DVD of the Week – Review of Biutiful (2010)
by NIR SHALEV
Javier Bardem plays Uxbal, a low level criminal operating on the streets of Barcelona. He is the medium between the street vendors that sell illegal products, the shops that manufacture the products, and the cops that need to be bribed. He also looks after the Chinese immigrants that live in a basement and manufacture the goods. He may be a criminal but he’s not a bad person and after watching this film, I cannot think of another actor to better personify Uxbal than Bardem. Read more 
Movie Review – 13 Assassins (2010)
by NIR SHALEV
Filmmaker Takashi Miike is popular around the globe for being the most “out there” director. In Japan, he’s been crowned “the most adult filmmaker” because he’s directed crazy films like Audition (2000) and Ichi the Killer (2001). By now, those two films have garnered a classic status (because most film lovers are mostly desensitized to gore already). However, 13 Assassins is a welcome change in pace because it’s an old-school samurai revenge film that packs heat and is all kinds of awesome; yet it still manages to deliver a traditional samurai tale of true and tough warriors. Read more
Thinking Outside the Multiplex in Indiana (May 27, 2011)
by HELEN GEIB
Huzzah, huzzah! Cave of Forgotten Dreams opens in Indianapolis this week as well as continuing its run in Bloomington. This Werner Herzog directed documentary about the Chauvet Cave prehistoric paintings should be seen by everyone. Seriously. EVERYONE. Some other interesting-looking movies are opening in Indianapolis this week too, though pickings are slim elsewhere in the state. The complete lowdown and more of my editorializing after the break. Read more
DVD of the Week – Review of Dark City (1998)
by NIR SHALEV
With the success of the visually stunning and emotionally involving The Crow (1994), director Alex Proyas proved his talent as a terrific new filmmaker. He almost immediately began working on the screenplay for Dark City. Co-written with Lemm Dobbs, writer of Kafka (1991) and The Limey (1999), and David S. Goyer, writer of the Blade trilogy (1998-2004), Batman Begins (2005) and The Dark Knight (2008), Dark City was a classic in the making; and they didn’t even know it. Read more
Movie Review – Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011)
by HELEN GEIB
Q: Would I have enjoyed Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides if I hadn’t seen Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and its first two sequels?
A: No, it’s a bad movie on its own terms. But it wouldn’t have left me feeling sad and a little mournful if I didn’t know what the series had come to. There’s nothing left of the old magic. Read more
Thinking Outside the Multiplex in Indiana (May 20, 2011)
by HELEN GEIB
Not much new this weekend, in or out of the multiplex. If you’ve been meaning to catch up with something that opened recently, this would be a good week to do it. Me, I’ll be making the three hour roundtrip drive to Bloomington Saturday to see Cave of Forgotten Dreams, which inexplicably has no current or scheduled Indianapolis screenings*- despite its pedigree, critical reception, innate interest, and impressive per screen average. Read more
DVD of the Week – Review of The Rite (2011)
by NIR SHALEV
There are plenty of films that deal with the subject of exorcisms, mostly because of the aspect of the eternal battle that is fought between the forces of good and evil. This film is not a mockumentary but one that claims to be inspired by true events. I grow tired of the caption because a good chunk of horror films claim that, as well. Read more
Movie Review – Fast Five (2011)
by HELEN GEIB
When Fast Five, the latest installment in the “Fast and the Furious” series, took in over $80 million in its end of April opening weekend, the predictable response from studio PR was that summer had arrived a week early. The real surprise is not that the movie had a smash opening, but that the “summer movie” tagline is accurate; five movies in and the current entry has the broadest popular appeal of any film in the series. At the same time, it’s the ultimate movie for series fans. That’s a feat more impressive than the showiest action set-piece. Read more
Thinking Outside the Multiplex in Indiana (May 13, 2011)
by HELEN GEIB
Welcome to the new iteration of Thinking Outside the Multiplex, in which I fill in for Mike. The main difference you’ll notice is that TOTM is going to be shorter as long as I’m writing it. I admire Mike’s passion for completeness without having the patience to emulate it. In specific terms, this means non-movies (opera in cinema, most Fathom specials, etc.) and unsubtitled foreign language films will no longer appear in this column. The “Next Week and Beyond” section is also gone, but will probably return in modified form. To compensate (or not) there will be rather more editorializing about the films in future weeks. For the somewhat less complete listings of limited release films, special screenings, and festivals in Indiana this week, read on below…. Read more
DVD of the Week – Review of The Illusionist (2010)
by NIR SHALEV
The Illusionist is an often funny, extremely poignant, and slightly dramatic, melancholy film that contains two stories that coexist under one theme: the times that are changing. The first story is of an aging French illusionist, Tatischeff who is out of work and travels to a small town in Scotland to perform his magic in small locales. Once there, he is welcomed by all of the locals, and also a very drunk one in particular. A young teenage girl, Alice, takes his fancy. When Tatischeff leaves the town to travel to Edinburgh, Alice runs away with him and a partnership develops. It turns into a father/daughter relationship quickly and they get along very well. Read more
