I feel an utter loss of clinical objectivity as I sit down to write this review. I can say that I had a ball and a half, the likes of which I don’t think I’ve seen this year. Like a similar adored hoot, Hairspray, Mamma Mia is a stage musical adapted to the […]

In the interests of science, this movie review will be handled in a little different way. My friend Melanie is a long-time fan of the show, and went to see the movie with her mom. I had watched maybe half of one show in the first season and just couldn’t get into it, […]

This was my third Universal Studios comedy in a short time, and I was starting to worry. I am so glad this one was last! Writer/star Jason Segel was lovable and full of heart on Freaks and Geeks, but is he funny? Yes! The premise is promising: Segel is dumped […]

On its surface, Made of Honor seems like a perfect little girlie diversion.  Platonic (rich handsome) guy friend realizes gal pal is the one, only on the eve of her impending nuptials.  It’s ground that was tread more successfully in 1997’s My Best Friend’s Wedding (one of the two screenwriters’ work apparently only sings when […]

George Clooney has worked with an interesting assembly of directors, and spent years on episodic television. What I just figured out about Clooney the director is that he is a crafter of moments more than a story teller. He’s clearly watched and learned from Tony Gilroy (Michael Clayton), the Coen brothers, and Steven […]

In classic screwball comedy tradition, everything in this delicious film takes place in a short span of time, with a tight circle of inter-related characters, and all much larger than life. It’s got old-fashioned romance, whip cracking dialogue, gooey gowns and overblown design, and it is an absolute treasure of a movie. My […]

I confess, I was a little squeamish about seeing this movie. My companion’s a Ryan Reynolds fan, but he’s an unproven lead for me. Abigail Breslin is adorable but clearly she is more the framing device for the movie’s story than the meat of the thing, so I can’t rely on her to […]

There is a reason why movies develop formulae:  it’s what we want to see, when we escape into the dark.  During 27 Dresses, there were few-to-no major plot points that you wouldn’t expect, nay, demand.  The requisite moment of truth happens exactly as it should, with no regrets or forehead slapping needed, leaving hearts and […]

If you (like me) missed this in the theatre, this is a tender little ultralow budget movie about the intimate connection of making music. It could sort of be described as a musical, since 60 percent of it (per the director) is musical performance. However, the warm folkiness of the songs and their […]

Go to this movie expecting vulnerable Steve Carell, not a rollicking jokester, and you will go with the right frame of mind. Director Peter Hedges (Pieces of April, About A Boy, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape…do I need to go on?) populated the cast with deft comic actors (and untested ones, such as comedian Dane […]