Only God Forgives
The beauty of every frame of Only God Forgives—the striking compositions, the vivid colors—is so exceptional that it mostly offsets the questionable creative decisions that go on within that frame. Director Nicolas Winding Refn’s follow-up film to Drive is even bolder in its design, mixing his trademark violence with an almost austere, dreamlike quality that positions this revenge thriller as something of a revenge tone poem. The characters never become more than well-positioned furniture in those frames, but the movie’s quite gorgeous in its own limited way.... read more
Before Midnight
Before Midnight caps off one of the most compelling, emotionally satisfying trilogies ever filmed. read more
Mumbai Confidential Book 1: Good Cop, Bad Cop by Saurav Mohapatra
Writer: Saurav Mohapatra Artists: Vivek Laxman Shinde; shorts by Vinay Brahmania, Shounak Jog, Sid Kotian, Devaki Neogi and Saumin Patel Publisher: Archaia Release Date: May 15, 2013... read more
Black Rock
The ladies in Black Rock are supposed to be annoying. That’s the only conclusion one can draw from their incessant whining, catfighting and drunk flirting. Abby (director Katie Aselton, who came up with the story with husband Mark Duplass) is especially guilty, but her childhood BFFs Lou (Lake Bell), whose indiscretion with Abby’s boyfriend years ago is still a sore point between them, and Sarah (Kate Bosworth), who hopes to make peace with a private camping trip on an uninhabited rocky island off the coast of Maine, don’t come off much better.... read more
Sarah Prefers to Run (2013 Cannes review)
In the 1980s, Nike did a promotional campaign for their jogging shoes called “There Is No Finish Line.” The idea behind the campaign was that, for the serious runner, the process of going out every day to jog wasn’t about trophies—it was about the euphoric, perhaps even spiritual experience of leaving everything else in your life behind and just being in tune with the feeling of your body cutting through the air. That tag line might have just been a way for Nike to sell more shoes, but for the heroine of Sarah Prefers to Run, that philosophy is gospel.... read more
Bastards (2013 Cannes review)
Filmmaker Claire Denis didn’t name her new movie Bastards glibly. It’s hard to remember a film in recent times that’s been populated with so many disreputable, miserable or simply unpleasant characters. You’ll never quite warm up to any of them, but if you get on this neo-noir’s wavelength, you may find yourself loving them anyway. They’re bastards, all right, but they’re bastards through and through.... read more
Behind the Candelabra (2013 Cannes review)
At first blush, the main draw of Behind the Candelabra would seem to be its camp appeal: a true-life love story between a humble aspiring veterinarian and Liberace, that icon of kitsch and knowing excess. And while that element exists in director Steven Soderbergh’s film, what resonates more strongly is the difficulty in falling in love with someone famous. That person may love you back sincerely, but fame always gets in the way. That’s not a particularly revelatory idea, but Soderbergh and his cast at least find a lively way to say it one more time.... read more
Modern Family Review: "Goodnight Gracie" (Episode 4.24)
The season definitely wasn’t the best, but it’s going out until next fall on one of its strongest episodes. read more
A Touch of Sin (2013 Cannes review)
The latest film from Chinese director Jia Zhangke would appear to be a departure from his previous acclaimed work. But on closer inspection, his particular cinematic DNA has been perfectly preserved. It’s just that, this time, there’s a lot more bloodshed than we’ve come to expect from him.... read more
The Bounce #1 by Joe Casey & David Messina
Writer: Joe Casey Artist: David Messina Publisher: Image Release Date: May 22, 2013... read more
Jimmy P. (Psychotherapy of a Plains Indian) (2013 Cannes review)
Easier to respect than embrace, Jimmy P. (Psychotherapy of a Plains Indian) tells its true-life story with understatement and features sturdy performances from Benicio del Toro and Mathieu Amalric. But this somewhat clinical look at the unlikely therapy sessions that took place between a French anthropologist and a traumatized Native American war veteran in 1947 feels hemmed in by its approach. You sense that French filmmaker Arnaud Desplechin wants to avoid the feel-good clichés associated with such a movie, but his alternative is tasteful but also a little too muted.... read more
Samsung Galaxy S4
But the elephant in the room question remains: Is the Samsung Galaxy S4 a phone you should buy instead of an HTC One or an iPhone 5? read more
Stories We Tell
With Stories We Tell, actress-turned-director Sarah Polley has proven herself a consummate filmmaker, transforming an incredible personal story into a playful and profound investigation into the nature of storytelling itself. The central mystery of her documentary—that the man she grew up believing to be her dad is not her biological father—is public knowledge and revealed in the film’s trailer. Yet Polley conceals and reveals information—starting with her relationships to her interview subjects—in such a way as to constantly surprise, even shock, her audience. The result is a film that entertains and delights viewers while elevating her investigation to art.... read more
Various Artists: After Dark 2
Rarely do compilation albums add up to something greater than the sum of their parts. read more
JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound: Howl
JC Brooks & the Uptown Sound are doing that thing the people always say they want bands to do—that thing where a band transforms their early, almost literal take on retro-minded soul music into a sound that's unique and modern. read more
Dirtyville Rhapsodies by Josh Green
What accounts for the mini-Renaissance of the short story we see nowadays? read more
Daft Punk: Random Access Memories
Sasha Frere-Jones’ review of Daft Punk’s Random Access Memories baffled many in the critic’s corner this week as he insisted that this album asks, “Does good music have to be good?” read more
Scout Niblett: It's Up To Emma
Though there was precious little excess to burn, Scout Niblett subjected herself to trial by fire on her previous release, The Calcination Of Scout Niblett. read more
Dirty Beaches: Drifters/Love is the Devil
Two years ago, Alex Hungtai (a.k.a. Dirty Beaches) still had a day job. read more
Soulacoaster: The Diary Of Me by R. Kelly
There’s a scene early in Soulacoaster: The Diary Of Me, R. Kelly’s amusingly named memoir, which seems to anticipate the singer’s future. read more
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