When and How You Can Watch 2015’s Best Movies
John’s Top 20: The Hateful Eight “In the dead of a Wyoming winter, a bounty hunter and his prisoner find shelter in a cabin currently inhabited by a collection of nefarious characters.” (In theaters) Carol “An aspiring photographer develops an intimate relationship with an older woman.” (In theaters) The Big Short “Four denizens of the […]
The Best Films of 2015
Looking back at my list of the best films of 2014, I led with this statement: “It seems you’re supposed to open your end-of-year favorite films list with an assessment of the movie year as a whole, but I’ve never really been interested in that. Good, bad, or somewhere in between—I have no idea what […]
Phoenix Review
RATING: (3.5 STARS) Phoenix is such an evocative, playful title for German director Christian Petzold’s latest film. He introduces us — and his main character, Holocaust survivor Nelly — to a club called Phoenix early in the proceedings, but it’s nothing more than a red herring. The phoenix is this poor woman who’s life is […]
2014 TIFF Preview
The 2014 Toronto International Film Festival is fast approach, and as I usually do, I’ve combed through every lineup and pulled out the 50 most exciting films for my 2014 TIFF preview. I won’t be attending the fest, but I’ll be waiting with bated breath for news about the quality of these and other great […]
2014 Cannes Lineup Predictions
The recent (bizarre) series of announcements that led to Grace of Monaco being named the opening night film of the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, as well as the selection of Jane Campion to head the 2014 Cannes jury, caused my mind to drift toward the Croisette. It hasn’t left since, and it won’t until Cannes […]
Somewhere Review
RATING: (1 STAR) Somewhere is a very inaccurate title for Sofia Coppola’s latest film for it begins nowhere, goes nowhere, and ends nowhere. I’d love to sit down with the director and ask her why she felt this was a necessary film to make because after sitting through nearly two hours of just nothingness, I […]
