Sorted by date Results 301 - 325 of 342
It’s that time again! Time for the Los Angeles Film Festival! Now in its 16th year and running from June 17th to 27th, LAFF 2010 has plenty of surprises in store for you, not the least of which is its relocation to the LA Live complex in Downtown Los Angeles. Infusing the new level of energy and excitement of the Downtown area into the Fest, it looks like we’re in for a festival of blockbuster proportions. Still calling on the beauty and magic of selected screenings under the stars at Ford Amp...
When it was finished, there was no theatrical release. Trolls were nowhere to be found. Instead vegetarian goblins were the enemies of the Waits family, and what was performed in true earnest, went straight to VHS and BETA, leading the young Stephenson to turn off his VCR and the parents and sister of George Hardy who played the family patriarch, Michael Waits, to avow, “This is the worst movie ever made.” Over the years, Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB concurred with the Hardy family and TROLL 2 gar...
I still remember when NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD was released. A mere youngster, I thought it was one of the coolest films I had ever seen. It’s still a face of mine. I found the whole concept and look of Zombies fascinating. Cooler than the movie however, was the marketing campaign which had giveaways of plastic lined “barf bags” emblazoned with a rubber-stamped red mini-lobby card of the film. Yes folks - it was rubber stamped with an ink pad on the bags. (These were the days of pre-high tech...
Take three parts “Indiana Jones”, add two parts “The Mummy”, mix in some “National Treasure” and then toss in a little Harry Potter, Lord Voldemort and even a little Anakin Skywalker, and you’ve got yourself PRINCE OF PERSIA - A Roller Coaster Ride for the Ages!! Based on Jordan Mechner’s highly successful 1989 video game, “Prince of Persia”, uber producer Jerry Bruckheimer has assembled the preeminent technical artisans in the industry today, a world class cast, an imaginative mythica...
In 1865, Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, a mathematics professor at Christchurch University in Oxford, England forever changed the world. No, he didn’t disprove the Pythagorean Theory or find a new way to alter tax percentages to help the people. What he did do was much more amazing and wonderful. Reverend Dodgson, under the pen name of Lewis Carroll, created the incredible, fantastical and imaginative world of Wonderland and began to write stories about a little girl named Alice. With its b...
The Best Picture Oscar race officially takes off this week with the release of Anurag Basu’s KITES. This is PURE OSCAR GOLD. Unfamiliar with Basu’s work, I went into this screening blind, with no idea of the story, the filmmakers or the actors, but I quickly found myself blinded by the beauty before me on screen and the brilliance of a stunning and exceptional film. Reminiscent of Baz Luhrmann in style, color and texture, KITES is a seamless, beauteous meld of “Moulin Rouge!” and “Romeo...
Ah, Juliet. The mere mention of the name may make even the most hardened heart a tad wistful at the thought of love won or love lost, while for the true romantics, hearts may go pitter patter and eyes well with tears of joy, or heartache. Juliet is, after all, one-half of the most romantic and enchanted couples of the ages, albeit in literature. Thanks to William Shakespeare, the 14th century story of the Montagues and Capulets and the forbidden and fated love of Romeo and Juliet has endured...
I should know by now that anything to which Nicholas Sparks is attached will guarantee an increase in the stock value of Kleenex. A world class novelist, the mere mention of some of his most cherished works, “The Notebook”, “Dear John”, “Message in a Bottle”, “Nights in Rodanthe” and “The Wedding”, bring tears to the eyes on recalling the indelible and deep emotion of the stories, the characters and the film adaptations. And now, not only does Sparks give us another emotional heartwren...
Leo Tolstoy is long considered one of the greatest novelists of our time. Celebrated for works such as “War and Peace” and “Anna Karenina”, his appeal is as universal as the language of love itself, a language for which he publicly espoused its idealistic virtues, but behind closed doors, led a life in his final days that was anything but. Married to the Countess Sofya for 48 years, theirs was a true partnership, a true story of love and hate, passion and fury. With a vast difference in their a...
Think back to your youth and those small suburban neighborhoods or city communities or even now in this age of technogadgetry. Remember when Mr. Jones got a new car? What did your dad go out and do? He went and got a new car. Of course, then Mr. Jones went out and got an even newer and fancier car which meant every other dad had to go get the newer and fancier car. And what about that 4 foot above ground pool and cedar fence that Mr. Jones put in? How long did it take before every other house...
The bar is set and the Documentary Oscar race begins with the debut of WAKING SLEEPING BEAUTY. Not environmentally or politically messaged, WAKING SLEEPING BEAUTY takes a rare, honest, and very personal, even cathartic, behind-the-scenes look into a pivotal time in the animation world of the Mouse House (a.k.a. Disney). Not just a trip down memory lane, but a trip into the world that gave us the likes of Tim Burton, John Lasseter, Don Bluth and dozens of other artisans and magicians, WAKING...
Tennessee Williams is long and widely considered to be one of, if not the most celebrated and important American playwright of our time. His collected works are prolific and memorable, taking not only the stage by storm, but the silver screen as well. Celebrating the grandeur, pomp, and dare I say, arrogance, of predominantly the post-reconstruction South and particularly the women of the day, his 1920's characters are indelibly etched in our minds. Be it Blanche DuBois, Amanda Wingfield,...
In light of the recent incident at Ft. Hood and given that I sit and write my feature reviews this week on Veterans' Day, it is impossible for me not to showcase one of the most powerful and moving films of our time - Oren Moverman's THE MESSENGER. Casualty Notification Officer. The very phrase brings dread to anyone in or anyone with a family member in the military for it is the CNO that is charged with the duty of personally notifying you that a loved one has been lost in the line of battle....
Originally published in 1843, Charles Dickens’ “ A Christmas Carol” is believed to be one of the greatest Christmas stories ever told. And I have to agree. Next to “Oliver Twist”, “A Christmas Carol” is my favorite Charles Dickens novel. I still remember on reading it back in my elementary school days, how I was drawn to the darkness and grit of story and the characters, and how from the darkness sprang a beautiful hopeful light and joy. And it seems that I am not the only one touched by the tal...
Ten years ago a cult phenomena was borne from the fertile imagination of Troy Duffy. Essentially an ode to vigilante justice, a topic on which Duffy speaks quite passionately (as he does about filmmaking) harkening back to the Bible and certain circumstances which warrant “an eye for an eye”, the stories of Duffy and the Boondock Saints are themselves the things on which Hollywood legend is made. A bartender/barback, the magical light of Harvey Weinstein shone down from above, blessing Duf...
In addition to my love and mesmerization with movies from small on, a key visual element in my youth was cartoons - and not just your standard Bugs, Tweety, Taz or Tom & Jerry. No I went full bore along with my brothers for the early Japanese anime complete with dubbed voices. Part and parcel of a 60's era Philadelphia tradition, Wee Willie’s Cartoon Corners was the only place to get your afternoon fix of futuristic adventure complete with Speed Racer and my fave, the 1960's black & white Osuma...
I have often reminded you that some of the best films come from the theatre. And although it’s been awhile since our last stage to screen incarnations, the drought is now over with the delightful, introspective and even voyeuristic character study, PETER AND VANDY. Written and directed by playwright Jay DiPietro, who makes his film directorial debut here, PETER AND VANDY is an adaptation of DiPietro’s 2002 smash hit of the same name. Critically and publicly acclaimed, including a Drama Desk nom...
As the school bell rings the start of another day, let me say this - AN EDUCATION is some kind of education! Jenny is your average 16 year old schoolgirl. Attending a private school in the London suburb of Twickenham, her father pushes her to be the best, get those straight “A’s”, study, study, study, earn that scholarship to Oxford. And after all, you need to go to college to find a husband. (I know, I know. What do you expect in 1961?) Between classes all day and cello practice every after...
How many of you out there remember the Golden Ages of roller derby in the 50's, the 70's or even during the depression in the 30's. For me, coming from Philly, roller derby in the 70's was a staple of entertainment - particularly for viewing on UHF television. And while roller derby and the Philadelphia Warriors were banking those turns and jamming their way into the hearts of the crowd, my dad was reminding me of derby back in the 50's. But roller derby wasn't just in Philly. It was reigning...
A very recognizable face to those in the theater community, Michael Stuhlbarg is now making his mark on film with his first leading feature film role for none other than the Coen Brothers. Already a Tony nominee for his performance in “The Pillowman”, followed by a multiple award winning turn in David Mamet’s adaptation of “The Voysey Inheritance”, Stuhlbarg is no stranger to the concept of embodiment of a character. And with Stuhlbarg, each interpretation is more dazzling than the last. Now, as...
We are so used to seeing films with a predictable plot line of mother wrangling unruly child or lonely miserable single mother trying to befriend her single child that we forget there are single dads out there, too. However, when we do see them, they are generally divorced, a part-time only dad, and a girlfriend inevitably enters into the mix. Which is exactly what makes THE BOYS ARE BACK so refreshing, so enjoyable, so emotional and so entertaining, as it is the complete antithesis of these...
Akron, Ohio native turned long time Culver City resident, Kristopher Belman is a filmmaker with ethics, integrity, humility and talent. Always wanting to make movies, Kris had long been interested in a story that began in Akron, Ohio. A story involving legendary high school basketball coach, Dru Joyce, and some young, once unknown basketball players named Sian Cotton, Dru Joyce III, Willie McGee, Romeo Travis and a guy named LeBron. As little kids, Sian, Little Dru, Willie and LeBron played...
What man writes a script - a comedy no less - that has a character who gets his testicles blown off? A woman writing it, I would believe. But a guy? Well, leave it to Mike Judge, the brains behind "Beavis & Butthead", "Office Space" and "Idiocracy", to do just that. A man who you might call obsessed with the thought of his own testicles being blown off, to hear Mike Judge tell it, seems a perfectly normal concept. "When I was in high school, for science fair I actually made an x-ray machine,...
Charlize Theron: Oscar Winner. Kim Basinger: Oscar Winner. Guillermo Arriaga: Golden Globe Winner and Oscar Nominee. Robert Elswit: Oscar Winner. John Toll: Double Oscar Winner. It is the collaborative effort of these great talents and more, that bring emotion, depth, intrigue and life to Guillermo Arriaga’s latest story of love and redemption. Probably best known as the Oscar nominated screenwriter of “Babel”, “21 Grams” and “The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada”, Arriaga now steps behind th...
I have long enjoyed much of Tyler Perry’s work. Generally one of the token Caucasian press at screenings or press junkets, I have often felt Perry’s work has elevated beyond that of a stereotypical caricature African-American and successfully crossed over into every demographic with character traits relatable to every ethnicity, demographic and religion. More than anything, though, I find his characterizations more deeply rooted in Southern culture and religion, a point on which my very Sou...
