Dear Friends,

We hope that you had your fill of whatever makes Thanksgiving taste good for you. In the coming week you will probably want a total change of menu and we have a good idea for you as Celeste Heiter offers a quartet of Korean dishes from her book Chopstick Cinema to enjoy with Kim Ki-Duk’s classic movie Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter… and Spring — or anytime.

Michael Cecconi shakes and stirs a special cocktail while having thoughts of the cinema of David Cronenberg.

In 2014 during lunch with writer/director Ryan Coogler he told me about the various projects he was working on to follow Fruitvale Station. Ryan had just signed a deal to make Creed, his original story about the son of Apollo Creed seeking Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky to help him become a champion boxer. The film is a triumph that Pam Grady and Jeffrey Anderson review in our Critics Corner.

The long-thought lost feature film starring Harry Houdini, The Grim Game, has been found and will be shown at the Castro Theatre with a live musical score. We asked magician/filmmaker Teller (of Penn & Teller) to watch it and give you his take on this rediscovered gem.

Further escapism will be found in this week’s Eat My Shorts which features various newsreel clips and rare footage of Houdini getting out of seemingly impossible restraints.

A filmmaker who loves and is inspired by silent films is Guy Maddin, using classic cinema as a jumping off point for surprising us with some of the most innovative movies you will ever see. His newest, The Forbidden Room is currently in theaters and Pam Grady spent some time asking the director about his process. It is not a surprise that his answers are provocative.

All of us at EatDrinkFilms are thankful for your support throughout the year. Enjoy the weekend and reading a full issue.

Sincerely,