My Opinion: 6.5 || Relentlessly bleak. Devoid of characterization and plot. And numbingly slow. But — the best black-and-white cinematography I’ve ever seen. It’s a revelation. The film is like a succession of still… Continue reading
My Opinion: 6.0 || Good social commentary but disappointingly prosaic direction from a filmmaker with Kieslowski’s gifts. The premise of split lives is one that he went on to explore poignantly in later films,… Continue reading
My Opinion: 6.8 || A well-designed, light-on-its-feet film that manages to imbue a seemingly threadbare plot with significance. It meanders a bit, and there are a couple unconvincing dream sequences. But good performances, a… Continue reading
My Opinion: 7.7 || An absorbing, beautifully textured story. The young protagonist is an impressively three-dimensional character, and Nairobi itself is such a vibrant presence that you can almost taste and feel it. The… Continue reading
My Opinion: 6.8 || Weighty subject matter presented with directness and limited theatricality. The story’s major developments are easy to anticipate, but it’s an engaging film, with strong sense of place and rich detail.… Continue reading
My Opinion: 9.2 || Impressive on every level — a great film.
My Opinion: 2.9 || There are movies I’ve disliked more. I just can’t remember what they are.
MY OPINION: 6.1 || A story of resistance to institutionalized cruelty that’s engaging but also very familiar. We’ve seen this storyline before, from Cool Hand Luke to Papillon to every film that’s ever been… Continue reading
My Opinion: 7.1 || A great feel-good movie that achieves a nearly perfect balance of sentiment and intelligence. The characters’ nearly uniform compassion and generosity may too good to be true, but Kaurismäki has… Continue reading
My Opinion: 5.9 || It could have been so much better. There are interesting ideas and a couple great scenes, but the director makes a string of bad decisions that undercut the film’s potential.… Continue reading
I'm an author and consultant in Portland, Oregon. My novel 'Beheld' will be published this June.
