Betsy Sherman

Film Review: “Marcel the Shell With Shoes On” — Respecting a Child’s Sense of Wonder

July 5, 2022
Posted in , ,

Marcel the Shell with Shoes On is a work of depth as well as inspired silliness, structured with moments of quiet contemplation in between the laughs.

Read More

Film Review: “Montana Story” — Confessions and Revelations in Big Sky Country

May 19, 2022
Posted in , ,

This beautifully crafted film relates how the past, particularly one crisis in this family’s past, has colored the siblings’ lives and affected their choices.

Read More

Film Review: Dennis Hopper’s “Out of the Blue” — Still a Stunner

May 12, 2022
Posted in , ,

A welcome homecoming for a new 4K digital restoration of a landmark independent film that’s attained cult status.

Read More

Arts Remembrance: Homage to Gilbert Gottfried — One of America’s Most Original Stand-ups

April 25, 2022
Posted in ,

Comedian Gilbert Gottfried’s passing has hit me harder than most deaths of my celebrity faves: it’s a deprivation I can feel in my stomach.

Read More

Film Review: “The Great Postal Heist” — Clear and Present Danger to a Great American Institution

January 31, 2022
Posted in , , ,

This effective advocacy documentary charts the 21st-century decline of a great American institution (one established in the U.S. Constitution). It’s also a wake-up call alerting us that things didn’t have to happen this way.

Read More

Film Review: “France” — A Comic Drama about the Shallowness of Contemporary Journalism

December 13, 2021
Posted in , ,

Léa Seydoux claims the spotlight as the title character in Bruno Dumont’s pithy and entertaining France, giving a performance that’s cunningly calibrated to mesmerize.

Read More

Film Review: “Surge” — In the Grip of an Irresistible Force

September 23, 2021
Posted in , ,

Ben Whishaw crackles aplenty in Aniel Karia’s fresh and primal debut feature.

Read More

Film Appreciation: “History is Made at Night” — Transcendent Love on Screen

June 8, 2021
Posted in , ,

Director Frank Borzage’s wonderful 1937 History Is Made at Night, newly restored and released on Blu-ray and DVD by the Criterion Collection, defies pigeonholing.

Read More

Film Review: “Poly Styrene: I Am a Cliché” — Courage and Artistry Relevant to Our Moment

May 10, 2021
Posted in , ,

The documentary strikes a remarkably rich vein, covering not only music, fashion and a late-1970s social critique, but also matters of race, class, gender, mental health and spirituality.

Read More

Film Review: 1930’s “Ingagi” — An Elusive Beast from the Dark Shadows of American Cinema Emerges

March 22, 2021
Posted in , ,

In its day, Ingagi raked in the crowds with a promise of weird African animals and “wild” women, and a teasing of bestiality.

Read More

Recent Posts