Film/TV
686 results
Page 48
Why ‘Gone With the Wind’ still works for me
My soul sister, Scarlett O'Hara
What I crave, and still get, from Gone With the Wind, is escape— the sort that often seems to elude me at age 58, when my critical facilities often trump my pleasure centers.
Articles
3 minute read
In defense of Woody Allen (a response)
Our modern Chekhov: In defense of Woody Allen
Contrary to what BSR’s editor thinks, Woody Allen is a consistent filmmaker. His writing distinguishes itself with clearly defined, recurring themes that run throughout his work, that he keeps on investigating, developing, rearticulating, refining.
Articles
6 minute read
"The World's End': 40-something reunion
The old gang of mine meets the Stepford wives
In this appealing comedy, five ex-buddies in their 40s try to rekindle their youthful friendship, only to find that even a robot/alien invasion can't heal their fundamental differences.
Articles
4 minute read
Amanda Ripley's "Smartest Kids in the World'
On divorcing sports from education: If Finland and Korea can do it…
Sports may build character, but Amanda Ripley's exploration of the world's top-ranking school systems indicate schools should concentrate on their primary purpose.
Articles
5 minute read
Woody Allen's "Blue Jasmine' (2nd review)
Woody Allen falls off a streetcar
Woody Allen's Blue Jasmine rewrites A Streetcar Named Desire, updated to reflect the Wall Street crash and the anomic materialism it symbolized. But without Tennessee Williams's poetry or any clear view of its tragic protagonist, the film falls flat.
Articles
7 minute read
Andrei Tarkovsky's "Nostalghia'
Exiles without borders, or: You can't go home again
On the surface, Andrei Tarkovsky's penultimate film is the brooding story of a Russian poet at loose ends in Italy. More essentially it portrays a modern world estranged from itself. Tarkovsky's style requires patience, but the rewards are considerable.
Articles
6 minute read
Woody Allen's "Blue Jasmine' (1st review)
Woody Allen does Tennessee Williams
I was startled by how closely Woody Allen's Jasmine resembles Tennessee Williams's Blanche DuBois. I've never seen a Woody Allen character disintegrate before our very eyes with the blinding intensity of Cate Blanchett's Jasmine.
Articles
5 minute read
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Kon Ichikawa's 'The Makioka Sisters'
Among the cherry blossoms: Bourgeois denial in Imperial Japan
In Philadelphia's August doldrums, International House's film series is one of the few cultural events available. Its presentation of Kon Ichikawa's The Makioka Sisters, based on Junichiro Tanizaki's classic novel, brilliantly invoked the mood and mores of imperial Japan before Pearl Harbor.
Articles
7 minute read
"Europa Report': The trouble with outer space films
How do you reason with a humanoid? (And other outer space movie challenges)
For space scientists, the ultimate question is: Does life exist in the vast reaches of the cosmos? But for the rest of us, an equally pressing question is: Will a truly intelligent and watchable film about space exploration ever be made?
Articles
6 minute read
Rama Burshtein's "Fill the Void'
Marriage, in all its complexity
New writer-director Rama Burshtein's power lies in her ability to see into the soul of her main character— a young Orthodox Jewish girl awaiting marriage— without judging either the girl or her community.
Articles
5 minute read