Each morning, I go to the AOL home page to retrieve my email, and way too often I’m greeted with moronic headlines like: “Mother finds lost son alive after five years living in her attic!” I then wonder just when AOL merged with The National Enquirer. I pivot quickly to my email page but already feel violated by sensationalism and … More Details

One of the singular joys of living in New York City is The Metropolitan Museum of Art, conveniently situated right across the Park from us. I was reminded of this on Wednesday when I attended their “Impressionism, Fashion, and Modernity” exhibition. Combining artwork and costumes, it showed how the finest French impressionist painters of the late-19th century were celebrating Paris … More Details

Witnessing the outpouring of sentiment on Roger Ebert’s death has been revelatory — both a stunning testament to one man’s outsize influence on film criticism over five decades, and more broadly, a timely reminder of the enduring importance of film in our society. Ebert certainly was on to something when he first sat down with fellow hometown Chicago critic Gene … More Details

With spring gently settling on the East Coast, I feel once again I’ve emerged from a confining cocoon of my own making. I don’t like cold, I don’t like snow, I don’t like winter sports. For me, everything goes decidedly downhill (no pun intended) after New Year’s. But now, I’m renewed. I raise my face to the sun, and movie … More Details

I love St. Patrick’s Day. It’s so inclusive. By that I mean that though it’s a bona fide religious holiday, you don’t need to be particularly pious to enjoy it. Beyond its religious significance, Wikipedia aptly describes March 17th as a celebration of Irish history and identity, including “…prominent displays of the color green, feasting, copious consumption of alcohol, religious … More Details

I recognize these musings about this year’s Oscar ceremony may be coming in a little late, but I like to take a few days to absorb all the coverage, let the breathless hubbub die down and reach a few conclusions in the quiet, cold light of day. This year I went so far as to poll my Facebook fans for … More Details

It was nice to see Silver Linings Playbook on the list of nominees for Best Picture this year. Mind you- I’ll lay odds it won’t win, and fun as it is, against the field it faces it probably shouldn’t. Still, it’s reassuring that Oscar can pay tribute to a comedy with its most important award. Remember the story of the … More Details

As we enter the lead-up time to the annual Oscar ceremony, I find myself looking back to past winners and nominees. This year one name in particular came to mind, as I realized I had yet to pay tribute to this consummate screen actor, a two time Oscar winner and astonishing eight time nominee, who left us too soon nearly … More Details

Ever since 2006, when the arrival of blu-ray supplanted standard DVDs as the gold standard for home viewing I’ve been pondering: should I buy or rent? Of course, that was the same question we all confronted a decade earlier with DVDs, which not only played better but were more durable- and portable- than VHS tapes. My answer back then was … More Details

At this time of new beginnings, my contrarian spirit has me thinking about great endings. Great movie endings, to be precise. Tying together or summing up all that has gone on before, they are a large part of what make great movies great. After all, assuming it’s not total dreck, only at the end of a film can we really … More Details