Looking over my list of the ten best movies of 2011, they all seem to have one quality in common: intelligence. Those films may have focused on a variety of subjects– ranging from Marilyn Monroe and “Moneyball” to politics and
Although 2011 started out slowly at the multiplex and the summer was full of big-budget disappointments — I’m looking at you, “Transformers 3”– this year took an unexpectedly strong turn in the fall when a lot of great smaller movies
There are some who doubt filmmakers can still make great movies. They doubt that Hollywood – with its focus on celebrities over substance, computer effects over strong cinematography and stereotypes over stories – can still create classic movies that will
The new film “We Bought a Zoo” focuses on a widower who buys a new home for his two young children. The house has one amenity that didn’t make it to the brochure; it has a zoo in the backyard.
Late in the new movie “Shame,” the main character’s sister tells her brother that “we’re not bad people. We just come from a bad place.” That place — the people and the circumstances that made them who they are –
There’s something that can be said for the subtlety of emotions. A knowing glance. An inconspicuous nod. A slight glare. All of these things show how emotions can be depicted onscreen in films that create complicated characters. “New Year’s Eve”
Mitch Albom may be a well-known sports writer, but he didn’t become a bestselling author writing about professional sports. That happened after Albom found worldwide success with the publication of his nonfiction book, “Tuesdays with Morrie.” It’s been over a
Only one word can describe Michelle Williams’ performance in the new film, “My Week with Marilyn” – intoxicating. Williams imbues her character with class, sexuality and self-doubt, making her one of the front-runners for the best actress Oscar next year.
If you take away the wonderful sweetness of 2009’s “500 Days of Summer,” you would be left with “Like Crazy.” Both films explore young love in its idealistic state, but “Summer” does it with a light airiness while the latter
William Shakespeare once wrote, “To thine own self be true.” It’s an ironic line, considering that hundreds of years after his death, some still question whether or not Shakespeare is actually the one who wrote all of his famous plays.
In ‘Johnny English Reborn,’ Rowan Atkinson stars as a secret agent with a dash of Mike Myers’ ’60s-era hero Austin Powers. Like Powers, English is an awkward secret agent trying to prevent a supervillian from completing a dastardly plot. [youtube
[youtube oleuD8479uM nolink] What’s to Like: McG, who previously directed ‘Charlie’s Angels’ and ‘We Are Marshall,’ is at the helm of this new film about two CIA agents who realize they are dating the same woman (Reese Witherspoon). This action
‘Margin Call’ begins like ‘Up in the Air,’ chronicling the downturn of the U.S. economy through the perspective of a human interest story. It tells the tale of a financial firm that realizes belatedly that it’s holding onto too much
The 1984 ‘Footloose’ told a fun, jaunty story about a teen named Ren McCormack (Kevin Bacon) who moves into a Christian community and rebels against a local law prohibiting “public dancing.” It wasn’t a great movie, but it’s an enjoyable
Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney) is one charismatic politician. He’s smart, witty and his rhetoric is so unabashedly liberal that the Democratic Party is close to choosing him as their party’s nominee. It’s no wonder that idealistic press secretary Stephen
‘There’s too many movies that are anti-hillbilly, and I needed to stick up for the uneducated poor bumpkin in the woods,’ director Eli Craig told me recently in a phone interview about his new movie, ‘Tucker and Dale Vs. Evil.’
Despite their many differences, the new film “50/50” reminded me of Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s previous movie, “(500) Days of Summer.” A gentleness and innocence pervades both of these two films. Both films focus on a young man (played by Gordon-Levitt) facing
When movies aren’t shown to critics in advance, there’s usually a reason. A possible explanation is that a movie is so awful that the studio behind it believes that critics will only say terrible things about it. That seems to
It must be difficult to adapt a nonfiction book into a movie. A good screenwriter would likely try to capture all of the story’s important details while ensuring that all of the real-life figures were portrayed accurately. If that sounds
In 2011, Aaron Sorkin won an Academy Award for writing “The Social Network,” in which a young rebel repudiated conventional wisdom and changed how we use the internet and social media. This year, Sorkin is back with “Moneyball”–adapted from the
Two brothers are forced to confront their past inside and outside of a mixed martial arts (MMA) arena in the new film, “Warrior.” Starring Joel Edgerton, Tom Hardy and Nick Nolte, “Warrior” focuses on a family coming together after being
