2012 Fall Movie Preview
When I finally got around to updating the old Oscar predictions, I sort of bemoaned the coming of the fall movie season and all the chaos associated with it. That was perhaps a little facetious because I love this time of year so much. Not just for movie reasons, I should say. With the changing […]
The Ambassador
As a film, The Ambassador is fascinating. Danish provocateur/journalist Mads Brügger embeds himself in the dangerous and twisted world of the African business diplomat. With sketchy, black market credentials, the character he’s playing moves from Monrovia, Liberia to Bangui, Central African Republic in search of blood diamonds but under the pretense of building a third-world-saving […]
The Ten Best Films of 2012 So Far
It’s been a pretty good year so far at the movies. Yes, disappointments have littered cineplexes, but dig a little deeper, and the first two-thirds of 2012 have brought us some real gems. It always seems more appropriate for an August mid-year check-in, rather than a June one, because films are starting to hit DVD […]
FILMOGRAPHY: 2011
I’m finally done. Had to wait until at least July, when I got my hands on Margaret, but I decided the end of summer might be an appropriate time for a post like this. As 2012 gets ready to kick it into high gear, I can officially say goodbye to 2011. It was a solid […]
Lawless Review
RATING: (3 STARS) It’s hard to think of a more appropriate title for John Hillcoat’s new Prohibition drama than Lawless (though the title of the novel the film is based on—The Wettest County in the World—is a close second). The film takes place in Franklin County, Virginia during the early 1930s—an area of the country […]
2013 OSCAR PREDICTIONS: Early Acting Guesses
Still don’t know where some of these films and performances are really at, but it’s past time to dust the cobwebs off March’s predictions. I discussed the seemingly wide-open Best Picture category not too long ago. Today, I turn my attention toward the four acting categories. Again, I’m going with the five question format. If […]
Premium Rush Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Pure adrenaline, it seems, is sometimes all one needs to sustain an entire motion picture. Take Premium Rush—the new bicycle messenger action movie directed by David Koepp and starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt. The film hits a speed bump almost every time it stops for exposition. Thankfully, those instances are few and far between, […]
Bernie Review
RATING: (2.5 STARS) Richard Linklater’s Bernie works on a number of levels, but it’s hamstrung by an awkward, repetitive structure which features real-life individuals sharing their recollections about the film’s based-on-real-events subject matter. It’s indicative of Warren Beatty’s Reds—a film that employed this technique to great effect—but Bernie‘s small-town roots aren’t able to support a […]
Side by Side
One wouldn’t necessarily expect Keanu Reeves to be as much an expert on the art of filmmaking as folks like James Cameron, George Lucas, Christopher Nolan, David Fincher, David Lynch, Danny Boyle, Steven Soderbergh, and Martin Scorsese, but in the documentary Side by Side, he’s a very knowledgable window into the artistic and technical processes […]
Bachelorette Review
RATING: (3 STARS) Leslye Headland’s Bachelorette chronicles the misadventures of three deeply flawed women on the night before their friend’s wedding. Comparisons to Bridesmaids are inevitable because of the subject matter and the sex of its main characters, but this film shares much more in common with something like Bad Santa, which presents a series […]
Once Upon a Time in Anatolia Review
RATING: (2.5 STARS) Those who don’t take much stock in the old saying “Patience is a virtue” will likely have a hard time with Nuri Burge Ceylan’s Grand Prix-winning Once Upon a Time in Anatolia. The film, frankly, doesn’t tell much of a story, and it takes its sweet old time not telling it. You’ll […]
TOP 10: Classics-on-the-Big-Screen Wish List
I live in an eastern Pennsylvania suburb—not far from Philadelphia or New York, but not close enough that I can jaunt to either city on a whim to check out one of the awesome-sounding events I’m occasionally invited to. It typically doesn’t bother me much. There are two exceptional independent theaters within ten miles, so […]
2012 TIFF Titles to Watch: #10-#1
My TIFF preview concludes today with some of film’s heaviest hitters. I hope you enjoyed this series. I’ll be covering the fall fests extensively, so stay tuned! 10.) Frances Ha Program: Special Presentation Distributor: N/A Directed by: Noah Baumbach Written by: Greta Gerwig, Noah Baumbach Starring: Greta Gerwig, Mickey Sumner Synopsis: Greta Gerwig stars as […]
2012 TIFF Titles to Watch: #20-#11
Today’s TIFF preview (the penultimate!) features films directed by the likes of Ken Burns, Pablo LarraÃn, and Martin McDonagh. 20.) Room 237 Program: Vanguard Distributor: IFC Films Directed by: Rodney Ascher Synopsis: Obsessive cineastes detail their byzantine conspiracy theories about the secret themes and messages hidden within Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, in director Rodney Ascher’s […]
2012 TIFF Titles to Watch: #30-#21
Continuing my TIFF preview today with a trio of major Oscar contenders, a star-studded ensemble drama, and some of the more unique documentaries of the festival. 30.) Reality Program: Special Presentation Distributor: Oscilloscope Laboratories Directed by: Matteo Garrone Written by: Maurizio Braucci, Ugo Chiti, Massimo Gaudioso, Matteo Garrone Starring: Aniello Arena , Loredana Simioli, Nando […]
2012 TIFF Titles to Watch: #40-#31
Previewing TIFF continues today with one major Oscar contender, a master director working with a bizarre cast, and a number of films with little pedigree but really intriguing story descriptions. 40.) Caught in the Web Program: Special Presentation Distributor: N/A Directed by: Chen Kaige Starring: Mark Chao, Gao Yuanyuan, Chen Hong Synopsis: A young woman’s […]
