The Choral: Singing for life
“Life is short. So sing.” Music is an emotive art. It can convey joy, sorrow, grief, patriotism....
Film
Train Dreams: Does one life matter?
“The world needs a hermit in the woods as much as a preacher in the pulpit.” What is the meaning...
Nuremberg: Good & Evil on Trial
For the fourth time in sixty years, the events of the post-World War II trials at Nuremberg are...
AFIFest 2025: Day 5
My choices for today’s films were all Special Screenings, featuring films that will be coming out in the coming months.
AFIFest: Day 4
The T-shirt for this year’s AFIFest Presented by Canva has a quotation from the Guest Artistic...
AFIFest 2025: Day 3
Welcome back to Hollywood and AFIFest Presented by Canva. Today I encountered the first film that...
AFIFest 2025: Day 2
“Welcome, film lovers. You’re in good company.” These words come up on the screen before every...
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere – The Bear becomes The Boss
Ironically, the best part about Springsteen isn’t the music. Whereas most musical biopics rely on the soundtrack to give the film its cultural relevance, Nowhere’s most powerful moments come away from the microphone.
AFIFest 2025: Opening Day
Time again for AFIFest Presented by Canva—five days of some of the best films of the year. This is...
Shelby Oaks: Stuckmann’s horror breathes fear outside and inside
For his first feature, Stuckmann has created something that feels truly original while never straying from films of the past.
Bugonia: Lanthimos takes us into the Twilight Zone
For those willing to engage Lanthimos’ antics, Bugonia may be actually one of his most accessible films in years. These are characters that, while we don’t fully understand them, he does allow us to relate to them. Even so, whenever you step into Lanthimos’ world, be aware that you really are entering another dimension.
Blue Moon: Exuberent sorrow
Richard Linklater’s Blue Moon is a study in contradiction. From the title card that opens the films with two contrasting comments about Lorenz Hart, it pushes and pulls viewers various directions at the same time. But it is only through that frenzy that we can appreciate the chaos that makes up this conflicted person.
If I Had Legs I’d Kick You: Brilliant Byrne breaks down beautifully
There’s no denying that the tour de force performance by Byrne is magnificent to behold. Every glare contains a wealth of information that draws the viewer into her emotional state. But one should know that Kick You is also a harrowing emotional experience