Would That Be Product Un-Placement? It’s disconcerting enough to see the (all too) realistic depiction of social breakdown, martial law, etc. that follow in the wake of a nightmarish global health epidemic. However, when the one of the cities so portrayed is Minneapolis . . . it’s almost literally a little too close to home. Story...Read More
Inspiring a Sense of “Wonder” — But the Wrong Kind It’s never a good sign if — instead of being engrossed in the movie you’re watching — you’re daydreaming about other things. Or, in my case watching “Hugo,” Martin Scorsese’s beautiful but slow-moving homage to French filmmaker George Melies, wondering whether that was Borat (comedian Sacha Baron Cohen)...Read More
“Casablanca . . . for Kids” That’s my take on the newest (and last?) Harry Potter movie, viewed at an early screening last night (double-thanks to my 70 and 80-something parents — once for scoring the free tix, and again for sitting through it). My 11-year son and his friend loved it; ditto my 8...Read More
Three Reasons to Go Here are the reasons to go to your local cineplex to see Clint Eastwood’s new movie, “Hereafter,” starring Matt Damon and Cecile de France: 1. An unforgettable (and horrifying) depiction of a tsunami as it obliterates an unidentified Southeast Asian resort town; 2. The coiffure sported by main character Cecile de...Read More
Review, “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps” I went to see Oliver Stone’s last film the other night. And by that, I don’t mean his most recent film — I literally mean, the last film he is likely to make (at least with a big studio budget, at least for a long while). That’s because it...Read More
The Hebrew School Connection [Editor’s Note: ‘A Serious Man’ isn’t a mystery, so revealing the ending isn’t exactly ruining it. However, if you plan to see it and would rather be surprised . . . stop reading here. Regular blog readers may recall that I ran a post, “Economic Stimulus –Local Version” commenting on the...Read More
