Film

MORE THAN A REVIEW FOR WHAT IS MORE THAN A DOCUMENTARY Each year at this time, the world becomes a bit merrier thanks to two older, lovable, admirable men with white hair, twinkling eyes, and joie de vivre – jolly souls associated with Christmas gifts. One is a certain Mr. Claus who lives at the…

LIGHT IN A WORLD GONE DARK This Ordinary Thing — a documentary that doesn’t feel like one ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ “Whoever saves one life, saves the entire world.” This quote from the Talmud — the book of Jewish wisdom — underpins This Ordinary Thing. Going in, I knew…

A FILM ABOUT MAKING A VIDEO–ARE THEY SERIOUS ABOUT THIS??!?!!? Depending on your level of patience and maturity, you may or may not have serious problems with Serious People. It’s probably best not to take it seriously. The concept has potential for comedy and some payoff—eventually. But it takes a long time to get there;…

PUBLIC RELATIONS OR DOCUMENTARY? Richard Clarke may not be a household name, but his testimony before the 9/11 Commission in March 2004 was monumental: after serving under four Presidents as a security advisor, Clarke — whose warnings of possible attacks by Al Qaeda went dismissed — sat before America and said, “Your government failed you,…

A “STEAMY” LOVE STORY The Danish drama Sauna explores identity, discomfort, and an unexpected bond Not everybody likes surprises, and life throws enough curveballs that sometimes it’s nice to know what you’re getting into — especially when the information is readily available. In the film Sauna, a cis gay guy named Johan opens his humble…

A SUMMER CAMP CRUSH, A RELIGION DECISION & A FREE BAGEL A modern Jewish rom-com sprinkled with neuroses, nostalgia, and plenty of chutzpah He’s 30 years old and single, without a steady permanent job, so naturally Leo Kadner’s parents push, prod, and pester him about finding a better job and a nice Jewish girl to…

A TRIBE, A DIATRIBE, MOVING AWAY & MOVING ON Say what you will about the ties that bind. If those ties were literally ropes, some of them would stay strong and some would fray or break. Arguably, time does not heal all wounds; some hurts fester and foster resentment for years. Prodigal sons may have…

ATTRACTION, INTERACTION, & REACTION IN INDIA They cook, they eat, they pray, they sleep, they ride motorcycles, they text, they wash, warn, and worry. Most of these actions by the people in We Are Faheem & Karun, set in India, are mundane day-to-day doings without much scintillating accompanying dialogue — “Let’s go and eat kabobs….

STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT: TALKING, WALKING, TALKING SOME MORE “A guy walks into a bar…” That action is the first line in a long line of jokes, and it is what happens early on in A Night Like This, but its serious look at sadness is no joke. It takes place at Christmastime, although the…

GAY LOVE, PRIVACY, MYSTERY, NUDITY, AND COWS Those who prefer fast-moving plots, in a confusion-free zone so that it’s always clear what’s going on in the story and in the characters’ heads won’t have only good things to say about Only Good Things, even if they feel drawn in by the film’s drawn-out story centering…

SOMETHING WITH SILLINESS, SERIOUSNESS, SASS, SCHEMING, AND SEX TALK In real life, being patient with impatient, impulsive teenagers who are also snarky, sneaky, disagreeable and disrespectful can age and enrage adults. However, fictional versions of such young folks and their follies and frenzies can be funny and/or dramatically involving. Many movies, novels, plays, and TV…

LOTS O’ LOVERBOYS Eight – count ‘em – eight short films are grouped together for If You Wanna Be My Loverboy, one of several packages in the NewFest offerings of themed sets. Each set will be screened only once, with virtual showings through October 21. This collection, at NYC’s School for Visual Arts on October…

SHORT, NOT ALWAYS SWEET: SOMETHING FOR ALMOST EVERYONE Two Black Boys in Paradise starts with its titular twosome in a boat, going gently down the stream, merrily. They’re naked; it’s full-frontal nudity for these thin fellows and later in the film there is a sweet, discreet but definite moment when they get into positions for…

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO CARL BEAN Directors Daniel Junge and Sam Pollard have given the world a much needed uplift in the guise of their fascinating new documentary on the life of Archbishop Carl Bean named, I Was Born This Way. But why is the title reminiscent of Lady Gaga’s mega-hit, “Born This Way?” Because…

Adolescence and added adversity, with heart in the hardships As a film title, a quote from a poem, a line of dialogue, a life philosophy, or even a song lyric, If You Are Afraid You Put Your Heart in Your Mouth and Smile is quite a mouthful. And it’s actually ALL the aforementioned things. Working…