Hollywood Releases Preview – October, 2010
by HELEN GEIB
As everyone knows, October is the big month for horror films. As readers of this blog may know, Hollywood horror is something I usually do my best to avoid. The avoidance principle inspired me to try a different format with this month’s edition of the theatrical releases post, namely to feature one movie per represented genre. The full release list organized by release date is at the end; titles are linked to the movies’ pages in the IMDb for the curious. Read more 
DVD of the Week – Review of Robin Hood (2010)
by NIR SHALEV
Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood is a prequel to the popular legend that we’re all familiar with. But because Robin Hood is a fictitious character Scott and his writing staff had decided upon tweaking the legend, allowing it to exist in a possible realistic world. Read more
Best of the Decade – 2003
by HELEN GEIB
Winner: CITY OF GOD
Directed by: Fernando Meirelles, Katia Lund
Written by: Braulio Mantovani from the novel by Paulo Lins
Starring: Alexandre Rodrigues, Leandro Firmino, Phellipe Haagensen, Seu Jorge Read more
Movie Review – The Pianist (2002)
by NIR SHALEV
Roman Polanski was orphaned at a young age during the Nazi invasion of Poland. He was separated from his family for the rest of his life and it greatly shows simply because this film and Polanski’s Oliver Twist (2005) exist. Both films focus on the theme of dealing with adversity during hard times and also showcase that even when most people are against you, be it because of prejudice or racism, there’s always someone around the corner who’s willing to help. Read more
Thinking Outside the Multiplex in Indiana (September 24, 2010)
by MIKE MACCOLLUM
The latest film from a veteran French director; a big-budget science-fiction movie from India; an Australian musical comedy/drama; and a low-budget, shot-on-a-video-camera comedy about yet another teenager trying to lose his virginity- that’s the eclectic mix of limited-release movies coming to Indiana this week. Plus, the B-Movie Celebration takes place in Franklin, while Winter’s Bone and The Girl Who Played with Fire expand across the state. And that’s just a small part of what’s going on in Indiana theaters this week; for the whole story, keep reading below… Read more
DVD of the Week – Review of The Secret in Their Eyes (2009)
by HELEN GEIB
A smash hit and critical favorite in its native Argentina, The Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos) is one of the best films of 2009. In a stroke of good fortune for American movie lovers, winning the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film made it marketable on the US arthouse circuit. I was lucky enough to see it twice in the theater, and look forward to seeing it a third time now that it’s been released on DVD. Immediately satisfying, it also rewards repeat viewings. Read more
Movie Review – Get Low (2010)
by HELEN GEIB
Get Low is a goodhearted film about coming to terms with the past and moving forward. Read more
Best of the Decade – 2002
by HELEN GEIB
Winner: THE PIANIST
Directed by: Roman Polanski
Written by: Ronald Harwood; based on the book by Wladyslaw Szpilman
Starring: Adrien Brody, Emilia Fox, Frank Finlay, Thomas Kretschmann Read more
Thinking Outside the Multiplex in Indiana (September 17, 2010)
by MIKE MACCOLLUM
So for various reasons that aren’t worth going into, I was more than a little bit late finishing this week’s column. The only good aspect to this is that I found out just today that one of the two limited-release films opening in Indiana today is not a documentary at all (necessitating a little bit of rewriting of both this intro and the first entry below- and thus causing even more delays….). If I’m Still Here had been a doc, by the way, then all (well, both) of the non-wide-release movies starting in Indiana today would have fallen into that category- not a frequent occurrence, I’m guessing. For all the news on documentaries (real and otherwise) and limited-release non-docs showing across Indiana this week, read on below…. Read more
DVD of the Week – The Pirates of Penzance (1983)
by HELEN GEIB
Another movie drops off the “why isn’t that on DVD yet?!” list with today’s long-overdue release of the 1983 film version of The Pirates of Penzance. I just love this movie. Transposed from a successful Broadway staging, it’s a thoroughly delightful rendition of Gilbert and Sullivan’s classic operetta. The deliberate, overt theatricality only adds to its charm. Read more
