Screen
Women, poorly portrayed
Thwarted by the same awkward timing that zonked Confessions of a Shopaholic two years ago, just when shopaholics began to seem extra-heinous, the film version of I Don’t Know How She Does It doesn’t know how to do what I think it’s trying to do...
I Kent believe it got better!
Superman is lame. Fight it all you want to, DC Comic loyalists, but there’s a reason people cheer whenever Batman bests him. Consumed by a fetishized, flag-waving patriotism that makes his status as a full-fledged illegal alien somewhat hilarious these days, Superman...
A little film about lovely people
On Dec. 1, TCM’s 14-week series Women Make Film comes to a close with movies on death, endings and a little song and dance....
Control-Z Cruise
Every time Tom Cruise, the greatest modern matinee idol, makes a new movie, everybody rushes to fuse artist and art and spews out some variation of “I just don’t like him anymore.” America’s collective moral stance seems to be that we should never forget that someone...
I see clay people
Before Pixar flexed its artistic muscle (a muscle they could stand to exercise more frequently these days), the message in American animated films ranged from “always be true to yourself” to “always be true to yourself and also get heterosexually married...
Many unhappy returns
The hackneyed, half-assed backstory for the lead character in Happy Death Day involves the tragic loss of her mother, which doesn’t actually feel sad...
Train of thought
No matter how blue-collar or red-meat the story, director Tony Scott’s movies revel in his luxe, glossy yet easily distracted technique that ensures every shot is trailer-ready, and every fractured moment strives for maximum coolness. He’s an old-school cliche-...
We’ve always been this dirty
Not unlike the year 2016 in politics, writer/director Dee Rees’ adaptation of Hillary Jordan’s novel, Mudbound, starts off as a slow, plodding look at...
Six shorts and a feature
The 43rd Denver Film Festival concludes Sunday, Nov. 8, with plenty of good stuff to see before then. There’s just never enough time to...
Reel to reel | Week of March 15, 2012
ACT OF VALOR After the rescue of a kidnapped CIA operative leads to the discovery of a terrorist plot against the U.S., a team of Navy Seals is dispatched on a worldwide manhunt to foil the attack. Rated R. At Century, Colony Square and Twin Peaks. — Los Angeles ...
2012, will you marry me?
I want the 2012 year-in-film to have my babies. Heck, I’ll have its babies; it has been so durn good I’d totally go seahorse for it. Before I reduce a year that renewed my cinematic soul to a series of arbitrary numbers and rankings, a quick caveat: Because ...

















