— by ADAM DALE — Director and writer David Wain has his cinematic roots in TV sketch comedy, which has made its way into his filmmaking style. With each passing movie, his style has developed and matured. His first film, “Wet Hot American Summer,” had an energy to it that really lent[...]
Archive for the ‘Reviews’ Category
Review: Monsieur Lazhar
— by BEV QUESTAD — It is Montreal in the winter. Children are playing outside their school in the slushy cold. Two little sixth graders befriend each other. Alice (Sophie Nélisse) reminds Simon (Émilien Néron) it’s his turn to get the milk. He dashes off, excited to be a helper. He [...]
Review: Footnote (aka He’arat Shulayim)
— by BEV QUESTAD — There are five nominations for this year’s Best Foreign Language Oscar and three of them were shown at Portland’s 35th International Film Festival this month. Normally you’d be thinking that this would be a great opportunity to see great work, but unless[...]
Review: The Island President
— by BEV QUESTAD — After viewing this film you’re going to want to immediately book your trip to the sunny Maldive Islands. Why? They’re a gorgeous group of over 1000 little islands in paradise filled with palm trees, colorful flowers, warm water lagoons, and exotic, secluded[...]
Review: This Means War
— by ADAM DALE — Friendship is useful in many ways, and it can come in handy when you’re dealing with life and death situations. FDR (Chris Pine) and Tuck (Tom Hardy) are not only best friends; they are two of the CIA’s top field agents. Their knowledge of each other’s strength[...]
Review: Patagonia
— by BEV QUESTAD — Everyone is on a journey with at least one secret. Two road trips, one set in Wales and the other in Patagonia, have another interesting connection. In 1865 about 160 Welsh people immigrated to Argentina to start a new life free of “the poverty of their hill farms an[...]
Review: Eternity (aka Tee rak)
— by BEV QUESTAD — Feel the stillness as you gaze at the rich dirt after harvest and the faint mountains in a haze. There is no movement, no sound or whisper even from nature. Then, from a distance, comes the crackle of a motorcycle. It comes into the silent scene and departs, leaving yo[...]
Review: The Secret World of Arrietty
— by ADAM DALE — Known for such international hits such as “Spirited Away,” “Howl’s Moving Castle” and “Ponyo,” Studio Ghibli has teamed up with director Hiromasa Yonebayashi to bring another intriguing and visually-beautiful animated tale to the big screen with “The Secr[...]
Review: Elena (aka Елена)
— by BEV QUESTAD — This is the story of a marriage between a cold, penny-pinching Russian capitalist conservative and his working class wife. In “Elena,” a successful retired capitalist married the nurse he met while recovering in a hospital from appendicitis. He apparently married h[...]
Review: Safe House
— by ADAM DALE — Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds are no strangers to the action film genre, so what would happen if you put them together and pitted them against each other? Universal Pictures and director Daniel Espinosa are hoping this equals into big screen movie magic in the new [...]
Review: Journey 2: The Mysterious Island
— by ADAM DALE — In Hollywood, the trend has gone from hoping for a sequel to a popular film to expecting it. This is the case with 2008’s “Journey to the Center of the Earth” — which starred Brendan Fraser and Josh Hutcherson. We now have a follow-up[...]
Review: Where Do We Go Now?
— by BEV QUESTAD — A funeral stomp in the midst of the unrest in Lebanon sets the stage for this Middle Eastern musical comedy. The women, chanting, stomping and swaying in unison set the stage for the best solutions to conflict you’re ever going to see on film. Set in a traditional li[...]
Review: Bull Head (aka Rundskop)
— by BEV QUESTAD — The best thing about “Bull Head” is that it focuses on the hormone abuse in the meat industry. Yeah, that is the very best thing. The worst thing is that it picks a big infected scab open on man’s inhumanity to man. It’s about bullying — bullying on[...]
Review: Chronicle
— by ADAM DALE — Nearly every child dreams of having one super power or another when they are younger, whether it is super strength, the ability to fly or some form of extraordinary ability. Most stem from comic books, cartoons or some other inspirational place. What we fail to think abo[...]