— by ADAM DALE — There may have been stranger concepts for a book turned into a movie than Paul Torday’s 2006 novel “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen.” — but none come to mind. Directed by Lasse Hallström (“Dear John” and “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape”) and sporting an a[...]
Archive for the ‘Reviews’ Category
Review: Red Desert (aka Il Deserto Rosso)
— by BEV QUESTAD — Forget about the name of this film. Maybe it refers to communism, global warming, anomie or the red-headed lead character, Giuliana. Michelangelo Antonioni, a classic art film director with ambitions nearly as great as his first name, once said he just gave it a random[...]
Review: The Hunger Games
— by ADAM DALE — The nation Panem has risen out of the ruins of what was once known as North America. As punishment for an unsuccessful uprising against the Capitol, a raffle (known as the “reaping”) is held yearly to choose one boy and one girl — from the ages of 12 to[...]
Review: Carpet Racers: A Crash Course
— by CHERRY BELL DAMASCO-FARRINGTON — What are “carpet racers” you ask? This is one of the questions that this documentary intends to answer for you. Director Jay Thames embarks on a year-long quest into the life and times of a professional “carpet racer.” In orde[...]
Review: A Separation
— by BEV QUESTAD — Bravo to Iran for winning the coveted Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film with a brave, insightful study of the human condition. At first, because of the headscarves and trenchant males, the viewer might be tut-tutting that this is just how we expected Iran to[...]
Review: Rocco and His Brothers
— by BEV QUESTAD — Four brothers with their shrew of a mother have left their farm and traveled to the big city of Milan to surprise and move in with the older, newly-engaged fifth son. Surprise, surprise. “Rocco and his Brothers,” renowned as perfection in cinema, begins with artist[...]
Review: Any Day Now
— by ALEXA MILAN — It’s a period everyone has gone through, or will go through, at some point in their lives. That time of transition when you’re no longer a student, you’re trying to navigate through the real world, but you’re not entirely sure where your life is[...]
Review: 21 Jump Street
— by ADAM DALE — When it comes to buddy police comedies, we have seen our fill of action versus comedy. The chemistry between the leads can be just as vitally important to the movie as the story or the jokes themselves. Without the right mixture, the film can be perceived as a parody or [...]
Review: John Carter
— by ADAM DALE — In “John Carter,” Mars is not a desolate wasteland as we think, but full of life. With a war raging on for centuries between two battling humanoid clans — the Heliumites and the Zodangans — the planet is slowly being destroyed by the Zodangans and[...]
Review: The Life of Fish
— by BEV QUESTAD — Despite their own life challenges, everyone is laughing and smiling — everyone but Andrés. They quiet down and ask him seriously, “Have you seen her yet?” Andrés is back. He’s got the charm, the boyish looks, the fame and the charisma that make him irresi[...]
Review: Once Upon a Time in Anatolia
— by BEV QUESTAD — Winding slowly with burning flame headlights, three police cars necklace the dark hills of Anatolia, the great Turkish tongue of Asia, in the dark of a still night. Two bedraggled men lead the police ensemble to possible sites where they might have buried[...]
Review: Project X
— by ADAM DALE — Throwing the ultimate party that will be spoken about for years is every teenager’s dream, especially for those who are geeky, ignored or just plain anonymous at their schools. The ultimate party movie, “Project X,” is being brought to the big screen by[...]
Review: Act of Valor
— by CHERRY BELL DAMASCO-FARRINGTON — In 2007, directors Mike McCoy and Scott Waugh of the Bandito Brothers production company filmed a video for the Special Warfare Combatant craft crewmen. This project eventually grew into something much bigger for the two directors. Together with Kurt[...]
Review: Justice League: Doom
— by JOSUE SANCHEZ — As I regroup and regain my composure from the excitement I just experienced watching DC Universe’s latest animated movie “Justice League: Doom,” I will attempt to put into words why I loved this movie. As a kid, I had many favorite animated TV shows[...]