Monthly Archives: November 2022

We’ve seen decades of boot camp movies over the decades, most taking their cue from 1957’s “The D.I.,” with Jack Webb playing the titular Marine Corps drill instructor. More recently, the bar was set by R. Lee Ermey in “Full … Continue reading →

One of the best films ever made about the Armenian Genocide tells the story of one of the first survivors to make it to America. It’s titled “Aurora’s Sunrise,” and it uses different media, bending film genres to relate one … Continue reading →

Seems like every time he reminds us of how good he is, Nic Cage goes right back to doing B-or-C pictures. The wardrobe and (in one shot) fake mustache give this one away. Could be good. Maybe not. We’ll see. … Continue reading →

Apologies to anyone at the roll-your-eyes “Here he goes again” stage of reading my familiar gripe, lament and rant about where too many thrillers come up short — pacing. But here I go again. “The Pay Day” is a a … Continue reading →

Here are three things that aren’t explained in the movie that might help you get more out of Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s “oneiric,” Fellini-esqe, quasi-autobiographical magnum opus “Bardo: False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths.” “Oneiric,” a label applied by the … Continue reading →

There’s something about Alaska that welcomes the quirky and celebrates the extreme. It’s where The Iditarod was born, after all. But I used to live on remote Kodiak Island, where the locals would invent drunken DIY river raft races, bizarre … Continue reading →

Of all the things you’d never expect to find on the resume of Mauna Loa-sized Jason Momoa under “special skills,” “plays nice with kids” has to be pretty far from predictable. He’s the best thing, almost the only entertaining thing, … Continue reading →

“Nanny” is that rare sophisticated and cosmopolitan horror movie, a tale with chills and cross-cultural issues far beyond your usual nut-with-a-knife or demons menacing the kids in a cabin in the woods. Nikyatu Jusu’s debut feature, an award winner at … Continue reading →

In the indie vampire thrilleramedy “Blood Relatives,” the anti hero travels the blue highways of America in a Fire Blue ’69 Barracuda, mutters in Yiddish and is tracked down by a teen who might be his daughter. “I need to … Continue reading →

Amy Adams couldn’t very well turn down a sequel to “Enchanted,” the 2007 Disney delight that made the “Junebug” breakout a bonafide Hollywood star. But seeing her soldier through “Disenchanted” makes one wish she had. She puts on her happy … Continue reading →