Midnight in Paris

Movies to See Right Now

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Brendan Gleeson in THE GUARD

The best choice in theaters this week is the Irish dark comedy The Guard, starring Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle.

There are three movies now in theaters from my list of Best Movies of 2011 – So Far, including Woody Allen’s sweet, funny and thoughtful comedy Midnight in Paris.  Buck is an extraordinary documentary about a real-life horse whisperer with a compelling human story.  You might still be able to find Errol Morris’ documentary Tabloid, the hilarious story of Joyce McKinney, a beauty queen jailed for manacling a Mormon missionary as her sex slave and, decades later, cloning her dog.

A Little Help is a funny Jenna Fischer vehicle about a sad sack mom.  Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are excellent in the romcom Crazy Stupid Love.   The Names of Love is an amusing but forgettable French comedy about a flighty leftwinger who seeks to educate and convert conservatives by sleeping with them.

If you have kids, Pixar’s Cars 2 is an excellent choice (adults will especially enjoy the James Bond spoof thread).

Turkey Bowl is a delightful indie comedy available from iTunes.

Despite Rachel Weisz’s performance, The Whistleblower is a misfire – a potentially riveting story clumsily told.  Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life contains a good 90-minute family drama that is completely derailed by an additional hour of mind-numbingly self-important claptrap.

You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is Kill the Irishman.

Movies on TV this week include two Jimmy Stewart classics: The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and Anatomy of a Murder on TCM.

Movies to See Right Now

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Tabloid

What a summer for documentaries!  Errol Morris’ documentary Tabloid delivers the hilarious story of Joyce McKinney, a beauty queen jailed for manacling a Mormon missionary as her sex slave.  The riveting documentary Project Nim tells the story of a chimp taught human language and the humans who nurture, exploit, abuse and rescue him.   Buck is another wonderful documentary about a real-life horse whisperer with a compelling human story.

The sweet, funny and thoughtful comedies Beginners and Midnight in Paris are also on my list of Best Movies of 2011 – So Far.

See the original and heartfelt teen misfit movie Terri if you can still find it.   A Little Help is a funny Jenna Fischer vehicle about a sad sack mom.   Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are excellent in the romcom Crazy Stupid Love.

If you have kids, Pixar’s Cars 2 is an excellent choice (adults will especially enjoy the James Bond spoof thread).  So is Super 8, a wonderful coming of age story embedded in a sci fi action thriller.  Turkey Bowl is a delightful indie comedy available from iTunes.  

In Bridesmaids, Kristen Wiig plays a woman whose insecurities keep her from seeing the good and the possible in her life; it’s funny, but not one of the year’s best. The Hangover Part 2 is just not original enough, and, consequently, not funny enough. Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life contains a good 90-minute family drama that is completely derailed by an additional hour of mind-numbingly self-important claptrap.

For trailers and other choices,see Movies to See Right Now.

I haven’t yet seen the dark Irish comedy The Guard (starring Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle) or the sexy French comedy The Names of Love, which opens this weekend.  You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is The Music Never Stopped, with excellent performances by J.K. Simmons and Lou Taylor Pucci and lots of Grateful Dead.

Movies on TV this week include the classic noir The Third Man on TCM.

Movies to See Right Now

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Project Nim

Watch for the original and heartfelt teen misfit movie Terri – it won’t remain in theaters very long.

Errol Morris’ documentary Tabloid delivers the hilarious story of Joyce McKinney, a beauty queen jailed for manacling a Mormon missionary as her sex slave.

Four movies on my list of Best Movies of 2011 – So Far are still playing.  The best movies are still the sweet, funny and thoughtful comedies Beginners and Midnight in Paris, along with the riveting documentary Project Nim.  Buck is a wonderful documentary about a real-life horse whisperer with a compelling human story.

If you have kids, Pixar’s Cars 2 is an excellent choice (adults will especially enjoy the James Bond spoof thread).  So is Super 8, a wonderful coming of age story embedded in a sci fi action thriller.  A Little Help is a funny Jenna Fischer vehicle about a sad sack mom.  Turkey Bowl is a delightful indie comedy available from iTunes.  

In Bridesmaids, Kristen Wiig plays a woman whose insecurities keep her from seeing the good and the possible in her life; it’s funny, but not one of the year’s best. The Hangover Part 2 is just not original enough, and, consequently, not funny enough. Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life contains a good 90-minute family drama that is completely derailed by an additional hour of mind-numbingly self-important claptrap.

For trailers and other choices,see Movies to See Right Now.

I haven’t yet seen the stylish noir The Road to Nowhere by cult director Monte Hellman,  which opens this weekend. You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is the inventive thriller Source Code, one of my Best Movies of 2011 – So Far.

Movies on TV this week include two mockable films on TCM:  the 60s melodrama The Chase, which has earned a place in my Bad Movie Festival.   Juarez contains one of my 10 Least Convincing Mexicans.

Movies to See Right Now

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Buck

The cream of the crop are still the sweet, funny and thoughtful comedies Beginners and Midnight in Paris, along with the riveting documentary Project Nim.  Buck is a wonderful documentary about a real-life horse whisperer with a compelling human story.  All four are on my list of Best Movies of 2011 – So Far.

If you have kids, Pixar’s Cars 2 is an excellent choice (adults will especially enjoy the James Bond spoof thread).  So is Super 8, a wonderful coming of age story embedded in a sci fi action thriller.  The Trip delivers some chuckles.  Turkey Bowl is a delightful indie comedy available from iTunes.  Page One: A Year Inside the New York Times explores journalism’s evolution in an age of new media, and I recommend it for hard news junkies.

In Bridesmaids, Kristen Wiig plays a woman whose insecurities keep her from seeing the good and the possible in her life; it’s funny, but not one of the year’s best. The Hangover Part 2 is just not original enough, and, consequently, not funny enough. Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life contains a good 90-minute family drama that is completely derailed by an additional hour of mind-numbingly self-important claptrap.

For trailers and other choices,see Movies to See Right Now.

I haven’t yet seen Sarah’s Key or Road to Nowhere, which open this weekend, or Tabloid, which opens widely. You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is the French comedy Potiche, one of my Best Movies of 2011 – So Far.

Movies on TV this weekend include the prison classics Midnight Express and Cool Hand Luke on TCM, both on my list of 10 Best Prison Movies.

Movies to See Right Now

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Project Nim

The cream of the crop are still the sweet, funny and thoughtful comedies Beginners and Midnight in Paris, along with the riveting documentary Project Nim. All three are on my list of Best Movies of 2011 – So Far.

Buck is a wonderful documentary about a real-life horse whisperer with a compelling human story.  If you have kids, Pixar’s Cars 2 is an excellent choice (adults will especially enjoy the James Bond spoof thread).  So is Super 8, a wonderful coming of age story embedded in a sci fi action thriller.  The Trip delivers some chuckles.  Turkey Bowl is a delightful indie comedy available from iTunes.  Page One: A Year Inside the New York Times explores journalism’s evolution in an age of new media, and I recommend it for hard news junkies.

In Bridesmaids, Kristen Wiig plays a woman whose insecurities keep her from seeing the good and the possible in her life; it’s funny, but not one of the year’s best.  The Hangover Part 2 is just not original enough, and, consequently, not funny enough. Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life contains a good 90-minute family drama that is completely derailed by an additional hour of mind-numbingly self-important claptrap.

For trailers and other choices,see Movies to See Right Now.

I haven’t yet seen Tabloid, which opens this weekend. You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD picks are the surfing classics Riding Giants and Step into Liquid.

Movies coming up on TV include the prison classics Midnight Express and Cool Hand Luke on TCM, both on my list of 10 Best Prison Movies.

Movies to See Right Now

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Christopher Plummer and Ewan McGregor in Beginners

This week, the best choices are still the sweet, funny and thoughtful Beginners and Midnight in Paris. This week’s Project Nim is one of the year’s best documentaries.  If you have kids, Pixar’s Cars 2 is an excellent choice (adults will especially enjoy the James Bond spoof thread).  So is Super 8, a wonderful coming of age story embedded in a sci fi action thriller.  The Trip delivers some chuckles.  Turkey Bowl is a delightful indie comedy available from iTunes.

In Bridesmaids, Kristen Wiig plays a woman whose insecurities keep her from seeing the good and the possible in her life; it’s funny, but not one of the year’s best.  The Hangover Part 2 is just not original enough, and, consequently, not funny enough. Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life contains a good 90-minute family drama that is completely derailed by an additional hour of mind-numbingly self-important claptrap.

For trailers and other choices,see Movies to See Right Now.

You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is Another Year. Mike Leigh (Secrets and Lies, Vera Drake) has brought us another brilliant observation of the human condition, and asks why some people find contentment and others just cannot. Another Year is one of Leigh’s best, and on my list of Best Movies of 2010.

 

Movies to See Right Now

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Marion Cotillard and Owen Wilson in Midnight in Paris

This week, the best choices are the sweet, funny and thoughtful Beginners and Midnight in Paris.  If you have kids, Pixar’s Cars 2 is an excellent choice (adults will especially enjoy the James Bond spoof thread).  So is Super 8, a wonderful coming of age story embedded in a sci fi action thriller.  The Trip delivers some chuckles.

In Beginners, Ewan McGregor plays a guy who tends to the depressive and sabotages his relationships.  His father (Christopher Plummer) has just died after coming out of the closet at age 75.  Can he make things work out with Melanie Laurent (Inglorious Basterds)?

Woody Allen’s sweet and smart Midnight in Paris is his best comedy in twenty-five years. Owen Wilson accompanies fiancée Rachel McAdams to Paris, where she is intrigued by pretentious blowhard Michael Sheen, leaving Wilson to explore midnight Paris and time travel back to the Paris of the Lost Generation.

13 Assassins is brilliantly staged and photographed, and is one of the best recent action films; an honorable samurai must assemble and lead a team of thirteen to hack their way through a psychotically sadistic noble’s 200 bodyguards.

In The Trip, Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon take a foodie road trip through the north of England and duel with their Michael Caine and Sean Connery impressions.

In Bridesmaids, Kristen Wiig plays a woman whose insecurities keep her from seeing the good and the possible in her life; it’s funny, but not one of the year’s best.

The Hangover Part 2 is just not original enough, and, consequently, not funny enough.

Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life contains a good 90-minute family drama that is completely derailed by an additional hour of mind-numbingly self-important claptrap.

 

For trailers and other choices,see Movies to See Right Now.

 

You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is the British terrorist farce Four Lions.

All new – Movies to See Right Now

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Christopher Lee and Ewan McGregor in Beginners

This week, the best choices are the sweet, funny and thoughtful Beginners and Midnight in Paris.  If you have kids, Pixar’s Cars 2 is an excellent choice (adults will especially enjoy the James Bond spoof thread).  So is Super 8, a wonderful coming of age story embedded in a sci fi action thriller.

In Beginners, Ewan McGregor plays a guy who tends to the depressive and sabotages his relationships.  His father (Christopher Plummer) has just died after coming out of the closet at age 75.  Can he make things work out with Melanie Laurent (Inglorious Basterds)?

Woody Allen’s sweet and smart Midnight in Paris is his best comedy in twenty-five years. Owen Wilson accompanies fiancée Rachel McAdams to Paris, where she is intrigued by pretentious blowhard Michael Sheen, leaving Wilson to explore midnight Paris and time travel back to the Paris of the Lost Generation.

13 Assassins is brilliantly staged and photographed, and is one of the best recent action films; an honorable samurai must assemble and lead a team of thirteen to hack their way through a psychotically sadistic noble’s 200 bodyguards.

In Bridesmaids, Kristen Wiig plays a woman whose insecurities keep her from seeing the good and the possible in her life; it’s funny, but not one of the year’s best.

The Hangover Part 2 is just not original enough, and, consequently, not funny enough.

Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life contains a good 90-minute family drama that is completely derailed by an additional hour of mind-numbingly self-important claptrap.

For trailers and other choices,see Movies to See Right Now.

I haven’t yet seen the horse whisperer documentary Buck or the comic road tripper The Trip, which open this weekend. You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is the nastily hard-bitten noir Kiss Me Deadly.

Movies on TV this week include the Hitchcock thriller Strangers on a Train and Kiss Me Deadly on TCM.

Movies to See Right Now

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Midnight in Paris

The top picks this week are Incendies, Midnight in Paris and Cave of Forgotten Dreams.  I’m still urging people to see the searing drama Incendies, the year’s best film so far. Upon their mother’s death, a young man and woman learn for the first time of their father and their brother and journey from Quebec to the Middle East to uncover family secrets. As they bumble around Lebanon, we see the mother’s experience in flashbacks. We learn before they do that their lives were created – literally – by the violence of the Lebanese civil war.

Woody Allen’s sweet and smart Midnight in Paris is his best comedy in twenty-five years.  Owen Wilson accompanies fiancée Rachel McAdams to Paris, where she is intrigued by pretentious blowhard Michael Sheen, leaving Wilson to explore midnight Paris and time travel back to the Paris of the Lost Generation.

Don’t miss Cave of Forgotten Dreams while it can be seen in 3D; Werner Herzog explores the amazing 30,000 year old Chauvet cave paintings.

13 Assassins is brilliantly staged and photographed, and is one of the best recent action films; an honorable samurai must assemble and lead a team of thirteen to hack their way through a psychotically sadistic noble’s 200 bodyguards.

In Bridesmaids, Kristen Wiig plays a woman whose insecurities keep her from seeing the good and the possible in her life; it’s funny, but not one of the year’s best. The Hangover Part 2 is just not original enough, and, consequently, not funny enough.

For trailers and other choices, see Movies to See Right Now.

I haven’t yet seen Beginners or The Trip, which open this weekend with very strong buzz. You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is one of the best movies from last year, True Grit.

Movies on TV this week include the brilliant Buster Keaton masterpiece The General on TCM.

Movies to See Right Now

by
13 Assassins

The top picks this week are Incendies, Midnight in Paris and Cave of Forgotten Dreams.  I’m still urging people to see the searing drama Incendies, the year’s best film so far. Upon their mother’s death, a young man and woman learn for the first time of their father and their brother and journey from Quebec to the Middle East to uncover family secrets. As they bumble around Lebanon, we see the mother’s experience in flashbacks. We learn before they do that their lives were created – literally – by the violence of the Lebanese civil war.

Woody Allen’s sweet and smart Midnight in Paris is his best comedy in twenty-five years.  Owen Wilson accompanies fiancée Rachel McAdams to Paris, where she is intrigued by pretentious blowhard Michael Sheen, leaving Wilson to explore midnight Paris and time travel back to the Paris of the Lost Generation.

Don’t miss Cave of Forgotten Dreams while it can be seen in 3D; Werner Herzog explores the amazing 30,000 year old Chauvet cave paintings.

13 Assassins is brilliantly staged and photographed, and is one of the best recent action films; an honorable samurai must assemble and lead a team of thirteen to hack their way through a psychotically sadistic noble’s 200 bodyguards.

In Bridesmaids, Kristen Wiig plays a woman whose insecurities keep her from seeing the good and the possible in her life; it’s funny, but not one of the year’s best. Meek’s Cutoff is a disappointing misfire.

For trailers and other choices,see Movies to See Right Now.

I haven’t yet seen The Tree of Life, which opens this weekend. You can see trailers of upcoming films at Movies I’m Looking Forward To.

My DVD pick is Kaboom.

Movies on TV this week include the vicious drama Sweet Smell of Success and the campy mutant rabbit horror flick Night of the Lepus on TCM.