AltWeeklies Wire
Disappointing Disney adaptation of pulp hero John Carternew
For the last 100 years, John Carter has been an inspirational, beloved hero. Now thanks to this adaptation, a pulp icon will be known as the jerkwad from that lame-ass Disney movie.
Tags: John Carter
From Iran, the Oscar-winning A Separationnew
Far, far away from the stumbling American film industry, people still make movies not to further licensing agreements or to stoke self-serving nostalgia but to tell their stories. A Separation is the freshest, most deserving feature film that the Academy recognized.
Kudzu, moonshine and more at the Strange Beauty Film Festivalnew
Although N.C. filmmakers make up about a third of the 48-film program, work from Winnipeg, Taiwan, Germany and the United Kingdom will also be screened.
Scouting This Year's Short Film Oscar Nomineesnew
The Carolina Theatre will be screening one program for the live action shorts and one for the animated shorts.
Sadness and Stultification in Albert Nobbsnew
Glenn Close plays Albert Nobbs, a nonentity with a traumatic, largely suppressed past who has survived for three decades dressing and working as a man.
The Artist is deserving of the feverish praise it has inspirednew
A French silent film as Oscar's Best Picture of 2011? I'm voting oui.
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close's premise is apposite and affectingnew
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close tackles 9/11, a cinematic third-rail used as the milieu for films both brilliant (United 93) and inept (World Trade Center; Remember Me).
Shame isn't as shaming as it thinks it isnew
First off, let me just say I don't feel sorry for any dude whose dick I can see from the back. That's the first strike against the lead character as played by Michael Fassbender in Steve McQueen's latest film, Shame.
Characters can't leave the room in Polanski's latest, Carnagenew
For God's sake, why don't the Cowans just leave? The answer lies in the fact that, for his whole career, Roman Polanski has been interested in domestic interiors and how they take hold of his characters.
Tags: Roman Polanski, Carnage
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is a solid revival of Cold War-era le Carré novelnew
This well-acted, well-made movie keeps the us-against-them theatrics in the background in favor of a compelling character study of men fighting to stay relevant in a world where they can easily be replaced.
From the streets of Baltimore to Sesame Street, Kevin Clash has spent a lifetime Being Elmonew
Elmo is warm, curious and affectionate, seemingly a reflection of the talented artist who supplies his voice.
We Bought a Zoo wins prize for most mediocre, heartwarming family filmnew
Considering that Cameron Crowe has practically grown up along with his films, seeing him pull a hack move and direct the painfully middlebrow We Bought a Zoo isn't that much of a surprise.
Spielberg's Adventures of Tintin is surprisingly funnew
With The Adventures of Tintin, Steven Spielberg remembers that even if you make a movie that isn't about that much, at least make it an exciting, awe-inspiring movie about not that much.
Tags: The Adventures of Tintin
With War Horse, Spielberg makes his WWI movienew
Steven Spielberg adeptly captures the transitional nature of the Great War, one of the last fought with horses and swords.
The American Girl with the Dragon Tattoonew
David Fincher's remake of Girl remains as cold as its Swedish winterscape, but the actors frequently appear to be mechanically hitting their marks, often in conspicuous proximity to product placement.
