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Top Films of 2015
NY Theater, May ’18
Our ambitious program of eight shows in five weeks got off to a disappointing start: both Harry Clarke and Three Tall Women were well reviewed but left us cold. Billy Crudup and Glenda Jackson, the respective stars, gave flawless performances, but neither was a character we wanted to spend time with. They were both self-centered […]
Disobedience – 7
The most interesting character in this movie was the Orthodox Jewish community in London to which all the actor-characters were related. Was it meant to look narrow, constricting and petty – or was that my prejudice? Eetsy’s escape was the dramatic high point, but then what to think of her simultaneous escape from the other […]
The Rider – 6.5
A good film to discover, unheralded, at a small film festival – not something to be seen at CityCinema3 in Manhattan. The amateur acting is remarkably good, but occasionally painful; the shots of horses are welcome, except when the horse is literally shot; and the scenes of the West are surprisingly plain. The story, as […]
A Quiet Place – 7
Yes, it was scary – especially the erect nail waiting to be stepped on – and no, the story didn’t make any sense, which I gather is par for a horror movie. What set this apart was the depiction of a family dynamic, portrayed by the real-life husband/wife team of John Krasinski and Emily Blunt. […]
Itzhak – 7.5
A delightful bio-documentary about a charming man who wears his musical genius lightly. Itzhak Perlman’s story – overcoming polio to Juilliard to international stardom – is heartwarming, as is his marriage to a lively wife, but what sets this film apart is the music. I don’t know classical music, but even I appreciated the excerpts […]