Writers/directors Mark Burton and Richard Starzak are masters at storytelling—even with no dialog to speak of! Shaun the Sheep plays on the numerous connotations of sheep (being easily led, counting sheep to go to sleep, and fluffy wool, for instance) for chuckles. But the theme running through this feature is weighty, such as how boring […]
Up-and-coming filmmaker Rick Famuyiwa’s Dope is a clever, well written, and directed picture with a fine cast and a plot that is complex and engaging enough to keep the audience pulled right in. Television and film (Joyful Noise) star Shameik Moore as Malcolm nails his character, a young black high school nerd with a high crew cut (I
“Enormous things happen in every life,” our lead character tells us, as the film opens with what he calls the most beautiful writing in New York City; the dedication phrases on park benches.
Wild Tales is a remarkable film from Argentina showing in six vignettes a range of human emotions and coping techniques in response to stress. In all the tales, emotional press (animal instincts, perhaps, in that beautiful close-ups of animals in the wild are shown during the initial credits) usurps logic and good old problem solving
Throughout 2014 I have heard, read, and been witness to endless reports, articles and topics on the lack of the female roles concerning awards season. However, I look around and see roles like Jessica Chastain in Miss Julie, Marion Cotillard in Two Days, One Night, Juliette Binoche in Clouds of Ils Maria and now, yet
Former Breaking Bad star Aaron Paul (Need for Speed) has certainly gotten my attention with his performance in the new film Hellion. Written, directed and based on her short film of the same name, Kat Candler delivers a rousing and emotional look at the struggle of young men trying to overcome tragedy. Also a professor
I can understand why this is being called a film equivalent to a middle aged erotic paperback novel. I can even understand why the majority of the public won’t want to have anything to do with this film. From the director of Coco Before Chanel, French filmmaker Anne Fontaine has adapted a very provocative story
To some extent a director is responsible for an actors good or bad performance, two years ago when both Christian Bale and Meslissa Leo won Oscars under David O. Russell’s direction for The Fighter it elevated him even further as an actor’s director. Disregarding Russell’s own craziness off camera, he has become a director, through