Monthly Archives: January 2014

She was up for the lead in “Saving Mr. Banks.” And she would have been great in it, co-starring with Tom Hanks, being a bit more age appropriate for P.L. Travers, being bitchy as all get out. But no, Meryl … Continue reading →

True confession, I’m a fan. I’ve interviewed her before. She’s been pretty good in most everything she’s done, post “High School Musical.” Well, nobody was good in “Sucker Punch.” Vanessa Hudgens has been aggressively making that leap from teen idol … Continue reading →

The payoff isn’t nearly as interesting as the cryptic set-up and disquieting performances and scenes that precede it in “The Wait.” Still, this movie about a family failing to deal with the death of the matriarch and the differing forms … Continue reading →

A sense of mystery is a hard thing to create on film. So much so that discarding that sense, once you’ve created it, is almost always a mistake.That’s the blunder of “The Truth About Emanuel.” It sets up a lovely … Continue reading →

“Breaking Bad” fans will get a kick of out of seeing Bryan “Walter White” Cranston in beard and sunglasses, slinging a Slavic accent. As a hit-man/courier in “Cold Comes the Night,” he sets the film’s quiet, menacing tone with long … Continue reading →

“Divorce Corp” is a documentary that could have been required viewing for anybody getting divorced, or for that matter, getting married. Its cautionary message is that sobering. But advocacy documentaries — be they about charter schools, Barack Obama’s parentage or … Continue reading →

Everything old is new again at this movies this year. And we’re not just talking about sequels. Hollywood has taken its “rely on established ‘brand’ names” thing to the next level. So we have a new “Hercules” and a new … Continue reading →

A few surprises in the nominated films the WGA figured noteworthy from last year — original script, adapted script and documentary script. Woody Allen, Coen Brothers, “American Hustle,” Spike Jonze.Sure. “Before Midnight,” “Captain Phillips,” “August: Osage County,” “Dallas Buyers Club,” … Continue reading →

A Tepid weekend at the box office, with holiday holdovers rounding up a few more bucks, pre-Oscar nominations (“American Hustle” is leading “Wolf of Wall Street” by a wide margin, which could shrink if the Oscars favor the latter). “Frozen” … Continue reading →