February 26, 2010: Faubourg 36 First off, why, for english-language countries, does this film need to be retitled Paris 36? It seems like a pretty blunt statement that we couldn’t possibly understand, even with some explanation, what the term Faubourg means in relation to Paris neighbourhoods in the 1930s. Second, I’ve struggled in the weeks […]
February 26, 2010: The Secret of Kells The Secret of Kells is a perfect example of the kind of minor treasure I discover during my annual Oscar push. An animated film but not at all in the lush Disney style, it uses the medium of the animated canvas to its fullest to tell a story […]
February 24, 2010: Il Divo Il Divo was a low point for me in this year’s Oscar blast. A film I had not heard of before the nominations, it was in consideration for the Makeup award. The film is in Italian, and chronicles the political life of enigmatic several-times Italian prime minister Guilio Andreotti. His […]
February 24, 2010: The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers I am always surprised when I come across some apparently huge historical news story that I have no real knowledge about. It’s not that I believe I’m particularly well-read, but as often as not, when I see a documentary, the […]
February 23, 2010: Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen I am directly below enemy scrotum. Seriously, that is a line in this Oscar-nominated (for Sound Mixing) film, and I had to sit through two and a half hours of cartoonish action for that little nugget from John Turturro, as two hooked wrecking balls from a transformed […]
February 16, 2010: Coco avant Chanel (Coco Before Chanel) Coco avant Chanel brings us a look at the life of the famed designer before fame, fortune and recognition came her way. As I presume is typically the case with such passionate and successful people, their particular passion is evident from a young age, and a […]
February 14, 2010: The Lovely Bones The Lovely Bones is one of those movies that seems to have a fair bit of buzz surrounding it, but nobody has seen it or even really knows what it’s about. A brief theatrical run and an Oscar nomination for Stanley Tucci’s supporting performance may not give it any […]
February 14, 2010: A Single Man Hollywood is perhaps inadvertently confusing the idle moviegoer, as it has been known to do in the past, by putting out two very different movies with similar titles around the same time. I have previously reviewed A Serious Man, the latest from the Coen brothers and a quirky 1960s-set […]
February 11, 2010: Julie & Julia I like Meryl Streep. I like Amy Adams. I like food. I like blogs. So why does Julie & Julia not resonate with me? The idea of this film is original and interesting, and has great potential. The true story of pioneering American chef Julia Child (based on a […]
February 10, 2010: The Last Station How many freebies do I get during Oscar season? What I mean is, for how many decent movies do I get to go totally half-assed with my reviews, in order to save my time and sanity, when I’m 20 reviews behind? It’s hard enough to see 2-3 movies a […]