“It’s like watching the Aurora Borealis”: A Profile of Meryl Streep
Throughout her career, Meryl Streep has found a way to fully inhabit every character she portrays so that who we see in the film is not Streep but the “quirky little universe” she has created.
“Doubt” is about Doubt
After seeing Shanley’s play, many people wanted him to reveal whether Father Flynn was guilty of what Sister Aloysius was accusing him. Audience members would come out at the end of the performance with wildly opposing opinions, like “Well, he is obviously guilty” or “Come on, there is no way he is guilty. The nun is just jealous of his power.” While he knew the answer to the question, Shanley only ever told the actors playing Father Flynn whether or not their character was guilty.
Deconstructing Malick’s ‘Tree of Life’ by D.R. Thompson
Guest Author D.R. Thompson provides an insightful review of Terrence Malick’s ‘The Tree of Life,’ deconstructing the film’s elements to reveal its essential humanity. He looks closely at Malick’s diverse artistic influences and shows how the film can and should have a positive long-term cultural impact.
A Brave First for Hollywood and Hanks: A Review of “Philadelphia”
A few weeks ago I wrote about two groundbreaking 1967 films starring Sidney Poitier in which Poitier portrays a black man who insists upon sharing equal ground with the white people who inhabit his world. In that review I said that while I did not … Read more →
Lumet’s Soufflé: A Review of “Murder on the Orient Express”
Two weeks ago I reviewed Sidney Lumet’s first feature film 12 Angry Men, a dramatic tour de force characterized by outstanding ensemble acting. Lumet went on to direct many more excellent films, including The Pawnbroker, Dog Day Afternoon, Serpico, … Read more →
Intriguing Murder Mystery, Brilliant Character Study: A Review of “12 Angry Men”
This 1957 black-and-white gem, director Sidney Lumet’s cinematic debut (he had worked for some years in television), has lost none of its riveting intensity in the half century since it first appeared on screen. The movie features, along with Henry … Read more →
Tarmac Meditations-New Years Part 2
"I hear America singing..." Walt Whitman. Equally, " I hear you singin' in the wires..." Jimmy Webb. I love the color of the fog this morning, the temperature of the light transforms morning in the valley into a sacred moment, a pause at the end … Read more →
Three Icons of American Cinema in 1967
Two seminal American films were released in 1967; each dealt with the issue of racism and each featured one of the biggest stars in Hollywood at the time. Both were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture; one of them won the award. The … Read more →
Big Ego Chases American Dream: A Review of “The Pursuit of Happyness”
The DVD of this film was given to us as a gift by a departing homestay student; it was one of several movies he gave us, all of which he had seen and loved, and which he thought we would enjoy as well. The very large difference in age and character … Read more →
Nixon’s Final Humiliation: A Review of “Frost/Nixon”
As with Another Year in 2010, my favourite movie of 2008 was one that was for the most part overlooked, in this case Ron Howard’s Frost/Nixon. In 1977 brash and ambitious British talk-show host David Frost (played by Michael Sheen) managed to … Read more →
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