Monthly Archives: August 2020

“Lingua Franca” is a subtle and sensual story of two very different people struggling with secrets, trying to find common ground or even a common language to talk about what’s happening to them and between them. Filipina-American writer-director Isabel Sandoval … Continue reading →

Ever heard of Keep Shelly in Athens? Keep Shelly in Athens09? Me either. But she/they know the most chilling classic rock song of them all. They do. “Halloween,” “The Stand,” “Scream,” “Zombieland,” “Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey,” too many TV … Continue reading →

This Sept. 18 release looks like a genuine contender, just from its cast — Oscar winners, past and future, a touching topic.

One moment of dialogue in “Cut Throat City,” the latest thriller from the rapper-turned-director RZA pops out as “improvised” or “added by the director on the set.” It’s a mockery of that “over the top Tarantino s—,” with the punchline … Continue reading →

Disney turns its digital animators loose on a serious subject and a “true story,” albeit one in which the animals talk, with “The One and Only Ivan.” It’s about animals, and a silverback gorilla with the title role, living in … Continue reading →

If you’ve caught “Creem: America’s Only Rock’n Roll Magazine,” you might want to check out “Ticket to Write,” which beat that documentary into festivals about four years ago and covers a lot of the same ground. “Ticket to Write: The … Continue reading →

If this hasn’t happened to you, you must be taking the train or the bus to work. A bit of discourteous driving, a honk on the horn in complaint, and the next thing you know, some raving my-life’s-not-my-fault rageaholic is … Continue reading →

For everybody who thought “Connie & Carla” was too upbeat, there’s “Stage Mother,” a drab showcase for the great Jacki Weaver to sing and mother over an unhappy drove of San Fran drag queens. It opens with an overdose and … Continue reading →

That’s Will Smith & Kevin Hart replacing Steve Martin and John Candy in the John Hughes holiday staple. This has “can’t miss” written all over it. Smith can get his dander up with the best of them. “Aww HELL naw!” … Continue reading →

The broad, satiric swipes of the French farce “Wonders in the Suburbs” are the only punches to land — or at least achieve “near miss” — in this flailing comedy of mores, values and leftist idealism put to the test … Continue reading →