Amanda Alert
It probably didn’t happen this way, but I can easily imagine Ben Affleck in the midst of his 2003 Gigli-induced purgatory, taking time out...
Blood and Snow
Since Bram Stoker’s Dracula was published 110 years ago, doing something new with vampires in any storytelling medium has gotten to be extremely difficult.
The...
Mr. Bagman
You shouldn't be surprised that Michael Clayton is currently being overrated by America's film critics. The movie practically begs for it.
It sticks out because...
The Other Elizabeth
In 1998, an Indian director and his Australian leading lady collaborated on Elizabeth, a chilling historical drama that brought their largely unknown names to...
Blood Sausage
I’ll bet that relatively few people have ever watched a movie while sitting in one of the locations where it was shot.
That happened...
Not a Novelty
When I reviewed Becoming Jane two months ago (“Conduct Unbecoming,” Aug. 8), I mentioned how certain movies and books imagine a romantic life for...
Arabesque
The Kingdom is the fourth movie directed by Peter Berg, and it’s obviously his bid to join that elite club of filmmakers whose action...
Half-Baked Alaska
In a fitful and fitfully effective sidelight as a director, Sean Penn has been trying to make Jon Krakauer's book Into the Wild into...
Mario Imbroglio
A few weeks ago I called No End in Sight the best documentary so far this year.
That may still be the case, but now...
You Can’t Do That
Musical stage shows and films established themselves as massively popular forms of entertainment in the first half of the 20th century, but then in...