Category Archives: Movies

Review: Viceroy’s House

Posted on August 13, 2018 by philipbrasor

Given the casting of Hugh Bonneville in the role of Lord Louis “Dickie” Mountbatten, the last British viceroy of India before independence, it’s easy to guess that the producers wanted direct comparisons between this dramatic recreation of the summer of … Continue reading →

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Review: Mission: Impossible – Fallout

Posted on August 10, 2018 by philipbrasor

Christopher McQuarrie returns to direct the sixth installment of Tom Cruise’s vanity project, which he has every right to be proud of, and not just because it continuously breaks box office records internationally. For what it’s worth, the Mission: Impossible … Continue reading →

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Review: Double Lover

Posted on August 9, 2018 by philipbrasor

Though Francois Ozon has made an enviable reputation for himself by being both prolific and consistently engaging, his best movies are throwbacks to enduring styles that have never really benefited from being updated. Double Lover falls into this category. It’s … Continue reading →

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Review: The Death of Stalin

Posted on August 4, 2018 by philipbrasor

As he proved with the 2009 political satire, In the Loop, director Armando Iannucci is not afraid to delve deep into the curdled souls of ambitious men and women for comedy that smarts more than it entertains. He is the … Continue reading →

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Revew: Incredibles 2

Posted on August 2, 2018 by philipbrasor

Though Pixar and Marvel are two separate production companies, both are distributed by Disney, a context that becomes problematic as the sequel to one of the best Pixar movies ever begins. The superhero Parr family battles a villain called the … Continue reading →

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Review: Machines

Posted on July 21, 2018 by philipbrasor

Though more photographically distinctive than the Go Pro-recorded factory ship documentary, Leviathan, Rahul Jain’s meticulous study of a huge textile factory in Gujarat, India, is similarly obsessed with the process of labor and how mechanization complements human actions rather than … Continue reading →

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Review: Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

Posted on July 20, 2018 by philipbrasor

Though it wasn’t necessarily inevitable that the Jurassic Park franchise would get this far 25 years after it began, it was inevitable that if it did get this far the animals themselves would be portrayed as victims rather than whatever … Continue reading →

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Review: Godard Mon Amour

Posted on July 17, 2018 by philipbrasor

On the surface, Michel Hazanavicius’s decision to adapt a chapter in Jean-Luc Godard’s love life as a romantic comedy makes a certain amount of sense given the early New Wave crowd’s love of classic Hollywood screwball comedies, but Hazanavicius invariably … Continue reading →

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Review: Liberation Day

Posted on July 15, 2018 by philipbrasor

There are actually too many intriguing premises for this spiky documentary directed by two Scandinavians. The overall premise is compelling enough: a Slovenian art-rock band becomes the first foreign pop outfit to play a concert in Pyongyang that’s approved by … Continue reading →

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Review: Battle of the Sexes

Posted on July 7, 2018 by philipbrasor

Movies that realistically depict the 1970s force those of us who remember the decade as firsthand observers to slog through several layers of subtext. Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton’s film covers one of the seminal “progressive” events of that time, … Continue reading →

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