— by WILLIAM STERR — Movies take a long time to develop, film, edit and finally release. So it is unlikely that this 2019 Russian film anticipated the disastrous conflict between Russia, Ukraine, and NATO. However, it did get the disaster part right. It is nighttime in Moscow. Not today[...]
Author Archive
Review: Till
— by WILLIAM STERR — Most adult in America are aware of the story of Emmett Till. He was a young Black American from Chicago who traveled to Mississippi in 1955 to visit relatives. There, he ran afoul of southern sentiments and was brutally murdered by a gang of white men. They believed [...]
Review: The Ghosts of Monday
— by WILLIAM STERR — “Oh my ******* God.” The above is the best line from the movie “The Ghosts of Monday”, and it pretty well sums up this 78 minutes of nonsense. Actually filmed on the island of Cyprus, which has it’s own sordid past, this poorly conceived, written, directed,[...]
Review: When You Finish Saving the World
— by WILLIAM STERR — Disfunctional families. We all know one, maybe even live in one. They are certainly the fodder for endless films whether they be gritty noir flicks, lost in the complexity of modern day society films or gay holiday affairs, we’ve all seen them and watched, fascinat[...]
Review: 18 ½
— by WILLIAM STERR — Those of you old enough to remember, or inquisitive enough to care, will know about the notorious 18 and ½ minute gap in the Nixon Watergate tapes that were ascribed to a mistaken erasure by Nixon’s longtime secretary, Rosemary Woods. But what if another copy of t[...]
Review: Matter Out of Place
— by WILLIAM STERR — “Matter out of place” refers to any object or impact not native to the immediate environment. So begins this film about the production of societal waste, its collection and disposal, all within the environment we depend upon to sustain us. Prepare yourself for sc[...]
Review: Back to the Wharf
— by WILLIAM STERR — Films for the People’s Republic of China (mainland China) have been making their way into international venues more and more recently. But that doesn’t mean they’ve been successful in selling tickets. The Chinese government and private companies have been pouri[...]
Review: There’s Something Wrong with the Children
— by WILLIAM STERR — Nothing like a vacation with a couple you’ve known for years … especially if they’ve brought along their two darling, rambunctious kids. That’s probably what went through the minds of Ben and Margaret as they arranged with Ellie and Thomas to rent adjoini[...]
Review: Where the Crawdads Sing
— by WILLIAM STERR — This is a film adaptation of the 2018 hit novel of the same name, written by Delia Owens. The novel features two story-lines, one of a young girl, abandoned by her family and brutal father and self-raised in the marshes of coastal North Carolina. The second story lin[...]
Review: White Noise
— by WILLIAM STERR — Academia! That ivory tower where esoteric thought and meaningless, endless conversation about nothing substitutes for real life. If the words are big enough, the problems are made small enough. At least at the “College on the Hill.” This is the world we are tempo[...]
Review: Those Who Call
— by WILLIAM STERR — It’s only a few days into 2023 and things are already headed for the drain. Wars rage on, famine increases, chaos reigns in the House of Representatives and, worst of all, I just sat through “Those Who Call.” This Opus Minus by writer/director Anubys Lopez (“[...]
Review: Corsage
— by WILLIAM STERR — This 2022 film, Austria’s Foreign Language entry to the Academy Awards, is the (highly) fictionalized account of a brief period in the life of Elizabeth, Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary. Not only is it a fictionalized account covering the years 1877 and 187[...]