I, Tonya Film Scene — opens Friday, Jan. 12 For people of a certain age, the 1994 incident involving Olympic figure skater Tonya Harding and a premeditated attack on her team-rival Nancy Kerrigan has a permanent place in the memory banks. Many recall those events very clearly, as well as the drama that played out […]
Film reviews
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A-List: ‘Saving Brinton’ explores a forgotten chapter of the silent film era
Setting up in small towns from Minnesota to Texas, the Brintons’ traveling cinema show was for most Midwesterners of the era a first encounter with moving images. Unfortunately, in 1919, seemingly at the height of the traveling show’s popularity, Frank Brinton passed away. When his wife died in 1955, her estate’s executor moved the collection to his basement — where it remained until Mike Zahs learned of its existence in 1981.
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The smiling ‘Lady Macbeth’ — stark period horror comes to Film Scene
On their wedding night, Katherine’s husband, Alexander, asks if she is cold, and asserts, “This house gets very cold.” But Katherine smiles at him reassuringly and insists in earnest, “I’m thick-skinned.” It’s the last time Katherine will appear so innocent and eager-to-please, but she is not wrong. Her skin proves to be very thick indeed.
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Interview: Filmmaker David Byars discusses the Patriot movement ahead of Vino Vérité’s screening of ‘No Man’s Land’
This Sunday, July 9, documentarian David Byars is bringing his incendiary new film, No Man’s Land, to FilmScene as part of the Vino Vérité series, presented by FilmScene, ‘Little Village’ and Bread Garden Market. Tickets are $20 for FilmScene members, $25 for the general public. The film begins at 7:15 p.m., with hors d’oeuvres & wine tasting preceding at 6:30 p.m. A wine and dessert reception with the filmmaker begins at 8:45 p.m.
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Tight, entertaining ‘Colossal’ makes its own rules
Spanish filmmaker Nacho Vigalondo’s latest film, Colossal, is at once an intimate substance abuse drama and a kaiju-style creature feature. Much like his previous feature films, including Timecrimes (2007) and Extraterrestrial (2011), Vigalondo is able to strike this seemingly-odd balance with surprising grace simply by setting a very real, very interior story against a distant backdrop of intense science fiction.
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After Birth: With Nate Parker’s ‘The Birth of a Nation,’ a page has decisively turned
The Birth of a Nation FilmScene — opens Friday, Oct. 7 at 1 p.m. A century after D.W. Griffith released The Birth of a Nation (1915), one of the most groundbreaking of all movies, as well as a classic of American racism, we now get Nate Parker’s The Birth of a Nation, an overwhelming, sympathetic […]
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Oscars Round Up: ‘Fury Road’ has an inventiveness rarely seen in action films
For the final installment of our Oscars Round Up series, Pat Brown gives his take on a film with a staggering 10 Oscar nominations. Second only to ‘The Revenant,’ ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ has gotten the nod in categories from Best Picture and Best Director (George Miller) to Best Visual Effects and Best Sound Design. […]
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Oscars Round Up: Lenny Abrahamson’s ‘Room’ tugs mercilessly at our perceptions
The LV film team has been loving this series, highlighting Oscar nominees in advance of Sunday’s awards ceremony. First, John Rigby discussed ‘45 Years,’ next was Warren Sprouse’s ‘Theeb‘ review and, yesterday, Matthew Byrd checked in with his take on ‘Brooklyn.’ Today, Jaret Morlan (who wrote the piece on Sunday’s Oscar watch party for Issue […]
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Oscars Round Up: ‘Brooklyn’ is an intelligent and seductive love story
This week, the LV film team is exploring a few of the nominees for Sunday’s 88th Academy Awards. John Rigby kicked off the series with his review of ’45 Years,’ and yesterday, Warren Sprouse discussed the Jordanian nominee, ‘Theeb.’ Third in this series is Matthew Byrd’s review of ‘Brooklyn.’ The nominee for Best Picture, Best […]
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Oscars Round Up: Newcomer Jacir Eid Al-Hwietat is “astonishing” in ‘Theeb’
The LV film team offers up a peek at some of the nominees for the upcoming Academy Awards. Be sure to read the first in this series, John Rigby’s review of ’45 Years.’ Also, check out the article from Issue 193 on the Englert/FilmScene Hollywood Live! party. Today, Warren Sprouse reviews Best Foreign Film nominee […]
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Oscars Round Up: ’45 Years’ a remarkable study in dramatic restraint
With the Academy Awards coming up this Sunday, the LV film team has been reflecting on some of the nominees. Let this week of reviews be your cheat sheet as you make your Oscar predictions! Also, check out the article from Issue 193 on the Englert/FilmScene Hollywood Live! party. Here, John Rigby reviews ’45 Years.’ […]
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Review: Charlie Kaufman’s ‘Anomalisa’ moderates a solipsistic worldview with ‘particularizing quirks’
Anomalisa FilmScene — Opens Friday, Jan. 22 The notion of the “uncanny valley” is a familiar topic in discussions around video games and computer animation. It’s a relatively simple idea: animation can be cute, endearing and even empathetic within a certain level of abstraction, but as the animated object edges closer to the reality of […]
