The genius of Ramin Bahrani’s AT ANY PRICE is the way it talks about things without actually talking about them. This is a story of cause-and-effect, with the failings of a father reflecting the corruption of the American Dream. Though it takes place in the heartland, on that most homespun and wholesome of enterprises, the… Read More »
GANGSTER NO. 1
GANGSTER NO 1 is a slick and stylish tale of love and revenge set in the 60s Londons gangland scene. In the milieu that brought forth the real-life Kray brothers, known for their ultra-violence, screenwriter Johnny Ferguson brings us Freddy Mayes and his prime lackey, the eponymous gangster Number 1 who is never otherwise named. The film… Read More »
CHESS PLAYER, THE
Connoisseurs of first-rate filmmaking, silent or talking, should drop everything and find Raymond Bernard’s THE CHESS PLAYER. This French classic from 1927 has been newly released on video and DVD by Milestone, purveyor of some of the finest films ever made. The time is 1776 during the Russian occupation of Poland. While that may seem… Read More »
VANITY FAIR
Mira Nair’s telling of Thackery’s classic, VANITY FAIR, is a lush, sprawling, sensual film that totters unevenly under the weight of its own ambition. It’s an apt metaphor considering that its heroine, Becky Sharpe, has the same Achilles Heel. Blithely skipping through so many decades of necessity leads to a feeling of sketchiness in some… Read More »
VANITY FAIR – DVD
It’s worth investing in the DVD of Mira Nair’s adaptation of Thackery’s VANITY FAIR just to be able to immerse oneself again in the lush visual feast that it offers. There’s also Reese Witherspoon’s passionate, intelligent performance as Becky Sharpe that marks a milestone in her career. To see her firmly leave behind the image and… Read More »
SOMETIMES IN APRIL
In SOMETIMES IN APRIL, Raoul Peck (Lumumba), has taken the specific story of the Rwandan genocide of April 1994 and made manifest the universal implications of the events. There is plenty of culpability to go around and Peck is not shy about pointing fingers, but he is also not shy about pointing up the greater… Read More »
HONEYDRIPPER
Crossroads is the operative theme for John Sayle’s homage to the power and the joy of music, HONEYDRIPPER, and an apt one. It looms large in the legend of delta blues, Sayles has even included a Robert Johnson-like figure who appears mysteriously from time to time with a guitar that is like one that the… Read More »
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