Monthly Archives: January 2018

An Autistic young “Star Trek” fanatic expands her horizons on her first-ever road trip on her own in “Please Stand By,” a picture whose picaresque premise holds more promise that its star or director deliver. The heroine of the piece … Continue reading →

It started with Ally Sheedy tweeting in protest about James Franco’s Golden Globes win for starring in “The Disaster Artist.” Then others came forward, alleging sexual harassment and coercion on film sets. And now the LA Times has chased down … Continue reading →

The first thing that hits you is the quiet. For all the movement, the rush from meeting to meeting, the urgency of the issues they seem to be dealing with, there’s no sign of discord, chaos or quarreling in this … Continue reading →

Andy Goldsworthy makes art where he finds it — in decaying forests, in snow-covered fields, on streets where he might lie down just as a light rain is beginning. His “ghost” is his dry body shape, which you see on … Continue reading →

On the one hand, you had me at “Fellini.” And then there’s sunny Italy, a boon to any film’s setting, especially an indie one. And Maria Bello, Earth Momma extraordinaire. On the other hand, it’s yet another coming-of-age romance, and … Continue reading →

Yeah, it’s just another Liam Neeson B-movie thriller. Yes, we’ve seen “The Commuter” before. Hell, we’ve seen it starring Liam Neeson and also directed by Jaume Collet-Serra. Only that film was set on a plane, not a train, and it … Continue reading →

Thomas Middleditch is that lanky, likeable put-upon Canadian star of “Silicon Valley” and too many Verizon commercials to count. Maybe he can’t convince you to switch cell phone services, but his EveryShlump image makes him easy to pity and root … Continue reading →

You don’t have to be a film buff to remember Gloria Grahame. We see her every Christmas, as Violet, the good-hearted Bedford Falls floozy in “It’s a Wonderful Life.” An Oscar winner in “The Bad and the Beautiful,” a “Girl … Continue reading →

If you thought “Paddington” was as adorable as a kids’ movie about a talking bear could get, you were mistaken. “Paddington 2” sees your “adorable” and raises it with an “inutterably charming,” an Oscar winner and a couple of other … Continue reading →

  Catching a movie after its hype has peaked is always an exercise in “What’d others see in this?” “Mudbound,” far-removed from Sundance, “The Shape of Water” extracted from its fanboy fawnathon can feel empty, thin and lacking. Remove the … Continue reading →