— by WILLIAM STERR — “Cue the soundtrack.” This is the first big design error in the horror flick “The Drowned.” From the very first frames, we are assaulted with an ominous, cacophonous, hodgepodge of sounds, including striking gongs, cat-like cries, and eventually quasi-human v[...]
Archive for September, 2025
Review: The Oval Portrait
— by WILLIAM STERR — Lush. There was a time – the late 1930s to early 1950s – when Hollywood made pictures that were lush in their photography (typically B&W), their orchestral scores, and the attention to period details. That is not to say that films lack these characteristics [...]
Review: Hola Frida
— by BEV QUESTAD — Drew Barrymore says she’s grown into being her own best friend. Like Drew, but more than 100 years earlier, Frida Kahlo (1907-1954) overcame great obstacles because of her inner voice, her own best friend. Created specifically for children and their families, “Hola[...]
Review: The Glassworker
— by BEV QUESTAD — Sometimes it is hard to stay true to yourself, to have the courage of your convictions, and still be accepted. Especially in times of war when you are a pacifist. From Karachi, Pakistan, via the Berklee College of Music in Boston and the influence of Ghibli Studios in [...]
Review: Andrea Bocelli: Because I Believe
— by WILLIAM STERR — There have been a number of great tenors whohave interpreted Italian Opera in the last few decades. Of course, “The Three Tenors” immediately come to mind. But there is a fourth, still active today: Andrea Bocelli. Bocelli, known commonly as “The Blind Tenor,[...]
Review: A Sámi Wedding
— by BEV QUESTAD — Class shame has never been so … madcap. I am hesitant to call “A Sámi Wedding” a comedy, but the staccato violin and tuba music that appears at unexpected moments claims the genre. Unlike Lucy Riccardo and Edith Bunker, serious Garen (Sara Margrethe Oskal, who h[...]
Review: John Lewis – Good Trouble
— by BEV QUESTAD — Good trouble Necessary trouble … to do what is right When his head was bashed in on March 7, 1965, America might have lost a civil rights activist. Instead, John Lewis, (Feb. 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020), recovered from his fractured skull and lived on to be a US [&he[...]
Review: My Dear Theo
— by BEV QUESTAD — You are 35, happily married, and a first-time mom with a precious 5-year-old. What would it take for you, without training, to take up with a special forces assault division? Enter Alisa Kovalenko, a Ukrainian. She is the director, cinematographer, and narrator of “M[...]
Review: Borderline
— by WILLIAM STERR — The mind is a wonderful – and terrible – thing. When it works properly we are capable of incredible acts of creation, altruism, and organization. But when something goes wrong… “Borderline” introduces us to Paul Duerson (Ray Nicholson – “Smile 2”)[...]
Review: Checkpoint Zoo
— by WILLIAM STERR — Darkness. The low growl of a big cat, nearby. A flashlight illuminates a lion in a cage, trying to get its claws at a man standing only inches away. This is how a documentary covering the rescue of animals from a Kharkiv zoo during the early days of the Russian [&hel[...]
Review: Paddington in Peru
— by BEV QUESTAD — Eileen, 7 years old, joined me in viewing “Paddington in Peru.” Billed as a live-action, animated comedy, we beg to differ. Paddington does make his hilarious signature goofs, as if he’s a prehistoric being visiting 2025, but we call this Paddington film more of [...]
Review: The Thursday Murder Club
— by WILLIAM STERR — The idea of moving into a “retirement home” is anathema to most people who are younger and still healthy. However, for some of us, personal declining health and/or mental capacity, or that of a loved partner, make assisted living an acceptable option. This is esp[...]
Review: Sudan, Remember Us
— by BEV QUESTAD — “Maha and Shajane, I’m thinking of you trapped in Khartoum between the army bombing and the Rapid Support Forces militia who terrorize and murder. Here in France, there’s not much talk about the war in Sudan,” writes Hind Meddeb. Not only not in France, but not[...]