As Charles Manson well understood, the flipside of the revolutionary liberation movements of the Sixties is authoritarian control; the obverse of communism, fascism. Or, as Orwell phrased it so succinctly some two decades prior, freedom is slavery. The two-faced duality of this charismatic psychopath is at the heart of Mary Harron’s Charlie Says, a slow-burning, rewarding … [Read more...]
Charming ‘Long Shot’ stays on political sidelines
To the extent old-fashioned print advertisements sell us anything in the age of social media and viral video, Long Shot’s theatrical release poster is curiously misleading. In it, stars Seth Rogen and Charlize Theron stare at their outstretched hands, their smiles wide and baked, underneath the text “Feel Something Different.” You don’t need to have swallowed a Molly … [Read more...]
Denis’ ‘High Life’ an arty space id-yssey
At first blush, High Life seems to be about a single father trying to raise an infant child in inhospitable conditions — in this case, outer space. As in the home, objects aboard his rectangular, wood-paneled spacecraft fail, and Monte (Robert Pattinson) must tend to them while monitoring his baby, always on alert in fronts both personal and existential. His daughter’s … [Read more...]
‘Teen Spirit’: A star is boring
Is Teen Spirit a legitimate feature film? Or is it 92 minutes of glistening YouTube content masquerading as one? If ever there was a movie that asked to be played on shuffle, it’s this milquetoast product predictably charting the stumbles and triumphs of the Darwinian world of competition television. It’s presented as a celebration of the hollow, plastic style of pop music … [Read more...]
‘Diane’: Wise and lyrical, with a star turn from Place
Kent Jones is far from the first writer to make the transition from critic to filmmaker, from outsider to insider, from lobber of bromides to defender of craft. James Agee directed a short, and penned The African Queen and Night of the Hunter; Roger Ebert wrote Beyond the Valley of the Dolls; the French New Wave was a cottage industry of trailblazing … [Read more...]
‘Transit’: Waiting for a visa from a city dreamed by Kafka
We hear the sirens before anything else, wailing against a black screen. Emergency vehicles glide through the streets of Paris, and authority figures in riot gear patrol the streets, but nobody seems to notice. They’re shopping, eating at cafes, willfully blind that fascism is creeping up on them, more and more each day. They’re content that for the moment, at least, … [Read more...]
‘Woman at War’: Fighting the good eco-fight
There’s an old Icelandic proverb that goes, “Never underestimate a woman with a crossbow. Or a circular saw. Or explosives.” OK, so it’s not an ancient Nordic proverb, but it should be. Halla (Halldóra Geirharðsdóttir), the protagonist of Benedikt Erlingsson’s loopy yet sobering second feature, Woman at War, is a middle-aged choir conductor by day, and an ageless … [Read more...]
Doppelganger portals and inequality in America: This is ‘Us’
As a horror movie setting, a groty carnival on the beaches of Santa Cruz in 1986 is a ready-made place to start. And so begins Us, Jordan Peele’s gripping new creep show. A proud father has just won his curious little girl, Adelaide Wilson (Madison Curry), a prize at one of the midway games. She picks a Michael Jackson “Thriller” T-shirt (speaking of scary things), many … [Read more...]
‘The Competition’: The rocky road to finding the next Truffaut
The formula of the competition documentary is a sturdy and familiar one. Whether the subject is a spelling bee, a dance tournament or a science fair, the format is pretty much identical: We observe a handful of striving young competitors through the process, getting to know, and hopefully love, each one personally. If that means dozens of equally interesting biographies are … [Read more...]
Boca Jewish Film Festival grows, set to open third season
Heading into its third annual event, March 10-31, the Judy Levis Markhoff Boca Raton Jewish Film Festival has already proven popular with south county movie mavens. “We’ve grown tremendously,” reports Wendy Honig, the festival’s artistic director. This year’s festival will screen 44 films from 20 countries, including U.S. and Southeast premieres, and three submissions to … [Read more...]