Throughout 2012 I found myself drawn more toward world cinema--particularly European films--and less to American ones. Reasons are numerous, among which the number of rote big-budget efforts, repeated from one movie to the next, totally predictable, with nothing to surprise viewers, let alone engage them. Full disclosure: I don’t live on the planet where audiences flock to the "Harry Potter" ... more >
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Farewell my Queen
A new and convincing take on the trials of Marie Antoinette
Diane Kruger, Virginie Ledoyen and Léa Seydoux
Directed by Benoît Jacquot
Fanciers of period pieces, stay away. The Marie-Antoinette of Benoît Jacquot’s film is no dimpled and fashionable clueless Austrian princess busy trying on new wigs. Instead, she (Diane Kruger) is red-eyed with distress and worry, not so much out of awareness of gathering storms but because her bosom friend, the haughty Duchess of Polignac (Virginie Ledoyen) is not present enough. The time is ... more >
Unknown
Strangely Liam Neeson establishes himself as action hero
Liam Neeson, January Jones, and Diane Kruger
Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra
Liam Neeson’s life gets "taken" and he has to fight to get it back in Unknown, the star’s best attempt so far at banking on his action hero personae. Sure Unknown is like a smorgasbord of other thrillers (the Bourne series and Frantic chief among them) rolled up into one but it does so many things right that I barely even noticed the resemblance until the lights in the theater came up. Neeson ... more >
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