If his performance in this semi-autobiographical flick is any indication, controversial rapper Eminem stands poised to become a bona-fide movie star. Queer politics aside, Eminem is sensational as Rabbit, a Detroit factory worker who dreams of being a hip-hop performer. Consumed by self-doubt, he watches local freestyle rap “battles” from the sidelines until he meets … Continue reading
Category Archives: Criticism
Elephant
“By lulling viewers into a complacent trance before hitting them over the head, Van Sant skillfully heightens dramatic tension.” Elephant, an unsettling and thoroughly spellbinding new film from director Gus Van Sant, takes its name from the ancient parable of the blind men and the elephant. In the story, several blind men examine different parts … Continue reading
Enemy at the Gates
I’ve never been a big fan of war movies. Somehow, seeing John Wayne or Kirk Douglas hunkering down in a muddy bunker, smoking Camels and reminiscing about the girls back home never held any appeal to me. I don’t necessarily hate the genre, but for every Schindler’s List, there’s an In Love and War, for … Continue reading
Enough
With Enough, Jennifer Lopez – Ms. Lo to you and me – continues steadily on her journey from respected actress to camp icon. Now, I love a good wife-on-the-run-in-disguise movie as much as the next guy, and since there hasn’t been a decent one since the Ashley Judd wig-a-thon Double Jeopardy, I was really looking … Continue reading
Erotic Tales
Oh, the misfortune of living in a Puritanical society. We can’t buy liquor on Sundays. Topless dancers can’t dance topless. And never in this Bible-thumping, God-fearing country would you have a government-funded television network sponsoring an erotic film contest. Germany, however, is more progressive. There, a state-run network did sponsor such a competition, broadcasting the … Continue reading
Evelyn
“Despite the recurrent heavy-handedness, there’s no denying Evelyn has true heart. It’s just sometimes hard to find beneath all the sugar coating.” Hard Knock Life Pierce Brosnan takes on politicians and orphanages in Evelyn If you ever doubted the brilliance of our Founding Fathers, consider for a moment the separation of Church and State. With God officially … Continue reading
Far From Heaven
Say what you will about writer-director Todd Haynes, but there’s no denying the man has a flair for the visual. His Safe, about a woman suffering from an environmental illness, unfolded against a perfectly drawn, clinically sterile background. And in Velvet Goldmine, Haynes recreated, with startling accuracy, the look, feel and sound of the Glam … Continue reading
Festival in Cannes
Festival in Cannes is built upon a wickedly clever idea: shoot a movie about the business of moviemaking using the world’s most glamorous film festival as a backdrop. With a never-ending parade of haut monde cavorting on the gorgeous beaches of one of the most beautiful seaside villages in the world, the Cannes Film Festival … Continue reading
Forbidden Photographs
“As one of his subjects enthusiastically puts it, ‘Charlie’s work reaches out and grabs you by the fucking balls.’ Pity the documentary about him doesn’t do the same.” Shooting To Thrill Documentary explores the career of fetish photographer Charles Gatewood Chances are, you’ve encountered a portrait by photographer Charles Gatewood at some point, even if … Continue reading
Frida
“With a mesmerizing story even more peculiar than anything she ever committed to canvas, you’ll find yourself thinking again and again, ‘can this really be true?’ Amazingly, it is.” Surreal World New biopic captures the spirit of painter Frida Kahlo With Frida Kahlo, puppeteer-director Julie Taymor has found a live-action subject perfectly suited to her … Continue reading
Mike Rucker Writes 