— by BEV QUESTAD — “When a girl at a bar asks you what you do, and you look at her and you can honestly tell her right in the eyes that ‘I move mountains for a living,’ she questions that.” Sometimes a one-minute trailer is simply better than the film. Tightly woven with pithy [&[...]
Author Archive
Review: No Small Matter
— by BEV QUESTAD — There is a national security threat that is more important than all the others, but who’s talking about it? Three retired military leaders speak out about this American crisis that cripples every sector of US development. It is the one thing not only endangering our [...]
Review: Born to Play
— by BEV QUESTAD — My two heroes for the week are Allison Cahill and Chanté Bonds. They are famous for being the very best at what they do. They have guts, courage, strength and, most of all, drive. They have identified what they wanted to achieve and have let nothing stop them. They ar[...]
Review: Runner
— by BEV QUESTAD — Guor Mading Maker (aka Guor Marial) went from scavenging nuts and mangoes to survive at age 8 or 9 in Northern Sudan to becoming an American college graduate and Olympic marathon runner. This is a true, inspiring story of what America, at her best, can do for people in[...]
Review: We Have Boots
— by BEV QUESTAD — “Rogue Cops – Return the eye!” [Free access to uncensored version through July 6 at end of review.] “We Have Boots” is a fiery documentary interspersed with moments d’art. Echoing throughout the film is the rich full voice of Marion Anderson singing (19[...]
Review: Tommaso
— by BEV QUESTAD — Somehow, while watching this film, there is an odd sense that we are somehow seeing real life or that this is a study of someone’s life, either the exterior of what is truly occurring, or the interior struggle of thoughts and fears played out on the screen. The writi[...]
Review: Miss Juneteenth
— by BEV QUESTAD — In these revolutionary days of protests, demonstrations, civil disobedience, and cry-outs about Black Lives Matter and defunding the police, Juneteenth, June 19, has arrived and will be acknowledged in every state in the Union. On the same day, “Miss Juneteenth” ha[...]
Review: Joan of Arc
— by BEV QUESTAD — Is it possible to run war kindly? What if, through time, soldiers were not allowed to rape or plunder? Would that take the adventure out of signing up for an inconvenient deployment rarely paid? When Lady Joan, inspired by God, tries to push the English out of France i[...]
Review: Working Man
— by BEV QUESTAD — What to do when life throws curve balls and there’s not much time left to recover? “Working Man” features the most stunning acting in memory. Peter Gerety, aged 80 with a hard beachball belly and 64 films under his belt since 1961, takes the screen away in an und[...]
Review: Requiem for the American Dream
— by BEV QUESTAD — The Vicious Cycle versus the American Dream. Aristotle, James Madison, FDR, and Howard Zinn. An ominous title for an ominous time. Required reading for this year’s graduates. Free link at end. Noam Chomsky, 88 years old at the time of the release of this film, is wid[...]
Review: Driveways
— by BEV QUESTAD — In one of the last performances before his death on April 15, 2020, Brian Dennehy brought a simple little film to glory. Cast as a retired old fogey named Del, who has lived in the neighborhood since he married about 50 years ago, Dennehy makes this film glow. Driveway[...]
Review: Bull
— by BEV QUESTAD — Has the bull ever lost in a bull-riding contest? There is absolutely no record showing a bull-rider out-riding the bucking bull. “Bull,” a double-entendre for this surprising film, is about a 14-year old girl named Kris who is determined to be a professional bull-r[...]
Review: Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind
— by BEV QUESTAD — The film begins with 11-year old Natasha waking up to a radio broadcast that her mother has been picked up off Catalina Island. Not understanding, she rushes downstairs as her father is coming up to tell her the news. She says, “The day my mom died my entire world wa[...]
Review: Until the Birds Return
— by BEV QUESTAD — How responsible are we when we see an injustice happen and we do nothing? Karim Moussaoui, an Algerian writer/director, presents three perspectives on this in his masterpiece, “Until the Birds Return.” Three life strands are juxtaposed, each with their parallels an[...]