Saw "The Debt" yesterday and, well, was disappointed. Despite the setting (the film goes back and from from 1965 East Germany to 1997 Israel) and the star power (especially Helen Mirren, but also Sam Worthington from "Avatar" and the ubiquitous Tom Wilkinson), the overly involved…
I've given "Another Earth" some more thought (see post below), and here is what I've come up with: We live in an era of the mashup, a term typically used to describe musical tracks that are combined in a way to make something new --…
My apologies to anyone who was disturbed by my laughing out loud at the following trailer, which I saw at the AMC Saturday night. I just couldn't get past that title. As I told my wife, "I can't WAIT to see this one!" Talk about…
What with my daugher and her two children visiting, it's been hard to get out to see a movie. But as they are on East Coast time, we've been able to go out late. Last night we took in "Another Earth," the Sundance independent feature…
My friend Matt McGaughey has an amazing facility with languages. Seriously amazing. So when he sends me something regarding the way we word things, I always pay attention. A good example is the link he sent me to what is advertised as "Actual English subtitles…
My Spokane Public Radio review this week was of a movie that is no longer playing in Spokane, Lu Chuan's "City of Life and Death." So it goes. But though it has moved on from the Magic Lantern, it's already available on DVD, so it's…
I was in the minority view when we taped "Movies 101" today. Not the first time. I doubt it will be the last. We were discussing 'The Help," Tate Taylor's adaptation of Kathryn Stockett's novel about 1963 Mississippi. Mary Pat Treuthart (who, yes, just happens…
I've never been a big fan of Conan O'Brien. I find him occasionally funny, especially when he's takes the time to film his skits. Then he can be hilarious. But as a stand-up comic, he's as uneven as a frat-boy pledge master who's consumed one…
Not everybody appreciates the art of the pun. Take the headline to IMDB's weekend box-office report: " 'Apes' cling to top spot, 'Help' cleans up.' " Here's one comment, which I typed exactly as posted on the site: "Why do they always have to resort…
Hard to figure out which movies to see this weekend. Each one evokes questions all its own. "Final Destination 5": That can be only one ... final ... destination. Yet now we have five? "The Help": That's what I'd need to want to sit through…
Though I've done it before, I'm always willing to explore favorite quotes. The quotes I want to look at now involve the great former California governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger: Following are five of my favorite. 5. In "Conan the Barbarian" (1982), you have the title character…
I'm a big fan of the Urban Dictionary, which is a kind of Wikipedia of contemporary English in that it documents words that come and go faster than smartphone software. In looking up what it had to say about the term "treeware," I encounted a…
If you read the New York Times, you're bound to have see a photograph or two taken by Bill Cunningham. According the the documentary "Bill Cunningham New York," which is playing at the Magic Lantern, the guy -- despite being in his mid-80s -- still…
My pal Travis Knight shared a cool little movie with me. It's one of a trilogy of short shorts made by three guys who, over the course of 44 days, traveled through 11 countries to compile the footage. My favorite of the shorts is the…
Not that it should come as any surprise, but monkeys rule the world. Or apes. Or monkeys and apes. And orangutans. Not to mention gorillas. Yes, the latest version of the "Planet of the Apes" series, the prequel "Rise of the Planet of the Apes,"…
The movies based on Pierre Boulle's little novel, published in 1963 under the original title "La Planete des singes" ("Monkey Planet"), have been -- for the most part -- occasionally intriguing exercises in cinematic cheese. The newest version, the prequel titled "Rise of the Planet…
Some movies just beg to be critiqued. Others ... well, it's difficult to find anything to say. At all. Such a movie is "Captain America: The First Avenger." But I'll give it a shot. First thing: John Johnston has had an uneven career. For every…
So, another monkey movie opens today. Excuse me, ape movie. Funny. I sitll remember seeing the original "Planet of the Apes." And I remember how shocked I was at two specific parts: 1, when the gorilla on horseback suddenly appears and, 2, that shattering ending.…
Mike Mills' "Beginners," which will be playing for another week at AMC, is one of those small, art films that is as carefully crafted as a bit of Chihuly glass. Some viewers might find it just as cold to the touch, too. It tells the…
Sitting home on a sunny Tuesday afternoon, with "Billy the Exterminator" playing on my television, I'm still thinking of the fusion of Western and sci-fi that I saw with my brother, Randy. The title: "Cowboys and Aliens." When I think of fusion, I think about…
If you think that you're alone in feeling that most contemporary movies suck, think again. Seems one of the men responsible for putting movies on the big screen agrees with you. None other than Jeffrey Katzenberg, CEO of DreamWorks Animation. In fact, in remarks delivered…
After a two-week break from filmgoing, the question was -- what movie should I use to break my fast? I'd spent the previous weeks watching heavy stuff such as "The Tree of Life," "Poetry" and "Incendies." So what does my pal Leslie Kelly suggest? "Friends…
Since I began writing this blog, some eight years ago, I've posted from all over the world. From Greece to Kosovo, Buenos Aires to Beijing. And while I've had problems here and there, I've never been out of contact for long. Couple of days, a…
When all was said and done, limbs severed and bodies drained of blood, I wondered what seemed so familiar about the movie "13 Assassins," which is playing at the Magic Lantern. And then I remembered: "The Seven Samurai." In fact, there are only two real…
Halfway through "Transformers: Dark Side of the Moon," I was smiling. Partly out joy, this being the most summery of summer blockbusters I'd seen ... oh, this summer, at least. But partly out of amazement, too, at Michael Bay's shamelessness. I mean, seriously, how can…
