It’s that time of year again, when there are so many interesting films playing that I just can’t keep up with them all. And considering the pile of extra writing projects I’m dealing with right now, I’m farther behind than usual. I did, however, manage to see three impressive films this week. While I won’t have time to write full reviews anytime soon, here are some quick recommendations… (more…) Read more
From a Christian film review of Stranger Than Fiction: It is a shame that a film based around such a clever idea couldn’t have been slightly altered to make an otherwise interesting story more palatable for families. Hollywood continues to add in offensive elements that serve no real purpose to the plot in spite of proof that films that are family friendly will appeal to wider audiences. And that is truly stranger than fiction. Three thoughts in response to this... Read more
Just ranting about another film criticism pet peeve… Don’t you hate it when a critic makes a statement that says, “If you don’t agree with me, well, you’re just not enlightened like I am”…? (more…) Read more
It’s not often I steal a line from Darth Vader, but here goes: “This will be a day long remembered.” (more…) Read more
Nikke Finke at Deadline: Hollywood reports, I’m told that Akiva Goldsman, who adapted Dan Brown’s worldwide bestseller into a $755.6 mil hit pic, is receiving $4 million for the Da Vinci Code sequel in the works by both Imagine Entertainment and Sony Pictures. Meanwhile, the Da Vinci Code pre-quel, Angels and Demons, is coming to the big screen. Finke says: In A&D, Goldsman must make sense of a plot crammed with Vatican intrigue and high-tech drama: it thrusts Langdon together... Read more
A few words about Robert Altman from his friends and colleagues… (more…) Read more
I was going to just surrender blogging for the rest of the day, due to the loss of Altman, but then I discovered that Opus, one of my daily blog stops, has just published a review of Kurosawa’s Ikiru, another one of my favorites, and a film that I’ve given a lot of attention in Through a Screen Darkly. Check out Opus’s insightful overview of this classic. Read more
This is a devastating day for anyone who loves great moviemaking. (more…) Read more
Wells has a forceful opinion of the fate of Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit. (Earlier story here, and further thoughts here.) In short, he thinks New Line has done the right thing, and he’s glad that Jackson’s out. (more…) Read more
Earlier this month, I had a long conversation with director Darren Aronofsky, the man responsible for this year’s most ambitious sci-fi film The Fountain, and who has also given us Requiem for a Dream and Pi. We talked by telephone about The Fountain, and about how it begs to be interpreted in so many different ways. We talked about the power of myth, the idea that the world’s religions can be traced to common origins, and humankind’s constant struggle to... Read more
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