For the third time in recent history (with the same lead actor no less), director Peter Berg takes a contemporary event — U.S. troops in Afghanistan in “Lone Survivor,” an oil rig disaster in “Deepwater Horizon” and now with Patriots Day, the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing — brings it to the big screen and leaves…
School movies, as a general rule of thumb, can usually be counted on to feature either an inspirational teacher or a terrible one. There’s little room for in-between. Kristóf Deák’s dramatic short Sing (Mindenki) opts for the latter, telling the tale of a kids’ school choir in Budapest that’s run by perfectionist singing teacher, Miss…
“And I shall rest my head between two worlds, in the Valley of the Vanquished” — Léolo, Jean-Claude Lauzon Whether Harvey Weinstein’s purpose in producing Lion was to add to his collection of Oscars or just to tell a sweet, heartfelt story about a lost boy searching for his home, the result is that he…
Blacklisted author Millard Lampell’s Cantata “The Lonesome Train” tells us, “Freedom’s a thing that has no ending. It needs to be cared for; it needs defending.” Set in 1958 in Caroline County Virginia, Jeff Nichols’ (“Midnight Special”) Loving depicts one defense of freedom that is not as well known as it should be, the U.S….
In the past calendar year (or thereabouts), there have been at least four major boxing films, “Creed,” “Southpaw,” “Hands of Stone” and now Bleed for This. Written and directed by Ben Younger (“Prime”), his first effort in more than a decade, and produced by Martin Scorsese, it tells the story of Vinny Pazienza, professional boxer…
Lew Ayres, who starred in the classic 1931 anti-war film (and Best Picture Academy Award winner), “All Quiet on the Western Front,” was so affected by that movie, he became a conscientious objector and served as a medic in World War II (and was later to earn a Best Actor nomination for “Johnny Belinda”). Others…
Historical and even scientific truth can be merely the consensus agreed upon by those who presently have the power and influence to determine public opinion, or it can be based on evidence that has been tested in the laboratory, in debate, or in a court of law. Written by David Hare and based on the…
