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- An Acting Lesson: John Wayne and the “Reality of the Doing”
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Tag Archives: drama
The delicate and effective Something, Anything (2015)
Who has seen the wind? Neither you nor I; But when the trees bow down their heads, The wind is passing by. — Christina Rossetti Something, Anything, Paul Harrill’s debut feature, opens with that quote from Christina Rossetti’s poem “Who … Continue reading
Mirrors #10
Jean Harlow giving herself a pep talk in the wonderful Reckless, where she marries a deeply unhappy man (Franchot Tone), while being best buddies (and something more?) with William Powell. In this mirror moment, she feels herself getting hot and … Continue reading
Posted in Actors, Movies
Tagged drama, Jean Harlow, mirrors, Rosalind Russell, William Powell
2 Comments
Review: Borrego (2022)
I reviewed the new drug-war-thriller drama Borrego for Ebert.
December 2021 Viewing Diary
Nightmare Alley (2021; d. Guillermo del Toro) I will re-post here the thoughts I jotted down on Facebook after I saw it for the first time. I absolutely loved this film. Nightmare Alley is gorgeously shot, with an ominous moody … Continue reading
Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies
Tagged animation, Anna Karina, biopic, Cate Blanchett, children's movies, comedy, Costa-Gavras, drama, Edie Sedgwick, Elia Kazan, film noir, France, Guillermo del Toro, Jane Russell, Jean-Luc Godard, Jean-Paul Belmondo, John Keats, Lady From Shanghai, Orson Welles, Radu Jude, Rita Hayworth, Robert Mitchum, Romania, romantic drama, sci-fi, short films, The Rolling Stones, women directors
4 Comments
Review: The Lost Daughter (2021)
Olivia Colman in this movie, MY GOODNESS. God, I yearn for movies about grown-ups, about tough ugly shit, with spaces in-between for contemplation AND audience engagement. MESS. I yearn for MESS. The Lost Daughter is Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut (she … Continue reading
NYFCC 2021 Awards
Early this month, the New York Film Critics Circle met up at Lincoln Center – in person – for the first time in over a year – to vote on our 2021 awards. The awards show is being held in … Continue reading
Posted in Movies
Tagged Afghanistan, animation, comedy, Denmark, documentary, drama, Japan, Lady Gaga, musicals, Norway, Paul Thomas Anderson, Steven Spielberg, women directors
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November 2021 Viewing Diary
The Wire, half of Season 3 This is the busiest time of year in re: film-critic-land, so had to stop my re-watch of The Wire to make room for new releases. I’ll get back to it! All Is Forgiven (2007; … Continue reading
Posted in Monthly Viewing Diary, Movies, Television
Tagged Amy Heckerling, Balkans, Dean Stockwell, documentary, drama, Ethan Hawke, Eugene O'Neill, France, Ingmar Bergman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Japan, Katharine Hepburn, literary adaptation, Long Day's Journey Into Night, Mexico, Mia Hansen-Løve, Mia Wasikowska, New Zealand, Paul Thomas Anderson, Quantum Leap, Rebecca Hall, Sidney Lumet, Spain, Sweden, The Beatles, Will Ferrell, women directors
22 Comments
Review: Prayers for the Stolen (2021; on Netflix)
I reviewed Prayers for the Stolen, a harrowing film about the ongoing human rights crisis of the “disappeared” women and girls in Mexico.
Review: All Is Forgiven (2007)
What a pleasure to review Mia Hansen-Løve’s directorial debut, All Is Forgiven, released in France in 2007, winning some awards at Cannes, etc., but never released in the United States and long un-see-able. That’s now changed. She’s one of my … Continue reading
Posted in Movies
Tagged drama, France, John Keats, Mia Hansen-Løve, reviews, women directors
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