Good music and a clever production – at one point a musical within a musical within a musical – marred mainly by an annoyingly frenetic Andrew Garfield in the lead. For the first half hour I feared I was back In the Heights, but the movie slowly grew on me and charmed me by the end, […]
A strange black-and-white, in every sense, picture of the 1930s, with a lack of subtlety and artistry mimicking films in the ’30s – was that intentional? Tessa Thompson’s character was nervous every minute – and she was in every minute – striking a Hitchcockian note that eclipsed whatever social point may have been intended.
After a clever opening sending up French culture and The New Yorker, the movie devolved into four unrelated vignettes that seemed an homage to that magazine’s pieces in the ’70s that went on and on, lacking drama or point. I realize Wes Anderson is a cult taste, but I don’t see how he continues to […]
A delightful snapshot of a pivotal time for one young boy growing up in Belfast. The well-publicized fact that the boy was based on director Kenneth Branagh eliminated any anxiety that the story would turn out well, which allowed us to sit back and enjoy spending time with this family, played by the estimable Judi […]
Harvey Keitel’s performance as a wizened Meyer Lansky rates an “A”; everything else in this movie gets a “D.” Sam Worthington as an insecure, barely competent writer is a misguided role that is painful to watch, and all the flashback scenes are cartoon cliches. In all, a very pale copy of Scorsese’s The Irishman.
(TV) Remarkable performances by Benedict Cumberbatch and, more pleasingly, Claire Foy, but one wonders, why make a movie of this? Perhaps if one was British and familiar with the cat illustrations of the title character it would be more interesting to see the dysfunctional family he came from, or marvel at the delusional nature of […]
(Broadway Theater) This was a masterpiece of stagecraft, with three actors and one revolving set telling the 163-year story of the rise and fall of Lehman Brothers, from immigrant purveyors of fabric in Alabama to a bankrupt New York financial giant. The acting was beyond impeccable: Simon Russell Beale could portray anyone, and did, and […]
What if a robotics company could create a partner designed to satisfy your every need and desire. Would that make you truly happy? Or would you miss the sturm and drung of a “real” relationship? Or would you be frustrated, knowing your partner was only a robot? This is the existential issue posed by the […]
A 21st-century morality tale set in 14th-century France that would scarcely pass the credibility threshold if it were not, somehow, “based on true events.” The plot is more a short story, elongated over two hours by being told thrice. And being an American movie (very Ridley Scott), there is not much subtlety or nuance. Conversely, […]
Very real people–largely played, in fact, by non-professional actors–are faced with a series of moral dilemmas and almost always make the wrong choice. The remarkable Iranian director, Asghar Farhadi, wants his audience to keep asking themselves questions after the film is over, and in this he succeeds. His best move is making the hero, Rahim, […]
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