| 2006 Alphabetical List of All Films Watched | |
| In 2006 I viewed 482 film events. At least 45 rated *** 1/2 or better! | |
| It was a fine year for pay-tv miniseries and festival films. Not such a great year for Hollywood. | |
| Links are to longer festival reviews on site. All ratings based on 4 stars best. A film defined as 70 min.+ visual event. | |
| (V) = TV, Video or DVD ( +) = repeat viewing (W/O)= walked out | |
| 1:1 (d. Annette K. Olesen) *** | |
| 10 ITEMS OR LESS (d. Brad Silberling) ** 1/2 | |
| 12:08 EAST OF BUCHAREST (d. Camelia Porumboiu) ** | |
| 2:37 (d. Murali K. Thalluri) *** 1/2 | |
| 20 CENTIMETERS (d. Ramón Salazar) *** | |
| 3 NEEDLES (d. Thom Fitzgerald) *** 1/4 | |
| 49 UP (d. Michael Apted) *** 1/2 | |
| 54 (d. Mark Christopher) V. Finally caught this interesting film. Ryan Phillippe never hotter; Mike Myers never better. *** | |
| 9TH COMPANY (d. Fyodor Bondarchuk; Russia) *** 1/2 | |
| A SIDE, B SIDE, SEA SIDE (d. Wing-Chiu Chan) ** 1/4 | |
| AFTER THE WEDDING (d. Susanne Bier; Denmark) *** 1/2 | |
| AHIMSA STOP TO RUN (d. Leo Kittikorn; Thailand) * | |
| AIRES DIFICILES, LOS (d. Gerardo Herrera) ** 3/4 | |
| AKEELAH AND THE BEE (d. Doug Acheson) Predictable, manipulative, moving film about an 11 yr. old black girl spelling genius. ** 1/2 | |
| AL FRANKEN: GOD SPOKE (d. Nick Doob, Chris Hegedus) *** 1/4 | |
| ALATRISTE (d. Augustin Diaz Yanes) ** 3/4 | |
| ALICE (d. Marco Martins; Portugal) ** 3/4 | |
| ALL THE KING'S MEN (d. Steven Zaillian) Why was this film critically savaged? Maybe a little over-ripe; but fantastic drama. *** 1/2 | |
| ALLEGRO (d. Christoffer Boe) ** | |
| AMERICAN VISA (d. Juan Carlos Valdivia; Bolivia) ** 3/4 | |
| AMERICANESE (d. Eric Byler) ** 3/4 | |
| AMNESIA - THE JAMES BRIGHTON ENIGMA (d. Denis Langlois) Dusan Dukic shines, based on true story. ** 3/4 | |
| ANNAPOLIS (d. Justin Lin) An average, predictable film with another charismatic perf by James Franco as a boxer-plebe. A guilty pleasure. ** 1/4 | |
| ANOTHER GAY MOVIE (d. Todd Stephens) * 1/2 | |
| APOCALYPTO (d. Mel Gibson) Gotta hand it to him, an art film with stretches of boredom; but overall it worked as an action film. ** 3/4 | |
| ART OF CRYING, THE (Kunsten at Graede I Kor) (d. Peter Fog) *** 1/4 | |
| ART SCHOOL CONFIDENTIAL (d. Terry Zwigoff) Amusing black comedy satire. Broadbent is great; but this is no Ghost World. *** | |
| ARTHUR AND THE INVISIBLES (d. Luc Besson) Luc should stick to live action; predictable, badly acted & animated. * 1/2 | |
| AVENUE MONTAIGNE (Fauteuils d'orchestra) (d. Daniele Thompson; France) + *** 1/2 | |
| BABEL (d. Alejandro González Iñárritu) Circular script like Before the Rain. Fabulous direction. Gut wrenching tension. Great film. *** 1/2 | |
| BACKSTAGE (d. Emmanuelle Bercot) ** 3/4 | |
| BEAUTIFUL OHIO (d. Chad Lowe) ** 3/4 | |
| BEAUTY REMAINS (d. Ann Hu) ** 1/2 | |
| BEFORE FLYING BACK TO EARTH (d. Arunas Matelis; Lithuania) *** | |
| BELLA (d. Alejandro Monteverde) ** | |
| BEOWULF & GRENDEL(d. Sturla Gunnarsson) ** 1/4 | |
| BEST MAN, WORST FRIEND (d. Stefan Schwartz) V. Guilty pleasure romantic comedy; Stuart Townsend & Seth Green fine. ** 3/4 | |
| BETRAYAL, THE (d. Philippe Faucon) ** 1/2 | |
| BEYOND HATRED (d. Olivier Meyrou) ** 1/4 | |
| BICKFORD SHMECKLER'S COOL IDEAS (d. Scott Lew) ** 1/2 | |
| BIG BANG LOVE, JUVENILE A (d. Takashi Miike) *** | |
| BIG DREAMS, LITTLE TOKYO (d. David Boyle) *** | |
| BIRTHDAY, THE (d. Diane Kurys) *** 1/4 | |
| BLACK DAHLIA, THE (d. Brian de Palma) Fine cast, terrible script, fake noir. How can such a promising film go so wrong. ** | |
| BLACK SUN (d. Gary Tarn) V. Expressionistic docu about a man (writer & narrator) blinded in the '70s. *** | |
| BLACKMAIL BOY (Oxygono) (d. Papathanasiou & Rappas) Over-the-top melodrama about money corrupting a family with a beautiful bisexual scion. * 3/4 | |
| BLESSED BY FIRE (d. Tristan Bauer) *** 3/4 | |
| BLINDSIGHT (d. Lucy Walker) V. Blind children overcoming peril, gorgeous mountain photography, uplift...admirable docu. *** 1/2 | |
| BLOOD DIAMOND (d. Edward Zwick) Despite overlength, this is a winner. Prediction: multiple Oscars. *** 1/2 | |
| BLOOD RAIN (d. Kim Dae-seung, LeeWon-jae) ** 1/2 | |
| BLOSSOMING OF MAXIMO OLIVEROS, THE (d. Aureas Solito) ** 1/4 | |
| BLUE CHA CHA (d. Cheng Wen- tang) *** 1/4 | |
| BOBBY (d. Emelio Estevez) *** | |
| BOOK OF LOVE (d. Alan Brown) V. Younger man (Gregory Smith). Older married woman. Clichés; but very nicely acted. ** 3/4 | |
| BORAT (d. Larry Charles) Cohen is impressive in creating consistent character; funny in a wildly tasteless way. *** | |
| BORDER WAR: THE BATTLE OVER ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION (d. Kevin Knoblock) V. Docu looks great, too polemic. ** 3/4 | |
| BORN AND BRED (d. Pablo Trapero) ** 1/2 | |
| BOSTA (d. Philippe Aractingi; Lebanon) * 1/2 | |
| BOTHERSOME MAN, THE (Den Brysomme Mannen) (d. Per Schreiner) *** 1/4 | |
| BOW, THE (d. Kim Ki-duk) *** | |
| BOY CULTURE (d. Q. Allen Brocka) ** 3/4 | |
| BOYNTON BEACH BEREAVEMENT CLUB (d. Susan Seidelman) ** 3/4 | |
| BRASHER DOUBLOON, THE (d. John Brahm) 40's noir with George Montgomery playing Chandler's Philip Marlowl, stylish, great B&W photog. *** | |
| BREAKING AND ENTERING (d. Anthony Minghella) I loved this film despite flaws, became emotionally involved with characters. *** | |
| BREAK-UP, THE (d. Peyton Reed) Fairly clever by-the-numbers romantic dramady. No chemistry between leads. ** 1/2 | |
| BRICK (d. Rian Johnson) Overly complex, familiar noirish plot; but topflight young cast and zingy script really work. *** | |
| BROKEN (d. Alan White) ** 1/4 | |
| BROKEN SKY (El Cielo Dividido) (d. Julián Hernández) Gorgeously photographed and scored gay art film of gestures. *** 1/4 | |
| BROTHERS OF THE HEAD (d. Keith Fulton, Louis Pepe) ***1/4 | |
| BUBBLE, THE (d. Eytan Fox) *** 1/4 | |
| BURNT OUT (d. Fabienne Godet) *** | |
| C.R.A.Z.Y. (d. Jean-Marc Vallée) V. 2nd time around this time on video. Why is this masterpiece not getting released in the U.S.? *** 3/4 | |
| CAN MR. SMITH GET TO WASHINGTON ANY MORE? (d. Frank Popper) V. Absorbing docu of empassioned run for Congress. *** 1/2 | |
| CARMEN IN KHAYELITSHA (d. Mark Dornford-May) ** 1/2 | |
| CASHBACK (d. Sean Ellis) *** | |
| CASINO ROYALE (d. Martin Campbell) Nice new Bond; nice physical action stunts. But the film is as ridiculous as ever. ** 1/4 | |
| CATCH A FIRE (d. Phillip Noyce) Excellent "making of a terrorist/freedom fighter" film from So. Africa. Derek Luke fine. *** 1/4 | |
| CAVE OF THE YELLOW DOG, THE (d. Byambasuren Davaa; Mongolia) | |
| CAYO (d. Vincente Juarbe; Puerto Rico) * 3/4 | |
| CHANGING TIMES (Les Temps qui changent) (d. André Téchiné) *** 1/4 | |
| CHARLEY AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY (d. Tim Burton) V. Amusing with impressive effects. *** | |
| CHARLOTTE'S WEB (d. Gary Winick) Nice voice acting, good f/x and a moving story make for a pleasant film. *** | |
| CHILDREN OF MEN (d. Alfonso Cuaron) Masterpiece of Gazaian dystopia, Nativity allegory & Time of the Wolf rolled into one. *** 1/2 | |
| CHINAMAN (Kinamand) (d. Henruk Ruben Genz) Wry Danish comedy. Plumber divorced by wife marries younger Chinese woman. *** | |
| CHRONICAL OF AN ESCAPE (d. Israel Adrián Cactano) ** 3/4 | |
| CINEMA, ASPIRIN & VULTURES (Cinema, Aspirinas e Urubus) (d. Marcelo Gomes) ** 1/4 | |
| CITIZEN DUANE (d. Michael Mabbott) ** 3/4 | |
| CITY OF THE SUN, THE (Slunecný Stát) (d. Martin Sulík; Slovak Republic) ** | |
| CLASSE TOUS RISQUE (d. Claude Sautet) A terrific classic noir with a star-making Belmondo perf (if Breathless hadn't hit first). *** 1/2 | |
| CLICK (d. Frank Coraci) Good F/X, lousy script, sort of an It Might Have Been a Wonderful Life. Not Sandler's finest. * 3/4 | |
| COFFEE DATE (d. Stewart Wade) Amusing comedy about sexual confusions, really well written script. *** | |
| COLD SHOWERS (Douches froides) (d. Antony Cordier) *** | |
| COLMA: THE MUSICAL (d. Richard Wong) Strictly amateurville musical, but charming, simple story. ** 1/2 | |
| COMBAT (d. Patrick Carpentier) * | |
| COME EARLY MORNING (d. Joey Lauren Adams) *** | |
| COMEDY OF POWER, A (d. Claud Chabrol) ** 3/4 | |
| COMIC EVANGELISTS (d. Daniel Jones, Dann Sytsma) *** | |
| CONGORAMA (d. Philippe Falardeau) ** 3/4 | |
| CONSTANTINE (d. Francis Lawrence) V. Looks good with graphic novel feel, nice f/x, absurd plot. ** 1/4 | |
| CONTAINER (d. Lukas Moodysson) * 3/4 | |
| CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHER WOMEN (d. Hans Canosa) *** 1/4 | |
| COPYING BEETHOVEN (d. Agnieszka Holland) Overwrought, overacted. Sublime music (though weirdly edited). ** | |
| CRACKER: A NEW TERROR (d. Antonia Bird) V. Excellent tv film about a killer British cop driven crazy in the "troubles". *** | |
| CRIME NOVEL (d. Michele Placido) *** 1/4 | |
| CROSSING THE BRIDGE: THE SOUND OF ISTANBUL (d. Fatih Aiken) V. Music docu, sporadically good music, nice photog. ** 1/2 | |
| DA VINCI CODE, THE (d. Ron Howard) The con of film. Turgid, overlong...nice historical f/x, though. ** 1/4 | |
| DANIKA (d. Ariel Vromen) * 1/2 | |
| DARKBLUEALMOSTBLACK (d. Daniel Sánchez Arévalo) *** 1/2 | |
| DAYS OF GLORY (d. Rachid Bouchareb; Algeria) *** | |
| DEAD GIRL, THE (d. Karen Moncrieff) *** 1/4 | |
| DEATH OF A PRESIDENT (d. Gabriel Range) *** 1/2 | |
| DÉJÀ VU (d. Tony Scott) A superior, timebending thriller which, while totally absurd, amazingly almost holds together! *** 1/4 | |
| DELIVER US FROM EVIL (d. Amy Berg) V. Gripping docu about Catholic church coverup of pederast priest. *** 1/2 | |
| DEPARTED, THE (d. Martin Scorsese) Fabulously cast, but script too eliptical...Infernal Affaires made more sense. *** 1/4 | |
| DEVIL WEARS PRADA, THE (d. David Frankel) Well acted (Hathaway finally grows up, Streep perfect), funny. *** | |
| DEXTER: Season 1 (d. various) V. Sympathetic serial killer sociopath...stylish, Michael C. Hall is simply amazing. *** 3/4 | |
| DIAS DE SANTIAGO (d. Josué Méndez; Peru) ** 1/4 | |
| DIGGERS (d. Katherine Dieckmann) ** 1/2 | |
| DIRTY DEEDS (d. David Kendall) V. Stupid high school caper film. Watched for Milo Ventimiglia, who is worth watching. * | |
| DISAPPEARANCES (d. Jay Craven) ** 1/4 | |
| DOG POUND (d. Manuel Nieto Zas) W/O | |
| DON'T TELL (La bestia nel cuore) (d. Cristina Comencini; Italy) *** 1/2 | |
| DOWN IN THE VALLEY (d. David Jacobson) Weird, wonderful; Ed Norton his usual amazing. E.R.Wood more beautiful than ever. *** 1/4 | |
| DREAMGIRLS (d. Bill Condon) Better than average musical with fantastic casting. *** | |
| DREAMING OF SPACE (d. Alexei Uchitel) ** 3/4 | |
| DREAMLAND (d. Jason Matzner) *** | |
| DRIVING LESSONS (d. Jeremy Brock) Bad coming-of-age film with over-the-top Julie Walters & a pretty good Rupert Grint. * 3/4 | |
| DUMA (d. Carroll Ballard) V. Predictably beautiful but predictable. ** 3/4 | |
| EARLY IN THE MORNING (d. Gahité Fofana) * 3/4 | |
| EARTHLINGS (d. Shaun Monson) V. Hard to watch docu about human speciesism: abuse of animals for food, clothing, science etc.. *** 3/4 | |
| EATING OUT 2: SLOPPY SECONDS (d. Phillip Bartell) Funny gay farce, well acted with a fairly novel script. ** 3/4 | |
| EDY (d. Stephan Guérin-Tillié) Cool, noirish film about killer insurance scammers. ** 3/4 | |
| EIGHT BELOW (d. Frank Marshall) Deserted dogs in the Antarctic winter do their thing. Pretty (Paul Walker especially), but vapid. ** 1/4 | |
| ELECTION (d. Johnny To) *** | |
| ELECTION 2 (d. Johnny To) *** | |
| ELEVEN MEN OUT (d. Róbert Douglas) Predictable troubles for Iceland gay soccer team. ** 1/4 | |
| ELIZABETH I (d. Tom Hooper) V. Historical epic, good but histrionic perf by Helen Mirren. Drama over historicity. *** | |
| ELSA & FRED (d. Marcos Carnevale) *** 3/4 | |
| EN LA CAMA (d. Matías Bize; Chile) *** 1/4 | |
| ENRON: THE SMARTEST GUYS IN THE ROOM (d. Alex Gibney) V.Well made docu about complexity, maybe not as informative as it might have been.*** 1/4 | |
| EPITAFIOS (d. Alberto Lecchi & Jorge Nisco) V. HBO miniseries à la SE7EN from Argentina. Literally the best tv series I've ever seen. **** | |
| ERAGON (d. Stefen Fangmeier) It's supposed to be bad; but try as I might I couldn't fail to enjoy it...nicely paced, good f/x. *** | |
| EVERY OTHER WEEK (d. various) ** 3/4 | |
| EVERYTHING'S GONE GREEN (d. Paul Fox) ** 3/4 | |
| EXPIRATION DATE (d. Rick Stevenson) *** | |
| FACTOTUM (d. Bent Hamer) ** 3/4 | |
| FAILURE TO LAUNCH (d. Tom Dey) Reasonably original romantic comedy...Justin Bartha should be given a leading role! ** 3/4 | |
| FALKENBERG FAREWELL (d. Jesper Ganslandt; Sweden) ** | |
| FALLEN (d. Mikael Salomon) V. Good TV movie with series possibilities. ** 3/4 | |
| FAMILY LAW (d. Daniel Burman; Argentina) *** 1/2 | |
| FAMILY TIES (d. Kim Tae-yang) ** 1/2 | |
| FAQS (d. Everett Lewis) Militantly gay romance. Fine performance by perky newcomer Joe Lia. Oddly, I enjoyed this terribly written & shot digital film. * 3/4 | |
| FAT GIRLS (d. Ash Christian) Inventive if juvenile gay comedy by a talented writer/director. ** 1/2 | |
| FIVE DAYS IN SEPTEMBER (d. Barbara Sweete) **** | |
| FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS (d. Clint Eastwood) Overly complex; but moving despite. Spectacular action direction. *** 1/4 | |
| FLYBOYS (d. Tony Bill) Astoundingly good aerial f/x. Utterly predictable, lame script. James Franco fine, as usual. ** 1/2 | |
| FORGIVEN (d. Paul Fitzgerald) *** | |
| FOUNTAIN, THE (d. Darren Aronofsky) Pretentious & arty. Jackman & Weisz and f/x are great, but script annoyingly obscure. ** 1/4 | |
| FOUR MINUTES (d. Chris Kraus) *** 1/4 | |
| FOUR STARS (d. Christian Vincent) ** 1/4 | |
| FRIENDS WITH MONEY (d. Nicole Holofcener) Ensemble film, well observed, nicely acted...ending left me wanting more. *** | |
| FROZEN DAYS (Yamin Kfuim) (d. Danny Lerner) ** 3/4 | |
| GABRIELLE (d. Patrice Chéreau) Edwardian film of manners; pretty, talky and boring with good perfs by Isabelle Huppert & Pascal Greggory. ** | |
| GAMBLER (d. Phie Ambo) ** 1/2 | |
| GARPASTUM (d. Alexey Guerman) *** | |
| GEORGE MICHAEL - A DIFFERENT STORY (d. Southan Morris) *** 1/4 | |
| GHOSTS OF CITÉ SOLEIL (d. Leth & Loncarivic) V. Scattered docu; a Haitian City of God. Rappers in the slums get screwed. *** | |
| GLORY ROAD (d. James Gartner) Solid, typical sport docudrama with great Josh Lucas perf, raised 1/4 star by the real-life end credit interviews. *** 1/4 | |
| GLUE (d. Alexis Dos Santos) ** 1/2 | |
| GO WEST (d. Ahmed Imamovic) *** | |
| GOAL! THE DREAM BEGINS (d. Danny Cannon) Totally clichéd, predictable script; but damn, this film rocked my world. Kuno Becker! ** 3/4 | |
| GOLDEN DOOR, THE (d. Emanuele Crialese; Italy) *** | |
| GOOD GERMAN, THE (d. Steven Soderbergh) Glorious B&W cinematography doesn't disguise ambiguous plot & lack of involvement. ** 1/2 | |
| GOOD MORNING, NIGHT (d. Marco Bellocchio) Impressionist docudrama of Aldo Moro kidnapping. Talky & political. ** 3/4\ | |
| GOOD SHEPHERD, THE (d. Robert De Niro) Absorbing, well achieved CIA story, but Matt Damon seems too young & callow for role. *** | |
| GOOD YEAR, A (d. Ridley Scott) The French do this sort of romantic comedy of terroir much better (e.g. Rohmer's Autumn Tale). ** 1/2 | |
| GRAVEHOPPING (d. Jan Cvitkovic) ** | |
| GRBAVICA (d. Jasmila Zbanic; Bosnia & Herzegovina) *** 1/4 | |
| GREAT NEW WONDERFUL, THE (d. Danny Leiner) 5 post-9/11 NY stories of ordinary people in search of meaning. ** 1/2 | |
| GRIFFIN AND PHOENIX (d. Ed Stone) ** | |
| GROOMSMAN, THE (d. Edward Burns) *** 1/4 | |
| GROUND TRUTH, THE (d. Patricia Foulkrod) V. Docu of plight of returning Iraq vets. More than I wanted to know, but vital. *** 1/4 | |
| GUARDIAN, THE (d. Andrew Davis) Nicely scripted action flick; both Costner & Kutcher are fine. Storm f/x top of line. *** | |
| GUIDE TO RECOGNIZING YOUR SAINTS, A (d. Dito Montiel) Truish life Mean Streets. Great cast, indie at its best. *** 1/2 | |
| HALF LIFE OF TIMOFEY BEREZIN, THE (d. Scott Z. Burns) *** 1/4 | |
| HALF NELSON (d. Ron Fleck) *** 1/4 | |
| HANA (d. Hirokazu Kore-eda) ** 3/4 | |
| HAPPY AS ONE (d. Vanessa Jopp) *** | |
| HAPPY FEET (d. George Miller) Simply wonderful 3-D animation combined with a timeless, appealing story. A triumph. *** 3/4 | |
| HARD CANDY (d. David Slade) *** | |
| HARSH TIMES (d. David Ayer) Tough action film with scintillating acting and superreal dialog. Bale is a phenom. *** | |
| HAVEN (d. Frank E. Flowers) Good actors in a mess of a film about Cayman Island life and dire financial schemes. ** | |
| HELL (d. Danis Tanovic) *** 1/2 | |
| HIDDEN BLADE, THE (d. Yoji Yamada) *** 1/2 | |
| HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL (d. Kenny Ortega) V. By far the best musical of the last year is a Disney TV film. Zac Ephron can move & even lip sync. *** | |
| HINDENBERG, THE (d. Robert Wise) V. Fairly good old fashioned disaster flick. F/x sort of lame. ** 1/4 | |
| HISTORY BOYS, THE (d. Nicholas Hytner) Yorkshire Dead Poets Society with a fine, literate script. Totally absorbing. *** 3/4 | |
| HOLIDAY, THE (d. Nancy Meyers) I loved every minute of this chick flick despite its flaws. *** 1/4 | |
| HOLLYWOODLAND (d. Allen Coulter) TV director's style more suited to noir. Fine cast (esp. Brody & Affleck) good script! *** | |
| HOME OF THE BRAVE (d. Irwin Winkler) Powerful affects-of-war film about current Iraq soldiers. Too on point, but well acted. ** 3/4 | |
| HOMESICK (Koti-ikävä) (d. Petri Kotwica) Superb, raw Finnish film about a teenage boy committed to a mental institution, similar plot to Manic. *** 1/4 | |
| HOOT (d. Wil Shriner) Ernest flick from teen book. Interesting young actors, but lacking directoral spark. * 3/4 | |
| HORIZON OF EVENTS, THE (d. Daniele Vicari) ** 3/4 | |
| HOST AND GUEST (d. Shin Dong-il) ** 3/4 | |
| HOST, THE (Gue-Mool) (d. Bong Joon-ho) ** | |
| HOTTEST STATE, THE (d. Ethan Hawke) ** 3/4 | |
| HOUSE OF SAND (d. Andrucha Waddington) *** 1/4 | |
| HOUSEWARMING (Travaux, on sait quand ça commence...) (d. Brigitte Roüen) Silly Paris apt. money pit/illegal alien worker comedy. ** 1/2 | |
| HOW MUCH DO YOU LOVE ME (Combien tu m'aimes?) (d. Bertrand Blier) Monica Bellucci as sexy prostitute; fun, not my cuppa. ** 3/4 | |
| HULA GIRLS (d. Lee Sang-il; Japan) ** | |
| I AM (d. Dorota Kedzierzawska) *** 1/4 | |
| I AM DAVID (d. Paul Feig) V. Moving, if fairly pat, story of boy who escapes from Bulgarian camp in '52. *** | |
| ICE AGE THE MELTDOWN (d. Carlos Saldanha) Funny, silly, watchable 3-D animated Road-Runnerish film. ** 3/4 | |
| ICEBERG (d. Abel, Gordon & Romy) ** 1/2 | |
| IDIOCRACY (d. Mike Judge) Intriguing, clever set-up, well written; ok f/x; just sort of boring and disappointing. ** 1/4 | |
| IDIOT LOVE (Amor Idiota) (d. Ventura Pons) *** 1/4 | |
| IDLEWILD (d. Bryan Barber) Annoying, overly stylish film with lousy songs by Outkast...but Big Boi can act. ** | |
| IF I HAD YOU (d. John Deery) V. Underplayed English murder mystery with triple whammy. Nice script. *** | |
| ILLUSIONIST, THE (d. Neil Burger) *** | |
| IN HIS HANDS(d. Anne Fontaine) ** 1/2 | |
| INCONVENIENT TRUTH, AN (d. Davis Guggenheim) V. More than a slide show, America's fall happened in Nov. 2000. *** 3/4 | |
| INSIDE MAN (d. Spike Lee) Close to perfect bank heist film: original, unpredictable, involving. Clive Owens...wow! *** 1/2 | |
| INTOUCHABLE, L' (d. Benôit Jacquot) *** | |
| INVINCIBLE (d. Ericson Core) Fun football true story. Mark Wahlberg is fine as Vince Papale. Well made, moving. *** 1/4 | |
| INVISIBLE WAVES (d. Pen-ek Ratanaruang) ** 1/2 | |
| IRAQ IN FRAGMENTS (d. James Langley) V. 3 part docu about today's Iraq. Beautifully shot, difficult to follow. ** 1/2 | |
| ITINÉRARIES (d. Christophe Otzenberger) *** 1/4 | |
| JACK SMITH & THE DESTRUCTION OF ATLANTIS (d. Mary Jordan) ** 1/4 | |
| JANIS (d. Howard Ilk) V. + Filled with great footage of Janis Joplin, otherwise ordinary docu bio. ** 3/4 | |
| JESUS CAMP (d. Ewing & Grady) V. Viscerally disturbing docu of kids that religious right are indoctrinating with Jesus. *** 1/4 | |
| JONESTOWN: THE LIFE & DEATH OF THE PEOPLE'S TEMPLE (d. Stanley Nelson) V. Horrendous footage; but I didn't end up with more understanding. ** 3/4 | |
| JOURNEY, THE (Yatra) (d. Goutam Ghosh) * 3/4 | |
| KAMATAKI (d. Claude Gagnon, Takako Miyahira) *** 1/4 | |
| KING AND CLOWN (d. Lee Jun-ik) *** 1/4 | |
| KING, THE (d. James Marsh) *** 1/4 | |
| KINKY BOOTS (d. Julian Jerrold) Predictable, Full Montyish film about making boots for drag queens. Chiwetel Ejiofor fabu! ** 3/4 | |
| KONTAKT (d. Sergej Stanojkovski; Macedonia) ** 3/4 | |
| LADY IN THE WATER (d. M. Night Shyamalan) Boring, simplistic "bedtime story". Giamatti excellent. ** | |
| LAKE HOUSE, THE (d. Alejandro Agresti) Unabashed timebinding romance with too many paradoxes. Keanu Reeves surprises. *** | |
| LAST KING OF SCOTLAND, THE (d. Kevin Macdonald) Whitaker is superbly over the top; McAvoy is my boy. Strong film. *** 1/4 | |
| LAST KISS, THE (d. Tony Goldwyn) Dispite iffy casting of leads, great adapted script - better than original Italian film! *** 1/2 | |
| LEONARD COHEN - I'M YOUR MAN (d. Lian Lunson) ** 3/4 | |
| LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA (d. Clint Eastwood) **** | |
| LIFE THAT I WANT, THE (La Vita Che Vorrei) (d. Giuseppe Piccioni) *** 1/2 | |
| LIKE A BROTHER (Comme un frére) (d. Alapetite & Legann) Shortish, disappointment: gay boy in love with straight boy. ** | |
| LINE OF BEAUTY, THE (d. Saul Dibb) *** 1/2 | |
| LITTLE CHILDREN (d. Todd Field) "Golden Boy" Patrick Wilson & Kate Winslet plus remarkable script! Great film. *** 3/4 | |
| LITTLE FUGITIVE (d. Joanna Lipper) ** 3/4 | |
| LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE (d. Dayton & Faris) Good script, acting. Enormously entertaining depressed family comedy. *** 1/4 | |
| LITTLE RED FLOWERS (d. Zhang Yuan) ** 1/2 | |
| LITTLE THING CALLED MURDER, A (d. Richard Benjamin) V. Fun, campy retelling of Kimes family of grifters. Judy Davis remarkable as usual. *** | |
| LIUBI (d. Layia Yiourgou) *** | |
| LIVE FREE OR DIE (d. Gregg Kavet, Andy Robin) *** | |
| LIVES OF OTHERS, THE (d. Florian Henckel von Donnersmark; Germany) *** 3/4 | |
| LONGEST YARD, THE (d. Peter Segal) V. Surprisingly entertaining con vs. guards prison football. Sandler actually convincing. ** 3/4 | |
| LOST ROOM, THE (d. Baxley & Watkins) V. Fairly original s/f premise until unsatisfactory ending. ** 1/2 | |
| LOVE AND OTHER DISASTERS (d. Alek Keshishian) *** 1/2 | |
| LOVE TO HIDE, A (d. Christian Fauré) Remarkably effective WWII French Jewish/gay Holocaust tv movie. *** 1/4 | |
| LOVELORN (d. Yavuz Turgul; Turkey) *** | |
| LOW PROFILE (Falscher Bekenner) (d. Christoph Hochäusler) *** | |
| LOWER CITY (d. Sergio Machado) *** | |
| LUCKY NUMBER SLEVIN (d. Paul McGuigan) Peculiar, atmospheric gangster revenge film. Josh Hartnett good; but after 5 min. I figured it all out. ** 1/4 | |
| LUNACY (d. Jan Svankmajer; Czech Republic) * 3/4 | |
| MAD HOT BALLROOM (d. Marilyn Agrelo) The kids and their dreams raise this docu out of the ordinary. Wilson is a star. *** 1/2 | |
| MADEINUSA (d. Claudia Llosa) ** 3/4 | |
| MAGIC FLUTE, THE (d. Kenneth Branagh) ** 3/4 | |
| MAISON DE NIÑA, LA (d. Richard Dembo) *** 1/2 | |
| MALAS TEMPORADAS (Hard Times) (d. Manuel Martín Cuenca) ** 3/4 | |
| MANDERLAY (d. Lars Von Trier) *** | |
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| MANSLAUGHTER (Drabet) (d. Per Fly) Another Danish mid-life crisis film...teacher falls for eco-terrorist former student. Stark, fine drama. *** 1/4 | |
| MARIE ANTOINETTE (d. Sofia Coppola) Sort of boring, sort of frivolous, sort of anachronistic. But fun. ** 3/4 | |
| MARIO'S WAR ( La Guerra Di Mario) (d. Antonio Capuano) ** 3/4 | |
| MAROA (d. Solveig Hoogesteijn; Venezula) *** 1/4 | |
| MASSEUR, THE (Masahista) (d. Brillante Mendoza) Another naive Philipine gay film with bad acting & predictable story. * 3/4 | |
| MAXED OUT (d. James D. Scurlock) ** 1/2 | |
| MEMORIES OF TOMORROW (Ashita No Kioku) (d. Yukihiko Tsutsumi) *** | |
| MIAMI VICE (d. Michael Mann) More plot holes than Swiss cheese; but usual Mann atmosphere makes a good film. ** 3/4 | |
| MIRACLE (d. Gavin O'Connor) V. Feel good replay of '80 Olympic hockey team. ** 3/4 | |
| MISS POTTER (d. Chris Noonan) Sort of charming, esp. Emily Watson; but a little too sugary for my taste. ** 3/4 | |
| MISSING STAR, THE (d. Gianni Amelio) *** | |
| MOLLY'S WAY (d. Emily Atef) *** | |
| MON COLONEL (d. Laurent Herbiet) *** 1/4 | |
| MONKEY WARFARE (d. Reg Harkema) * 3/4 | |
| MONKEYS IN WINTER (d. Milena Andonova; Bulgaria) ** | |
| MONSTER HOUSE (d. Gil Kenan) Almost perfectly made 3-D animated film with levels of meaning. *** 1/2 | |
| MOROCCAN SYMPHONY, THE (d. Kamal Kamal; Morocco) * 3/4 | |
| MOSTLY UNFABULOUS LIFE OF ETHAN GREEN, THE (d. George Bamber) Bad, bad gay film which I sort of enjoyed. * 1/2 | |
| MOTEL, THE (d. Michael Kang) Chinese-American chubby 13 yr. old motel owner's kid. Truthful, but sort of boring. ** 3/4 | |
| MOUSTACHE, LA (d. Emmanuel Carrère) Unsettling, atmosphericx film with unreliable narrative, who's insane? *** | |
| MY COUNTRY, MY COUNTRY (d. Laura Poitras) V. Docu about a Sunni Iraqi family leading up to election. Gripping, informative. *** 1/2 | |
| MY DAD IS INTO TERRORISM (La fille du juge) (d. William Karel) Well made docu; reminiscences by 24 yr.old daughter of suicide judge. *** | |
| MY NIKIFOR (d. Krzystof Krauze) ** 3/4 | |
| NAKED IN ASHES (d. Paula Fouce) V. Instructive, if slow docu about several yogis in India. ** 1/2 | |
| NEARING GRACE (d. Rick Rosenthal) Excellent Gregory Smith & David Morse perfs. raise this coming-of-age story. *** | |
| NIGHT LISTENER, THE (d. Patrick Stettner) Echos of JT Leroy. Collette great. I felt I lived this story once upon a time. *** | |
| NO. 2 (d. Toa Fraser) *** | |
| NORDESTE (d. Juan Solanas) ** 3/4 | |
| NOT HERE TO BE LOVED (Je ne suis pas lã pour être aimé) (d. Stéphane Brizé) Slow, lugubrious; 50ish man redeemed by too much tango. ** 1/2 | |
| NOTES ON A SCANDAL (Richard Eyre) Creepy, strange, literate writing, fabulous acting by both women. *** 1/4 | |
| NOTORIOUS BETTIE PAGE, THE (d. Mary Harron) ** 3/4 | |
| NOUVELLE CHANCE (d. Ann Fontaine) *** | |
| OFF SCREEN (d. Pieter Kuijpers) ** 1/4 | |
| OH IN OHIO, THE (d. Billy Kent) Ograsmic hi-jinx in Cleveland. OK script, good acting, end sort of peters out. ** 3/4 | |
| OLD JOY (d. Kelly Reichardt) *** | |
| ONCE IN A LIFETIME: STORY OF NEW YORK COSMOS (d. Crowder & Dower) V. Fast moving, involving docu about pro soccer. *** 1/4 | |
| ONCE
YOU'RE BORN YOU CAN NO LONGER HIDE (d. Marco Tullio Giordana) *** 1/4 ONE TO ANOTHER (Chacun sa nuit) (d. Jean-Marc Barr, Pascal Arnold) *** 1/4 |
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| ONLY GOD KNOWS (d. Carlos Bolado) *** 1/4 | |
| ONLY HUMAN (d. Dominic Harari and Terisa Pelagri) Occasionally silly Spanish family farce...Jewish girl/Palestinian man. ** 3/4 | |
| ORCHESTRA SEATS (Fauteuils d'Orchestre) (d. Danièle Thompson) Nicely edited, involving Parisian mult-character romantic comedy. *** 1/4 | |
| OSS 117: NEST OF SPIES (d. Michel Hazanavicius) * 1/4 | |
| OUR LAND (La Terra) (d. Sergio Rubini) *** 1/4 | |
| OUTSOURCED (d. John Jeffcoat) ** | |
| PAINTED VEIL, THE (d. John Curran) Old fashioned story telling, but beautiful and nicely done. *** | |
| PALAIS ROYAL! (d. Valérie Lemercier) * 3/4 | |
| PAN'S LABYRINTH (d. Guillermo del Toro) *** 1/2 | |
| PAPA (d. Maurice Barthélémy) Touching, nicely made, well observed French road pic, sort of young boy Ponette travels with his father. *** | |
| PEACEFUL WARRIOR (d. Victor Salva) Setting aside the New Agey hokum, thrilling film. Mechlowicz amazes. *** | |
| PELICAN BRIEF, THE (d. Alan Pakula) V. Finally saw this; holds up well, tho Grisham stories are predictable. ** 3/4 | |
| PERFUME - THE STORY OF A MURDERER (d. Tom Tykwer) Amazing gorgeous production, creepy, original concept. *** 1/2 | |
| PERSUIT OF HAPPYNESS, THE (d. Gabriele Muccino) Too much miserablism for too long; but Smith & son are quite good. *** | |
| PETIT LIEUTENANT, LE (d. Xavier Beauvoir) Spare, Bressonian French policier...sublimely realistic, Nathalie Baye great. *** 1/2 | |
| PLAY (d. Alicia Scherson; Chile) *** 1/4 | |
| POSEIDON (d. Wolfgang Petersen) Well directed old fashioned disaster thriller, if predictable and ridiculous. ** 1/2 | |
| PRAIRIE HOME COMPANION (d. Robert Altman) ** 1/2 | |
| PRESTIGE, THE (d. Christopher Nolan) Wonderfully scripted enigmatic period mystery which really delivers the goods. *** 1/4 | |
| PRINCESS RACCOON (d. Seijun Suzuki) ** | |
| PRINCESSES
(d. Fernando de Aranoa) ** 1/2 PRIVATE PROPERTY (d. Joachim Lafosse) *** 1/2 |
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| PRIZE WINNER OF DEFIANCE OHIO, THE (d. Jane Alexander) V. Sentemenatl & hokey, but Julianne Moore is fine, Woody H. is a hambone. ** 1/2 | |
| PROPOSITION, THE (d. John Hillcost) ***1/4 | |
| PUSHER (d. Nicolas Winding Refn) ** 3/4 | |
| PUSHER II (d. Nicolas Winding Refn) *** 1/4 | |
| PUSHER III (d. Nicolas Winding Refn) *** 1/4 | |
| QUEEN, THE (d. Stephen Frears) Superb script, great performances by Mirren and Michael Sheen. Remarkable film. *** 1/2 | |
| QUEENS (Reinas)(d. Manuel Gómez Pereira) + *** | |
| QUINCEAÑERA (d. Wash Westmoreland, Richard Glatzer) *** 1/4 | |
| RANG DE BASANTI (d. Rakesh Omprakash Mehra; India) *** 1/4 | |
| REQUIEM (d. Hans Christian Schmid) *** | |
| RESCUE DAWN (d. Werner Herzog) *** 3/4 | |
| RETRIEVAL (d. Slawomir Fabiciki; Poland) *** 1/4 | |
| RIDING ALONE FOR THOUSANDS OF MILES (d. Zhang Yimou) Extraordinarily moving road picture of Japanese man's quest in China. *** 1/2 | |
| ROAD TO GUANTANAMO (d. Michael Winterbottom) **** | |
| ROAD, THE (d. Zhang Jiarui) ** 3/4 | |
| ROCKY BALBOA (d. Sylvester Stallone) I may be the sole ideal demographic for this film; but Stallone hits a perfect tone here. *** 1/4 | |
| ROGER DODGER (d. Dylan Kydd) V+ 2nd viewing not as great as remembered. Searing performances, though. *** | |
| RON CLARK STORY, THE (d. Randa Haines) V. Matthew Perry is good as inspiring teacher in Harlem. Predictable. ** 3/4 | |
| ROOTS (d. Pavel Lungin) *** 1/2 | |
| ROUND TWO (d. Daniel Cebrián) *** 1/4 | |
| RUNNING WITH SCISSORS (d. Ryan Murphy) Excessive bio which struck gold for me. Great performances. *** | |
| RUSSIAN DOLLS (d. Cédric Klapisch) *** 1/4 | |
| SACRED HEART (d. Ferzan Ozpetek) *** 1/4 | |
| SA-KWA (d. Kang Yi-kwan) *** 1/4 | |
| SANGRE (d. Arnat Escalante) ** 1/4 | |
| SATURDAY NIGHT AT THE BATHS (d. David Buckley) 1974 groundbreaking film. Fair story, great history ** 3/4 | |
| SCANNER DARKLY, A (d. Richard Linklater) Phil Dick is well served, nice animation. But ultimately unsatisfying. ** 3/4 | |
| SCIENCE OF SLEEP, THE (d. Michel Gondry) ** 1/2 | |
| SCOOP (d. Woody Allen) Woody is in a clever caper story rut. Fun, but not nearly as good as similar Match Game. ** 3/4 | |
| SECRET LIFE OF HAPPY PEOPLE, THE (d. Stephane Lapointe) *** | |
| SECRET LIFE OF WORDS, THE (d. Isabel Coixet) 2 wounded souls in another moving Coixet. Tim Robbins & Sarah Polley great. *** | |
| SENTINAL, THE (d. Clark Johnson) Good Secret Service thriller. Kiefer Sutherland will henceforth always be Jack Bauer in every role. *** | |
| SEPTEMBER DAWN (d. Christopher Cain) Controversial gutwrenching true story of Morman slaughter of innocent wagon train in 1800s. *** | |
| SEVEN SWORDS (d. Tsui Hark) * 3/4 | |
| SHADOWBOXER (d. Lee Daniels) No cops in sight in this hired assassin story. Mirren as usual is great. ** 3/4 | |
| SHANGHAI DREAMS (d. Wang Xiaoshuai) ** 3/4 | |
| SHEM (d. Caroline Roboh) A bisexual English Everything is Illuminated. Ash Newman is a real find; the film doesn't pay off. ** 3/4 | |
| SHERRYBABY (d. Laurie Collyer) Maggie Gyllenhaal is fine; but film about junkie mom is very hard to take. ** 1/4 | |
| SHE'S THE MAN (d. Andy Fickman) A teener "12th Night"; but a mediocre script. Channing Tatum is worth watching. ** | |
| SHINOBI (d. Ten Shimoyaina) ** 3/4 | |
| SHOOTING GALLERY (d. Keoni Waxman) V. Mediocre crooked cop/poolhall hustle STV. Ving Rhames & Prinze Jr. ok. ** 1/4 | |
| SHOP OF DREAMS (Stiilipidu) (d. Peeter Urbla; Estonia) ** 1/2 | |
| SHORTBUS (d. John Cameron Mitchell) *** 1/4 | |
| SHUT UP AND SING (d. Barbara Kopple, Cecelia Peck) V. I'm not a Dixie Chicks fan; but this politically satisfying docu works. *** 1/4 | |
| SHY AMOL CHAYA (d. Humayun Ahmed; Bangladesh) * | |
| SISTERS IN LAW (d. Kim Longinotto) V. Slow but moving docu about justice for women & children in Camaroon. *** | |
| SKETCHES OF FRANK GEHRY (d. Sydney Pollack) *** | |
| SKI JUMPING PAIRS - ROAD TO TORINO 2006 (d. Mashima Riichiro, Kobayashi Masaki) *** 1/4 | |
| SKYFIGHTERS (Les chevaliers du ciel) (d. Gérard Pirès) French airforce fighter pilots intrigue. Well acted, great f/x; but preposterous, elliptical plot. ** | |
| SLEEPER CELL (d. various) V. Extremely plausable & well made mini-series about Muslim terrorists in a terrifyingly real L.A. *** 1/2 | |
| SLEEPING DOGS LIE (d. Bobcat Goldthwait) *** | |
| SLUMMING (d. Michael Glawogger) *** 1/4 | |
| SMALL TOWN GAY BAR (d. Malcolm Ingram) ** 3/4 | |
| SNOW CAKE (d. Marc Evans) *** 3/4 | |
| SO GOES THE NATION (d. del Dio & Stern) V. Fascinating, gutwrenching docu of both sides of political organizers in Ohio in 2004. *** 3/4 | |
| SOAP, A (d. Pernille Fischer Christiansen) ** 3/4 | |
| SOMEONE ELSE'S HAPPINESS (d. Fien Troch; Belgium) ** 3/4 | |
| SOMETHING LIKE HAPPINESS (Stestí) (d. Bohdan Sláma; Czech Republic) *** 1/4 | |
| STANDARD, THE (d. Jordan Albertsen) *** 3/4 | |
| STAR WARS EPISODE III: RETURN OF THE SITH (d. George Lucas) Kept my interest. ** 3/4 | |
| STARFISH HOTEL (d. John Williams) * 3/4 | |
| STARTER FOR 10 (d. Tom Vaughan) *** 1/2 | |
| STAY ALIVE (d. William Bell) Good cast can't save this computer death game Ringu like film. Weak dialog, reasonable f/x. ** | |
| STEP UP (d. Anne Fletcher) Clichés abound. Channing Tatum can't act; but he sure can dance and he's a STAR. ** 1/2 | |
| STEPHANIE DALEY (d. Hilary Brougher) *** | |
| STOLEN CHILDREN (Certi Bambini) (d. Andrea and Antonio Frazzi) *** 1/4 | |
| STOLEN EYES (Otkradnati ochi) (d. Radoslav Spassov; Bulgaria) | |
| STONED (d. Stephen Woolley) Leo Gregory is ok, Paddy Considine better in this amalgam of Sid & Nancy and Last Days about Brian Jones. *** | |
| STORM OF EMOTIONS (d. Yael Klopmann) V. Very powerful, apolitical docu of forced evacuation of Gaza settlers. *** 1/2 | |
| STORY OF PAO, THE (d. Ng Quang Hai; Vietnam) *** | |
| STRANGER THAN FICTION (d. Marc Forster) Charlie Kaufmanesque script with a stunning Emma Thompson perf. *** | |
| STRANGERS WITH CANDY (d. Paul Dinello) * | |
| SUBURBAN MAYHEM (d. Paul Goldman) *** | |
| SUICIDALS (d. Juan Villegas) ** | |
| SUMMER '04 (d. Stefan Krohmer) *** 1/4 | |
| SUMMER DAY, A (d. Franck Guerin) *** | |
| SUPERMAN RETURNS (d. Brian Singer) Not a disappointment...Singer did everything just about right. *** | |
| SUR LA TRACE D'IGOR RIZZI (d. Noël Mitrani) ** 1/4 | |
| SWEET LAND (d. Ali Selim) A 20th century immigrant woman's story; hardscrabble midwest farmland, slow paced but quite moving. *** | |
| SWINDLED (Incautos) (d. Miguel Bardem) *** | |
| SYMPATHY FOR LADY VENGEANCE (d. Park Chan-wook) ** 1/4 | |
| TALLADEGA NIGHTS (d. Adam McKay) Finally a really funny stupid satire. Sasha Baron Cohen a revelation! *** | |
| TAXIDERMIA (d. György Pálfi) ** 3/4 | |
| TEMPESTA (d. Tim Disney) * 3/4 | |
| TEN CANOES (d. Rolf de Heer; Australia) ** 1/2 | |
| TEXAS (d. Fausto Paravidino) *** | |
| THANK YOU FOR SMOKING (d. Jason Reitman) Clever satire with a great cast. Slightly oversold as the best thing since sliced bread. *** | |
| THIEVES AND LIARS (d. Matta & Marichal) *** | |
| THIS FILM IS NOT YET RATED (d. Kirby Dick) V. Amusing indictment of rating system. Predictable. *** 1/4 | |
| THOSE HAPPY DAYS (Ces jours heureux) (d. Nackache & Tolédano) OK summer camp romantic comedy. Got better as it went along. ** 1/2 | |
| THREE TIMES (d. Hou Hsiao-hsien) ** | |
| TIME TO LEAVE (d. François Ozon) **** | |
| TIN MINE, THE (d. Jira Maligool; Thailand) ** 3/4 | |
| TOMORROW MORNING (Sutra ujutro) (d. Oleg Novkovic; Serbia) * 3/4 | |
| TON OF LUCK, A (d. Rodrigo Triana; Columbia) ** 1/4 | |
| TOUCHING EVIL (d. var.) V. Eerie English detective miniseries created by Paul Abbott and Russell Davis with fine cast (Robson Green!) *** 1/4 | |
| TOUGH ENOUGH (d. Detlev Buck) *** 1/2 | |
| TOURNEUSE DE PAGES, LA (d. Denis Dercourt) *** 1/4 | |
| TRIALS OF DARRYL HUNT, THE (d. Stern & Sundberg) Almost perfect docu about failure of justice in N. Carolina. *** 3/4 | |
| TRIP TO KHARABAKH (d. Levan Tutberidze) *** | |
| TRISTAN + ISOLDE (d. Kevin Reynolds) Formula period romance with a charismatic perf by James Franco and a better than average script. ** 3/4 | |
| TRUST THE MAN (d. Bart Freundlich) Enjoyable adult relationship comedy which peters out last 1/3. *** | |
| TV JUNKIE (d. Michael Cain) *** | |
| TWELVE AND HOLDING (d. Michael Cuesta) *** 1/2 | |
| TWENTY THOUSAND STREETS UNDER THE SKY (d. Simon Curtis) V. BBC romantic period '30s drama from 3 points of view. Bryan Dick! *** | |
| TWILIGHT DANCER (d. Mel Chionglo) * 1/4 | |
| TWISTED LOVE (shorts) | |
| TWO DRIFTERS (d. João Pedro Rodrigues) ** 3/4 | |
| UNDER THE ICE (d. Aelrun Goette) *** 1/2 | |
| UNREASONABLE MAN, AN (d. Mantel an Skrovan) V. Excellent, if mostly talking head docu about Ralph Nader. *** 1/4 | |
| URBAN SCARECROW (d. Andrew McAllister) ** 3/4 | |
| V FOR VENDETTA (d. James McTeigue) Involving rip-off of 1984. Some good effects; but Portman's English accent was terrible. *** | |
| VACATIONLAND (d. Todd Verow) Gay teens in Bangor, MN...el cheapo production, mediocre which is an improvement for Verow. ** | |
| VALET, THE (d. Francis Veber) French farce, better than director's recent stuff, at least I laughed. *** | |
| VENUS (d. Roger Michell) *** 1/4 | |
| VITUS (d. Fredi M. Murer; Switzerland) *** 3/4 | |
| VOLVER (d. Pedro Almodóvar; Spain) *** | |
| WAH-WAH (d. Richard E. Grant) *** | |
| WAR TAPES, THE (d. Deborah Scranton) V. Iraq war from pov of 3 New Hampshire Nat. Guardsmen with cameras. Most real yet. *** 3/4 | |
| WAR THAT MADE AMERICA, THE (d. Loeterman & Strange) V. PBS docudrama of the French & Indian War with fine recreations. *** | |
| WASSUP ROCKERS (d. Larry Clark) Unlikely story; but Clark's latest "it boy", Jonathan Valasquez, is worth it. Good bad film. ** 1/2 | |
| WATER (d. Deepa Mehta) Gorgeous wide screen intimate epic of plight of a 7 yr. old widow & 34 mil other Indian widows. *** 1/2 | |
| WAYWARD CLOUD, THE (d. Tsai Ming-liang) *** 1/2 | |
| WE ARE MARSHALL (d. McG) Story of real-life football team resurrected. Well directed and emotionally true. *** | |
| WE GO WAY BACK (d. Lynn Shelton) * 1/2 | |
| WE SHALL OVERCOME (d. Niels Arden Oplev) *** 1/2 | |
| WEDDING CHEST, THE (d. Nurbek Egen; Kyrgyzstan) *** | |
| WELCOME TO DONGMAKGOL (d. Park Kwang-hyun; Republic of Korea) ** 3/4 | |
| WHITE PALM (d. Szabolcs Hajdu; Hungary) + *** 1/4 | |
| WHITE PALMS (d. Szabolcs Hajdu) *** | |
| WHO IS HARRY NILSSON (d. John Scheinfeld) *** 1/4 | |
| WHO KILLED THE ELECTRIC CAR (d. Chris Paine) *** 3/4 | |
| WHO LOVES THE SUN (d. Matt Bissonnette) *** 1/2 | |
| WHOLE NEW THING(d. Amnon Buchbinder) *** 1/4 | |
| WILD TIGERS I HAVE KNOWN (d. Cam Archer) ** 1/4 | |
| WIND THAT SHAKES THE BARLEY, THE (d. Ken Loach) *** 1/2 | |
| WINDOW, THE (d. Ted Tetzlaff) *** 1/4 | |
| WIRE, THE - season 4 (d. various) V. The best season of the best series on TV. How the world really works. **** | |
| WORDPLAY (d. Patrick Creadon) *** 3/4 | |
| WORK HARD PLAY HARD (Violence des échanges en milieu tempéré) (d. Moutou) V. Jérémie Renier fine! *** | |
| WORLD TRADE CENTER (d. Oliver Stone) Seamless f/x, affecting, surprisingly powerful. *** 1/4 | |
| WORLD'S FASTEST INDIAN, THE (d. Roger Donaldson) V. Hopkins is fine, as usual. The film is pretty predictable. ** 3/4 | |
| WRESTLING WITH ANGELS: PLAYWRITE TONY KUSHNER (d. Freida Lee Mock) *** 1/2 | |
| WRIST CUTTERS: A LOVE STORY (d. Goran Dukic) * 3/4 | |
| X-MEN: THE LAST STAND (d. Brett Ratner) For my money better than 1 & 2. *** | |
| YACOUBIAN BUILDING, THE (d. Marwan Hamed; Egypt) ** 3/4 | |
| YEAR ZERO(d. Joseph Patchhadze) *** 1/4 | |
| YOU AND ME (d. Julie Lopes-Curval) ** 3/4 | |
| YOU ARE SO HANDSOME (d. Isabelle Mergault) ** 3/4 | |
| YOU BET YOUR LIFE (d. Antonin Svoboda; Austria) ** 1/2 | |
| YOUNG BLOOD (Pura Sangre) (d. Leo Ricciardi) ** 3/4 | |
| YOUR LIFE IN '65 (Tu Vida in 65') (d. Maria Ripoll) *** 1/4 | |
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