Screen
Life without an operation manual
As the reality of summer blockbuster season sets in, a simple truth becomes all too clear: Moviegoing can be quite stressful. Death and destruction...
Preach, Spike. Preach.
Spike Lee is many things; subtle is not one of them. In 1989 — with three movies under his belt — the Brooklyn-based producer/director exploded on to a grand stage with Do the Right Thing. The movie stirred the pot and caused a fair amount of controversy, but what ...
A true auteur
When the French writers for Cahiers du cinema coined the term “auteur” in the late ’50s, they envisioned an author of motion pictures —...
Art reflecting Ebert
The Chicago Sun-Times obituary by Neil Steinberg couldn’t have said it better: “Roger Ebert loved movies.” Considering that he reviewed thousands upon thousands of them, it was a good thing. From 1967 to his death in 2013, Ebert was the film critic for the Chicago ...
And the award goes to…
Instead of using that tired old cliché, “Big things come in small packages,” let’s rely on another one; one a little more apropos to...
Locally-sourced cinema
Culture is homegrown in Boulder County — from breweries to art. In her latest documentary, Colorado Hopped — Bine to Brew, Longmont filmmaker Barbara Hau paired the two...
It (almost) never works
Since American media sexualizes almost everything except sex, Hollywood romantic comedies about two people making hey-hey without any big plans for any big future rarely come easily or operate from a spirit of carnal delight. The strain of being hip and loose, yet ...
Wadiya do that for?
Although it turned many a talentless friend into an amateur impressionist, Sacha Baron Cohen’s performance as Borat was inarguably hilarious. The improvised, horribly racist, legitimately brilliant film that put Cohen on the map was a straight-up phenomenon and a ...
‘A picture with a smile — and perhaps, a tear’
Like it or not, artists change. Though we wish to preserve them in amber, those we hold near and dear grow into individuals that...
Brand Xenu man
Writer/director/demigod of modern American cinema Paul Thomas Anderson — or PTA, as his peeps call him — has a filmography so stunning that merely making a very good movie means it’s his worst one yet. So, with a heavy heart comes the news that The Master isn’t ...
Reel to reel | Week of September 19, 2013
Afternoon Delight Rachel (Kathryn Hahn) is a quick-witted and lovable, yet tightly coiled, 30-something steeped in the creative class of Los Angeles’ bohemian, affluent Silver Lake neighborhood. Everything looks just right — chic modernist home, successful husband, ...
