In dealing with the turmoil of ‘real’ life, the art of illusion found in cinemas, theaters, and museums will help us regain a sense of who we are as communal beings.
Visual Arts Remembrance: Artist Ashley Bryan
Ashley Bryan was a remarkable artist and legendary figure in Maine and New York who passed away at the beginning of February.
Book Review: All About Mel Brooks — By Mel Brooks
This is Mel Brooks’ warm and amusing love letter to his golden years in comedy.
Film Review: “Cry Macho” — Not So Mucho Macho
Cry Macho is little more than nostalgia for the Old West of Hollywood.
Film Review: “Language Lessons” — Gained in Translation
The film catches the rhythms and vulnerabilities of real life when two worlds collide.
Music Remembrance: Charlie Watts (1941-2021)
Watts’ relentlessly unembellished drive on dozens of classic songs, from “Satisfaction” and “Shattered” to “Connection,” is what makes them so danceable.
Film Review: “Summertime” — Poetry Collective
Despite the artificiality of Summertime’s premise, director Carlos López Estrada links the film’s episodes together via a kind of seamless magical realism: each moment smoothly leads to the next, each accelerates towards a powerful resolution.
Book Review: “Brut: Writings on Art & Artists” — Proceed with Caution, But Proceed
These are not persuasive essays; rather, they are thought-provoking juxtapositions of facts, observations, and speculations — with a teleology.
Film Interview: RoxFilm’s Lisa Simmons — Embracing Cinematic Independence
“It is wonderful to see the variety, diversity, and the opportunities for Black artists to tell their stories and present themselves in ways that are not ‘traditional.'”
Film Review: “A Quiet Place Part II” — Women Will Be Our Salvation
Survival is the primary motivation, and the film’s unrelenting series of unexpected attacks generate considerable tension.