Tag: Catherine Keener

Reviews1 Comment

GET OUT

Michael J. Casey

Get Out opens with a scene that might as well be ripped from a newspaper headlines. Well, maybe it was. Andrew (Lakeith Stanfield), a black man walks alone, at night, along a neighborhood street so quiet, so pleasant, so blandly cookie cutter, it must be a white suburban neighborhood. Andrew talks on his cell phone, trying to locate his friend’s house, when a White Trans Am rolls up on him, pulls a U-turn and slowly follows him. “Not today,” Andrew mutters to himself before doubling back. The scene is taught with racial tension — this is more than a simple … Continue reading GET OUT

Movie Beat1 Comment

Movie Beat – 8.01.14

Michael J. Casey

The Almost Man – Some people are late bloomers and others will just never bloom. It’s still up in the air which one Henrik (Henrik Rafaelsen) will end up. 35 years old and still living with his mother (who treats him like the child he wants to be) when his girlfriend informs him that he is about to be a father. Henrik needs to make some drastic changes: a new job, a pre-fab duplex and responsibility are the name of the game. Sadly, these clothes don’t fit Henrik very well. Co-starring Janne Heltberg Haarseth, Tov Sletta, Per Kjærstad and Tore Sagen. … Continue reading Movie Beat – 8.01.14

Movie Beat

Movie Beat – 06.27.14

Michael J. Casey

Archipelago – Another week, another movie from writer/director Joanna Hogg. This time out Hogg takes us to a remote English location to explore the quiet desperation in the lives of others. An archipelago is a collection of small islands in a vast sea, a perfect descriptor for this family who is waiting for Father to arrive. Smacks of Beckett and Antonioni, but in the best possible way. Starring Tom Hiddleston, Amy Lloyd, Christopher Baker, Kate Fahy and Lydia Leonard. In limited release from Kino Lorber.   Begin Again – Dan (Mark Ruffalo) is an ex-record executive who is drowning his … Continue reading Movie Beat – 06.27.14

Reviews2 Comments

ENOUGH SAID

Michael J. Casey

Enough Said is not a flashy piece of cinema designed to captivate and intrigue. Nor is it the type of movie where actors are given a lot of room to chew the furniture and hit all those notes. It does not adhere to a certain philosophy of cinema like a Dogme 95 film. It is not designed for any particular demographic or have an agenda, political or commercial. It is about watching people go through the trials and tribulations of life. Nothing more and nothing less. Enough Said is the perfect example of the “nothing’s easy” phrase. Why should it be? … Continue reading ENOUGH SAID

Movie Beat

Movie Beat – 09.20.13

Michael J. Casey

After Tiller – Since the Supreme Court legalized abortions in 1973, eight abortion clinic workers have been murdered. Dr. George Tiller of Wichita, KS was the most recent, and one of the most controversial considering that he openly practiced third-trimester abortions. This is a heavily debated political issue, but this documentary is not interested in weighing this side versus that side, it wants to answer basic questions: Why does the mother decide that they cannot go through with the birth this late in the game? Why do these clinic workers, who are constantly in danger, continue to do the work … Continue reading Movie Beat – 09.20.13

Movie Beat

Movie Beat – 03.22.13

Michael J. Casey

Admission – Mid-level movies can be the worst. We want them to be just a little bit more so we can love them, or if only they were a little worse, then we could write them off. Admission is a mid-level movie about single parents, broken people trying to piece things back together, and life lessons. I have no problem with life lessons, but this one looks spoon-fed. The lesson here: There is more than one-way to raise a child. Tina Fey plays an admissions counselor from Princeton University and Paul Rudd is a folksy single parent who finds the kid that … Continue reading Movie Beat – 03.22.13

Movie Beat

Movie Beat – 11.02.12

Michael J. Casey

Another week, another batch of new releases for you to dig into. Quite a selection to choose from, and for the first time in a while, there are multiple good options. Let’s dive on in! The Bay – Remember a few years ago when a mass of dead fish washed ashore? Or when a thousand blackbirds suddenly dropped out of the sky? What happened there? Hard to say, but plenty of people had theories, most of them conspiracy theories, and it looks like those people got together and made a movie. It’s another found footage film, which most of us … Continue reading Movie Beat – 11.02.12

Movie Beat

Movie Beat – 10.05.12

Michael J. Casey

Butter – It was Julia Child’s favorite ingredient, it is the best thing to use when sauteing, and everyone is terrified of what it does to our arteries: butter. Here I was spreading it on my toast all this time! I had no idea that butter sculptures were a thing, but that is why we go to the movies, to learn something new. Butter is about a local butter sculpting contest, dominated by the local housewives, and a youngster who discovers her hidden talent. How wonderful it is to realize one’s true potential. Stars Jennifer Gardner, Ty Burrell, Oliva Wilde, … Continue reading Movie Beat – 10.05.12