The death of a child, no matter under what circumstance, is a traumatic thing. The loss can be so devastating a grieving parent will do anything to hold on to what little piece of the past remains.
Read the rest of this entry »

The decisions we make as individuals define who we are. Using that hypothesis, Cooper Tilson (Dennis Quaid) is an idiot and favored contender for worst parent and husband of the year. Most people see a red flag warning. Cooper must be color blind. How else can you explain the actions of a man who would move his Big Apple family into an old, decrepit country mansion? Read the rest of this entry »

“Pleasantville” begins pleasantly enough with a commercial for one of those retro-cable channels like “T.V. Land.” Ah, the good old days. “Father Knows Best,” “Leave it to Beaver,” I Married Joan,” and everyone’s perennial favorite, “Pleasantville.” Read the rest of this entry »

There are moments in a match when a ball hits the top of the net, and for a split second it can either go forward, or fall back. With a little luck, it goes forward. You win. Maybe it doesn’t, and you lose. Read the rest of this entry »

Even as someone who read super hero comics as a kid, I have never been a big fan of the first films in their respective franchises. “Superman” was grounded by feet of lead, wasting too much time setting up the premise, while “Batman” was too dark and serious. I didn’t like the first “X-Men” movie for those same reasons. Read the rest of this entry »

Some people see a mountain as an obstacle. Others see a mountain as a challenge. In 1985, two twenty-something British mountaineers, Joe Simpson and Simon Yates, saw the Siula Grande peak in the Peruvian Andes as the ultimate challenge. Unreachable by helicopter, the peak remained virgin territory. Using climbing skills refined in the Alps, Simpson and Yates opted to make their record breaking climb a straight ascent rather than use base camps. Read the rest of this entry »

“Serving Sara” is a fish fart of a movie, an indistinguishable little bubble of toxic waste that ascends from an ocean of indifference until it reaches the surface and dissipates into nothingness. Read the rest of this entry »

Watching the new terrorist thriller “The Siege” is the equivalent of having great sex only to have your mom walk in on you. No matter what you do after that point is a waste of time. That’s the problem I had with “The Siege,” the new thriller from director Edward Zwick. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s hard to believe that “The Santa Clause” was released four years ago. Since then, it’s combination of clever humor, heart and seasonal spirit have made it a perennial holiday favorite. The film’s star, Tim Allen, was riding the crest of his success on television’s “Home Improvement.” Allen’s comic timing made him a natural for the big screen, and he hit pay dirt with “The Santa Clause.” Read the rest of this entry »

Director Alex Proyas is a real visionary. The former music video director proved that he was capable of merging style and substance with his theatrical debut, “The Crow.” He takes that talent even further in “Dark City,” a brainy science-fiction drama that is so dark it goes beyond noir. Read the rest of this entry »