I like THE HUNGER GAMES: series, and the second installment, CATCHING FIRE--despite a colleague's calling it "a long slog"--absolutely held me. Once again, the charismatic Jennifer Lawrence as the reluctant firebrand Katniss Everdeen continues to rebel against the capitol. Having out-witted the powers that be in the first Hunger Games--a TV spectacle in which children [...]
THE BROKEN CIRCLE BREAKDOWN opens on a tight shot of a group of down-home, country bluegrass musicians performing "Will the Circle Be Unbroken." They may be "down home"--but not in the country you think. Though their English sounds flawless, they are actually Flemish musicians in Ghent 2006. And that American country classic they're singing? It's [...]
ALL IS LOST--Robert Redford's latest as a man alone and adrift at sea-- plays like an extended Viagra commercial. You know-- older, handsome outdoorsman testing his mettle against the elements; there's a broken mast involved. I know, I know. It's Redford--and there's already Oscar buzz about this performance and this movie. Well, I know what [...]
12 YEARS A SLAVE is as unsparing as its title. The film is a shattering experience-- for actors and audience--as we are dragged into the abyss of slavery through the documented real life experience of a free black man in upstate NY who was kidnapped from his family in the middle of his life, and [...]
Hi -yo SIL-L-L--VER!! It's the best blockbuster of the summer to date! THE LONE RANGER rides again in a funny, exhilarating, verbally and visually witty action adventure that dares to be beautiful! The movie tells how it all began: Who was that masked man? What's with Tonto? And what does "Kemo Sabe" mean anyway? For those [...]
Loved this--and I am not a Trekker, have never been on a spacecraft, or had an out of body experience (OK maybe once) but I love an exciting cinematic romp through outer space, and after seeing STAR TREK INTO DARKNESS I left the theater feeling like my car was the Starship Enterprise (and if you [...]
If you don’t have time to read the FULL TEXT REVIEW of “42”– check out my :30 Second Review with video for a short, smart critical assessment of this biopic about Jackie Robinson who broke Baseball's color barrier –and get the bottom line fast!
If you don't have time to read the FULL TEXT REVIEW of "OBLIVION"-- check out my :30 Second Review with video for a short, smart critical assessment of Tom Cruise's latest--and get the bottom line fast!
IRON MAN 3 kicks off the summer! If you don't have time to read my FULL TEXT review, here's my :30 SECOND REVIEW with video-- to get the bottom line fast!
I have seen LINCOLN-- and he is Daniel Day-Lewis. This is an absolutely flawless performance, which together with Spielberg's direction, Tony Kushner's screenplay, based in part on Doris Kearns Goodwin's book TEAM OF RIVALS, and a treasure trove of vivid performances -- has resulted in one of the finest movies of the year, and one [...]
