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Leave it to Jean-Marc Vallee to deliver yet another emotionally intense and introspective character driven film. Leave it to Jake Gyllenhaal to once again put his chameleonic skill set to use to deliver yet another indelible and unforgettable performance. A film that goes against the emotional grain, toying with our own unspoken fears about "what if" and "waiting for the other shoe to drop", DEMOLITION manipulates, shocks and examines in a tapestry of unpredictability that is unusual, funny, emo...
Anyone who seen writer/director Deon Taylor’s freshman film, “Supremacy”, has been awed by the power and strength of the heavy dramatic themes rising from the a racially motivated true story. Many, including myself, have anxiously awaited his follow-up film curious to see what Taylor would deliver next. That wait is now over. And I am here to tell you, MEET THE BLACKS is nothing at all like “Supremacy”. Going from the darkest depths of the souls of men, Taylor reaches the opposite extreme w...
Stop the presses now with all the awards talk for Leonardo DiCaprio and his performance as 1820's frontier man Hugh Glass in Alejandro Inarritu's THE REVENANT. There are two more notable and deserving performances that command, and demand, greater attention; that of Mother Nature herself, and Tom Hardy. Why no one is talking Tom Hardy for awards consideration for his role is beyond me. His performance in THE REVENANT is so textured with emotional range and nuance, with the primal forces of life...
Still in the midst of spring break and with baseball season fast upon us, it’s a moviegoing grand slam this week with everything from a biopic on an American institution, Hank Williams, to a foul-mouthed, hard talking, stuck-in-the-past Olympic bronze medalist comedy to the tenderness of a young woman with Asperger’s looking for love to a look at one aspect of the greatest American pastimes, baseball. First up to the plate. . . FASTBALL Justin Verlander. Sandy Koufax. Bob Gibson. Bob Feller. Wal...
THE CONFIRMATION Clive Owen is always a welcome presence in any film, but particularly in one as smartly subtle and engaging as Bob Nelson’s THE CONFIRMATION, and in which Owen shares the screen with (and is often upstaged by) one of the greatest young talents of the next generation, Jaeden Lieberher. THE CONFIRMATION is quietly moving, laced with the humor and pain inherent to life. A beautiful character study in the dynamics of a father and son, the chemistry between Owen and Lieberher is m...
[NOTE: While I have made every effort to keep this review spoiler-free, for a completely pure viewing experience of STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS, wait to read this review or any other until after you have seen the film. Trust me. You won't regret it!] Fall in love anew with old friends. Embrace the new. Ride the roller coaster of adventure complete with thrills and chills that make your heart pound and your face smile from ear to ear with more than a few tears thrown in for good measure. Marvel...
Despite what is being touted of late, let it never be said that there isn't diversity in filmmaking. And contrary to the "forced" diversity which many film festival directors, programmers and controlling guilds and academies are of late trying to force feed to the industry and public alike, the diversity I am seeing in many films is genuine, and reflects not only a diversity of issues and topics and performers in front of the camera, but directorial craftsmanship and artistry that rings true of...
The kid in me fell in love with Panda Po back in 2008 when "Kung Fu Panda" was released. Charming, funny and filled with action and antics led to pure entertainment, while introducing us to what have become beloved characters premised on a goose named Mr. Ping raising an abandoned young Panda named Po. Wonderful thematics and messaging about family and friends. When "Kung Fu Panda 2" rolled around in 2011, I watched it with my two younger nephews, with the 5-year old writing his own review of...
Many may know the grainy black and white images of Jesse Owens’ triumphant quadruple-gold medal performance at the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, but do they know the story behind it? Those images, captured by German filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, were the first ever televised, the first that the world saw being broadcast, the first that any beings light years away will ever see of Earth and its inhabitants. Knowing the importance of Riefenstahl’s camera, and how Germany would be viewed by the wor...
In addition to scattered screenings of many of this year’s Academy Award nominated films still showing in theatres, there are plenty of new releases opening every week in theatres, as well as digitally and VOD. This week, there is a terrific range of films opening with something for everyone in the family. I can’t recommend highly enough THE PASTOR. Faith-based without being preachy, actor/writer/producer Arturo Muyshondt delivers a solid uplifting story of social relevance in today’s world...
Almost 30-years in the making, Martin Scorsese finally delivers SILENCE. Adapted by Scorsese and co-writer Jay Cocks from Shusaku Endo's 1966 fact-based historical novel, Scorsese delves into the world of 17th-century Japan as efforts by Jesuit priests to convert and minister to the hidden, or silent, Christian believers are met with persecution, torture and even death as Japanese Inquisitors attempt to apostatize the converts and priests alike. For the uninitiated into Christian dogma, "apostas...
Hooray for Hollywood!! The Hollywood Musical Is Alive and Well with LA LA LAND!!! Who said the Hollywood movie musical is dead? Maybe napping at times, but certainly not dead as is evidenced by this glorious, toe-tapping, Technicolor delight from writer/director Damien Chazelle - LA LA LAND. A love letter not only to the movie musical and the studios and artisans who made them (thank you MGM, Fox and RKO, among others), LA LA LAND is also Chazelle's love letter to Los Angeles and all the...
Bright and early on this crisp Beverly Hills morning, the nominations for the 88th Academy Awards were announced to the world from the beautiful and historic Samuel Goldwyn Theatre at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. While some of the nominations were expected, others presented themselves as sweet surprises for the nominees and moviegoers alike. “Joy-ous” for all is Best Animated Feature nomination for INSIDE OUT, which also picked up a surprise nomination for Best Original Scr...
Christmas Day. Winter Break. After all the office parties, the opening of presents and enduring relatives, the holidays scream for one thing - movies! And this holiday week has no shortage of some amazing movies that celebrate cinema, the art of moviemaking, never before seen stunts, practical sets as opposed to CGI and a return to film in the grandest of fashion. Obviously, for those who still haven’t experienced “the Force” of STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS, that should be at the top of your...
Dust off the cobwebs boys and girls! We're going back to school for a refresher course in literature along with some actual history which many may or may not know. Over the decades, Herman Melville's "Moby Dick" has proven to be either a life changing piece of literature or the bane of one's existence when given the title as a reading assignment in school. But no matter what, it stays with you. Maybe not all of the words ("Call me Ishmael"), but the themes, the emotions, the life lessons, all...
Thanksgiving is all about family, and what better way is there to celebrate family than to see one of the best family films of the year - THE GOOD DINOSAUR. A rare treat to have two Pixar films released in the same year ("Inside Out" being the other in 2015), THE GOOD DINOSAUR makes its mark on your heart thanks to themes that ring true for every generation of families, parents and children, punctuated by a story filled with adventure, friendship and love and complemented by the beauteous...
We may be in the midst of the holiday season but that also means we are in the midst of the movie awards season aka “studios bring out their best and brightest Oscar hopefuls.” And while some national and regional awards have already been handed out, with many more to come, and nominations for other awards like the Film Independent Spirit Awards announced, many of the names and titles being bandied about haven’t yet made it to most theatres; they are playing in New York and LA for what are k...
In what I can only describe as an epic end to a cinematic legacy, THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY - PART 2 is the final film in what has been a global phenomenon over the past decade, as moviegoers (and readers) the world over felt like they too, were citizens of the fictional Panem. Little girls now dream of being adventurous and strong like Katniss Everdeen or confident powerful fashionistas like Effie Trinket. We have watched alliances, friendships and trusts form, only to sometimes break. We...
Stand up and cheer for TRUMBO! Under Jay Roach's direction with an Oscar-worthy script from John McNamara, and thanks to an Oscar caliber performance by Bryan Cranston, TRUMBO celebrates the 1st Amendment and the conviction of one man, with dignity, integrity, courage, bravery and intelligence. The Blacklist. Hollywood Ten. House Un-American Activities Committee. Dalton Trumbo. For many, these are just words, names. There is no historical sense of reference or context, let alone cinematic. But...
It’s a political powerhouse this week at the theater as we are treated to David Gordon Green’s “fictional” OUR BRAND IS CRISIS based on the 2002 Bolivian presidential campaign, plus a documentary that strikes a chord on a global scale, INDIA’S DAUGHTER. A documentary from Leslee Udwin (now an advisor to the United Nations Human Rights Commission on the “Equality Studies Global Initiative” and recipient of the 2015 Anna Lindh Human Rights Award), the latter goes beyond the world shattering 20...
ROOM When Emma Donoghue’s emotional telling of the story of a boy named Jack and his Ma hit the bestseller list in 2010, Donoghue already had a screenplay in the works. Wanting to challenge herself, and feeling the emotion that leaps off the page and into one’s very soul in reading the heart wrenching, gripping and ultimately joyous tear-jerker, Donoghue was at the ready when Hollywood came calling. Initially set completely within the confines of a tiny, windowless (but for an unreachable skylig...
You had me at Michael Almereyda. For those unfamiliar with writer/director Michael Almereyda, he is a creator who thinks outside the box. With an eclectic mix of documentaries and short films to his credit as both writer and director, as well as countless articles and criticisms for some more erudite publications, possibly his most well known works are “Hamlet” in 2000 and then last year’s stunning “Cymbeline.” Almereyda sees words and their applicability to different times, different worlds an...
Now in the heart of “awards season”, as the cinematic cream starts to rise to the top and the wheat separates from the chaff, the annual definition of “best” becomes clearer and the race for Oscar begins. But one category of film always seems to stand alone out of the fray and limelight and is quite often overlooked by not only distributors and theatre owners, but moviegoers - foreign language films. Each year, countries from around the globe chose one film from their country to submit for Osc...
As comes as no surprise, writer/director Ramin Bahrani breaks down the door of our collective moral compass with this cat and mouse thriller of corruption versus conscience - 99 HOMES. The very title of the film is enough of a nod to the unending debate over the 99/1 percent nomenclature describing the monetary imbalance in the US today, such that if you know nothing else going into this film, you know thematics will include this economic disparity at its core. With 99 HOMES, Bahrani focuses on...
Some terrific movies to bite into this weekend at the box office. Bloody, violent, pushing the envelope in every direction, directors Eli Roth and Denis Villeneuve fascinate with strong story, spectacular imagery and in the case of Villeneuve’s SICARIO, Oscar-worthy performances starting with Emily Blunt. THE GREEN INFERNO Eli Roth returns to the director’s chair for the first time since “Hostel” and it’s not a moment too soon. As producer of the acclaimed “Aftershock”, Roth shifted focus...
