It happened this weekend: The BOSTON SOCIETY OF FILM CRITICS (of which I am a veteran member) met for the 37th time and voted Paul Thomas Anderson's PHANTOM THREAD (which a significant number of critics have not yet seen) starring Daniel Day-Lewis in his ostensible farewell performance as a fictional couturier, the BEST FILM [...]
I have been beyond bored with movies this season. THOR still dominates the box office and is playing on 3 screens at my local multiplex. Just not excited about the god of thunder or comedy sequels: DADDY'S HOME 2 (second place at the box office) or A BAD MOMS CHRISTMAS both featuring intergenerational hi-jinks at [...]
Here's a rewarding artistic excursion for the new year-- an erotic crime thriller two ways, one onscreen, the other onstage. Both are based on the devilishly byzantine novel and Mann Booker finalist by Sarah Waters called "FINGERSMITH." (Also a 2005 BBC mini series.) The staged version called FINGERSMITH and adapted by Alexa Junge is now in its final week at [...]
If you're still looking for that perfect gift for someone you love who loves the arts, I am passing along this 2016 Holiday Gift Guide, itself a gift from WBUR's The ARTery writers-- and I am proud to be one! This annual gift guide has several stockings full of suggestions in every discipline [...]
This summer at the movies sucks. I normally despise that expression but it accurately describes the vacuum that is this summer's movie season. Underwhelming fare is now playing on mainstream screens everywhere, and I am searching like crazy for things I want to see. Here's what I don't want to see: --NEWSCASTERS playing themselves on the big screen and then complaining about [...]
When I was 7 years old, my unsuspecting parents took me to the drive-in to see the new Hitchcock film: PSYCHO. To this day, shower curtains creep me out. But my love of movies, and Hitchcock, was sealed forever. As we enter awards season and critics' groups weigh in on the best cinematic offerings of the year, it’s the perfect time [...]
January to March is typically a wasteland for good movies but here's one that might not be a complete waste, because it features two of our biggest stars and best actors. SERENA is based on the novel by Ron Rash, and features Best Actress Oscar-winner Jennifer Lawrence in the title role and Oscar nominee Bradley Cooper. This is a melodramatic romance set in the moody [...]
Why IS Oscar winner Halle Berry in this hackneyed hunk of horror? I know it's a slow time of year, when all the worst films are released-- some worse than others. I went hoping for the best and while not the worst (they could have had the gorgeous Ms. Berry running around in her underwear, [...]
If you're in touch with your inner adolescent girl--and I am-- you'll love THE TWILIGHT SAGA:BREAKING DAWN- PART 2. I know it's been savaged in The Globe by Wesley Morris-- and many other critics. But honestly, having Wes review this film is like sending Andre the Giant to a pajama party--it's just not his milieu. [...]
DARK SHADOWS started out fun and creepy and ended up tedious and dopey. Johnny Depp's "odd" character choices are beginning to wear on me. I like my vampires smoldering and beautiful. But Depp's ghoulishly nerdy Barnabas Collins back from the grave looks like Michael Jackson on a really bad day. So the hardest thing to [...]
