One of the more amazing things about Amy, Asif Kapadia’s tragic and sad documentary about the late singer Amy Winehouse, is just how much footage of Winehouse there was. Today we can all shoot video on the fly with smartphones, but Amy begins in 2001, when Winehouse was only eighteen. Much… Continue reading
Spotlight is one of the great investigative journalism films; compelling, flawlessly acted, and successful in its invitation to join in the hunt for the truth. It’s enough to make you think twice about the easy, convenient dismissal of the importance of newspapers in our digital times. Even with an ending… Continue reading
Brooklyn is a classic, beautifully shot romance that is one of the season’s true crowd-pleasing features. It doesn’t contain a lot of surprises or stakes, but commands attention with well-drawn, likable characters, a convincing sense of time and place, and a fantastic lead performance from Saoirse Ronan. It’s also a moving… Continue reading
Secret in Their Eyes, a remake of the 2009 Oscar-winning Argentinian film El secreto de sus ojos, is an old-school, taut, and endlessly involving thriller. The suspense-drama isn’t much in style these days, but this film is a swift reminder that the genre can still bring the heat. As adapted… Continue reading
Love the Coopers features no fewer than six dog reaction shots. Has a successful comedy ever contained this distraction and desperate plea for a chuckle, “awww,” or both? It’s really just the beginning of the problems for this confused, temperamental, and mostly miserable film. Love the Coopers is as much a comedy… Continue reading
Drunk Stoned Brilliant Dead: The Story of the National Lampoon is a fast-paced, often hilarious look at the magazine the defined lewd, counter-culture humor. Most contemporary audiences likely know the name and its association with such timeless cinematic comedies as Animal House, Caddyshack, and Vacation. But in its heyday the… Continue reading
As the story goes, director Crystal Moselle met the “wolfpack,” otherwise known as the Angulo brothers, by chance in Manhattan in 2010. Struck by their Reservoir Dogs-esque black Ray-Ban sunglasses, leather coats, and waist-length hair, she became friends with the group and soon uncovered the kind of story documentary filmmakers dream about.… Continue reading
With Spectre, the James Bond series has once again reached a crossroads. The decision can really be simplified down to this: do we want to continue this dark, gritty charade or actually have some fun again? Spectre, despite its lush locales and trademark superb action set pieces, is a mostly… Continue reading
Save the dog-in-peril, there is nary a disaster movie cliché that goes unturned in San Andreas. It promises large-scale destruction, and that’s exactly what it delivers. Sandwiched among the visual effects showcases are sketchy dialogue and laughably generic character types, but director Brad Peyton and screenwriter Carlton Cuse are much more… Continue reading
The charming and pleasant Pitch Perfect was one of 2012’s biggest surprise hits. You know what “surprise hit” means in Hollywood speak? Sequel! And here we are with Pitch Perfect 2, a bigger and flashier film than its predecessor – and in many ways better. Whereas the original took a… Continue reading