Sorted by date Results 204 - 228 of 528
Yo-Yo Ma. World renowned cellist. Child prodigy. Many American audiences got their first glimpse of Yo-Yo Ma when at age 7 he was introduced on television by Leonard Bernstein. Over the decades, Yo-Yo Ma has opened the senses of the masses to the beauty of classical music. Passionate about bringing about peaceful change in the world through the universal musical language, in 2000 Yo-Yo Ma started bringing artists - and their culturally unique musical instruments - from around the world together...
British director Ben Wheatley first caught the attention of many when he threw his hat into the feature film ring with "Kill List". Already known for his episodic television work across the pond, "Kill List" made one sit up and take notice of Wheatley's directorial storytelling skill. Now, with HIGH-RISE, Wheatley firmly solidifies himself as a visionary thanks to his stylized interpretation of Amy Jump's adaptation of the 1975 J.G. Ballard sci-fi novel of the same name which, in the hands of...
I always knew "green rooms" could be dangerous places - especially back in the 70's and 80's at the height of metal and then with 90's punk and free-flowing drugs and alcohol, but Jeremy Saulnier takes the idea of a green room to a whole new deliciously twisted level with GREEN ROOM. As we know from “Blue Ruin”, Saulnier is adept at carefully placed and judiciously utilized tongue-in-cheek double entendres, and GREEN ROOM is no different; most notably with the band's name - "The Ain't Rig...
You've seen the pictures. I've seen the pictures. The whole world has seen the pictures. And "the pictures" remain to this day the most requested images in the National Archives. What pictures, you may ask? Those taken on December 21, 1970, by White House photographer Ollie Atkins; when Elvis Presley met President Richard Nixon. Now, thanks to director Liza Johnson and screenwriters Hanala Sagal, Joey Sagal and Cary Elwes, culling from personal notes, recollections and interviews of the few...
How can anyone pass up a Kevin Costner film where his character of Jerico Stewart reads like a combination of that in "Mr. Brooks" and "3 Days to Kill"? Then toss in Ryan Reynolds, Gary Oldman, Gal Gadot and Tommy Lee Jones with a script by David Weisberg and Douglas Cook and the directorial eye of Ariel Vromen who last brought us "The Iceman". Quite simply, you can't. A unique take on a CIA spy thriller with a Frankenstonian spin, CRIMINAL is a hard hitting, tech-savvy, high octane adrenaline...
Lots of good stuff opening in theatres this week, as well as on a concurrent digital/VOD platform, including the much anticipated Disney's THE JUNGLE BOOK. Normally, I would devote full coverage to this Disney film, but given the review embargos were lifted some time ago and reviews have been flooding the marketplace leading up to the April 15th release, we're going to look at some of the unsung winners of the week in this column today. But, suffice to say, when it comes to THE JUNGLE BOOK, it i...
Seems appropriate to go from Christopher Walken voicing King Louie to Christopher Walken being, well, Christopher Walken, in the charming comedy ONE MORE TIME. Paul Lombard was a star back in the day. Crooning a-la Sinatra he had hit after hit after hit. But as happens with time, the fans disappear. Not content to sit back and watch time pass him by, Paul spends his night secretly updating his Wikipedia page with more glowing adjectives than stars in the heavens. Ever the egotist, rationalizing...
Can't get enough Amber Heard? Then make sure you catch THE ADDERALL DIARIES where she's paired up with none other than James Franco. Written and directed by Pamela Romanowsky based on the book by Stephen Elliott, "Memoir of Moods, Masochism, and Murder", James Franco takes center stage as the flawed but fascinating unreliable memorist Stephen Elliott, a best-selling author who is forced to confront the truth about his past when a father he has written as being dead and having abused Elliott as a...
I'm betting the original London Bridge, built in 1830 and once spanning the River Thames, is pretty happy it now sits here in the United States in Lake Havasu City, because if still in London, it would have fallen victim along with every other landmark and historical site populating the city in the latest action sequel to hit the big screen, LONDON HAS FALLEN. Explosive non-stop action takes center stage as London is destroyed, and all the leaders of the western world (but for the US President)...
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...
On Saturday evening, January 30 The Culver Hotel welcomed over 250 visitors to a private, VIP reception in conjunction with the LA Art Show and the Los Angeles Fine Art Show and the city’s Bruce Lurie Gallery. The circa 1924 landmark hotel used the “Vernissage” event to launch new gallery space on the second floor. This event was the first in an ongoing series of art programs the Culver Hotel is planning to showcase the thriving Culver City Arts District and art scene. Reflecting the classic-meets-modern redesign of the historic boutique hotel,...
The Pacific Art Guild will meet Wednesday, March 2 at 7 pm in the Community Room, Westchester Civic Center, 7166 W. Manchester Avenue, Westchester . Guests are welcome. The guest demonstrator for March will be Beuna Johnson. Painting and drawing since she was a child, she became exceptionally skilled at colored pencil drawing. She has received widespread recognition for her jazz, blues, and gospel fine art as well as her wide body of work featuring angels and messages from the Bible....
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...
The Pacific Art Guild will meet on Wednesday, January 6, 2016 at 7 pm in the Community Room, Westchester Civic Center, 7166 W. Manchester Avenue . Guests are welcome. The guest demonstrator for January will be Rafael Maniago, A renowned painter and poet who was born in the Philippines and who has been drawing since childhood. He attended the University of the East in Manila, where he studied fine and commercial art. He has painted leaders of industry and politicians in the Philippines. He captures more than photographic realism; he captures...
