AltWeeklies Wire
Despite Rich Source Material, 'The Road' is Lacking One Thing: Ideas
The Road is a one-note road version of Waiting for Godot, minus Samuel Beckett's brilliant sense of existentialist humor.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
11-23-2009 |
Reviews
Nicolas Cage and Werner Herzog Talk 'Bad Lieutenant'new
When the news broke at Cannes last year that Nicolas Cage and Werner Herzog were remaking Abel Ferrara's Bad Lieutenant, everyone thought it was a joke. But less than a year and a half later, their movie touched down in Toronto and turned into the festival's biggest surprise.
NOW Magazine |
Norman Wilner |
11-23-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
'Planet 51' Mainly Succeeds at Reminding You of All the Better Movies That Inspired Itnew
Handsome doofus Chuck is a chip off the Buzz Lightyear block, and Planet 51 lacks Pixar polish (particularly in its writing). Still, it's not a bad knockoff.
Seattle Weekly |
Brian Miller |
11-23-2009 |
Reviews
The Bad Lieutenant Gone Wildnew
When I first read about Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, it was described as a sequel to Abel Ferrara's 1992 cult favorite about a drug- and gambling-addicted police detective in New York City. When I next read about it, it was described as a remake. Now that I've seen it, I can report that it's neither.
Chicago Reader |
J.R. Jones |
11-23-2009 |
Reviews
The Latest in the 'Twilight' Saga is Gooey Tedium for Fans Onlynew
New Moon is a terrible movie, worse in some ways than Twilight, better in others, and no doubt baffling to the many who don't spend their time fantasizing about being swept off their feet by Robert Pattinson's controlling vampire Edward Cullen or Taylor Lautner's petulant werewolf Jacob Black.
Las Vegas Weekly |
Josh Bell |
11-20-2009 |
Reviews
What's Wrong With Wes Anderson?new
A decade after Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums, Generation Y's anointed auteur tries for a comeback with Fantastic Mr. Fox.
L.A. Weekly |
Joe Donnelly |
11-20-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Fantastic Mr. Fox, Wes Anderson
Ondi Timoner's Doc is a Timely and Cautionary Tale of a Life Lived Onlinenew
In the weeks leading up to the millennium, artist/businessman Josh Harris holed up over 100 artists in an underground bunker equipped with constantly running webcams. Timoner was hired to document the resulting madness.
Montreal Mirror |
Malcolm Fraser |
11-19-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
'Precious': Who Wants Some Oprah-Approved Ghetto Tourism?new
Sexual abuse and incest are realities, and there's no reason why art shouldn't confront them. But when pop culture addresses them (and Precious, with its against-all-odds cheerleading and music-video casting, is very much a pop-culture commodity), the results deserve scrutiny.
The Portland Mercury |
Alison Hallett |
11-19-2009 |
Reviews
Tags: Precious, Lee Daniels
Ben Foster is Painfully Good in 'The Messenger'new
In Foster's first leading role, he plays a character who has just returned from Iraq and is completely cut off from his emotions, even as he's assigned the most emotional job of all, that of a casualty-notification officer.
San Diego CityBeat |
Anders Wright |
11-18-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
'The Blind Side' May be 'Feel-Good,' but That's Not the Same as Feeling Real
The enemy isn't emotion; it's empty-headed uplift. And that's where Hollywood dramatizations have their own blind side.
Salt Lake City Weekly |
Scott Renshaw |
11-17-2009 |
Reviews
Tags: John Lee Hancock, The Blind Side
Director Joe Berlinger Talks About 'Crude,' His New Documentarynew
"I wasn't necessarily sure there was a film. It was more like a humanitarian impulse, basically. So I'm as surprised as anyone that the film’s had the life that it’s had. Although, once I got deep into it, obviously I thought there was a feature-length film."
Baltimore City Paper |
Joe Tropea |
11-17-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
John Woo's 'Red Cliff' is a Must-See Chinese War Epic
Compared to typical big spectacle Hollywood blockbusters like 2012, Red Cliff contrasts its visually stunning epic-scale compositions with a far greater sense of historic purpose.
City Pulse |
Cole Smithey |
11-16-2009 |
Reviews
Lee Daniles Turns an Inner-City Literary Legend into an Act of Global Warmingnew
Daniels exudes confidence when talking about his latest film, Precious. It's as if he knows this story about an obese, ugly, dark-skinned teenage girl from the ghetto -- whose father repeatedly rapes her -- is going to impact the lives of millions.
Philadelphia Weekly |
Monica Peters |
11-16-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
Tags: Precious, Lee Daniels
Morgan Freeman Talks About 'Prom Night in Mississippi'new
Prom Night is Paul Saltzman's documentary about Freeman's 2008 efforts to integrate the high school prom in his hometown of Charleston. Black and white students had historically held separate events. Freeman proposed a single, integrated prom, which he would pay for himself.
NOW Magazine |
Norman Wilner |
11-16-2009 |
Profiles & Interviews
'2012': BOOM! CRASH! JOHN CUSACK!new
2012 is pure pandemonium, and it's like two and a half hours of it, and if you're not in the mood for an inane summer blockbuster in the middle of November, then move along, killjoy -- no one wants you here.
The Portland Mercury |
Erik Henriksen |
11-13-2009 |
Reviews
Tags: Roland Emmerich, 2012
