'Frost/Nixon' at the Ritz 5.

Brothers under the skin

Ron Howard's Frost/Nixon, adapted from the London stage play, pits a ferrety David Frost (Michael Sheen) against a hulking Richard Nixon (Frank Langella) in the modern media's version of Gunfight at the OK Corral. Both men won and both men lost; but Langella's Nixon, a tour de force, is the real reason to see the film.

Robert Zaller

Dec 16, 2008 · Articles · 5 minute read

Oliver Stone's "W'

A family worthy of Shakespeare (or at least Mario Puzo)

Oliver Stone is no Shakespeare but an amusing cartoonist who paints in broad strokes and loves a good villain. That leaves him at a loss in dealing with George W. Bush, who seems to have wrought far more evil than he was intellectually capable of.

W. A film directed by Oliver Stone. www.wthefilm.com/

Robert Zaller

Nov 26, 2008 · Articles · 7 minute read

Philip Roth's "Indignation'

What Philip Roth knows about me

Each of Philip Roth’s books, in some way, shape or form, explains me to me. Is Indignation a great book? I don’t know yet. But it has changed me.

Indignation. A novel by Philip Roth. 256 pages; $26.00. Houghton Mifflin. www.amazon.com/Indignation-Philip-Roth/dp/054705484X

Ted K. Hechtman

Nov 08, 2008 · Articles · 5 minute read

Woody Allen's "Vicky Cristina Barcelona'

Woody Allen returns to top form in Vicky Cristina Barcelona, a wry comedy (or anti-comedy) that freshly explores his perennial theme, the anarchic consequences of love.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona. A film by Woody Allen. At the Ritz Five, 214 Walnut St. (215) 925-7900 or www.landmarktheatres.com.

Robert Zaller

Aug 26, 2008 · Articles · 5 minute read

Herzog's 'Encounters at the End of the World'

Werner Herzog’s new film explores the bleakly beautiful landscape of Antarctica and its inhabitants, none stranger than its human ones. In the process Herzog raises philosophical issues rarely touched upon in recent cinema.

Encounters at the End of the World. A film by Werner Herzog. encountersfilm.com.

Robert Zaller

Aug 16, 2008 · Articles · 6 minute read

"The Soloist,' by Steve Lopez

The soul of a journalist, the suffering of a musician

On the world’s worst Skid Row, Steve Lopez discovers a newspaper columnist’s dream: a homeless psychotic Juilliard dropout who loves his suffering as much as his music. Lopez’s first venture into non-fiction is a wonder filled with rich subtleties.

The Soloist: A Lost Dream, an Unlikely Friendship, and the Redemptive Power of Music. By Steve Lopez. G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2008. 288 pages; $25.95.

Patrick D. Hazard

Aug 05, 2008 · Articles · 3 minute read

Jim Thompson's "Golden Gizmo'

The pulp novelist Jim Thompson is largely forgotten for two reasons: He’s a genre writer, and he really never wrote about anybody whom anyone would want to know personally. But he always manages the transformation from cliché to human being in a surprising way.

The Golden Gizmo. By Jim Thompson. 192 pages, 1954. Vintage edition, 1998.
www.amazon.com.

Rick Soisson

Aug 02, 2008 · Articles · 5 minute read

"My Father's Game,' by Rick Wilber

Rick Wilber’s perceptive memoir of his father, his family and himself is also a book about the mythology of baseball. Del Wilber never lost the aura of entitlement that America accords a big league ballplayer, however modestly gifted.

My Father’s Game: Life, Death, Baseball. By Rick Wilber. McFarland & Co., 2008. 214 pages. $29.95. www.amazon.com.

Robert Zaller

Apr 19, 2008 · Articles · 5 minute read

To Shelby Steele, about Obama

Obama’s candidacy felt like such a relief from being a racist pig. Damn, I’m 66 and I’m ready to put that burden down. Now I wonder if I’m drinking too much Kool-Aid.

A Bound Man: Why We Are Excited About Obama and Why He Can't Win By Shelby Steele. 160 pages. Free Press, $22.00. www.amazon.com.

Reed Stevens

Feb 02, 2008 · Articles · 3 minute read

"There Will Be Blood'

Paul Thomas Anderson’s There Will Be Blood demonstrates what happens when Life’s Little Pieties fail to measure up. Whatever it is that makes humans human, the protagonist Daniel Plainview lacks. Neither wealth nor good works will solve that problem.

There Will Be Blood. A film directed by Paul Thomas Anderson. At the Ritz Five, 214 Walnut St. (215) 925-7900 or www.ritzfilmbill.com.

Andrew Mangravite

Jan 15, 2008 · Articles · 3 minute read