Will “Borat” (aka Sacha Baron Cohen) Be Nominated for an Oscar?? Five Oscars. Eight Emmy’s. Nine Golden Globes. Seven Tony awards. That’s the collective haul by the cast and writer of Netflix’s just released, “The Trial of The Chicago Seven.” Besides the stellar acting, the dialogue — especially the courtroom scenes — is riveting. In...Read More
Home Schooling — When “Home” is Somewhere in the Cascade Mountains I guarantee that — at least for a few overweening parents of pre-college kids — the Ivy League admission “royal flush” scored by the 17 year-old son** in the indie film “Captain Fantastic” will be the takeaway from the provocative and occasionally inspiring movie....Read More
“The Game of Thrones” Look If stoically braving the elements for months on end qualified someone for an acting award, then half the state of Minnesota — at least in a typical winter — should be up for an Oscar. 🙂 But, assuming that such suffering only counts when it’s in the service of...Read More
Review: “Humpback Whales” at the Science Museum’s Omni Theater It turns out that a “Nantucket sleighride” has nothing to with Christmas, snow, or even winter. It’s what 19th century whalers called what happened immediately after they harpooned a whale — as in, they “got taken on a Nantucket sleighride” (grim but true). The term also...Read More
“EGOT”** Minus the “G” “In “Trumbo,” an ill-conceived take on one of the most famous targets of the Hollywood blacklist, the writer Dalton Trumbo clenches a cigarette holder that juts in the air like a sword . . . Part biopic, part historical gloss, “Trumbo” tells a great-man story with a patchwork of fact and...Read More
Marvel’s “Fantastic Four” Goes 0-for-3 There’s not just one definition of a bad movie, there are several, age-dependent ones. Or if you prefer, “multi-generational” definitions. At least in my family, here they are: 12 year-old son: cheesy special effects. Me (mid-50’s): convoluted (or no) plot; poor acting. Father-in-law (mid-80’s): can’t nap during film (too loud)....Read More
