In Jim Jarmusch’s The Dead Don’t Die, the zombie apocalypse rustles yawningly but determinedly to fruition in Centerville, an anonymous American hamlet, population 738. The omens, initially disparate and disconnected, begin to cohere into an existential collapse: Wild animals flee, and pets attack their owners. The sun is still out at 9 at night, and the next evening it’s … [Read more...]
‘Death of Stalin’ mocks, hilariously, a murderous regime
When a movie is called The Death of Stalin, spoiler alerts need not apply. The title character does, indeed, meet his ignominious end, less than a quarter of the way into this riotous satire. In March of 1953, Josef Stalin (Adrian McLoughlin), in the comfort of his office, is struck by a cerebral hemorrhage. He collapses to the carpet and loses consciousness. The members of his … [Read more...]
‘Norman’: A hollow man gets an empty character study
Norman Oppenheimer, Richard Gere’s title character in writer-director Joseph Cedar’s new movie, is a walking LinkedIn, if LinkedIn had defective code. Norman lives to connect people. Self-servingly curious, he’s a relentless interrogator of everyone he meets — he’s the mosquito that won’t leave you alone — until his marks end up accepting his card, or a bribe, or a dinner … [Read more...]