All the posts by Stephen Farber
This summer two mediocre female-centered movies, “Sex and the City” and “Mamma Mia,” drew huge crowds because they appealed to an underserved audience. Will ladies of a certain age also flock to see writer-director Diane English’s pallid remake of “The Women”? If they do, it will be further proof that women are so eager to see their concerns depicted on screen that they will tolerate very clunky filmmaking.
Clare Boothe Luce’s play was a hit on …
Bottom Line: Requiem for a bleached-blond heavyweight as Mickey Rourke delivers a tour de force performance
Indie film darling Darren Aronofsky stumbled with his most recent movie, “The Fountain,” but he is back on track with “The Wrestler,” which had its premiere at the Venice Film Festival and is seeking distribution.
Bolstered by a career-best performance from Mickey Rourke and outstanding work by Marisa Tomei and Evan Rachel Wood, the film could nab audience interest, especially if …
When you hear that a new movie scrutinizes the hot-button topic of illegal immigration, you probably assume that the movie is about Mexicans slipping across the southern border. The first surprise of Frozen River, the movie that won the jury prize as best film at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, is that it focuses on a much less familiar part of the immigration saga: Chinese and Pakistanis being smuggled across the border from Canada. But …
Bottom Line: Rich Israeli character drama packs a wallop.
Israeli films have come of age recently, with such expert entries as “The Band’s Visit” and “Beaufort” stirring audiences. Now one of the best Israeli films of recent years, “The Secrets,” has been making the rounds on the festival circuit. It recently won the award for best feature at the Jackson Hole Film Festival. With Fanny Ardant heading an excellent cast, the film is an emotionally overpowering …
A thrilling alternative to all the overhyped summer blockbusters, ”Boy A” is the best film I have seen this year. A work of art challenges us to rethink all of our prejudices and preconceptions. Audiences who join director John Crowley and the splendid actors on this journey to the dark side will come out deeply moved and fired to debate the movie for hours afterward.
Astutely written by Mark O’Rowe (from a novel by Jonathan Trigell), …
