AltWeeklies Wire
In Wild Grass, desire doesn't fade with agenew
It is wholly within the spirit of this movie to be less concerned with meaning than with enjoying, questioning and delighting in story, beauty and mischief.
Death and Memory in Oscar-Winning 'The Secret in Their Eyes'new
The Secret in Their Eyes was a surprise winner of this year's best foreign film Oscar. In retrospect, the selection is understandable.
Crescent City Rising: David Simon Takes on Post-Katrina New Orleansnew
How will critics, bloggers and discriminating fans judge Treme, coming from the creators of The Wire, which some of us consider the greatest TV drama of all time?
Tags: David Simon
The Final Days of Tolstoy in 'The Last Station'new
In The Last Station, Tolstoy's ideology and less attractive character traits are downplayed in favor of a more universal, digestible historical period piece.
The War Comes Home in 'The Messenger'new
The backdrop for The Messenger, Oren Moverman's astonishing directing debut, is especially resonant and cinematically uncharted.
Tags: Oren Moverman, The Messenger
Peter Jackson's 'The Lovely Bones' is Dark and Staticnew
Surprisingly, apart from Stanley Tucci's acclaimed turn as serial killer George Harvey, The Lovely Bones has been shut out of the awards-season accolades. Frankly, some of the catcalls are nitpicky and unjustified.
The Year of Staying In: In Lean Times, TV is a Saving Gracenew
You've got to laugh to keep from crying, and in 2009, as bad news streamed constantly on the cable news channels, I valued sitcoms more than ever. Thank God there were comedies worthy of our time.
John Woo's Extravagant Historical Epic, Red Cliffnew
Red Cliff represents not only Woo's first Chinese film (meaning mainland and Mandarin-speaking), but also his first full-blown foray into historical epics. It turns out to be a mode of storytelling that suits him perfectly.
'The Prisoner' Should Make Us Feel Right at Homenew
Let's welcome back one of the granddaddies of the paranoid genre, The Prisoner, which has been revamped for AMC in an effort to keep us tuned in now that another season of Mad Men has passed. Verdict: Yes, we'll stay tuned.
'Coco Before Chanel' Needs a Stylistnew
If only Audrey Tatou could have summoned a little more fire to melt the glacial pace of this ambitious biopic.
Ellen Page Whips it Good in Her Best Post-'Juno' Rolenew
After seeing Juno, my outraged teen daughter rightly asked, "Where is the girl's version of Ferris Bueller's Day Off?" Whip It steps into that void.
Michael Moore's Antics are Finally Justified in 'Capitalism'new
To summarize the sentiment fueling Michael Moore's latest agitprop, one need only quote Tony Montana: "You know what capitalism is? Gettin' fucked!"
Ang Lee's 'Taking Woodstock' is a Marvelous, Unabashedly Nostalgic Trip Backnew
Lee (born in 1954) is just barely old enough to claim membership in the Woodstock generation, even if he was living in his native Taiwan at the time. Still, the Oscar-winning director nails the groovy vibe as effortlessly as he conjured up 1970s suburbia in The Ice Storm.
Tags: Taking Woodstock, Ang Lee
A Ho-Hum Predictability in 'Adam'new
"I'm not Forrest Gump, you know," deadpans Adam when Beth gifts him a box of chocolates. Unfortunately, Adam is a pedestrian film in which, protagonist's eccentricities aside, you pretty much know what you're going to get.
After Rough Patches, Tarantino's 'Inglourious Basterds' Hits its Stridenew
Not since R.W. Fassbinder (and Godard) has a filmmaker shown so much clever, creative interest in how the Third Reich attempted to put mass culture in the service of mass slaughter.
