Going to their scheduled fly-fishing lesson alone, she meets Loren (Derrick Joseph DeBlasis), the community’s beloved outdoorsman who saddles between fishing lessons, rock climbing sessions, and dishwashing at a local spot. Yet despite capitalizing on a litany of opportunities in the town’s nature-forward gig economy, he’s barely scraping by, living in his SUV and showering … Read more
The great Abbie Cornish (who gives one of my most underrated performances in Jane Campion’s “Bright Star”) stars as Rebecca Kamen, a woman who wakes up in police custody … maybe. From the opening scenes of “Detained,” it’s pretty obvious that something’s not quite right with the set-up, even though my brain couldn’t quite wrap … Read more
But before we properly meet the pompous, hypocritical J.C. and his rather less stuck-up wife Julie (Sarah Gadon), we see Peter Sarsgaard trimming his mustache before a mirror, messing with another man’s passport portrait, and bidding farewell to a corpse before taking on that corpse’s identity: that of Floyd Monk, newly employed to be the … Read more
From the jump, the unfocused script by Casey Affleck and Chuck MacLean makes “The Instigators” a chore to watch. The retired Marine Rory (Damon) and an alcoholic Cobby (Affleck) are two stiffs thrown together with the hot-headed Scalvo (Jack Harlow) by local Boston crime boss Mr. Besegia (Michael Stuhlbarg) and Richie Dechico (Alfred Molina). The … Read more
The Irish language was nearly stomped out of existence. Speaking in Irish is seen by many as a political act. Kneecap was formed in 2018 amidst the controversial “discourse” surrounding Sinn Féin’s proposed Irish Language Act. The Irish Language Act would legally place Irish on the same level as English, which would include garda interrogation … Read more
The majority of “Trap” unfolds at a place that can be truly terrifying for a parent forced to spend hundreds of dollars on the latest pop superstar. In this case, it’s Lady Raven, played by Night’s daughter Saleka Shyamalan, a pop star shaped in the image of someone like Taylor Swift – one of those … Read more
The good, or not as bad, zoomers on the boat trip include Noah (Jack Parr), grizzled Levi’s younger mate and also the ex of good doctor Sam (as in Samantha, and played by Kim Spearman), who’s stuck in the lout party taking the boat out. Is a rapprochement in store? Again, no spoilers. While Levi, … Read more
The thrill of transformation is a subtext. The Scala didn’t just show films, it stimulated interest in cinema, challenged and offended viewers (on purpose), and pushed the limits of what was then considered acceptable to screen in England. It championed pro-union and LGBTQ-friendly films, early works by subsequently legendary directors (including David Lynch’s “Eraserhead”), and underground … Read more
Writer-director Stelana Kliris follows the well-worn beats of a romantic comedy with her follow-up to her 2014 feature debut, “Committed.” In “Find Me Falling,” she gives the audience a few surprises and instead follows a predictable story of a long-delayed romantic reconnection featuring two handsome leads. However, the subplot about suicide just outside John’s doorstep … Read more
Kerr’s opening shot is one of the best cinematic overtures of the year. In silence, we watch a group of seemingly well-off people moving through a field, images that recall a family gathering. It’s almost as if the camera can’t figure out who it should settle on, giving us the POV of a participant in … Read more