Mathematics and mathematicians may not appear to be the most dramatic material. Filmmakers seem aware of this potential failing, and thus produce subtle, nuanced and often very impressive films based around this topic, which end up being award contenders. Such is the case with Hidden Figures, for in the tradition of (Oscar winners) “Good Will…
It’s nice to see a film version of an historical incident that that this author had no idea about. As a student of history, I’ve always prided myself on knowing as much as I could on as many subjects in this category as possible; and, like “Argo” (which also featured a classified backdrop) I found…
Lack of originality is a major lament of many horror fans in 2015; we devour each and every new film that’s tossed our way, hoping against hope that THIS will be the horror movie that breaks the trend, that THIS will be the one that reminds us what it was like to be really creeped…
Nicholas Sparks, who has probably put more words to paper than William Shakespeare (although none as memorable) has graced us with his yearly obligatory salute to misogyny, perfect abs and beautiful white people with problems we WISH we could have in his latest tearjerker, The Longest Ride. Sparks, the creator of such books/films as “The…
As a parent I thought it was common knowledge that at NO times are questionable dolls, figurines, puppets, action figures (or any vessel that loosely represents a body that a malevolent spirit could wish to inhabit) allowed in the house. You shouldn’t live in a house built upon a graveyard either. The Bowen family screwed…
There’s not much more frustrating than a film that comes so close to being thought-provoking and perceptive, but chooses instead to focus on apathetic plights and easy solutions. The Monuments Men embodies this all too well, dangling fascinating questions just out of reach, all the while cycling through a series of genre tropes from rousing…
Like René Clément’s “Forbidden Games,” British director Brian Percival’s The Book Thief focuses on the effect of war on children who are forced by circumstances into coping with events beyond their capacity to understand. Written by Michael Petroni and based on the novel by Australian author Markus Zusak, it is a story told with power…
