question of the day: What actor could most use the Coen Brothers as a director?

There are lots of actors whom I’d love to see work with the Coens, to see how their unique and hugely entertaining talents could be amplified by the brothers’ idiosyncratic perspective — James Franco, Amy Adams, Timothy Olyphant, Colin Firth, Steve Coogan, Maria Bello, and on and on — none of them really need that boost the Coens could give them. Unlike my top five candidates for Coen-ification…

new this week in U.S., Canadian, and U.K. theaters: ‘Jonah Hex,’ ‘Toy Story 3,’ ‘Killers,’ ‘MacGruber,’ more

U.S. AND CANADA/OPENING WIDE Jonah Hex: Josh Brolin is a disfigured half-zombie gunfighter in the weird Old West. And it’s kinda not a comedy. [trailer] review to come If you can’t make it to the multiplex, try: • The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.: The Complete Series (1993): The sadly short-lived Fox TV series is … more…

Burn After Reading movie review: stupid power

I think maybe I’ve figured out how Joel and Ethan Coen do it. How they move so effortlessly from comedy to drama, from fluffy to forceful, from silly to solemn. It’s that they don’t think about tone or genre, at least not at the beginning: they just think about a character, and let him have his lead, and see where he takes them.

best of 2007: 10 best movies

My picks for the best and worst movies of the year are no secret to anyone who follows my annual ranking of every new theatrical release I see. The ranking is a work-in-progress throughout the year. It begins when I see the first movie slated for release within a calendar year — for 2007, that … more…