AltWeeklies Wire
Blown up
Details of a confidential informant, 228 pounds of marijuana and a wrestling superstar emerge from the arrest of a Lansing area medical marijuana spiritual leader.
City Pulse |
Andy Balaskovitz |
06-02-2010 |
Crime & Justice
Spinning Apatow: Russell Brand and Jonah Hill Take a Trip
Get Him to the Greek has all the earmarks of a Judd Apatow spin-off, and that's a good thing.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
05-30-2010 |
Reviews
Only a Thread: Romero Loses His Credibility
Sometimes nothing is better than something. George A. Romero's latest zombie retread demotes the 70-year-old filmmaker to a pale imitation of the groundbreaking director who invented zombie satire in 1968 with Night of the Living Dead, and then went on to full-on postmodern force with Dawn of the Dead and Day of the Dead.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
05-24-2010 |
Reviews
Shrek Matures: Bourgeoisie Critics are Opposed
The fourth installment in the animated Shrek franchise is the most polished example of the series.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
05-17-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Shrek Forever After, Mike Mitchell
The Straight Jacket: Undercover With an Ex-Gay Counseling Centernew
Mike Jones, who is not a licensed counselor in Michigan, gives therapy to men and women looking to reconcile their feeling of same-sex attraction.
City Pulse |
Brandon Kirby |
05-12-2010 |
LGBT
What's So Funny 'Bout War, Greed, and Ignorance: Robin Hood Prequel is an Uphill Slog
For as muddled as its medieval politics are, thanks to Brian Helgeland's scattershot screenplay, director Ridley Scott's cloud-covered history of Robin Longstride's path to outlaw legend soars whenever Cate Blanchett takes the screen as Maid Marion.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
05-11-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Robin Hood, Ridley Scott
Taking Pedophilia Seriously: The 'Nightmare' Grows Cold
More contemplative and thematically muscular than Wes Craven's 1984 original slasher flick, Samuel Bayer's updated version has a quieter surreal edge rooted more in suspense than in the former film's regular bloodletting.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
05-03-2010 |
Reviews
Relearning Disgust: Dutch Filmmaker Tom Six Dares His Audience
High concept meets sustained graphic horror in Tom Six's satirically challenged thriller that succeeds if only by the realistic treatment of its gross-out premise via the best mad scientist performance in recent memory.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
04-26-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: The Human Centipede, Tom Six
Sea Creatures are People Too: Ocean Documentary Shows the Personalities of its Animals
This year, "Earth Day" (a day to "inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's environment") is marked by the release of Oceans, a lush documentary about the magnificent waters that cover more than 70 percent of the earth's surface, and the vast number of creatures that live there.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
04-19-2010 |
Reviews
Dumb Mess: Fan Boy Pandering Goes Too Far
There are actually some 45-year-old film critics who write their reviews tilted toward fan boy readers as if they have something in common with the 12-year-old brain that Hollywood considers its primary audience.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
04-12-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Kick-Ass, Matthew Vaughn
Aussie Noir Crackles: Filmmaking Duo Prove Deserving Heirs to Coen Bros.
Kicking off with a wicked little short film called "Spider," sibling filmmakers Nash and Joel Edgerton announce their ability to shock you in a way you've not quite been surprised before.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
04-05-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Nash Edgerton, The Square
Low Motive: Thomas Haden Church Goes Dark
More a black comedy than the intended "neo-noir" that newbie auteur Jake Goldberger aspires to, Don McKay is a droll little independent flick for audiences with dark tastes.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
03-29-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Don McKay, Jake Goldberger
Blackmail Kisses: Atom Egoyan Turns on the Red Light
You couldn't hope for a higher caliber sexploitation movie than "Chloe," even if the sex thriller falls flatter than a day-old quiche.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
03-22-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Atom Egoyan, Chloe
Off His Chest: Noah Baumbach Makes Room for the Loony
American 21st century post traumatic stress and economic desolation gets filtered through the mid-life crisis of Ben Stiller's troubled character Roger Greenberg in Noah Baumbach's edgy romantic comedy that puts a premium on how we treat one another.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
03-22-2010 |
Reviews
Tags: Greenberg, Noah Baumbach
Swedish Exploitation Mystery: Stieg Larsson Gets Posthumously More Famous
The first film adaptation of the late Swedish novelist Stieg Larsson's posthumously published "Millennium Trilogy," "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" is an enigmatic mystery thriller fired by the growling intensity of its goth-girl heroine Lisbeth Salander (ferociously played by Noomi Rapace).
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
03-15-2010 |
Reviews
