It was only a matter of time before WWII/Holocaust drama and Edward Zwick found each other. “Defiance” is the perfect little-known underdog war story that perfectly fits Zwick’s (“Glory,” “The Last Samurai,” “Blood Diamond”) tastes. Historical war drama with a heavy action slant as per usual, “Defiance” has all the elements that anyone who’s enjoyed […]

For yet another indie relationship drama without a straightforward plot and more than one central character, David Gordon Green makes something of a quiet masterpiece out of “Snow Angels,” based on the 1994 book by Stewart O’Nan. Although the film begins with us overhearing two gun shots and then backing up to show us their […]

After making a splash with folks over at Comic Con last month, the new superhero action comedy “Kick-Ass” has finally been picked up by a U.S. distributor. Lionsgate announced it plans to give the Mark Millar (“Wanted”) comic-book-based film a wide release next year. Directed by Matthew Vaughn (“Layer Cake” and “Stardust”), “Kick-Ass” is the […]

Though there have been a few attempts to quickly turn over a good film about the Iraq War or a similar conflict (“The Lucky Ones,” “In the Valley of Elah,” “Jarhead,” “The Kingdom”), none achieve on so many levels and try to capture the true experience of today’s soldiers like “The Hurt Locker.” Former embedded […]

The height of Akira Kurosawa’s career as a masterful Japanese filmmaker might have been in the ’50s with “Roshomon” and the epic “Seven Samurai,” but “Ran” represents a consummation of sorts in the director’s career and lifetime. At age 75, Kurosawa puts his own style into Shakespeare’s “King Lear,” the descent of a once great […]

In a post-9/11 era, moviegoers are no longer fazed by the idea that the government can utilize technology to the fullest extent in tracking and monitoring citizens. We also understand that this (debatably) infringes upon our civil liberties. Since then, dozens of films have warned us of the dangerous extent that technology can take us […]

A spoof is never a bad idea, but it requires wit and the Wayans brothers don’t have it. Think back to the films that made the spoof a genre (“Airplane” and “The Naked Gun”) and there you have a commitment to nonsensical but witty humor and most of all — subtlety.  “Scary Movie” might make […]

Alien invasion stories can often seem a bit far-fetched, but making a great action movie with a compelling story for just $30 million shouldn’t. If “District 9” scores at the box office, maybe it will drive home to Hollywood that eternal but oft forgotten message that great films come from great stories. “District 9” is […]

“The Time Traveler’s Wife” came out today and while I have no plans to run to and see it, especially with the buzzworthy and awesome-looking sci-fi flick “District 9” also opening, it doesn’t mean I’m any less hopelessly in love with star Rachel McAdams.  In other words, if you invite me, I will go see […]

Pregnancy and eventually the bond between mother and child is a powerful thing. Hormones, attachment, sometimes postpartum depression — even the mystery of what’s growing inside — Roman Polanski channels all these things into storytelling elements of suspense and paranoia in his superbly written “Rosemary’s Baby.”

A lot of folks were bothered at the news that Spider-Man would be taking the stage on Broadway next year for some good ‘ole slingin’ and singin’, and they might be able to sleep easy now that rumors of the financial backing behind the Julie Taymor (“Across the Universe” and Broadway’s “The Lion King”) production […]

Minus the gratuitous male genitalia jokes, “Funny People” is about as far from anything Judd Apatow has directed or produced since he hit it big with “The 40-Year-Old Virgin.” Finally collaborating with longtime friend Adam Sandler, Apatow takes the creative license that his reputation as comedic master of the decade has afforded him and makes […]

I love the idea of things from my childhood being turned into major motion pictures, but I think a live action/animation hybrid LEGO movie is where I would have drawn the line. However, in the spirit of two of this summer’s hits “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” and “G.I. Joe,” Warner Bros. has plans to […]

You can pooh all over the fact that I claim to know what I’m talking about when it comes to film, but you cannot smear that on my reputation as a superhero movie buff. I’m no Brainiac  (boy, I hope Superman fans are reading this) and I haven’t seen everything, but if there’s a genre […]

Anyone who has to direct another movie after his first feature film won him a Best Director Oscar, has to be scared out of his mind. How do you top that? Seriously. Although “Road to Perdition” is an impassioned story (based on a graphic novel) of an Irish mobster and his son trying to stay […]