“Modernity is killing me.” The 1960s were a time of momentous change. We remember much of the social upheaval, but we often forget what major shifts happened in the church. As a bishop says in The Passion of Augustine, “Everything is moving too fast. Modernism is attacking us on all fronts: Vatican II, loss of… [Read More]
Maudie – Validation of a Life
“The whole of life, already framed, right there.” It’s hard to assign Maudie to any one genre. Certainly it qualifies as biography. But it is also a bit of art history. It’s an inspirational story of finding success and happiness against terrible odds. And at its heart it is a love story—but not the kind… [Read More]
Canada150: The Stories We Tell
Caution: This documentary review contains spoilers. (Yes, you read that correctly.) Directed by Sarah Polley, The Stories We Tell, in some ways, is the rarest of documentaries: that where the filmmaker turns the camera on themselves. In a revealing examination of her family history, Polley explores the period in her life when she discovered that… [Read More]
Lost in Paris – A bit of slapstick
Fans of mild slapstick will be attracted to Lost in Paris. It is the work of Belgian comedy team of Dominique Abel and Fiona Gordon. They bring a burlesque visual sensibility to their work.
David Peck: Shimon Dusan (The Settlers)
Shimon Dutan and Face2Face host David Peck talk about the “settlement enterprise”, racism, empathy, the West Bank and absolutes, Israel and why there’s reason for hope. IMDB Synopsis Of the grievances and grudges that plague the Middle East, no issue is more incendiary than the Jewish-only settlements that have dotted the occupied West Bank for a half-century. Canadian/Israeli Shimon Dotan’s acclaimed documentary The Settlers sets out… [Read More]
Sunday at NBFF
You’ll note I never give you a preview of what I’ll see the next day when I make my report each day. That is because one never knows what will be sold out leading me to figure out a plan B (or plans B throughout the day).
Anonymous – Hacking Goes Bad
The advent of information technology has made a great many things possible—including crime. In Anonymous¸ Alex (Callen McAuliffe), a young man who is upset with the bank that fired his mother, sets off to disrupt the system through hacking.
AFIFest – More films from around the world
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 especially true in foreign films.
AFIFest – Easier Than a Trip to Cannes
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 for airfare and… [Read More]
Saturday at Newport Beach Film Festival
It seems that most every festival has a time travel conundrum, which I love. Something about the paradoxes involved appeals to me. This year at NBFF that is the French film House of Time
