“Isserley always drove straight past a hitch-hiker when she first saw him, to give herself time to size him up.…
“Oculus” Has an Eye for Editing
Oculus (Mike Flanagan, 2013) I am not a particular connoisseur (or fan) of the horror genre. Occasionally, I find myself…
Delivering Us from Evil: “Joe” is Southern Gothic at Its Best
Joe (David Gordon Green, 2014) I saw Joe at the 2014 SXSW Festival, and found it both powerful and difficult to watch. It…
“Captain America: The Winter Soldier” – Everything You Want and Need in a Superhero
Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Anthony Russo/Joe Russo, 2014) I did not grow up reading comic books. I was no fanboy.…
Barbara the Brilliant: Midday on Stanwyck, April 4, 1pm
[For those of you who missed the show, here is a link to the podcast: http://wypr.org/post/midday-film-1 ] From 1927 to 1986, Barbara…
Paris – The City of Fight: The True Romance of “Le Week-End”
Le Week-End (Roger Michell, 2013) Love is a battlefield, especially in certain long-term relationships. A 60-something English couple, Nick and Meg…
“Cesar Chavez” – A Great Man Struggles against the Mediocrity of His Biopic
Cesar Chavez (Diego Luna, 2014) Biopics are frequently problematic. How does one reduce the life of an important historical figure…
“The Grand Budapest Hotel” Serves a Tasty, If Lightweight, Feast
The Grand Budapest Hotel (Wes Anderson, 2014) In the past 20 years, the writer/director Wes Anderson has made just 5…
“Divergent” Takes the Path Most Traveled
Divergent (Neil Burger, 2014) In a post-apocalyptic world, where the survivors once struggled in the aftermath of war but have…
SXSW 2014 Final Roundup
Friday, March 14, was my last day at SXSW. I wish I could have stayed until Sunday morning, so that…