AltWeeklies Wire
Stop-Motion Spooky: Laika Cuts Pixar Down to Size
Fans of Aardman’s handcrafted style of animation will find much to enjoy in this wonderfully stylized stop-motion comedy-horror-thriller about a little boy named Norman who sees dead people, or at least their ghosts.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
08-13-2012 |
Reviews
What’s Right? Political Process Turns Red With Laughter
Here’s a new twist. Picture a Republican politician with humanitarian ethics. Now imagine said unicorn in the corporeal being of Zach Galifianakis, making the most of every effeminate gesture he can muster as small town family man Marty Huggins.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
08-06-2012 |
Reviews
Reviving Old Love: Kay and Arnold Dance Again
If it weren’t for its outdated music video segues, “Hope Springs” could just be the best romantic comedy about marriage ever made.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
08-06-2012 |
Reviews
Art Truth: China Entertains Dissent More Than America
Alison Klayman’s biopic documentary is deceptive. It’s not so much about what the filmmaker perceives as an iconoclastic artist’s ability and willingness to stand up against a fascist regime.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
07-30-2012 |
Reviews
Freakin’ Friedkin: The Legendary Filmmaker Goes Comically Black
William Friedkin's dark, funny, and sexy black comedy is a triumph. “Killer Joe” makes “Fargo” seem like a rom-com.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
07-23-2012 |
Reviews
Gross Wealth Takes a Hit: Lauren Greenfield Tracks the Demise of a One Percenter
There’s quiet satisfaction in watching the financial collapse of the Florida billionaire self-professedly “personally” responsible for George W. Bush’s “illegal” takeover of the White House in 2000.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
07-16-2012 |
Reviews
The Same Web Twice: Sony Reboots Spidey and Company
How quickly generations come and go. If you’re old enough to remember seeing Sam Raimi’s 2002 Spider-Man, and thought Tobey Maguire would carry Spider-Man’s mantle far into the 21st century, Hollywood is here to tell you your time has passed.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
07-02-2012 |
Reviews
Stars Like These: Banks and Pine Go Hepburn and Tracy
Smart dialogue intersperses a by-committee soap opera plot in a movie made much better than the sum of its vulnerable narrative by three terrific actors.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
06-25-2012 |
Reviews
Sad Vacation: Woody’s European Tour Jumps the Track
It would be an insincere compliment to call “To Rome With Love” a piecemeal comic reverie.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
06-18-2012 |
Reviews
Third Time’s a Charm: Familiar Zoo Escapees Make Circus Antics a Smash
It might have taken three directors to make the third installment in the “Madagascar” franchise, but the compound collaboration has resulted in one very impressive animated comedy.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
06-04-2012 |
Reviews
Cannes Opener: Wes Anderson’s Divine Kingdom
Wes Anderson has honed his formally composed vernacular of kitschy nostalgic magic realism cinema to a super fine point.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
05-21-2012 |
Reviews
Talking Dictatorship: Sacha Baron Cohen Takes Out America’s Trash
Sacha Baron Cohen may just be the most gifted satirist of our time. His take-no-prisoners wit and equally uncompromising approach to raking American hypocrisies over the coals is unparalleled.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
05-14-2012 |
Reviews
What’s Wong With This Picture? Time Magazine Sucks
The May 21, 2012 issue of Time Magazine is a significant bellwether. It speaks volumes about the state of America’s steadily imploding media, of which Time Magazine has crossed a line into tabloid exploitation. It could well be the magazine’s Waterloo.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
05-14-2012 |
Media
Redressing the Avengers Joss Whedon Throws a Fit
Sloppy in its construction, “Marvel’s The Avengers” has one thing going for it — humor.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
04-30-2012 |
Reviews
Action as Usual: The Cinema of Statham Rolls On
As far as Jason Statham action movies go, writer-director Boaz Yakin’s Manhattan-set effort rolls with the best of them.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
04-24-2012 |
Reviews
