9 years ago
Reviews (10 posts found)
“Welcome To Me”
If a mad scientist merged all of Kristen Wiig’s oddest Saturday Night Live personas into one, and then that new being experienced a grand mal cerebral short-circuit, the result would be maybe half as off-kilter as Alice Klieg, the character Wiig plays in Welco...
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“Gerontophilia”
The two closest points of reference for Gerontophilia, Canadian indie stalwart Bruce LaBruce’s latest, happen to be Xavier Dolan and Gregg Araki — though it’s not because of the gayness. While all three auteurs gravitate towards stories of love and loss with a...
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“Avengers: Age of Ultron”
The Avengers was a full-blooded event -- its sketchy opening aside, the film truly felt like the culmination of five years’ worth of buildup throughout the then-new Marvel Cinematic Universe. Avengers: Age of Ultron is the team’s obligatory triennial meetup. I...
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“Cas & Dylan”
You can probably imagine my disappointment upon realizing that despite the misleading title, this feature directorial debut of Beverly Hills 90210 star Jason Priestley has nothing whatsoever to do with the further adventures of Luke Perry’s Dylan McKay. Sad to...
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“Iris”
It’s somewhat bittersweet that Albert Maysles’ Iris arrives in theaters just weeks after the much-lamented passing of the great documentarian, but as penultimate send-offs go, it’s a delight. (His final film, In Transit, just screened at the Tribeca Film Festi...
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The Criterion Collection: “The Friends of Eddie Coyle”
Robert Mitchum always had a sluggish, loping gait, but in his prime, it suggested laconic virility and unsettling patience. However, when he enters The Friends of Eddie Coyle in a gray frame, wearing a gray suit and sporting gray hair and gray skin, the actor’...
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“The Age of Adaline”
There’s an endearing scene midway through The Age of Adaline, the new time-hopping romantic drama starring Blake Lively, in which two lovers swoon in the back of a 1930s convertible at an abandoned movie theater, marveling at the constellation of phosphorescen...
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“Kung Fu Killer”
A friend of mine lived in Osaka for a spell. During a conversation on Facebook chat one evening, he mentioned that he enjoyed eating at the local McDonald’s as much as any of the local eateries. At the time, I couldn’t fathom why a guy would travel halfway aro...
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“The Water Diviner”
A brawny historical melodrama with a twinge of magic realism amongst the oft-conflicting tones, Russell Crowe’s directorial debut The Water Diviner is an odd-duck curiosity about as commercially minded as that title would lead you to believe. It’s full of rook...
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“Adult Beginners”
Coming-of-age tales featuring adult characters who resist growing up are a popular subject for many indie-film darlings. While there is no harm in recycling a current and increasingly common life crisis as a plot device, one at least expects such characters to...
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