Dan is an author, film critic and media professional. He is a former staff writer for the N.Y. Daily News, where he served as a film/TV reviewer with a "Top Critic" designation on Rotten Tomatoes. His debut historical fiction novel, "Synod," was published by an independent press in Jan. 2018, receiving praise among indie book reviewers. His research interests include English, military and political history.
Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings may be light on characterization and depth, but it is abundant in atmosphere and scene-to-scene, gripping drama. It’s biblical by nature, and although it does not delve as far as some would like into the lives of Moses or Ramses II, it is well-intentioned, thought-provoking and flashy. The CGI,…
Here it is, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1, the latest addition to this little franchise known as the “Hunger Games,” the franchise which is only the tentpole for every young adult adaptation on the planet. But what’s there to say about this installment? Struggling to find words is a not so good indicator….
[ Atmospheric, nimble, climactic; these are a few adjectives that appropriately describe Nightcrawler. Jake Gyllenhaal as Louis “Lou” Bloom, a creepy and impatient swindler turned stringer, is pleasantly disturbing. On the whole, the film from first-time director Dan Gilroy, is a potent thriller that paints a fluent picture of urban nightlife and the creeps that…
The story of Fury is harsh, straightforward, swift and breathtaking. And it is remarkable to bear witness to Don ‘Wardaddy’ Collier (Brad Pitt, “World War Z”) leading a Sherman tank crew through the German countryside toward Berlin in spring of 1945. The aesthetic qualities too are remarkably immersive — from the .50 caliber anti-tank fire…
Anyone with a heartbeat knows that when given a particular set of skills and a menacing attitude Denzel Washington knows how to administer street justice. Under the constructive guidance of director Antoine Fuqua (“Olympus Has Fallen,” “Shooter”), he’s given the opportunity to do it again in the pair’s latest project, The Equalizer. As Robert McCall,…
Entering the theater to see A Walk Among the Tombstones, one might stumble and feel trapped in another cliché-ridden “Taken” in which Bryan Mills sternly promises, “I will find you, and I will kill you.” It’s an honest initial thought to have, however, once the film starts rolling, the stylish cinematography on the bleak streets…
If you haven’t heard, Pierce Brosnan (“A Long Way Down”) is back as Agent 007 and he’s better than ever . . . well, no, actually that’s misleading and untrue. Brosnan, 61, really has returned to the spy genre, only not as Ian Fleming’s elite spy, but as Bill Granger’s ex-CIA operative Peter Devereaux in…
