Current Films
Inside Llewyn Davis: The Perfect Aristotelian Structure
Posted by Jennine Lanouette on Thursday, March 6th, 2014
When I first saw the Coen brothers’ Inside Llewyn Davis, I came home, went upstairs, threw myself on my bed and wept. It was December 25th and I had a house full of friends who I’d invited to the movies with the promise of a big dinner after. They busied themselves below, putting things in… read the full article.
Philomena: Looking for Truth (Not Trouble)
Posted by Jennine Lanouette on Tuesday, February 11th, 2014
Almost every film I see these days seems to demand fact checking. Sometimes I think this must be the real meaning of that buzz phrase “transmedia storytelling.” The marketing blitz draws you in and then you watch a narrative unfold that seems so overblown you can’t help going on line to sort out the real… read the full article.
All Is Lost . . . Or Is It?
Posted by Jennine Lanouette on Friday, January 3rd, 2014
About one minute into All Is Lost, I had a powerful urge to leave the theater. But that’s just me. I don’t like boats. That I stuck it out is a measure of my admiration for writer/director J.C. Chandor and his first film Margin Call. I decided to put my faith in him that he… read the full article.
Dallas Buyers Club
Posted by Jennine Lanouette on Tuesday, December 17th, 2013
Watching Dallas Buyers Club, I saw some curious screenwriting choices being made. I liked the film well enough. Certainly Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto’s performances were transporting. And, of course, I couldn’t help sympathizing with the subject matter. I have to say, though, I did find some of the metaphoric elements rather self-consciously applied—all… read the full article.
Depicting Torture Has Its Risks: Zero Dark Thirty
Posted by Jennine Lanouette on Wednesday, February 20th, 2013
Kathryn Bigelow has certainly been on the hot seat lately. People don’t seem to understand Zero Dark Thirty the way she intended it to be understood. Having been publicly taken to task back in December by Senators Dianne Feinstein, John McCain and Carl Levin for appearing to claim in her film that torture played an… read the full article.