Ironclad (review)
James Purefoy as a disillusioned Templar is as bleakly gorgeous as the film around him…
war/antiwar
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (review)
Ewww. It’s got Michael Bay’s jingo-jism all over it.
Super 8 movie review: all about Steve
Is it weird that the overwhelming feeling I’m left with after Super 8 is one of a nostalgic melancholy?
Kung Fu Panda 2 (review)
What saves this from feeling like it should have gone direct to video is the animation, which is breathtakingly beautiful: this fantasy ancient China is gorgeously designed…
X-Men: First Class (review)
“Best. Comic Book Movie. Evah!” So my inner fangirl is screaming at the moment as she does a little happy Snoopy dance.
Miral (review)
What could possibly be offensive about artist-filmmaker Julian Schnabel taking on an underdog tale and imbuing it with his usual warm, empathetic, humanist touch? Ah, here is Schnabel’s mistake: his story is about a Palestinian girl, and he fails to give equal time to the Israeli side of the story, an unforgivable transgression in the eyes of many. That said…
Pushing the Elephant (review)
This simple, stunning portrait of the strength and commitment of Rose Mapendo — survivor of ethnic cleansing and humanitarian worker — is no dry discourse on the tough, demanding work of humanitarianism. It is a deeply moving look at the real toll such work has had on one woman’s life…
The Eagle (review)
Lunkhead Channing Tatum as a soldier in Roman-era Britain? Must be processed Hollywood cheese, and hence hootingly entertaining, right? But Tatum acquits himself admirably here, in a film that clearly intends to ensure Hollywood cheese is the last thing that comes to mind…
Battle: Los Angeles (review)
Battle: Los Angeles may be about invasion, but it’s not about aliens: it’s about us. This isn’t science fiction: It’s a bleak fantasy about karma being a bitch. It’s about collective cultural guilt. Looked at from that angle, it’s fascinating.
I Am Number Four (review)
High school is hard. High school is even harder when you’re a secret alien from another planet in hiding from big scary guys with enormous feet and weird tattoos on their bald heads who are after you for reasons no one really understands. Except maybe that you’re the last of your kind. Well, apart from your alien-warrior protector, who isn’t specially numbered like you are.
