Monthly Archives: February 2020

In “Wendy,” the writer-director of the Oscar-nominated “Beasts of the Southern Wild”  transports the Peter Pan story from London and “Never Never Land” to the Louisiana bayou and the Caribbean island of Monserrat. And he tinkers with the fantasy about … Continue reading →

Victor Hugo wrote the original “Training Day.” Or so it would seem, in the Oscar-nominated French thriller that takes the title of Hugo’s most famous novel, “Les Miserables.” The title comes from the film’s Montfermeil (suburban Paris) setting. It is … Continue reading →

See? This is what happens when we don’t give Amy Adams tje Oscar she’s deserved for YEARS. Julianne Moore and Gary Oldman have been there. Hope they commiserated with her, because Amy pulls out all the stops on this dressing … Continue reading →

It’s like “Queen & Slim” with LAUGHS Issa and Kumail, a real action comedy love match? Works for me. April

Just who are we meant to root for in Corneliu Porumboiu’s “The Whistlers?” Is it Cristi (Vlad Ivanov), the deadpan, corrupt Romanian cop yanked hither and yon — from Bucharest to La Gomera, in the Spanish Canary Islands — by … Continue reading →

What kind of man parks a piece of evidence — the car whose owner died when he was dropped 20 stories onto its roof — in the police impound lot, sees that car turn its lights and ignition on, engine … Continue reading →

Is “The Lodge” the most disturbing thriller of the year? Judas Priest, I hope so. Dark and despairing, grim and gripping, it’s not necessarily shocking. It doesn’t live or die on its “big twists.” But it gets in your head … Continue reading →

We figure out “The Silent War” is  Western long before the Spanish captain has dismounted and shown off his El Tigre, a Spanish knockoff of that cowboy cannon, a Winchester (’92). It’s obvious when the hero steals the horse and … Continue reading →

Tera keeps her black cap pulled down over her eyes and keeps those eyes in a permanent glower. The hat is armor, her posture sullen, defensive. You grow up Chinese and female in South Central Los Angeles, it comes naturally. … Continue reading →

I liked the “Groundhog Day” Jeep commercial. And the Boston Hyundai “pahk the cah” ad. But those and this James Bond short spot were the only items from “The Big Game” that I sampled. This adds a little to the … Continue reading →