The Punk Singer (2013) This documentary details the life of Kathleen Hanna, an influential punk singer with the bands Bikini Kill and Le Tigre who co-founded the riot grrrl movement. Hanna’s sudden retirement in 2005 has long been a source of consternation to her fans. The reason given for her disappearance was creative burn out, but, in reality, she was suffering… Continue reading The Lyme singing punk
Decoding basketball and soccer stories while racing around the world looking for the love of your life
Decoding Deepak (2012) Deepak Chopra has made a fortune as a spiritual advisor to the rich and famous. This film directed by his son, Gotham Chopra, follows Deepak as he goes through Blackberry withdrawal while visiting monks in India, obsesses over his next book, meets with the powerful in corporate boardrooms, and works on a spiritual video game. In a rare… Continue reading Decoding basketball and soccer stories while racing around the world looking for the love of your life
Calling all the mortified
The Call (2013) Six months after her mistake inadvertently resulted in a young girl’s murder, 9-11 operator Jordan Tuner (Halle Berry) takes a frantic call from kidnapped Casey Welson (Abigail Breslin) and realizes her kidnapper is the same murderer she encountered before. It’s a race against time to find him before he strikes again. Abigail Breslin… Continue reading Calling all the mortified
Let’s go back again
The Way Way Back (2013) Awkward teenager Duncan (Liam James) finds a surrogate father in Owen (Sam Rockwell), the manager of Water Wizz. This is not an original film, but the characters are so authentic and the enthusiasm so overwhelming, it’s more than capable of overcoming any deficiency in its conceit. James’s ability to draw the audience… Continue reading Let’s go back again
Private Jack was a bad boy
Bad Boys (2014) A part of ESPN’s 30 for 30 series, this documents the notorious Detroit Pistons teams in the 1980s. I was surprised how normal Dennis Rodman seemed. No one could have predicted his name would become a byword for odd and unusual behavior. Professional sport needs more people like Bill Laimbeer who revel in playing the bad guy. Despite his accolades, Isiah… Continue reading Private Jack was a bad boy
The Tabloid ran a story about the air in room 237
Something in the Air (2012) Gilles is an artist in France in the 1970s. His friends are left-leaning political activists who expect him to join their protests. He has sympathy for their views, but their insistence he dedicate everything to the cause conflicts with his artistic commitment. This is a good movie about the struggle… Continue reading The Tabloid ran a story about the air in room 237
A soccer crowd goes to war and John Milius approves
Drug War (2012) When he’s arrested, drug lord Timmy Choi provides evidence against his partner to avoid the death penalty. It’s a decent movie, but identical to countless other warnings about the dangers of the drug business. Milius (2013) This film is a chronicles one of the greatest, unheralded directors in Hollywood history, John… Continue reading A soccer crowd goes to war and John Milius approves
The pelican briefly held great beauty
The Pelican Brief (1993) Two pro-choice Supreme Court justices are assassinated by an evil corporation in order to sabotage a pending environmental lawsuit. The masterminds of this conspiracy outsmarted every law enforcement agency and reporter in the country, but Tulane law student Darby Shaw (Julia Roberts) uncovers the connection via a magical concoction of statistical analysis and intuition. Julia… Continue reading The pelican briefly held great beauty
Abused children desperately search for justice and philosophical truth
Short Term 12 (2013) In this expansion of his earlier short film, Destin Cretton documents a group home for abused and forgotten kids who’ve been told they were worthless until they believed it. Grace (Brie Larson), a survivor of abuse and current counselor at the home, must deal with unresolved feelings when newcomer Jayden reminds her… Continue reading Abused children desperately search for justice and philosophical truth
Jurassic wonder years
We’re Back! A Dinosaur’s Story (1993) Simon Wells, the great-grandson of H.G. Wells, directed this film about time-travelling dinosaurs. He also directed An American Tale: Fievel Goes West (1991), Balto (1995), and The Prince of Egypt (1998). Based on a children’s book, this schizophrenic film can’t decide if it wants to be a movie about dinosaurs, a movie… Continue reading Jurassic wonder years