“Sarah’s Key” tells two intertwined stories. The first takes place in present day Paris. Julia Jarmond (Kristin Scott Thomas), an American journalist, lives with her architect husband, Bertrand Tezac (Frédéric Pierrot). While they renovate an apartment that has been in Bertrand’s family since the 1940s, Julia, for one of her articles, investigates the infamous Vel’ […]
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Nick (Jesse Eisenberg), a mild mannered and lead-footed pizza delivery guy, has lost his way. While his friend Chet (Aziz Ansari) has finally landed full time employment as a Jr. High teacher, and Kate (Dilshad Vadsaria), the girl he’s in love with and Chet’s sister, just got an opportunity that will take her to Atlanta, […]
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Director Michael Rapaport has created a labor of love. “Beats Rhymes & Life: The Travels of a Tribe Called Quest” is the rare documentary that balances adoration and honesty as it takes the viewer on a journey through the career of the influential hip-hop crew, A Tribe Called Quest. The story begins in 2008 during […]
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When Kansas City singer/songwriter Phillip Bradley was chosen to appear in a documentary about buskers who perform on the streets and subway platforms of New York City, he didn’t know what to expect. He headed to Manhattan, slept on a friend’s couch and took his music to the people of New York while a film […]
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In it’s first few minutes, “The Change-Up” gives the viewer a glimpse of a CGI animated baby anus, which, as anticipated, shoots an incredible amount of crap into the surprised face of Dave (Jason Bateman), the exhausted father. When Dave opens his mouth to argue with his child’s backside, a final push fills his mouth […]
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“Crazy, Stupid, Love” may have one of the lamer and lazier titles given a film this year, but that is exactly the point. This film embraces many of the clichés of sexually driven romantic comedies, but in doing so comments on and critiques them. Just take a scene that occurs in the middle of the […]
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A good idea is just that, an idea. It may be chock-full of visual potential or hint at the possibility of an engaging story. Even if the idea is fantastic, there is an enormous chasm that stands between that idea and, in this instance, a well-crafted enjoyable feature film. Jon Favreau falls headlong into this […]
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Coming of age stories often come in two forms. Some explore the expansion and depth of a life just begun. Films like “My Life as a Dog” follow young adolescents as they blossom into a proto-sexual adulthood. The other type of coming of age story deals with the fleeting nature of life. In films like […]
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This review originally appears on KTKA-49. The superhero genre gets an injection of good old fashioned patriotism when “Captain America: The First Avenger” hits theaters this weekend. Set during World War II, this Marvel Comics adaptation follows the adventures of a wimpy young man with a good heart who is turned into a muscular super […]
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In the midst of the summer movie season, comic book movie exhaustion and action overload has started to weigh heavily on me. Do we really need another film about a dude in a crazy suit, who punches other dudes in crazy suits? Isn’t there an upper threshold for the number of these films that can […]
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How do you conclude a fourteen-year literary and cinematic legacy? Well if you’re director David Yates and writer Steve Kloves and the movie is “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2,” then you make sure to toe the literary line, not wanting to excite or offend. This results in a film that is […]
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“Beginners” is impossible to describe in a way that does justice to this oddly sad, oddly funny, and thoroughly enjoyable film from Mike Mills. It does tell the story of a son dealing with the death of two parents from cancer, the homosexuality of his father, and an exciting and troubled romance. In spite of […]
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I’ll begin with an analogy. Persistent Sexual Arousal Syndrome (PSAS) is a medical condition, which is marked by consistent unwanted sexual arousal and orgasm. Those of us who don’t have the disease may grin or chuckle and think that PSAS might not be so bad. Those with the disease often describe it as distracting to […]
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Stupidity wins the day, as Mater the tow truck (Larry the Cable Guy) gets center stage in Pixar’s latest film, “Cars 2.” This movie takes on big oil and bungled friendships, while the globe-trotting Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) tears up the racing circuit, and Mater finds himself the master of inadvertent espionage. “Cars 2” opens […]
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