Coraline
Stop-motion is not done as frequently as it should be. This is one of the take-away lessons from Coraline. It’s like Gumby on steroids. Good stop-motion, like good CG...
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The Princess and the Frog
A return to classic Disney animation, talking animals, musical numbers with song and dance. The Princess and the Frog is Disney’s first attempt in nearly a decade to tell...
Invictus
Stories are told and retold for a number of reasons, not the least of which is their ability to move and inspire. True stories have a resonance which is...
Up in the Air
Up in the Air takes its name, it seems, from a song of the same name (or perhaps vice versa). The opening stanza is as follows: I’m up in...
The Time Traveler’s Wife
No time is wasted. In a way. We are hurled right into the middle of the dilemma of Henry (the time traveler) and Clare (his wife). An explanation is...
The Book of Eli
Post-apocalyptic stories have a certain resonance now. (“Now” defined as “post-Hiroshima.”) Given our predilection for lone men on missions to save humanity, this post-apocalyptic mankind-savior on a mission already...
Julie & Julia
From the writer and/or director of many lovable characters (and a few that are easily dismissed), we have two more that won’t be soon forgotten. Ebullient characters, timeless acting,...
Avatar
Yes, I saw it in 3D. Or, rather, I saw it in Real-D 3D. All the better for it. This film is visually stunning, and having spent half a...
Sherlock Holmes
The grass withers, and the flower fades, but Guy Ritchie will always make hyper-realistic, energetic films, with a visceral appeal capable of stirring (and amusing) the soul. Maybe that’s...
The Blind Side
There are two aspects to every story: the story itself and the telling of the story. This film has a great story, but it tells it poorly, with cheap...