding me? youtu.be/DH11CPDXzr4?...
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
I do too, which I always feel a bit apologetic about because I am mostly not a mysterioso person
Matt Zoller Seitz (@mattzollerseitz.bsky.social) reposted
He's not wrong Earlier today, I was trying to think of an entertainment corporation that a person of conscience wouldn't feel somewhat guilty for taking money from, and I couldn't come up with anything Maybe if Ben & Jerry's opened a film division
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
I say this to my kids so often…Nelson Mandela, “A boycott is a tactic, not a principle.” (paraphrase). sahistory.org.za/sites/defaul...
Dr. Annette Bochenek (@home2hollywood.bsky.social) reposted
Remembering Fredric March on his birthday. Read about his life and Wisconsin hometown here: hometownstohollywood.com/wisconsin/fr... #botd
Dr. Annette Bochenek (@home2hollywood.bsky.social) reposted
In honor of Fredric March's birthday, here's my article on Merrily We Go to Hell: hometownstohollywood.com/film-reflect... #botd
Andi Zeisler (@andizeisler.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
🚨UPDATE🚨 @rmayemsinger.bsky.social I’m so sorry, I saw it on Instagram but then my feed did the thing where it refreshed and I couldn’t find the post again!
Glenn Kenny (@glennkenny.bsky.social) reposted
From Venice: Feed My “Frankenstein.” www.rogerebert.com/reviews/fran...
Andi Zeisler (@andizeisler.bsky.social) reposted
Just saw someone refer to Cheryl Hines as The Marvelous Mrs. Measles and 💀💀💀💀💀💀
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Thank you!
Sarah (@thebasementtan.bsky.social) reposted
Conversing outside of classic film circles.
Kate Strasdin (@katestrasdin.bsky.social) reposted
All of the drama in a burst of yellow thanks to #Balenciaga. The early #1960s gown is constructed from the shiniest of duchesse satins tightly gathered at the waist in pleat after pleat and with a loop de loop of fabric between the shoulder blades. Sold via #kerrytaylorauctions #FashionHistory 🗃️🪡
Letterboxd (@letterboxd.social) reposted
Austin Butler and Tonic the Cat on set of Caught Stealing✨ 📷: caughtstealingmovie on instagram
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Steven Bach's is good. The dual "Dietrich and Riefenstahl" biography is a good read, and probably has the most detail about Dietrich's antifascism, presented in counterpoint to Leni. I reviewed it at the time: www.theguardian.com/books/2015/o...
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
Fun thread. I thought the fish picture had to be a cartoon rendering, but nope, that's what it looks like.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
I thought it was for a minute too! I've seen photos of her smoking in this era, but not very many, so I assume (haven't read one way or another) that it wasn't a constant habit for her, unlike a lot of contemporaries.
J.A.Tallon (@tallon.bsky.social) reposted
Fredric March in the Broadway production of Thornton Wilder's "The Skin of Our Teeth" (with Miriam Hopkins) - BOTD
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Your fault for buying a color that will contrast so nicely with his shedded fur, Frank.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Look closer. It's the sunlight on the side of the chair.
Matt Zoller Seitz (@mattzollerseitz.bsky.social) reposted
"The guy can’t win. Except for the part where he’s rich, I guess." Hilarious review by Glenn Kenny (@glennkenny.bsky.social) of a documentary about estate taxes that focuses on the filmmaker's wealthy father www.rogerebert.com/reviews/deat...
[UNOFFICIAL] Now Playing on Criterion 24/7 (@upnextcriterion.bsky.social) reposted
Now playing (06:05 AM PST): "Limelight" (1952) By Charlie Chaplin Runtime: 137 min.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Aren't they cute? And they don't look hurty.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
Wow, this is a fabulous poster for a wonderful film that conceives of Death as a handsome young man—Fredric March. A swift, elegant pre-Code (it came in just a few months before the Hays hammer fell) that clocks in at just 79 minutes.
Irish Literary Times (@irishlittimes.bsky.social) reposted
A flotilla carrying humanitarian aid and activists, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg and Irish poet Sarah Clancy @sarahmaintains.bsky.social is due to leave from Barcelona today www.rte.ie/news/middle-...
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
Good morning, Bluesky friends. Olivia de Havilland wants you to enjoy every one of the summer days we have left. (Check out her sandals; I believe a duplicate pair sits in the window of my local shoestore.)
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Comfort movie for me; I just love it.
Kimberly Pierce (@kpierce624.bsky.social) reposted
Video Archive: Romance on the High Seas (1948) Kim sticks with the Doris Day marathon and sits down to talk about the legendary actress' first film, Romance on the High Seas.
Claude Monet (@monet.bsky.social) reposted
Houses of Parliament in Winter - 1903 #artbots #monet https://botfrens.com/collections/41/contents/10879
"What are you giving me with the flying fish" (@romanbone.bsky.social) reposted reply parent
The graves of Erich Maria Remarque (1898 - 1970) and Paulette Goddard with her birthdate given as 1910 - 1990.
"What are you giving me with the flying fish" (@romanbone.bsky.social) reposted
Erich Maria Remarque's Casa Monte Tabor, on the shores of Lake Maggiore at Porto Ronco. Married to Paulette Goddard from 1958 until his death in 1970, they are both buried at the local cemetery on the hillside above the house.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Beautiful color on her; a lovely new-to-me photo. For many of us from a certain generation, she's the only royal who ever counted, or ever will.
Citizen Screen (@citizenscreen.bsky.social) reposted
Diana, Princess of Wales (July 1, 1961 – August 31, 1997)
AffirmationCoyote.bsky.social (@affirmationcoyote.bsky.social) reposted
Affirmation Coyote sees you have what it takes to make the most of this Sunday!
The Public Domain Review (@publicdomainrev.bsky.social) reposted
Recording from 1905 of one of the 19th-century's most famous opera singers Adelina Patti singing "The Last Rose of Summer", a song based on the poem by Irish poet Thomas Moore: https://publicdomainreview.org/collection/adelina-patti-singing-the-last-rose-of-summer-1905
The Met: Asian Art (@metasian.bsky.social) reposted
Three Intoxicated Courtesans https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/37357
Alain Delon Society (@delonsociety.bsky.social) reposted
Alain Delon and Romy Schneider, 1961. #AlainDelon #Delon #RomySchneider #Film
Danielle Radford (@danielleradford.bsky.social) reposted
“Sir we need some photo from today, everyone is shitposting about your absence” “Bring me the guy who takes pictures of Bigfoot”
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
I agree but because I know Kim and Guillermo in this instance I will let it go 🥰
Cladrite Radio (@cladriteradio.bsky.social) reposted
Here are 10 things you should know about Joan Blondell, born 119 years ago today. She's a favorite here at Cladrite Radio; if her name is in the credits, we're watching.
Jesse Locker (@jessemlocker.bsky.social) reposted
Caravaggio's influential "Judith Beheading Holofernes," borrowed from the Gallerie Nazionali di Arte Antica in Rome, will be on view at the Kimbell in Fort Worth, September 14, 2025–January 11, 2026
Glenn Kenny (@glennkenny.bsky.social) reposted
A real discovery for me at Guggenheim House: Maria Helena Vieira da Silva. Check her out. www.guggenheim-venice.it/en/whats-on/...
Carlos Aguilar (@carlosfilm.bsky.social) reposted
Guillermo del Toro’s FRANKENSTEIN is the astounding culmination of the monster/human dichotomy fueling his oeuvre. The creature is now built from the same flesh as its maker and shares his paternal wound. Elordi and Isaac breathe stirring anguish into their respectively monstrous parts. Beautiful.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
This is wild. 😂 I wager even Rex Harrison could have faked more good will. The backstage atmosphere at that revival must have been, hoo boy.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Fortunately we have dinner guests tonight!
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
"What do you mean, the studio doesn't want to let me remake The Major and the Minor?!"
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
So it turns out that if you have a small freezer, there is a downside to your husband being the favorite customer of the farmers market chicken CSA people.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
That gets a Platinum Blonde laugh.
Benjamin Dreyer (@bcdreyer.social) reposted
The -tic is silent.
Morbid Movies Podcast With Dom and Mary (@morbidmovies.bsky.social) reposted
More of this attitude in film please💓 #filmsky #Frankenstein #GuillermodelToro
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
I was ... I dunno, 11 or so? It was a later run. They used to do that, if a movie was a massive hit they'd put it out again a couple of times, sometimes even the next year. *SIGH of nostalgia* Anyway it took literal years for me to notice or care that they're all clearly in their 20s or even 30s.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Scarlet Street is probably an incredible audience film
Silent Beauties (@silentbeauties.bsky.social) reposted
Lottie Pickford (June 9, 1893 – December 9, 1936) was a Canadian-American silent film actress and socialite. She was the younger sister of fellow actress Mary Pickford. Wikipedia link: en.wikipedia.org/wik... #silentfilm #classicfilm #cinema #film #movie
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
This has been up for 5 minutes and I feel like it should already have gone viral
Citizen Screen (@citizenscreen.bsky.social) reposted
Paul Newman and Lee Marvin for Stuart Rosenberg’s POCKET MONEY (1972)
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
It’s funny that the age of the Grease cast bothered me much less when I myself was a teenager
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
(I believed you in the first place of course, just, holy shit.)
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Now that I am devouring all the articles it’s clear what you’re saying is true. Great big story just sitting there. But my family is from north Alabama so I understand how that would happen.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social)
Oh yeah. Yet another recent instance of Fate's script going for the most blatant metaphor.
Farran Smith Nehme (@selfstyledsiren.bsky.social) reply parent
Yes, this is going to be quite the holiday weekend for Mr. Sweat, I imagine.