A lot of the buzz surrounding “Still Alice” revolves around Julianne Moore’s Oscar-worthy performance as a woman struggling with Alzheimer’s. And upon viewing there is no denying that Moore’s performance is the film’s winning factor. However, that is not to say that “Still Alice” is not a well-made film, because it is. Shot for less than five million dollars over the course of twenty-three days “Still Alice” is a spirituously-beautiful film that casts an

After exploring the Stasi period in "Barbara" German filmmaker Christian Petzold here goes a step backward to take in the aftermath of the Nazi debacle with his lens in "Phoenix," a film currently being shown in Europe and headed for theatrical here in late 2015. As was the case in most of the filmmaker's previous films the luminous actress Nina Hoss has the leading role, this time that of Nelly, a survivor of the Auschwitz camp

The public has been relatively kind to director Ava DuVernay’s “Selma” though this recounting of an extraordinary moment in our country’s march toward civil rights is bloated and inaccurate. Which may explain, rather than some anti African-American conspiracy, why it was spurned for the Academy Awards nomination. Martin Luther King, here played superbly by David Oyelowo, is the closest anyone in contemporary times comes to

While the film’s plodding pace and largely muted action may be discouraging for some viewers, “Year” triumphs from the slow and gripping tension of its character drama. Writer and director J.C. Chandor (“All is lost”) has proven to be especially adept at depicting characters battening down the hatches. His first film “Margin Call” was a taut Wall Street drama set during the onset of the 2007-08 financial crisis. In “All is Lost” a man battles it out

In college I wrote a paper on the subversion of the detective novel in Thomas Pynchon’s The Crying of Lot 49. I got an A, although the paper received its highest compliment in 2009. That’s when Pynchon finally lived up to my astonishing insight and published a detective novel, “Inherent vice.” This survey of Los Angeles weirdness circa 1970 is brought to the screen by Paul Thomas Anderson. The Crying of Lot 49 features suburban housewife Oedipa Maas

“Song of the sea” is a spectacular film that explores the Celtic myth of Selkies, a mystical being that can change form between human and seal, through a simply-told and heartwarming story about a brother and a sister. “Song,” a traditionally-animated film, is also a visual feat. And despite a few moments in which the visual eclipses the story “Song” is a successful continuation of animation storytelling. The film, by director Tomm

A no-fail winning combination in film would be great actors+great director+good story. You think ? Not necessarily. Hollywood dustbins are filled with disappointing films made according to this very combination. Still, Tim Burton bringing together Amy Adams and Christoph Waltz in a true tale involving a kitsch painter and a charming con artist, with the backdrop of fifties and sixties San Francisco, the lure is irresistible. And the rewards many.

While watching "Unbroken," the World War II survival film directed by star-of-the-moment Angelina Jolie, one question stood out among the rest: How can such an extravagant, provocative personality turn in such a normal, even traditional film? Here is a woman who built her career on shock value. Where are the shocking moments in "Unbroken"? This isn't entirely a bad thing, as the classical, stately approach creates a

“Citizenfour” is in many ways a hard film to swallow. Not only is its subject matter, the unlawful surveillance of the American public by the NSA (National Security Agency), one that courts controversy and debate but the way filmmaker Laura Poitras tackles this subject, head-on and at times drily, might be off-putting for some audience members looking for a more rounded discourse. And yet despite its occasional

"Two days, one night" centers on Sandra (Marion Cotillard), who has just returned to work after recovering from an illness. Upon realizing that the company can run with one less employee, management tells Sandra she is to be let go while the remaining employees will each receive a bonus. Talk about a quandary! In this tenderly-observed and suspenseful drama the action is essential. Over the course of