Winner of the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival this year, Shoplifters is a part of Hirokazu Kore-eda’s examination of family’s place within society. This is a topic he has looked at from various angles in other films, notably Like Father, Like Son; Our Little Sister; Nobody Knows; and I Wish. (I recommend them all.)
Beautiful Boy – Love in the Time of Addiction
Addiction can tear apart families and ruin lives. Often the bonds of love lead people to try to help in whatever way they can. But those bonds can be fragile. Beautiful Boy is the story of a family that had to deal over a period of years with an addict who just couldn’t seem to be able to break away from his dependency
Incredibles 2: Together We Rise
Incredibles 2 is a fantastic way to spend a couple hours in an air-conditioned theater. Whether it holds up to fourteen years of waiting will depend on your personal perspective.
Incredibles 2 – Family Bonds
Incredibles 2 continues the story of the Parr family from The Incredibles. While it is ostensibly a superhero story, at its heart this is a film about family and especially about parenting as children go through all the changes of growing up.
4.18 DEADPOOL 2 and the New F-Word
The Merc with the Mouth is back… and he’s got babies on his mind! In DEADPOOL 2, the hero without rules wants to settle down and start a family with Nessa, the love of his life. However, when tragedy strikes, Deadpool must try to rescue a young mutant who’s being hunted by Cable, a deadly… [Read More]
Tully – A Bit of Help to Find Happiness
When writer Diablo Cody and director Jason Reitman collaborate (as they did earlier in Juno and Young Adult) the result is always an interesting bit of social philosophy set within the institution of family. Tully is their latest work, with a special emphasis on the trial and meaning of motherhood in today’s world.
The Big Sick – All The Feels
Recently, Steve Norton and I were lucky enough to attend an advance screening of The Big Sick in Toronto, which had two surprise guests – Kumail Nanjiani and his wife, Emily V. Gordon! This film had already been released in select cities in the States at the time of the advance screening, and will have… [Read More]
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2: Family, Redemption, and I Am Groot
A few years ago, the idea of Guardians of the Galaxy was seen as a risk by Marvel that likely wouldn’t pay off. After all, a talking tree and raccoon…really? In the end, though, we were both pleasantly wrong and surprised. Director James Gunn gave us a fun and epic space opera that continues to entertain today. Ask… [Read More]
Born in China – This year’s Earth Day gift from Disneynature
There are four main animals that we get to meet and learn about: giant pandas, golden snub-nosed monkeys, snow leopards, and chiru antelope. The film flows back and forth between these animals as season moves to season.
Lion – A Story of Being Lost and Found
In Lion a child faces perhaps the most frightening of all prosepects—being separated from his family and far from home. That he manages to find a new family in a faraway land may seem like a rescue (and it is), but what of the family he lost?
