Monthly Archives: January 2013

Dominic Cooper goes positively Pacino in “The Devil’s Double,” a film biography of a real-life Iraqi “Scarface” and the poor sap ordered to be his stand-in.

In actual per screen averages, last weekend’s number 2 film at the box office, the sluggishly paced and laugh-starved “Haunted House” made more money than “Zero Dark Thirty,” the Oscar nominated winner of the overall box office race. That’s money … Continue reading →

“Les Miserables” won best picture/comedy or musical, “Argo” won best picture, drama and Ben Affleck won best director. Since none of those (first two) are likely to win the Academy Award, and Affleck wasn’t even nominated, let’s call the 70th … Continue reading →

A great treachery is revealed, a great light is snuffed out and the final quest is set up in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, an emotional and involving installment in the hit-or-miss Harry movie series.

The kid looks bored. Two movies into the lifeless Harry Potter franchise, and wee mop top Danny Radcliffe’s looks of perpetual surprise and delight and fear have blended into one long grimace. Can you hear the “How much are they … Continue reading →

There are no eye-rolling pauses to stare at this new magical prop or that extra-special special effect. No time for time-killing Quidditch matches. “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1” is a brisk, bracing film of actors in close-up. … Continue reading →

The finale to the Harry Potter saga is, like most of the films in the series, a bit of a slog. But it’s a generally satisfying slog — two hours of wrapping up loose ends, saying fond, if not exactly … Continue reading →

They answer doors, cook and serve meals, change diapers and raise children for parents who are, supposedly, too busy to bother. They do all this with an air of invisibility, ignored except when they’re being snapped at. And through it … Continue reading →

Can a 3D horror movie be a thing of beauty? In the case of the remake of “Fright Night,” the answer is “Yes!” This violent and violently funny vampire tale covers no new ground, sporting the same jokey tone as … Continue reading →