TheArchive: Reviewing the Rare, Retro, and Restored

Here at Multicom, we are saddened by the news of Joe Don Baker's passing on May 7th, 2025 . Baker was an important figure in American film and a familiar face in many beloved titles in our collection. His family announced last week that he passed away at the age of 89. Joe Don Baker made a mark on Hollywood with his unmistakable Texan presence and his commanding presence. Whether playing lawmen, outlaws, or something in between, he brought an intensity to his roles that audiences never forgot...including making memorable appearances in multiple James Bond films. He rose to fame in the early 1970s with back-to-back hit performances: first, in Junior Bonner (1972) , directed by Sam Peckinpah, where he starred as the ambitious younger brother of Steve McQueen’s aging rodeo rider. Then, in Don Siegel’s Charley Varrick (1973), he turned heads as Molly, a mob enforcer who chillingly stalks Walter Matthau’s character.  But Baker’s lead role in Walking Tall (1973) catapulted him to th...

Cinema has always mirrored society’s complexities, but some themes have stayed in the shadows. Up until recent history, women’s issues, such as putting careers on hold for children, violence against women, and sex work, were not explored much. Motherhood, as common as it is, is frequently romanticized, glossing over its identity-erasing toll. Similarly, sex work is stigmatized rather than humanized, and violence against women is too often sensationalized instead of contextualized as a societal failure.  This blog focuses on films, new and old, that explore themes often kept in the dark.  Nightbitch (2024) , Alley Cat (1984) , and Anora (2024) bring these underexplored narratives to light, each centering on women navigating extraordinary challenges. From the surreal trials of motherhood to the stigmas surrounding sex work and the harrowing realities of violence against women, these films share a thread of empowerment forged through adversity.  (Searchlight/Disney) In N...