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Review: Captain America: Civil War

In this gluttonous era of superhero movies, one of the valid criticisms is the lack of consequence or stakes as heroes and villains pound each other to a pulp. These super beings can do little harm to each other and outside of a band of henchmen (or nameless hordes of aliens or robots), the casualties

Review: Dough

Golden Globe nominated Jonathan Pryce takes the lead in this easy going sit-com about immigrant life in the big city. Nat Dayan (Pryce) owns and operates the kosher bakery Dayan and Son he started with his father in 1947 in London’s East End. Against all odds, he keeps the tiny bakery open, competing against the Cotton

High-Rise Review

Tom Hiddleston finds himself in the middle of a very bad year in Ben Wheatley’s pot boiler about a social crucible in melt down. This should not be a huge surprise after his high tension “Kill List” and “Sightseers.” If anything, this movie continues the director’s explorations into the psycho-social foundations of violence; how the

Festival of Iranian Cinema returns to Los Angeles

Despite a decades-long deep chill in political relations between the United States and Iran, culture is a different story. In particular, many movies from Iran have been shown and well-received in this country and others. A pinnacle of recognition for Iran’s thriving cinema scene came in 2012, when “The Separation” directed by Asghar Farhadi won

Elvis and Nixon

Liza Johnson’s narrative fiction retelling of the White House meeting of The King of Rock Elvis Presley with President Richard Nixon packs the most entertainment per ounce of any film this year. It is an exploration into what did happen, and what might have happened, during a meeting of the two most opposite people one

Coppola, Bernstein, Lollobrigida turn out for TCM Hollywood Film Fest

The 7th annual Turner Classics Hollywood Film Festival kicked off on Thursday night with a 40th-anniversary screening of All the President’s Men. Attendees included Gina Lollobrigida, once called the most beautiful woman in the world, still looking bellissima at 87 in a rare visit to Hollywood. Also appearing on the red carpet was Carl Bernstein,

Review: National Bird

Following on the heels of Guy Hibbert’s screenplay for Eye in the Sky (directed by Gavin Hood and starring Helen Mirren) this riveting documentary is the best look to date at drone warfare. Many Americans have been led to believe that drone surveillance and missile attacks are precision killings. Although they may represent precision bombing,

Virtual reality and art documentaries the highlights of Tribeca

On the new side, Tribeca Film Festival’s embrace of interactive programming – both digital and non-digital – is exciting and trailblazing. On the digital side, much of VR – especially the kind that is designed for full-body motion (mainly, waving your arms) is still rudimentary, filled with trite Technicolor landscapes and amorphous, lava lamp-like shapes.

Disney’s The BFG: 10 facts you didn’t know about the movie

Disney’s new adaptation of The BFG, directed by Steven Spielberg, was one of 2016’s most anticipated films — and for good reason. The Roald Dahl children’s classic on which it is based is without doubt one of the best kids’ stories of all time, and with a director of Spielberg’s caliber behind it the movie promises

Review: The Measure of a Man

Vincent Lindon uncorks a spectacular, if understated, performance in writer/director Stéphane Brizé’s essay on the present day working class. The screenplay, co-written by Olivier Gorce, features Lindon as Thierry Taugourdeau, an unemployed / underemployed man trying to support a family. Lindon and his wife and child are remarkable in their lack of moral flaws. Although