An Indian father accompanies his young—and only—son, Siddharth, to an outdoor bus station. He waves goodbye to his smiling boy as the packed bus drives off 200 miles north, where Siddharth has been sent to work in a trolley factory. The boy, nicknamed Siddhu, is supposed to come back a month later for Diwali, but […]
Produced & Directed by Nick Ryan
Written by Mark Monroe
Released by Sundance Selects
Ireland/UK/USA/Switzerland. 99 min. Rated R
In early August 2008, 11 of the 18 mountain climbers who reached the top of K2, the world’s second highest peak, died during the descent, which is regarded as the deadliest 48 hours on the Pakistani peak—second in height to […]
The 51st New York Film Festival arrives with a touch of scandal, courtesy of two French films. As soon as it premiered at Cannes, Blue Is the Warmest Color was almost overshadowed by its extended lesbian sex scenes, but not enough to obscure the strong performances. It won the Palme d’Or, awarded to its director […]
Programming a vast array of some 288 features films, the Toronto International Film Festival offers a varied and overwhelming selection. One course of action is to see films by known directors or that have played at other festivals, with some allowance for happenstance, taking a chance on a movie based on the very brief synopsis […]
Directed by Zachary Heinzerling
Produced by Heinzerling, Lydia Dean Pilcher, Patrick Burns & Sierra Pettengill
Released by Radius/TWC
USA. 82 min. Rated R
Just show up. That sound and practical advice applies for actors who schlep from one discouraging audition to another or when you really don’t want to go near a gym. Off and on for about 98 […]
Directed by Fernando Trueba
Produced by Cristina Huete
Written by Jean-Claude Carrière & Trueba
French with English subtitles
Released by Cohen Media Group.
Spain/France. 105 min. Not rated
With Jean Rochefort, Aida Folch, Claudia Cardinale, Götz Otto, Chus Lampreave, Martin Gamet & Christian Sinniger
Even if you’re not great with names, you’ll recognize 83-year-old actor Jean Rochefort—tall, with a regal bearing, and […]
Directed by Havana Marking
Produced by Mike Lerner
Released by Doppelgänger Releasing
UK. 90 min. Not rated
Wow. Talk about free publicity. The July 28th robbery of an estimated $137 million worth of jewelry on the French Riviera (at the Carlton International hotel, coincidentally a location in Hitchcock’s To Catch a Thief) occurred just days before the U.S. premiere […]
For the first time since it was founded 11 years ago, the narrative films competing for awards at the Tribeca Film Festival made up a noteworthy and motley bunch, and it was a real race. Usually gems by an unknown filmmaker made without any stars can be discovered in the various sidebars, but this year, […]
Written & Directed by Woody Allen
Produced by Letty Aronson, Stephen Tenenbaum & Edward Walson
Released by Sony Pictures Classics
USA. 96 min. Rated PG-13
With Alec Baldwin, Cate Blanchett, Louis C. K., Bobby Cannavale, Andrew Dice Clay, Sally Hawkins, Peter Sarsgaard & Michael Stuhlbarg
Spot the reference. That’s part of the appeal of movies heavily influenced by (or […]
