A young Pacific Islander woman finds her destiny, restores her people?s character, and becomes the newest Disney Princess in Moana. The animated musical from directors Ron Clements and John Musker (the team that made The Little Mermaid) brings the ethos of Oceania to...
The last day of AFIFest presented by Audi features screenings of the award winning films. It makes it a bit hard to plan your day since you never know what will be playing until you get to the festival. But it means that you have a very good chance of seeing something...
Yesterday was another day of globetrotting at AFIFest Presented by Audi for me. One of the joys of film festivals is the chance to see the similarities and differences of cultures. That sometimes applies to the subcultures of American life we see as well. But it is...
Eating at film festivals can sometimes be a challenge. Grabbing a quick sandwich between screenings is sometimes the best you can do. But yesterday I had a really interesting sandwich: a dark brooding film from one of my favorite Romanian directors placed between two...
The messy art of politics is the basis of John Madden?s film Miss Sloane. Elizabeth Sloane (Jessica Chastain) is a high powered DC lobbyist. When offered a chance to represent the gun lobby against a bill to require background checks, she leaves the firm she works for...
The American Film Institute has a mission that includes ?to preserve the heritage of the motion picture, to honor the artists and their work and to educate the next generation of storytellers?. A visible part of AFIFest is honoring the heritage and artists of the...
We don?t all get to go to Cannes for what may be considered the most prestigious film festival. I know I don?t make it there. But yesterday at AFIFest ?(presented by Audi), I managed to see three films that all won awards at Cannes this year. And I didn?t have to pay...
?It?s twisted.? That brief line of dialogue defines Paul Verhoeven?s Elle in more ways than one. The plot certainly has very interesting turns along the way, but the convolutions of the personalities are what really make this entertaining and interesting. This is an...
The thirtieth?Edition of AFIFEST Presented by Audi is underway. This festival is a wonderful collection of independent, foreign, and Oscar buzz films playing side by side in the middle of Hollywood. It always strikes me that on the street level of Hollywood Boulevard...