19 August 2016. BLANKA ***1/2 (vo Tagalog) Blanka is a little orphan girl in the slums of Manila who wants more than anything to have a mother. Her own ran off with some man and abandoned her to the streets. She is a sweet girl who only wants love and a home, but ends up stealing […]
Film: the kids teach their parents a thing or two in: C’est quoi cette famille?
12 August 2016. This week’s releases are French and German, and why not, for we are after all living in the heart of Europe, aren’t we? And they are excellent ones, so take your pick or see all three, for you will be amused, moved and enlightened, respectively. C’EST QUOI CETTE FAMILLE ? *** (vo French) […]
Film: Angry Indian godesses
5 August 2016. ANGRY INDIAN GODDESSES *** One angry Goddess is intimidating, but seven of them?! With all the rapes and injustices going on in India against women, how could these young, liberated women not be angry? Indian director Pan Nalin of the sublime “Samsara” is back with this joyous, colorful yet socially pertinent and necessary […]
Film: The secret life of pets – what your pets do when you’re away
29 July 2016. THE SECRET LIFE OF PETS (Comme des bêtes) ***1/2 Have you ever wondered what your pet does when you go off to work? Well, frisky terrier Max will tell you all about it: his relentless love for his mistress, his crazy buddies, his misadventures – they’re all here in this jubilant tale that […]
Film: A New York society woman who couldn’t sing but believed she was highly gifted
15 July 2016. FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS **** As I was watching this both touching and amusing story starring Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant, I kept thinking who could have made such a perfect film? (For I go into the press screenings as a “virgin”, wanting to know as little as possible). Then the credits came on, […]
Film: Finding Dory – great for kids from 5 to 95!
8 July 2016. 3 to see, and 1 to miss. FINDING DORY *** Pixar Studios just never fail to enchant. They truly are the ultimate art form of animation, including such gems as “Toy Story”, “WALL-E”, “Cars”, or “Monsters, Inc.” It’s not only their brilliant technology, but the fun and goodness they convey in their delightful tales. […]
Film: Love and friendship – sharp perfection of Jane Austen’s prose
24 June 2016. 4 to see, and 1 to miss. LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP *** If you’re a fan of the sharp perfection of Jane Austen’s prose and the portraits of her era, you will greatly appreciate this amusing adaptation of her novella, Lady Susan, by the director Whit Stillman, known for such elegant films as “Metropolitan” and […]
Film: Our kind of traitor – a John Le Carre thriller about the Russian mafia
17 June 2016. 4 to see, and 1 to really miss. OUR KIND OF TRAITOR (Un traître idéal) ***1/2 Excellent spy thriller from John Le Carre about a top man in the Russian Mafia who wants to turn West, an idealistic British university professor who unwittingly becomes his contact man, and corrupt English politicians. Ewan McGregor and […]
Film: Money Monster – Clooney in a thriller about the haves and have-nots
10 June 2016. 3 to see, and 3 to miss. MONEY MONSTER **1/2 Director Jody Foster has gone commercial in this yarn about a hostage-taking on a financial TV show. Underlying the tensions on the set is the eternal quandary between the haves and the have- nots. And she’s thrown in stars such as George Clooney […]
More from Cannes – 2016 film festival winners
27 May 2016. 2016 CANNES FILM FESTIVAL WINNERS Last week I gave you the facts and numbers, and some of my favorite films from the festival. Now let me end it with snippets of views and emotions. As mentioned before, Cannes is a professional festival, impossible for the unaccredited to enter the “bunker”, as the […]
