AltWeeklies Wire
Heath Ledger’s Death the Least of Dr. Parnassus’ Problemsnew
The most impressive thing about The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus is its very existence. About a third of the way through filming the mind-bending fantasy, leading man Heath Ledger died of a tragic drug overdose. Director Terry Gilliam ingeniously cast three of Ledger's A-list friends to play Ledger's character.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Reviews
Robert Downey Jr. Summons a Fightin’ Good Sherlock Holmesnew
Robert Downey Jr.'s scruffy, comedically nimble turn goes a long way to redeem the half-coherent storytelling and occasionally elephantine production. The game's afoot, even though it's not so fresh.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Sherlock Holmes, Guy Ritchie
Despite Forceful Colin Firth, 'A Single Man' Oversimplifies Grieving Processnew
Most actors build their careers on expressing emotions. Colin Firth has become a star based on the artful suppression of feelings, wittily conveying that stiff-upper-lip struggle to contain impulses that eventually escape against his roles' better judgment.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: A Single Man, Tom Ford
'Broken Embraces' Turns Cameras on Visionary Filmmakersnew
Two new films about filmmaking put plenty of talent on display – and share Penélope Cruz at her most attractive – without fully engaging their audiences. Pedro Almodóvar's melodrama Broken Embraces turns out to be a little too personal, while Rob Marshall's musical head-trip Nine may not be personal enough.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Broken Embraces, Pedro Almodóvar
'Nine' Turns Camera on Visionary Filmmakersnew
New films about filmmaking put plenty of talent on display without fully engaging their audiences.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Nine, Rob Marshall
'The Maid' Movingly Explores Domestic Disturbancesnew
In the Chilean drama The Maid, an upper-middle class family treats the title character like part of the family, but comparable to the way that the appendix is part of the body. Like a vestigial organ, a servant can be removed if she starts causing trouble.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Sebastian Silva, The Maid
'Avatar' Immerses Audiences in an Alien Ecosystemnew
Director James Cameron's long-awaited Avatar depicts an alien race with a fondness for bows and arrows, but keeps the 3-D jutting clichés under control. Even when bloody arrowheads stick out at your face, Cameron ensures the stunts don't distract from his otherworldly story.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Avatar, James Cameron
Neil Gaiman Still Writes in the Shadow of His Masterpiecenew
Neil Gaiman's output equals only the tiniest fraction of the Disney corporate empire but he's a staggeringly prolific and eclectic creator. In the past 15 years, he's shifted his creative focus away from comics to other forms, including novels, kid-friendly picture books and high-profile screenplays.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Fiction
Tags: The Graveyard Book, neil gaiman
Robert De Niro is OK in 'Everybody’s Fine'new
Director Kirk Jones' remake of the 1990 Marcello Mastroianni vehicle of the same name casts Robert De Niro as a widower preparing for the annual visit of his four grown children. Despite his lonely efforts to clean house, buy meat and build a new grill, the kids all find excuses not to come.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Everybody's Fine, Kirk Jones
'Fantastic Mr. Fox' Brings Out the Animal in Wes Andersonnew
Rather than break out of Andersonville and into the real world, the filmmaker burrows further into the fantasy realm with 'Fantastic Mr. Fox.' Ironically, Anderson’s latest turns out to be his most heartfelt, human movie since 'Rushmore,' despite its cast of woodland beasts.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Fantastic Mr. Fox, Wes Anderson
Sandra Bullock Blind Sides Atlantanew
'The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game' fumbles a potentially intriguing story of a nouveau riche family who adopts Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron), a future NFL star.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: John Lee Hancock, The Blind Side
'The Messenger' Delivers Stark Lesson About Casualties of Warnew
Staff Sergeant Will Montgomery (Ben Foster) receives new orders in the first scenes of The Messenger. Will endured injuries to his eye and leg in an Iraqi firefight, and has the wounds and decorations to prove it, but his latest assignment will leave its own kind of scars.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
01-12-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Oren Moverman, The Messenger
Too Baaad 'Goats' Falls Flatnew
Where Three Kings cast Clooney in a wartime caper story to critique the first President Bush's Iraq war, Goats attempts to use hippie-style anti-authority comedy to satirize his son's sequel. But the early sight gags of super-macho G.I.s failing to run through walls or drive blindfolded don't mesh with the film's anger over the corporate exploitation of the Iraqi occupation.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
11-10-2009 |
Reviews
Grim 'Precious' Treasures Passionate Actressesnew
Oprah's film has enough sorrow for several Greek tragedies.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
11-10-2009 |
Reviews
Tags: Precious, Lee Daniels
'Antichrist' Canonizes Genital Mutilationnew
An instantly notorious award-winner at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, Antichrist proves to be an alternately draggy, repellent and opaque cinematic experience, while clearly representing devoted efforts from several master screen artists.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
11-10-2009 |
Reviews
Tags: Antichrist, Lars von Trier
