In the mid-90s, multiplexes were invaded by an influx of movies centered on mankind’s first contact with extraterrestrials. And unlike the cute and friendly aliens we got to know in the 80s, like E.T. and ALF, the space invaders of the 90s mostly just wanted to annihilate us, starting with our favorite tourist destinations. Part […]
Read More “Now That’s What I Call A Close Encounter” (#93)Things have changed.
Read More Top Ten Films: 2018It’s just about Oscar time again — though for once, the Best Picture race isn’t exactly the most disappointing contest I’ll witness over the past year. At times like these, the Academy Awards feel somewhat frivolous. It’s possible that some likely winners — The Salesman, Mahershala Ali, The White Helmets, OJ: Made In America, and even […]
Read More The Not-Oscars 2016Another year, another awards season. But this was no ordinary year. Where to begin, when we speak of 2016? Most years, I just pick my favorite films, and that’s it. But this year, it felt important to really think about these choices, and what they expressed about my feelings this year. That’s not to say […]
Read More Top Ten Films: 2016She remembers how hot the sun was in Dallas, and the crowds — greater and wilder than the crowds in Mexico or in Vienna. The sun was blinding, streaming down; yet she could not put on sunglasses for she had to wave to the crowd. And up ahead she remembers seeing a tunnel around a […]
Read More Love In A Hopeless Place: ‘Jackie’ Is A Requiem For The American Dream(A Then & Now perspective.) The further back I go in time, the less secure I am in my Top Ten choices. That’s largely because I haven’t seen all these movies again since, and I have no idea how, say, House Of Sand And Fog measures up to The Last Samurai. On the other hand, […]
Read More Top Ten Films: 2003(A “Then & Now” perspective.) Like my 2005 list, this Top Ten comes at you twenty strong, because that’s how I wrote it back in the day on my LiveJournal. And like last time, I’ll be adding my commentary about how the movies have held up 11 years later, because tastes change. Some of these […]
Read More Top Ten Films: 2004Birdman is one the year’s most critically beloved films. It features brilliant performances, breathtaking filmmaking, an off-the-beaten-path score, and unfolds in one long unbroken take (but not really). And how about the story? Well, on a narrative level, it’s pretty much the same movie as Black Swan, which is why I admire the film but […]
Read More 10 Reasons ‘Black Swan’ And ‘Birdman’ Are Actually The Same MovieAs a film school graduate, I’m afraid I have an obligation to take entertainment way too seriously. That’s why, when awards season rolls around, I can’t help but partake in the senseless, arbitrary, and totally nerdy critic’s pastime of ranking all the films I saw and compiling a Top Ten List. And since 2011’s award […]
Read More Top Ten Films: 2010(Originally posted over at Fabulous Apple. In preparation for this year’s “Not-Oscars,” here’s what I said about last year…) We all know the Oscars don’t always get it right. Of course, “right” is a matter of opinion — but with some perspective, there are a few awards and nominations we collectively agree did not go […]
Read More The Not-Oscars 2010(Films discussed in this post: Hugo, Hesher, Terri, and Win Win.) It’s a hard-knock life for kids in the movies. Whereas actual kids these days have it comparably easy, their on-screen counterparts tend to get tricked instead of treated, kicked instead of kissed. Unlike most kids you’ll meet in real life, the majority of youths […]
Read More ‘Hugo’ Bossless: The Wayward Youths Of 2011(Movies discussed in this post: Like Crazy, Weekend, Crazy Stupid Love, Friends With Benefits, No Strings Attached.) When it comes to movie romances, there are basically two kinds — real and unreal. Happy and sad. Bullshit and not-bullshit. Or, to put it in Julia Roberts terminology — some movies are Runaway Bride, and some movies […]
Read More Modern Love: ‘Like Crazy’ And ‘Weekend’ Get It Right
REAL NOBODY 