A masterclass in acting: Penelope Cruz is sensational, but Olivia Wilde, Edward Norton and Seth Rogen make the case that the Academy should add an award for “Ensemble Performance.” The casting is also award-worthy, assuming you can accept the notion that Seth Rogen, like Woody Allen, is attractive to women. That the movie was shot […]
A total delight! Not as deep or cinematically artistic as recent films on Elvis, Billy Joel or Bee Gees, but appropriate as hits by Peter and Gordon were lightweight in comparison. Who knew Peter Asher was behind so much great music – I didn’t.
No.
Four charming lead characters, amusingly evil bad guys, an interesting musical milieu and a calmly propulsive thriller plot make Tuner a fun watch. Dustin Hoffman is a kick, but the acting honors go to Leo Woodall, the latest Brit to take work away from an American. As in Disclosure Day, the ending is manufactured to make […]
Spielberg keeps us in the dark for as long as he can, perhaps to keep us from recognizing the absurdity of the entire premise of his movie. In fact, it is easier to accept the presence of aliens than the plot developments involving humans, let alone the various powers of his magic wand. Eve Hewson, […]
The trouble with filming a “true story” is the viewer is always thinking, could this really have happened?, and in this case the mind generally thought, I don’t think so. On the fictional level, though, we were given a riveting performance by Andrew Scott that, however unlikely, kept us firmly involved, and of course the […]
A thoroughly charming detective yarn spooled by sheep with personalities around humanoid caricatures. The many jokes made you feel good about getting them. The story was farfetched, but this is the first movie in several years that reduced me to tears at the end. A perfect way to spend a rainy Memorial Day Weekend Sunday […]
The Fear of 13 came with a middling review and poor word-of-mouth but wasn’t that bad. The burgeoning relationship between the condemned prisoner (Adrien Brody) and the visiting volunteer (Tessa Thompson) was credible and charming and scenes with the company were engaging and fun. The legal story, however, didn’t make sense, and the play’s wrap-up […]
We saw three plays in London last week; each had a highlight, each left me with quibbles. Grace Pervades featured acting by Ralph Fiennes that took my breath away; Inter Alia had a provocative argument (or more) with no easy answer; Les Liaisons Dangereuses was simply a spectacular production. Grace Pervades, David Hare’s 32nd play(!), provided a history of […]
This would have been better on the stage, where the “art” and the overacting wouldn’t have been in my face. As it was, the only enjoyable moments in what is essentially a two-hander came from watching my TV buddy James Corden ham it up. Like Marty Supreme, Ian McKellen is presumably meant to be obnoxious, […]
© Copyright 2019 Robert Marshall | All Rights Reserved.