For the first 20 years of his life, Wu Tseng-dong lived in a war zone. Growing up on Kinmen Island, a small Taiwanese territory four miles off the coast of mainland China, bombs were a constant threat. “It was terrifying.…
Great performances are worth seeking out in great movies, obviously, but what about bad ones? Would you watch a lousy movie in order to witness a single, stellar performance? Is it worth our time, for example, to revisit “The Lonely…
The minor debate over First Lady Dr. Jill Biden’s title, which came up shortly after her husband’s election, may seem completely ridiculous and insulting, which it is, but it’s also the latest in a line of kerfuffles relating to how…
Mayday, mayday! It’s time to fight the patriarchy! One of my favorite premieres from the 2021 Sundance Film Festival is this gritty war film Mayday, written & directed by filmmaker Karen Cinorre making her feature directorial debut. There are many,…
By now, it’s almost a universal sentiment that the world has developed an aversion to the virtual meeting environment. The thought of seeing entertainment through a Zoom or FaceTime screen is sure to trigger a sense of dread, rather than…
With my second report at this year’s virtual Sundance Film Festival, I found myself even more impressed than I had been so far. All three of the films resonated in different ways, generally combining awe, curiosity, and a sense of…
One of the best films of this year’s Sundance Film Festival was also one of its most controversial, the haunting and powerful “Cusp” from directors Parker Hill and Isabel Bethencourt, who won an award on Tuesday night from the jury…
There’s never any shortage of new talent to be discovered at Sundance, and that is certainly the case again for this year’s edition of the festival. In addition to showcasing features from 38 first time directors, the 2021 edition of…
The year is 1985, and the rise of video nasties — the bloody and gory low-budget horrors distributed in the form of VHS — has created a moral panic and public hysteria in the UK. The right-wing and parent groups…
While it’s hard not to miss this bright, golden structure while speeding by on US 50, it’s what visitors don’t see that makes this bridge unique. Constructed in 1935, the center section of this bridge lifts 100 feet above the…