Buffalo ’66
Vincent Gallo is a natural-born iconoclast, an actor-artist-musician-model whose primary role is that of a cultural and aesthetic agent provocateur. Since he functions as this film’s writer, director, composer and star, it’s easy to state that Buffalo ’66 is resoundingly his. But Gallo manages to go deeper than that: Every frame seems infused with his…
The Mask of Zorro
In the middle of a particularly stale summer movie season, The Mask of Zorro arrives like a blast of fresh air, a welcome reminder that Hollywood can still produce a mainstream entertainment that invigorates instead of suffocates. And this action hero doesn’t even need a gun. The character Zorro, who first appeared in Johnston McCulley’s…
Polish Wedding
There’s no wedding in Polish Wedding, but that’s the least of its troubles. Written and directed by Detroit native Theresa Connelly, and filmed entirely in Hamtramck and nearby neighborhoods, Polish Wedding has a distinct sense of place and two strong central performances from the talented Gabriel Byrne and Lena Olin going for it. What it…
Small Soldiers
Just as Steven Spielberg could not have made Saving Private Ryan without Platoon, Joe Dante could not have made Small Soldiers without Toy Story. Vietnam and its subsequent treasure trove of graphic, cinematic mayhem proved that the Duke was dead and, with him, the jingoistic and largely bloodless heroism of World War II films. When…
Not necessarily the blues
Columbus, Ohio’s Bassholes carve pre millennial blues from the swamp of life….
Bringing it all back home
The promises and perils of renovating the DIA’s modern art galleries….
Madeline
Madeline is further evidence of girl power. Not the preening hyperbole of the Spice Girls, but the real power inside brave, intelligent, creative girls like Madeline, the central character of six books written by Ludwig Bemelmans. Since the first book appeared in 1939, generations of women have grown up with this perennially popular character. The…
Lethal Weapon 4
And then there’s the Lethal Weapon series. This lovable little franchise retains interest as the longest-standing interracial buddy serial in history, as well as a social gauge for what Americans will go to see dramatized on the big screen. While police detectives Murtaugh (Danny Glover) and Riggs (Mel Gibson) can bond through dangerous gunfights and…
There’s Something About Mary
What is it about Mary Jenson (Cameron Diaz) that turns seemingly ordinary men into obsessed stalkers? After all, Mary’s smart, funny, compassionate and, of course, distractingly beautiful. She seems to have everything, so why can’t she meet a decent guy? On one level, There’s Something About Mary is a typical frothy romantic comedy about the…
