Reviews, interviews, and festival coverage for Boulder’s only independent newspaper from 2014 to 2025.
What does it take to make a masterpiece? Not something merely good, but among the greatest of all time. Meaningful not just to the time and place it was produced, but to the time and place with which it is … Continue reading Top Ten Territory
There’s no such thing as an American anymore. No Hispanics, no Japanese, no Blacks, no whites, no nothing. It’s just rich people and poor people.” That’s the line David (a slick and oily Jeff Goldblum) feeds drug kingpin Hector (René … Continue reading DEEP COVER
In 1975, a movie about a killer shark terrorizing the waters surrounding a New England island hit theaters. That may not sound like much, but it was a massive success. Massive isn’t even the word for it: The movie broke … Continue reading JAWS
A master among masters, the filmography of Martin Scorsese is nothing to sneeze at. Raging Bull, GoodFellas, The Irishman—you know the lineup. But what sometimes gets overlooked are the documentaries, a dozen of them, personal and nuanced works that play like B-sides … Continue reading THE LAST WALTZ
Deep Water is a preposterous movie. Particularly the ending, which crosscuts one character chasing after another through the woods and the young daughter of one of those characters throwing a suitcase into the backyard pool. Why, you ask? Well, to answer … Continue reading DEEP WATER
A young girl spies her mother in bed with a man who is neither her father nor the woman’s husband. The young girl is Flora (Anna Paquin), the speaking child of her mute mother, Ada (Holly Hunter). Both were bought and … Continue reading THE PIANO
Not even the pandemic could upset the Boulder International Film Festival. Back in 2020, BIFF was one of the last times local moviegoers had a chance to get together before locking down one week later. In 2021, festival directors Kathy … Continue reading Unmasked and Fancy-Free: Previewing the 2022 Boulder International Film Festival
Sometimes they are complete stories told with brevity and punch. Sometimes they are elongated trailers for talent yet to come. Sometimes they are provocations designed to rally and rile, but every year, the Oscar-nominated short films prove to be categories … Continue reading From Provocation to Inspiration: 2022 Oscar Nominated Short Films
If everything goes according to plan, the moving picture industry will convene on March 27 at Hollywood’s Dolby Theater to celebrate the best in the cinema for the 94th Academy Awards. Yes, it’s the time of the year when some … Continue reading The 94th Academy Award Nominations
Michael J. Cinema 
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