A beautifully artistic rendition of brutality along the trail of Mexicans traveling to make it across the border into the U.S. Artistry of the film involves using reality-based truths and magical-realism to comment on a culture adrift, trying to comprehend and understand immigration. The all-female group of filmmakers (director and co-writer with Astrid Rondero, Fernanda Valadez, cinematographer […]
What people do when they get older varies immeasurably, depending on family, circumstances, personal preference, and many other reasons. That there is a group of oldsters who travel around—mostly in vans and RVs—is new to me, as probably for most of us. Some are facing the end of life and want to make the most of it,
Although this is an interesting story, The Last Vermeer is uneven in its presentation and inserts events in the script that seem to be intended simply to make the film more exciting to the current generation. John Orloff (pen name, James McGee) wrote the script about a character named Han van Meergren who sold forged Vermeer paintings to
A period drama (early 20thCentury) that may not appeal to viewers of today. Although it might. In the film, young Martin Eden (Marinelli) goes through struggles in his young and later adult years that involve wrestling with individualism vs. socialism—a contentious subject that is prominent in current news, with the Republican administration claiming (unfairly) that the Democrats
This movie is odd, with the title being the strangest part. Associations to a nest are normally that of a stable, comfy, nurturing place with a family altogether. The story starts out like this, although with a few signs that there might be fundamental problems—a mother consistently late in getting the kids to school, a father needing
This is a film that gets my ire up. On the one hand, it is about genuine emotions that are well portrayed, but in its overall point and the intricacies of the story it misses big-time. Melanie (Owen) and her mother Dawn (Taylor) live in a typical mother-daughter relationship after the father’s death. They disagree, argue a
This is an unusual treatment of a story about a teenager with schizophrenia. Based on a novel by Julia Walton, Nick Naveda adapted it to a screenplay that focuses on the inner experience of someone with a major disorder. It has many strong points, and a few aspects that I have questions about. Adam (Plummer) and his
What a delightful surprise to see a winner from a relatively new filmmaker, Prentice Penny, writer and director. We don’t usually think of a black middle-class young man with a future in his father’s business wanting to become a sommelier (not a Somalian, as envisioned by some in his circle). But Elijah (Athie) is a dreamer, and something
“End of Sentence” marks the return of Logan Lerman, who can later be seen in the Sundance breakout “Shirley”. He flexes his dramatic muscle more in this performance, literally, boasting a more muscular physique, tattoos and a bad boy persona unseen in his previous work. Michael Armbruster’s script is a amiable with a story compelling
For the last ten years, British actors Steve Coogan (“Philomena”) and Rob Brydon (“Holmes & Watson”) have delivered whimsical travel films, making fun of themselves and others, while sampling the finest foods. They began in England, the sequel took them to Italy, it was a trilogy in Spain and they complete their journey in Greece.