Narco Cultura (2013) In 2009, Forbes magazine listed notorious drug dealer Joaquin Guzman Loera as one of the richest people in the world. Mexican officials, including president Felipe Calderon, were outraged, claiming this hampered their ability to combat the drug trade engulfing large sections of Mexico by giving credibility to drug traffickers. This documentary places Forbes’… Continue reading Mexican gangstas
The grandmaster tells us stories
Stories We Tell (2012) Sarah Polley’s directorial work focuses on fractured relationships. Away from Her (2006) shows the effects of Alzheimer’s on a long-term commitment, Take This Waltz (2011) is about a young couple who experience a crisis, and her third feature film explores the brokenness in her own family. Twenty years after her mother died,… Continue reading The grandmaster tells us stories
Steve Jobs went through the celluloid looking glass to find his mom
Alice (1988) Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland is the quintessential story about the uncertainty of childhood. To a child, the world is a mystery and its myriad rules often seem nonsensical; we have to learn to be rational. This odd blend of live action and stop-motion animation embraces the twisted, scary parts of Carroll’s work. … Continue reading Steve Jobs went through the celluloid looking glass to find his mom
The greatest chariot race
Ali (2001) Michael Mann’s films are focused on individuals struggling with identity issues. In Manhunter (1986), Will Graham is torn between his safe, normal life and the world of the psychotic serial killers he chases. In Last of the Mohicans (1992), Hawkeye must choose between the society he grew up in and the Native American culture he comes… Continue reading The greatest chariot race
Pootie and Bosko’s high school reunion
Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion (1997) Embarrassed with the current state of their lives, Romy (Mira Sorvino) and Michelle (Lisa Kudrow) create a fictional backstory as successful business women when they attend their ten-year high school reunion. I’ve loved Mira Sorvino since Mighty Aphrodite (1995), but Lisa Kudrow has never been able to convince me… Continue reading Pootie and Bosko’s high school reunion
Night falls on Bosko in Rock Vegas
Before Night Falls (2000) Cuban writer Reinaldo Arenas (Javier Bardem) was an early supporter of the Castro revolution, but his homosexuality led to his imprisonment and exile. This was Bardem’s first major success, but he’s at his best playing cold-hearted killer’s like Anton Chigurh or Raoul Silva. Jonny Depp is good in the dual roles of Bon Bon and… Continue reading Night falls on Bosko in Rock Vegas
Trains, zombies, and racist cartoons
Resident Evil (2002) I’m old enough to fondly remember the original Resident Evil video game, it’s hard to believe it spawned such a successful film series. Alice (Mila Jovovich) wakes up in the middle of the apocalypse. Sometimes this dramatic device works, but in this film it leads to a great deal of confusion. I’m still not… Continue reading Trains, zombies, and racist cartoons
The myth of the farmer’s big wedding
The Big Wedding (2013) Alejandro convinces his divorced, adoptive parents Don (Robert Deniro) and Ellie (Diane Keaton) to pretend they’re still married to appease his birth mother’s Catholic faith when she comes to his wedding. During their pretend reunion, Don and Ellie rekindle their relationship with a sexual liaison which forces long-buried family secrets into… Continue reading The myth of the farmer’s big wedding
The Muppets cleaned up and went to a party at Gummo’s house
Gummo (1997) Tummler and Solomon supply dead cats to a grocer who then sells them to a local restaurant. When a rival poaches their cats, they break into his house, discover his catatonic grandmother, and turn off her life support. This film about the people director Havey Korrine grew up with in Nashville is a… Continue reading The Muppets cleaned up and went to a party at Gummo’s house
The women can’t see nothin’ because of the darkness
Post Tenebras Lux (2012) The director, Carlos Reygada, is well-regarded, especially for his earlier film Luz Silencosia (2007). Maybe his other films are better than this, but I’m not inclined to believe it. This “impressionistic film,” emulates the work of artists like Monet and Degas and has some well composed shots, but the pervasive attitude of the… Continue reading The women can’t see nothin’ because of the darkness