AltWeeklies Wire
'Doubt' Wags the Finger of Moral Relativismnew
With its bristling topicality, ritzy cast and the added bonus of Roger Deakins' gracefully bleak cinematography, Doubt is being squired around town as prime Oscar bait. But in Shanley’s hands, it only looks deep.
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
12-12-2008 |
Reviews
'Australia': Somewhere Over the Datelinenew
You don't have to have been raised on colonial Brit Lit, classic melodramas, Westerns, war movies, or Gone With the Wind to predict the likely outcome of Baz Luhrmann's Australia within its first 15 minutes, but any or all of the above will help.
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
12-01-2008 |
Reviews
Catherine Deneuve: Belle De 50 Ansnew
The actress on her new film, A Christmas Tale, and her long, glorious non-career.
L.A. Weekly |
Scott Foundas |
11-21-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
'Bolt' is a Starry Dog Storynew
As I laughed my head off, I wondered what it means that children's movies have become the playground for Hollywood's self-loathing.
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
11-21-2008 |
Reviews
'Slumdog Millionaire': Game Show Masalanew
The potential for a treacly Good Will Hunting of the Mumbai ghetto abounds, but Danny Boyle and screenwriter Simon Beaufoy think more in terms of a minor-scale Dickensian epic.
L.A. Weekly |
Scott Foundas |
11-14-2008 |
Reviews
'A Christmas Tale' is Ecstatically Bitchynew
Arnaud Desplechin comes home for the horror days.
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
11-14-2008 |
Reviews
How Lance Hammer Earned His Beautiful New Film 'Ballast'new
It is but one of the many remarkable qualities of Ballast that its characters possess their quiet, unassailable dignity from the start rather than having it revealed (or, worse, bestowed upon them) by the filmmaker.
L.A. Weekly |
Scott Foundas |
11-14-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
From Manchester to Mumbai with Danny Boylenew
He wanted to make a movie from inside, and he's succeeded with Slumdog Millionaire, a vibrant, fast-paced, gorgeously mounted and soulful Oliver Twist makeover about Jamal, an inner-city youth who reaches the finals of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
11-14-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
'Ballast': Weight of the Worldnew
Taking measure of Lance Hammer's Sundance-awarded drama.
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
11-07-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Ballast, Lance Hammer
'The Secret Life of Bees': Buzz Killnew
Saccharine civil rights drama is all honey, no sting.
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
10-17-2008 |
Reviews
Oliver Stone on 'W.' and the President Who Would Be John Waynenew
W. attempts to cut through the familiar agitprop from both sides of the political spectrum in order to take the long view on its subject and his impact on the course of American history.
L.A. Weekly |
Scott Foundas |
10-17-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
'Moving Midway': Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?new
A white Southern family's alterna-history meets reality.
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
10-17-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Godfrey Cheshire, Moving Midway
Bill Maher's Cross to Bearnew
Maher has been hammering away forever at institutionalized faith, but Religulous, which Lionsgate quixotically plans to position as an Oscar contender in the documentary category, raises the bar to a whole new dimension of attack, as you might expect from a movie with Borat director Larry Charles at the helm.
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
10-10-2008 |
Profiles & Interviews
'Rachel Getting Married': Anne Hathaway Plays the Other Sisternew
Actress makes compelling bad girl in pedestrian family drama.
L.A. Weekly |
Ella Taylor |
10-10-2008 |
Reviews
'Body of Lies': Terror Porn We Can Believe Innew
British actor Mark Strong steals show in Ridley Scott's latest.
L.A. Weekly |
Scott Foundas |
10-10-2008 |
Reviews
Tags: Ridley Scott, Body of Lies
