AltWeeklies Wire
'The Proposal': Altar-ationsnew
The Proposal doesn't reinvent the romantic-comedy wheel, but Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds ensure that it's a likable cut above the usual fare.
Austin Chronicle |
Kimberley Jones |
06-19-2009 |
Reviews
The Last Meatball: The Extinction of Harold Ramisnew
Ramis went missing several years ago after back-to-back flops and now, thanks to his arguable heir, Judd Apatow, Ramis returns. The problem is that he's awakened in a future much different than the time he knew.
Orlando Weekly |
Justin Strout |
06-19-2009 |
Reviews
'Shall We Kiss?' is a Wonderful, Sexy Romance from Francenew
Director Emmanuel Mouret achieves the kind of total submission to a filmmaker that's usually reserved for edge-of-your-seat thrillers and, in a way, that's what he has made: an expertly suspenseful romance.
Orlando Weekly |
Justin Strout |
06-19-2009 |
Reviews
Courting Condi: A Good Example of Why There Aren't a Lot of 'Musical Docu-Tragi-Comedies'new
The comedy wears out its welcome about two minutes in, but the engaging, too-sparse info about Rice suggests there's a truly excellent documentary to be made about our former secretary of state. Unfortunately, Courting Condi isn't it -- this might be the only film in history to include both a fat dude on ice skates falling down and photos from Abu Ghraib.
The Portland Mercury |
Erik Henriksen |
06-19-2009 |
Reviews
Old People Are Worthwhile! (Well, At Least They Are in 'O'Horten')new
O'Horten sets out to disprove an equation that young folk calculate each time we see an old person eating a tuna melt by themselves, paying bus fare in nickels, or filling a shopping basket with single serving soup cans and cat food: elderly + alone = depressing.
The Portland Mercury |
Allison Hallett |
06-19-2009 |
Reviews
'Year One' Tries (and Fails) to be a Monty Python Movienew
Harold Ramis has had a hand in some seriously great comedies -- Caddyshack, Ghostbusters, Groundhog Day -- but, lest we forget, he was also responsible for Club Paradise and Stuart Saves His Family. Year One might be better than either of those movies, but not by much.
The Portland Mercury |
Ned Lannamann |
06-19-2009 |
Reviews
Rebecca Yeldham Fights the Good Fight at Helm of the L.A. Film Festivalnew
The 41-year-old Yeldham came onboard as festival director this past March during a tense moment for LAFF and its parent organization, Film Independent. She had to hit the ground running, with barely three months left to plan for the festival's 2009 edition.
L.A. Weekly |
Scott Foundas |
06-19-2009 |
Movies
'Away We Go' Takes the Long Way Homenew
A smart, warm date night at the movies, but not exactly a heartbreaking work of staggering genius.
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
06-18-2009 |
Reviews
'Food, Inc.' Reveals Hidden Costs on the Menunew
Of all the scary food documentaries, Food, Inc. proves the most powerful and the most neatly packaged. Overall, it serves as a resounding call to action that holds out hope for the future. In the short-term, its perspective on food calls to mind an old quip by Rodney Dangerfield: "At my house, we pray after we eat."
Creative Loafing (Atlanta) |
Curt Holman |
06-18-2009 |
Reviews
'Easy Virtue' May Be a Country Manor Movie for People Who Don't Like Themnew
The genre has gone downhill ever since Jean Renoir's The Rules of the Game set the standard in 1939. But it's been a long slope with the gentle upswings and plateaus of such films as Gosford Park and Atonement.
Tags: Easy Virtue, Stephan Elliott
'The Proposal' Manages to be Both Predictable & Unbelievable At the Same Timenew
This film, mechanically directed by Anne Fletcher (responsible for last year's worst movie, 27 Dresses), is the second Taming of the Shrew retread appearing this month, after My Life in Ruins, which, in comparison now looks tolerable.
Eddie Murphy Stinks Yet Again in the Poorly Made 'Imagine That'new
For the last 10 years, Murphy has been appearing in junky films (with the exception of Dreamgirls) in a misguided attempt to be more of a "family man" at the movies. The resultant films have ranged from mildly amusing (Life) to deplorable (Norbit).
Tucson Weekly |
Bob Grimm |
06-17-2009 |
Reviews
'Pelham' Works as a Lowbrow Thriller, but Travolta is Just Awfulnew
John Travolta is a lousy actor. Let's just be honest about this: I mean, he has an act, but he's not acting. He just spits back the shtick he memorized in Pulp Fiction while quietly praying to Xenu that no one notices.
Tucson Weekly |
James DiGiovanna |
06-17-2009 |
Reviews
'Sita Sings the Blues' is a Rare Jewelnew
This adult-oriented animation rarely feels like a gimmick and never appears cheap. It would be a tragedy if this bold retelling of the Ramayana were to disappear into the deep and fragmented history of its innumerable ancestors.
Boise Weekly |
Jeremiah Wierenga |
06-17-2009 |
Reviews
Cary Cronenwett's 'Maggots and Men' (Re)stages a Revolutionnew
Set in a mythologized postrevolutionary Russia but based on actual historical events, Maggots marshals early Soviet cinema, the gutter erotics of Jean Genet, and what at times seems like a transgender cast of thousands to build its case for the necessity of queer utopias.
San Francisco Bay Guardian |
Matt Sussman |
06-17-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
