— by BEV QUESTAD — Bring out your Kleenex, not for sadness or maudlin nostalgia, but for poignant acknowledgment. It’s not loss that will bring tears, but what the significance of death can teach us. “Departures” recognizes the essential power inherent in witnessing the passing to [...]
Author Archive
Trailer Talk: ‘The Special Relationship’
— by BEV QUESTAD — The trailer looks snazzy — Bill Clinton talks to Tony Blair about running the world. There is an important sounding soundtrack, views of the White House, a lovely Hilary and a seemingly normal Blair family at the breakfast table. Yes, there is mention of Monica a[...]
An Exclusive Interview with Producer-Director Bess O’Brien
— by BEV QUESTAD — Bess O’Brien has been a leader in collaborative, authentic movie making, telling true-life stories personal struggles and challenges through film. This July she and her cast were awarded the 2010 SuAnne Big Crow Human and Civil Rights Award from the National Educatio[...]
Film Festivals Serve a Necessary Purpose
— by BEV QUESTAD — Film festivals are like a one-weekend love affair with the dark mystery man of your dreams in a far-off city. Festivals make available something you’re not likely to experience ever again. And there’s a reason for this plot against pleasure, this worldwide conspira[...]
Under Review: ‘Freedom’s Thirst’
— by BEV QUESTAD — “Kashmir is India’s heart” says the narrator of this film, but the Kashmir region is not a safe place. Last summer, there were 47,000 deaths and 3,400 disappearances resulting from political struggle. Some news analysts have speculated that the Kashmir area is th[...]
Trailer Talk: ‘Lebanon’ (aka ‘Levanone’)
— by BEV QUESTAD — “On June 6, 1982, at 6:15 a.m., I killed a man for the first time in my life. I was 20 years old.” Better than the trailer is Samuel Maoz’s essay on why he made this film. Back in 1982, when Israel invaded Lebanon, Maoz — an Israeli tank gunner […][...]
Under Review: ‘Wikileaks’
— by BEV QUESTAD — News releases are out today about Pfc. Bradley E. Manning’s 2007 video documenting an apparent US massacre of at least 12 civilians in Bagdad. He’s been charged with eight violations of the U.S. Criminal Code for illegally transferring classified data to Wikileaks.[...]
Under Review: ‘King of India’
— by BEV QUESTAD — A train is traveling past, not stopping. We see them, on the other side, blurred behind the rushing wheels. This is the metaphor for their lives. As India moves on, progressing, these children remain, untended, blurred, disregarded identities. These are the children of[...]
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Lands Daniel Craig
— by BEV QUESTAD — He’s European … he’s charming … he’s in shape … he’s 42 … he’s single … his schedule is a bit clearer … and, even better, he’s blond. The stoic, chiseled Daniel Craig, best known as a charming James Bond (the sixth), has [...]
Under Review: ‘Ondine’
— by BEV QUESTAD — Based on mysterious selkie mythology, this film is difficult to follow, hard to understand and just plain odd. Yes, there are parts that are beautifully produced with an intense performance by Colin Farrell as Syracuse. However, I couldn’t understand some of the word[...]
First Look: ‘Afghanistan — Red Cross’
— by BEV QUESTAD — Stories of transformation and triumph from chaos and disaster occur at the unlikely International Red Cross Orthopedic Center in Kabul. Consider the life of an amputee in a landscape of desperate unemployment, rocky mountain terrain, scarce survival resources and conti[...]
Under Review: ‘Afghanistan: The Trap’
— by BEV QUESTAD — Does this film need to be shown at the start of the next U.S. Congressional session? The next presidential breakfast? “Afghanistan: The Trap” is not a great documentary from the standpoint of cinematic quality or script. But you will widen your eyes and mutter, “[...]
Controversies Over ‘The Karate Kid’
— by BEV QUESTAD — Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan get a big YES for their work on this film, but at least three controversies swirl over this re-make of the 1984 Macchio version of “The Karate Kid.” First of all, the casting director, Poping Auyeung, flopped when it came to casting the [...]
Under Review: ‘Schadeberg: Black – White’
— by BEV QUESTAD — Important art reveals something about the human condition. This documentary on the work of South African photo-documentarian Jürgen Schadeberg brings to life the past and well as current struggles of the Blacks of Soweto, South Africa. It’s an art form of the highes[...]