You’ve probably been through it: You’ve just managed to make your way through your pockets and reached six to seven quarters in the midst of keys and keychains and used gum wrappers, get them into the coin slot of the vending machine, anticipating with your wet tongue the promised relief of your favorite snack when…
Nostalgically, the baby-boomer generation that had grown up with two-time Oscar winning actress Sally Field (“Norma Rae,” “Places in the Heart”) will identify and sympathize with her quirky turn as the sixty-something working stiff Doris Miller trying to fit into a youth-oriented world while pursuing love and companionship in co-writer/co-producer/director Michael Showalter’s ambitious but uneven…
Named after an old chain gang work song about the light of a passing train being a symbol of redemption, Jeff Nichols’ (“Mud”) Midnight Special is an enigmatic science-fiction thriller about a boy with special powers and his parents whose bridge of love between them knows no worldly boundaries. Set in the American South, the…
For the sake of curiosity, the only selling point that angsty indie drama One More Time appears to boast is its depiction of Christopher Walken and Amber Heard of all people as father and daughter. That’s an odd pairing right there and while Walken’s shtick is one of the most famous in the business, he’s…
The increasing number of recent films featuring stories of Christian faith or history (“God’s Not Dead 2,” “Miracles from Heaven,” “Risen,” just to name a few) hearken back to the days when Biblical films ruled the motion picture landscape. From 1953’s “The Robe” to 1956’s “The Ten Commandments” and “Friendly Persuasion” to the grand-daddy of…
In our very cynical times one could argue that the kind of movie genre needed more than ever is the faith-based drama. And with recent spiritual outings such as “Risen,” “Miracles From Heaven” and “The Young Messiah” invading the box office this movie season, it would seem Hollywood agrees as we are subjected to yet another…
Terror demands attention. Terror, as a matter of fact, directly depends on it. Terror counts on your attention — and it is counting on you. The logic of terror follows Freddie Krueger’s logic (Craven’s original Nightmare): If the victim stops paying attention, the monster dissipates in thin air — or so we may be inclined…
