‘2 Autumns, 3 Winters’: charming but daring romantic comedy
Romantic comedy seems to be dead in this country — leaving a whole slew of young actresses exiled from the multiplexes — but judging by “2 Autumns, 3 Winters” the genre is alive and well in France....
View ArticleHow did Diane Schuler end up killing 8 people?
Thanks to Amazon Instant, I was able to catch up with Liz Garbus’ fascinating 2011 HBO documentary, “There’s Something Wrong with Aunt Diane” about that terrible head-on collision on the Taconic...
View Article‘Starred Up’: the rise of Jack O’Connell
The 24-year-old English actor Jack O’Connell should be receiving lots of press attention when the film version of the best-selling Laura Hillenbrand book “Unbroken” opens in December. O’Connell landed...
View Article‘Veep’ + ‘House of Cards’ = ‘Madam Secretary’
If you missed the premiere of the CBS series “Madam Secretary” last Sunday, you can do like I did the other night and download it for free from Amazon Instant. No TV series can be judged from one early...
View Article‘The Cosmoplitans’: movie to TV exodus continues
Add Whit Stillman to the growing list of smart movie directors who are finding shelter in the ever-expanding world of TV. The creator of “Metropolitan,” “Barcelona” and “Damsels in Distress” recently...
View ArticleMore murder & mayhem at the New England Crime Bake
Cozy and very well run, the New England Crime Bake is one of the best annual conferences devoted to the art of the mystery. The organizers cap the total number of guests in the mid 200s which means...
View Article‘Jungle’: another winner from Amazon Instant
The steady movie-to-home entertainment migration got a major boost the other day when Woody Allen announced that he would be writing and directing a series for Amazon’s burgeoning video streaming...
View Article‘The Counterfeit Traitor’: old-fashioned craftsmanship
The 1962 Paramount espionage thriller “The Counterfeit Traitor” might look hopelessly archaic to young moviegoers raised on the hyperkinetic Jason Bourne adventures or the retooled James Bond films of...
View ArticleCatching up with ‘Outlander’
It’s easy to see why the STARZ adaptation of the Diana Gabaldon novel “Outlander” has been such a big hit — the mix of romance, adventure, time travel, steamy sex and shocking violence hits most of the...
View ArticleRediscovering 1970s female filmmakers
The other night surfing on Amazon Instant, I stumbled on a long forgotten 1977 film, “First Love,” directed by Joan Darling. The movie is a seriously flawed romantic drama, starring the bland William...
View ArticleCrimeCONN 2: murder & mayhem in Westport
I had a great time and learned a lot at the second CrimeCONN at the Westport Library on Sunday. The day-long event featured panels on crime fiction, along with fascinating presentations by people who...
View ArticleRomantic comedy is alive & well (in France)
Romantic comedy seems to be dead in this country — leaving a whole slew of young actresses exiled from the multiplexes — but judging by “2 Autumns, 3 Winters” the genre is alive and well in France....
View ArticleTribeca Shortlist: curated movie streaming
I love the two dominant streaming services – Netflix and Amazon Instant – as much as the next guy, but they both can be overpowering when it comes to zeroing in on something to watch. Who hasn’t spent...
View Article‘Kingdom’: the family that kills together…
TNT wisely renewed “Animal Kingdom” before the final episode of season one was shown last week. The finale of the 10-episode run could have stood as a capper if the show never had a second season, but...
View Article‘De Palma’: the business of movies
If you missed the documentary “De Palma” during its brief theatrical life earlier this year, you can watch it now via streaming services such as Amazon Instant (the DVD release is set for Sept. 13)....
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