Film

Film Review: “Ain’t Them Bodies Saints” — Superbly Simple Noir

August 23, 2013
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The understated soundtrack by Texas musician Daniel Hart and the ominous cinematography of Bradford Young complement director David Lowrey’s keen sense of pacing.

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Short Fuse Film Review: “The Attack” — A Compelling Look at the Conflict Between Israelis and Palestinians

August 22, 2013
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The Attack is a movie that tries to get to the core of violence without dissolving into its depiction.

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Film Review: “Lee Daniels’ The Butler” — Powerful But Ambitious to a Fault

August 20, 2013
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There are plenty of intensely moving moments in this expansive biopic, based very loosely on a real White House butler named Eugene Allen, who was profiled by Wil Haygood in a 2008 Washington Post feature.

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Film Review: “Jobs” — A Diverting But Superficial Look At the Life and Career of Steve Jobs

August 16, 2013
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Jobs is not an awful movie so much as an awkward one — it falls short of its intent, which I assume is to dramatize the tenacity of genius.

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Fuse Coming Attractions: What Will Light Your Fire This Week

August 16, 2013
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Arts Fuse critics select the best in music, theater, visual arts, and film that’s coming up this week.

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Movie Review: “Elysium” Lost?

August 14, 2013
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My point is that whatever distinguished District 9 and made it so special is entirely absent from director Neill Blomkamp’s blockbuster, Elysium.

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Film Review: “Blue Jasmine” — Woody Allen’s Evocative Triumph

August 11, 2013
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What carries Blue Jasmine over the moon is the breathtaking, Oscar-worthy performance of Cate Blanchett, whose tortured Park Avenue socialite on the skids is among the most stunning performances by an actress in years.

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Film Review: “Lovelace” — A Provocatively Written, Well-Acted Biopic

August 9, 2013
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Amanda Seyfried gives a sensitive performance as Linda Lovelace; Peter Sarsgaard is chilling as Chuck Traynor, the abusive husband who saw her as sex-object and potential money-making machine.

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Film Review: “Elysium” — The Sound and Fury of CGI Signifying … Not Much

August 9, 2013
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Overall, Elysium is an entertaining distraction posing as a meaningful global allegory.

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Film Review: “Le Pont du Nord” — An Entertaining Exercise in Playful Dis-Ease

August 8, 2013
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This entertaining and provocative work, made in 1981 by the now 85-year-old director, fits into his oeuvre as a complement to his best known movie among American art-film fans, 1974’s Céline and Julie Go Boating.

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