In the aftermath of Zero Dark Thirty, you’d think that any film set among the inner workings of the CIA would be a lightning rod for controversy. Not so with Paul Feig’s Spy, a gleeful, anarchic, outrageous sendup of spy-game bombast. The fact that Feig’s presentation of the CIA’s operational compound in Langley, Va. is routinely assailed by CGI bats and mice — and that those … [Read more...]
Schlocky ‘Cougar’ aims low and stays there
Apologies in advance if you are a fan of Menopause: The Musical, Waist Watchers: The Musical or The D Word. There is a word that sums up these shows and it is “schlock.” But it is schlock that sells, so no amount of critical disapproval will probably end — or even slow — the arrival of these lowest common denominator entertainments. Still, critics are an optimistic bunch, so … [Read more...]
Les Amies trio splendid at Chamber Music Palm Beach
By Donald Waxman The setting: Mar-a-Lago, the storied, palatial Palm Beach estate of the late Marjorie Merriweather Post, extensively renovated by its current owner, Donald Trump. The occasion: the sixth concert in the inaugural season of the Chamber Music Society of Palm Beach. The artists: The highly acclaimed flute, viola and harp trio, Les Amies. The program: an all-French … [Read more...]
Remembering Julie Harris (1925-2013)
It is usually a trivia stumper: Which actor has the most Tony Awards? The answer is Julie Harris, with six. Five were won competitively, from her star-making turn in 1952’s I Am A Camera to The Last of Mrs. Lincoln in 1972, plus a special lifetime achievement Tony in 2002 as a career capper. But the answer always surprised people, who would guess flashier, larger-than-life … [Read more...]
The View From Home 46: New releases on Blu-ray and DVD
“This is kind of like an old movie, don’t you think?” Liza (Olivia Wilde), a runaway bandit in Stefan Ruzowitsky’s Deadfall ($24.99 Blu-ray, $13.28 DVD) asks Jay, a former pugilist newly released from prison who makes the mistake of picking her up as she shivers in a crepuscular blizzard. Thank the heavens for at least this brief semblance of ironic self-awareness in an … [Read more...]
Writer’s memoir of husband’s stroke meticulous, moving
When a blood clot lodges in the brain, patients may lose their ability to speak or write, a devastating setback for anyone, but particularly so for an author. Husband-and-wife authors Diane Ackerman and Paul West had devoted their lives to words until that awful day in 2003 when West suffered a stroke that left him devoid of language, an outcome known as aphasia. One Hundred … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: April 29-May 1
Art: The technique of egg tempera painting, perhaps most memorably wielded by artists such as Giotto, was eclipsed by oil painting in the 15th century. But egg tempera still draws creators, and the acknowledged modern master of this technique was the American artist Robert Vickrey, whose paintings of nuns, children, and long, dark shadows distinguished him as an artist whose … [Read more...]
‘Journal Keeper’ a compelling meditation on life, love and death
Phyllis Theroux offers readers a gift by letting us peek into the journals she kept during six years of her life beginning at age 61. The Journal Keeper excels on several levels – for the pure enjoyment of Theroux’s evocative writing, as a tribute to the art of journal writing, and as a meditation on life, love and death. Aspiring writers would do well to study Theroux. Her … [Read more...]
Spalding shows she’s a rising force in jazz
No one who attended Saturday night's show at the Duncan Theatre by the rising young jazz bassist and composer Esperanza Spalding could have any doubt about her talent. The Portland, Ore., native is a striking presence on the stage, slim and tallish, with a mountain of very cool hair that she had to tie up and get out of her eyes after the first couple songs with her backing … [Read more...]