There’s no intelligible dialogue in this animated odyssey about a nameless boy who leaves his home in the countryside in search of his father, but it still manages to speak to the heart. The father has left for the city to find work, and his lonely son undertakes a dreamlike pursuit. Growing in sinister stature […]
Extraordinary Tales is the perfect little bon mot to kick off the Halloween season. It is a slight, charming, and charmingly macabre animated adaptation of five Edgar Allen Poe short stories, all illustrated, directed, and adapted by Raul Garcia. There is also a mediocre framing device that sets up Poe as a raven chatting with […]
Like MetLife and its commercial use of Snoopy, Laurie Anderson deploys her cute canine as an entry point to mull a subject people usually avoid thinking about: death. The depiction of the life and 2011 death of her rat terrier, Lolabelle, at first seems like those endless photos of and commentary on beloved pets posted […]
Directed by Roger Allers, Gaetan Brizzi & Paul Brizzi, Joan Gratz, Mohammed Saeed Harib, Tomm Moore, Nina Paley, Bill Plympton, Joann Sfar, and Michal Socha Produced by Salma Hayek-Pinault Written by Allers, based on The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran Released by Gkids USA/France/Lebanon/Qatar. 84 min. Rated PG With the voices of Hayek, Liam Neeson, Quvenzhane […]
Written and Directed by Ari Folman, based on The Futurological Congress by Stanislaw Lem Produced by Folman, Reinhard Brundig and Robin Wright. Released by Drafthouse Films Israel/Germany/Poland/Luxembourg /Belgium/France. 123 min. Not rated With Robin Wright, Harvey Keitel, Danny Huston, Paul Giamatti, Kodi Smit-McPhee and Jon Hamm Robin Wright is having a career revival. She became […]
Animated, Written, Produced and Directed by Signe Baumane Released by Zeitgeist Films USA. 88 min. Not rated “Rocks In My Pockets: A funny film about depression,” Signe Baumane asserts at the end of the film’s trailer in her heavy Latvian accent. There couldn’t be a more concise statement that captures the core of her autobiographical […]
The Directors’ Fortnights at the Cannes Film Festival was established in 1969 as an alternative to the official selection, as a way of opening the door to “free and adventurous cinema” (per its program guide) and promoting new directors. It has since become a showcase for the up-and-coming, spotlighting Martin Scorsese, Michael Haneke, Werner Herzog, […]
Directed by Stéphane Aubier, Vincent Patar and Benjamin Renner Produced by Didier Brunner, Philippe Kauffmann, Vincent Tavier, Stéphan Roelants & Henri Magalon; English version by Eric Beckman, David Jesteadt and Michael Sinterniklaas Written by Daniel Pennac, based on the books by Gabrielle Vincent; English adaptation by Stephanie Sheh Released by GKids. In French or English. […]
Written & Directed by Hayao Miyazaki, based on a graphic novel published in Monthly Model Graphix Produced by Toshio Suzuki Released by Studio Ghibli/Touchstone Pictures Japanese with English subtitles Japan. 126 min. Rated PG-13 Japanese animation master Hayao Miyazaki has announced his intention to retire more than once. So when, upon the premiere of this […]