As David Ehrlich noted some weeks ago, an American remake of “Toni Erdmann” was a “bad idea”, but it was also inevitable. And how could it not be? Not just because it was the best film of 2016 – in the opinion of many critics, myself included – but because it was a story with […]
One of the five Best Foreign Film Oscar nominees, “The Salesman” is the latest film from Iranian director Asghar Farhadi, who won the best foreign film oscar in 2011 for “A Separation”. After having seen both films, I find Farhadi to be an exceptionally talented artist. He appears to be serving a personal vision that […]
Sensitive but strong most of the way, Moonlight turns soft at the end. But its tight focus on the punishment awaiting gay youth in black culture is original and bold. This makes it an Oscar contender. Although Barry Jenkins is listed as both director and screenwriter, he was using material that had been written about […]
If I were to introduce a “veteran screen actress who is beloved by fans all over the world”, you’d have a good selection of women to pick from. Judy Dench, for instance, would certainly be one top choice. But if I were to add that the most recognizable traits of the characters she plays are […]
British writer-director Christopher Smith knows his noir. He knows that when you watch his film, you will also be reminded of other movies when you see: a cop order the (anti)hero to open the trunk of his car: a hooker who is frantically packing to get out of Vegas before her pimp kills her, when there’s a […]
In The Loner, his first feature, director Daniel Grove follows the story of Behrouz, starting with his forced service as a child soldier – a “Basiji” – fighting for Iran in the war with Iraq. The story then advances to his life as an adult immigrant in the underworld of Los Angeles, specifically the Persian […]
Simon Dixon sees nothing wrong with starting at the top, and he makes a good case for that with his first film as a director, Tiger Raid, which had its world premiere at Tribeca on April 17th. I interviewed him and his producer, Gareth Evans, soon after the premiere, and it was obvious they were […]
We are SO excited to see this year’s cast of OSCAR winners! Host Chris Rock was his fantastic, irreverent self. To see photos and clips, visit oscar.go.com. To see all the nominees and each winner, click here.
Now that Leonardo DiCaprio has won both the Golden Globes and the SAG Best Film Actor award, expectations are high for a sweep at the Oscars on February 28th. While the film itself is a mixed blessing, DiCaprio’s performance is definitely worthy, and I don’t think his competition is strong enough for an upset. […]
• The Department of Labor has a fast triumph in the 3 million bucks settlement of various discrimination claims against FedEx. The NYTimes piece on Thursday (3/22/12) was so bare that you might have been reading about bacteria under a microscope. Of course none of these “victims of discrimination” were identified, but the summary was […]
