Monthly Archives: July 2022

Gawd, not this again. “Torture porn?” Wanton self-injury and exploding head slaughter set to the tune of “Ten Little Indians?” It’s entirely possible the creators of this nigh-on-unwatchable “Death Count” know that no less than Agatha Christie perfected this plot, … Continue reading →

Every now and then a debut feature film comes out that reminds you that not everybody dying to direct a movie is a slave to genre. Some filmmakers love actors and how they can touch, move and even inspire an … Continue reading →

This award winner looks charming and bittersweet. Aug. 12 from Strand Releasing.

A father tries to check himself and his family out of a civilization he sees as hopelessly corrupt and doomed in “Costa Brava, Lebanon,” a parable of parenting and pollution set in Lebanon “in a near future.” Co-writer/director Mounia Aki … Continue reading →

James Caan, Vito Corleone’s toughest son and Buddy the Elf’s soft touch dad, has died. An old school hardcase who worked pretty much right to the end, he was 82. “Thief,” “Gardens of Stone,” “The Godfather,” he walked away from … Continue reading →

If you see veteran screen heavy Kim Coates in a velour dinner jacket in a thriller, you can’t go far wrong figuring “Well, he’s playing the Devil.” Wherever his career’s taken him — “Waterworld,” “Black Hawk Down, “Sons of Anarchy” … Continue reading →

Is it “real,” or is it all in our hero’s head? Interestingly, our hero is a young gay potter with a boyfriend and a dark, violent past, troubled family history, the works. July 29 in a few theaters, streaming Aug. … Continue reading →

A dark comedy about mental illness and its collateral damage, “The Enormity of Life” never really manages a laugh and rarely even crawls out from under its own dispiriting shadow. And then it gets to one of its many points. … Continue reading →

“The Purge” meets “The Handmaid’s Tale?” July 29.

What an interesting niche Paul Walter Hauser has carved out for himself. Whatever else he’s played as an actor, a universal character we might call “Person of Interest” dominates his resume. From “Richard Jewell” and “I, Tonya” to his new … Continue reading →