The lineup for the 67th annual Cannes Film Festival has been announced. Notable French entries include Jean-Luc Godard’s 3D experiment Goodbye to Language and Michel Hazanavicius’ The Search. Other films vying for prizes include Atom Egoyan’s The Captive and Mike Leigh’s Mr. Turner. For more on the lineup, click here. In other Cannes news, French actress-turned-director Nicole Garcia will…
Short film round-up
I’m a sucker for anything remotely twee, so Helium Harvey is right up my street. The three-minute animated short from Daniel Savage follows a young boy on an imaginative, balloon-fueled journey across the globe. The imagery is gorgeously retro, turning the simple story into something quite magical. If you’re up for something sweet, take a look at…
Entertainment news round-up April 11
Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner says that the show’s upcoming mini-season will be action-packed. “The episodes are dense,” he said. ““After realizing that I needed two premieres and two finales, it changed the pacing of every other episode. These episodes are more focused on the main characters than ever before — and I’ve got a lot…
Entertainment news round-up
CBS has named Stephen Colbert to succeed David Letterman on The Late Show. He will be leaving the right-wing caricature he plays in The Colbert Report behind. “Simply being a guest on David Letterman’s show has been a highlight of my career,” he said in a statement. “I never dreamed that I would follow in his footsteps,…
Critic devastated by ‘Blue Valentine’
Those of you who like happy endings should stop reading this review immediately. Blue Valentine is not for you. In fact, I wouldn’t say it’s “for” anyone, save for those rare few who very much enjoy having their hearts metaphorically torn out and stomped on. However, that doesn’t mean it’s a bad film – on the…
Critic finds glee and bitterness in ‘The Trip’
There’s something uniquely fascinating about an actor playing a version of himself. In 2010’s The Trip, Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon do just that, and the effect is both hilarious and oddly touching. Though it’s hard to say how much of themselves they put into their characters, there’s certainly enough that the final product feels intensely…
Entertainment news round-up for April 4
Sources say that 12 Years a Slave star Chiwitel Ejiofor is MGM and Sony’s top choice to play the villain in the next James Bond film. The studios had no comment. Daniel Craig is set to return as Bond with Ralph Fiennes, Ben Whishaw, and Naomie Harris slated to return as well. Skyfall helmer Sam Mendes will again direct….
Entertainment news round-up for April 3
Holly Hunter has joined the cast of Zack Snyder’s as-yet-untitled Superman/Batman film starring Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck. She will play a character newly created for the movie. The feature also stars Jessie Eisenberg, Jeremy Irons, Amy Adams, and Diane Lane. For more information on the project, click here. David Letterman has announced his plans…
Critic takes a look back at a Disney classic
After being wildly underwhelmed by Frozen, I thought it appropriate to take a look back into Disney’s catalogue to see what the newer film might have been missing. I chose Mulan, a movie I loved as a child, and my suspicion was confirmed: Disney used to be much, much better at the musical aspect of its movies….
Critic finds beauty and darkness in ‘My Week With Marilyn’
Given the hubbub surrounding the new Broadway revival of Cabaret, I thought it fitting to take a look back into the career of its star, Michelle Williams. I chose her 2011 film My Week With Marilyn, in which she tackles the role of iconic star Marilyn Monroe. Though she may not seem the most obvious…
Short film round-up
If you don’t mind a bit of obtuse surrealism, check out This is Not a Time to Lie, a three-minute animated short from China’s Lei Lei that follows its main character on a trippy journey through a lush geometric landscape. None of it, from the poetic narration to the almost frantic animation, has a discernible point,…
Entertainment news round-up for March 30
Twilight actor Patrick Brennan will join the cast of ABC’s Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. for two upcoming episodes. The actor, who played Liam in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2, will play Blackout, a villain with the power to suck the energy from everything around him. “It’s just rare to have a character that’s [this] interesting,” he told…
Entertainment news round-up for March 27
The Wu-Tang Clan plans to release only one copy of their secretly-recorded new double album The Wu – Once Upon a Time in Shaolin. The album is priced in the millions and will be presented in a handcrafted silver box designed by British Moroccan artist Yahya. “By taking this step, we hope to re-enforce the weight…
Entertainment news round-up for March 13
Once Upon a Time actress Rose McIver has joined the cast of iZombie, a new zombie crime fighter from Veronica Mars scribes Rob Thomas and Diane Ruggiero. She will play a medical student who eats brains and inherits the corpses’ memories, which she uses to solve homicide cases. To read more on the series, click here. Cynthia Nixon…
Entertainment news round-up for March 12
90’s rom-com hit Pretty Woman is making its way to Broadway. The film’s screenwriters, Marshall and J.F. Lawton, are set to pen the book of the musical, with Paula Wagner on board to produce. The production does not yet have a composer, lyricist, or director. For more information on the show, click here. Japan’s Tezuka Productions has…
Critic touched and amazed by ‘The Wind Rises’
I am appalled that The Wind Rises did not take home the Oscar for Best Animated Picture. It makes Frozen look like a straight-to-DVD castoff. A beautiful farewell from Hayao Miyazaki, it is utterly magical – and in a way that eschews Disney’s heavy-handedness in favor of a much gentler, realer approach. The film presents…
Critic delights in Allen’s ‘Vicky Cristina Barcelona’
Given the recent success of Blue Jasmine – namely, Cate Blanchett’s Best Actress Oscar win – I decided to revisit another of Woody Allen’s films that features women in plum roles: Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Released in 2008, it’s one of Allen’s best, with a light, fresh tone that still hits all the expected cynical notes….
Entertainment news round-up for March 11
CBS will air an unprecedented number of original programming hours this summer. The lineup will include seven total hours of original programming, three of which will air on Sunday. The schedule consists of four dramas and thrice-weekly series Big Brother. For more on CBS’ summer lineup, click here. Broadway actress Laura Benanti is slated to host…
Short film round-up
For anyone who plays video games (or, in my case, enjoys watching other people play video games), Let’s Play Nomad X is for you. A three-minute short from Kristian Andrews, the film follows a “Let’s Play” reviewer who simultaneously reviews his favorite 90’s computer game and reveals the tale of how he lost his true…
Entertainment news round up for March 8
The Hunger Games producer Nina Jacobson is on board for an adaptation of Donna Tartt’s novel The Goldfinch, which was published last fall and still ranks second on the New York Times bestseller list. The story follows a boy who loses his mother in a bombing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and absconds with Fabritius’ painting “The…
Critic deems ‘Brick’ a true modern classic
Rian Johnson’s Brick is, to my mind, the very definition of a modern classic – not only because it’s fantastic, but also because it dares to combine the old and the new in a smart, sexy, and stylish way. A neo-noir story dropped smack into a contemporary setting, Brick is an effortlessly engaging visual and aural delight. Released in…
Entertainment news round-up for March 6
Idris Elba is in final talks to join the cast of Disney’s animated The Jungle Book reboot, directed by Jon Favreau. Elba would voice Shere Khan the tiger. Elba has recently been seen in Mandela: The Long Walk to Freedom and Thor: The Dark World. For more on The Jungle Book and on Elba’s other projects, click here. FX…
Short film round-up
For something a little off-kilter, take a look at Cockatoo, an 11-minute short from Australian filmmaker Matthew Jenkin that explores heartbreak and closure. The film follows a man who makes a desperate attempt to get over his previous relationship by hiring an actress from the Reality Dreams agency to play his ex-girlfriend for a few hours….
’50/50′ treats difficult subject matter with humor and honesty
Some movies make you laugh. Others make you cry. 50/50 will make you do both in excess. A marvelous little film that didn’t get quite as much attention as it deserved, it’s the perfect balance of light and dark, presented in the most honest way possible. Directed by Jonathan Levine, 50/50 stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as “Adam,” a 27-year-old…
Short film round-up
If you’re fond of twist endings, check out The Ride, a six-minute short from Timothy Melville that operates like a romantic drama until the very last minute. Benjamin Rigby stars as a young man waiting on his road trip buddies who runs into his ex-girlfriend. An awkward reconnection ensues, and he offers to take her home….
Critic revels in ‘The Raid: Redemption’
The Raid: Redemption is gorgeous. It’s one hour and 41 minutes of pure, unadulterated violence. I loved every blood-soaked second of it. Before I begin to wax too poetic about the film, I feel that it is my duty as a critic to make a few unfortunate admissions about it: the plot is unimaginative, the dialogue…
