“‘Being the Ricardos’ Sags Under the Sorkin of It All”

This could have been a good movie, but the writer-director couldn’t help Sorkin all the oxygen out of the room. Continue reading →

“Taking the Grandstand in ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7′”

Making history fun, and also not exactly true! Continue reading →

Globe Trotting: On The 73rd Golden Globes Ballyhoo

I woke up this morning and it struck me that last night was the air date for this year’s Golden Globes ceremony. Following being struck that first time, I was struck again by the realization that I have said nothing about them at any point; I have offered no commentary, presented no predictions, and yielded no … Continue reading →

Review: Steve Jobs, 2015, dir. Danny Boyle

“And now, for your edutainment: 2015’s second movie about Apple visionary and all-around jerk, Steve Jobs, creatively titled Steve Jobs for sake of ease. The film marks Danny Boyle as the second person in 2015 to attempt at parsing out the many faces of the late Jobs, or maybe the third. Boyle has the director’s … Continue reading →

Golden Statues and Outrage: The Oscar Nominations

This week, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences unveiled the entries for each of their twenty four categories in anticipation of this year’s 84th Academy Awards show. As is always the case, response among critics and film writers has been mixed, characterized by raised eyebrows, occasional high praise and pleasant surprise, and most … Continue reading →

A Life In Movies Blogathon

For those who have read this blog for a while (or who have read it very thoroughly in a minute passage of time), my interest in defining films that are personal and unique to my individual identity and perspective as a cineaste should be well known from my (admittedly minimal) Movies That Matter series to … Continue reading →

Review: The Social Network, 2010, dir. David Fincher

Announcement to Jesse Eisenberg: From henceforth you are no longer allowed to work with writers whose names are not Aaron Sorkin. Sorkin, known throughout his career for engineering propulsive and mercurial dialogue, possesses a style almost tailor-made for Eisenberg’s precipitative speech patterns. Throughout The Social Network‘s two hour running time Eisenberg seems to be the … Continue reading →

The Home Stretch: Fall and Winter 2010’s Films to Watch

2010 dwindles down to its final hour with the passing of each day. It’s been a pretty mixed year, filled with movies worth watching but not necessarily worth getting excited about; only a handful here and there, for my taste, have really been exceptional and stood out amongst the crowd of good-but-unmemorable releases. But what … Continue reading →

Review: Primer, 2004, dir. Shane Carruth

How accurate is the science involved in Shane Carruth’s 2004 no-budget home brewed science fiction morality tale, Primer? I must respond to that question with another question: does it damn well matter? I have many pet peeves, it’s true, but if I have one that I truly can’t abide by or overlook it’s the pompous … Continue reading →