Big Eyes – a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

It’s a really big lie that is the heart of this latest outing from veteran director Tim Burton.

Read more

Leviathan – a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

Global media has speculated this drama is a polemic against Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Read more

For a Woman – a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

In a well– told historical drama, the opening credits show photographs of the actors interspersed with family snaps, indicating that Pour une Femme  has personal meaning for its director, Diane Kurys (Sagan, L’anniversaire, Entre Nous), who wrote and directed this post World War II war story set in France.  

Read more

Inherent Vice – a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

Based on the novel by Thomas Pynchon, Inherent Vice has the lot – sex, drugs and a great rock soundtrack – tied up in a classic detective noir.

Read more

The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel…a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

There are expectations that come with the follow-up to a successful movie. Read more

Eastern Boys – a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

At Paris’s Gare du Nord station, a group of boys – some teenagers, some younger – are hanging around, constantly moving and regrouping. There are at least dozen, fluidly crisscrossing the station.  Who are they? What are they up to? What language are they speaking? It’s certainly not French. Read more

Wild – a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

A road movie with blisters?  As someone who likes her outdoors neatly packaged, I wondered if Wild would hold my interest. There are indeed plenty of sores and blisters but as the miles are chalked up, it becomes so much more. Read more

Taken3…a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

I did wonder if it mattered that I had not seen Taken or Taken2. But since it’s an action thriller, I decided Taken3 can be viewed as on its own merits. Read more

Penguins of Madagascar…a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

Taking a small child to the movies is about so much more than just what’s on the screen; it’s an outing, and the movie can easily end up the least of it. Read more

The Imitation Game…a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

In an ideal world you would come fresh to this knowing little about the British code breakers of World War II as it is a fascinating piece of history. Read more

Exodus, Gods and Kings…a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

Do we really need yet another swords and sandals cutlery saga? Why rehash ancient history? What could we expect from Director Ridley Scott? Read more

Folies Bergere…a film review by Roz Tarszisz

Judging by the recent spate of mature-age romances, coming of age stories are a trifle old hat. From writer and director Marc Fitoussi, this is a delightful coming of second age (or possibly third) tale. Read more

Self Made…a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

A modern fairytale with deep political messages, Self Made demands that the viewer suspend critical analysis and tag along for the ride. Read more

Next to Her…a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

Chelli (Liron Ben-Shlush), an attractive young woman, is a school security guard in Haifa. Read more

The Selfish Giant…a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

Grim and gritty does work well in the North of England. Read more

Still Life…a movie review by Roz Tarszisz

Funerals are meant for the living. Still Life opens intriguingly with the same solitary figure at a series of burial services. Read more

Venus in Fur…a film review by Roz Tarszisz

Venus in Fur – a play within a play. Based on David Ives’ Tony Award winning play “Venus in Fur”, this two hander directed by Roman Polanksi opens innocuously enough in a small rundown theatre in Paris.

Read more

Olympus has fallen 3/4 – a film review by James Berardinelli

There’s irony to be found in the recognition that the best Die Hard to be released in 2013 isn’t the franchise’s official entry, A Good Day to Die Hard, but the White House-based copycat, Olympus Has Fallen. Read more

Warm Bodies 2½/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

As if it wasn’t bad enough that Twilight defanged vampires, turning them into whiny emo Harlequin romance heroes, now Warm Bodies has done something similar for zombies. Read more

Hyde Park on Hudson 2½/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

Hyde Park on Hudson represents the odd marriage of an uninteresting, borderline-creepy “romance” and a peek behind the scenes of a notable but unsung historical event. 2012 has seen dramatizations of eras from the administrations of two of America’s greatest leaders. Read more

Rust and Bone 3/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

When Rust and Bone tells a story of a woman’s recovery from a devastating injury, it hits all the right notes, traveling a path that is poignant without being mawkish and triumphant without being saccharine. Read more

Broken City **/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

Broken City? More appropriately, Broken Movie. Read more

Side Effects ***/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

There’s something delightfully old-fashioned about Steven Soderbergh’s Side Effects. Read more

The Paper Boy **½/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

Whatever else it may be cited for, The Paperboy, Lee Daniels’ follow-up to Precious, is not going be called “the feel-good movie of 2012.” Read more

Cloud Atlas ***/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

Based on a perusal of reviews for Cloud Atlas, one might be convinced that the sprawling, ambitious, epic adaptation of David Mitchell’s 2004 novel is either a masterpiece or an unmitigated disaster. Read more

The Last Stand **½/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

Old action heroes don’t die or fade away; they just keep going. Read more

Amour ***½/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

Films can be tremendous vehicles for escapism – paths to freeing oneself from worldly concerns and considerations. They can also be a means of getting in touch with essential elements of humanity such as love, sacrifice, and mortality. Read more

Beautiful Creatures **½/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

Beautiful Creatures is the latest attempt by a Hollywood studio to cash in on the popularity of a YA (Young Adult) series. In this case, instead of vampires and werewolves, it’s witches and warlocks. Read more

Safe Haven **/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

It’s pointless criticizing a Nicholas Sparks movie for being a Nicholas Sparks movie. Sparks, like Barbara Cartland before him, delivers exactly what his fans want: romance between two attractive people. Read more

Anna Karenina ***/4 – a movie review by James Berardinelli

Like Frankenstein and Hamlet, Anna Karenina is a literary touchstone that filmmakers return to on a regular basis. Read more

« Previous Page — Next Page »