On rare occasions, the truly bizarre and the utterly charming intersect. Just such a case can be made for Writer/producer/editor Dava Whisenant’s directorial debut, which mines the strange world of industrial musicals in the new documentary Bathtubs Over Broadway. These productions had their heyday in the 50s through the 70s, and were populated by talented …
By CinemaSiren
Anna and the Apocalypse Review and Exclusive Interview
This holiday season, as with them all, film fans are barraged with Oscar contenders, Hallmark Christmas movies, as well as Disney and superhero blockbusters, all vying for attention and box office dollars. Anna and the Apocalypse, which was created on a tiny budget by a scrappy group of Scottish filmmakers, enters the fray with lots …
At Eternity’s Gate Film Review: Dafoe’s Star Gratefully Outshines Schnabel’s Ostentation
Goddess knows as an art gallery owner and lover of art history, any story that focuses on Vincent Van Gogh appeals to me. Just like nearly everyone else, I’m a fan of the artist’s work. At Eternity’s Gate stars Willam Dafoe as Van Gogh, which seems like a role he was born to play. Additionally, …
Jinn Review: Mother-Daughter Magic
Jinn, a new semi-autobiographical film by writer/director Nijla Mu’min, articulates the challenges many face in some form of other in their own lives, and it comes right on time. A coming-of-age drama about a teen grappling with her mother’s conversion to Islam and her own shifting beliefs,. It shows the sides of the religion not …
Ralph Breaks the Internet: Disney Even Cynics Will Celebrate
The quintessential Disney film for cynics, Ralph Breaks the Internet lands in theaters this holiday weekend, with a film I’d alternately call, “Disney’s Death Race 2000: When Friends Collide.” Even those who saw and felt lukewarm about 2012’s Wreck-It Ralph, will find the movie an often irreverent delight. At one point, the lead character sings …
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald Movie Review-Wasted Wizardry
The latest foray into the magical wizarding world, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, is brought to us by J.K. Rowling. As the film’s screenwriter, it might be proof positive that she is indeed a muggle, and not a witch in disguise. It’s not the acting or the world-building, the beasts, or the special effects …
Widows Movie Review: Sisters are Stealing it For Themselves
Can Viola Davis do no wrong? She’s at it again, making herself Queen of the Heist Genre, with the help of her female co-stars. Widows stars Davis in the new film from Steve McQueen, from a screenplay he co-wrote with Gone Girl novelist Gillian Flynn, as Veronica, a woman trapped by the loss of her criminal husband …
Green Book Review: Feel-Good Friendship Flick With Grace and Depth
Green Book Green Book won the Audience Award at the Middleburg Film Festival, along with the 12 other wins it’s racked up. It’s an audience love-fest at every film fest in which it’s been played. Viggo Mortensen plays bouncer and tough, uncouth Italian-American family man Tony Lip, against Mahershala Ali’s portrayal of Doctor Don Shirley, …
Boy Erased Review: This New Drama Highlights the Hell of Conversion Therapy
Written for the screen, directed by, and co-starring Joel Edgerton, Boy Erased tackles the subject of conversion therapy camps and in-patient clinics that attempt to alter sexual orientation and gender identity. Starring Lucas Hedges as Jared Eamons, the son of Baptist preacher Marshall (Russell Crowe) and his stay-at-home mom Nancy (Nicole Kidman), the film follows …
Can You Ever Forgive Me? Movie Review: Why You Must See This Fantastic Forgery Flick
It’s hard to believe the story in new release Can You Ever Forgive Me?, based on writer Lee Israel’s memoir of the same name. Starring Melissa McCarthy, it follows Israel’s experiences creating forgeries of letters by famous dead authors and playwrights, including Dorothy Parker, Noel Coward, and Katherine Hepburn. Director Marielle Heller’s film feels like …