Shotgun Stories

Michael Ordoña writing for the LA Times gives "Shotgun Stories" a recommendation:

"Shotgun Stories," which traces three very different brothers whose bond is tested by a vengeful eruption with another family, is an understated gem.

Writer-director Jeff Nichols, making his feature debut, has created a richly textured world. The air is palpably heavy; the film flows at a calm, rural Arkansas pace..."Shotgun Stories" is a cautionary tale about revenge, but more than that, it is a beautiful, authentic-feeling portrait of a family and a place. Nichols is a talent to watch. LA Times review of Shotgun Stories

Synopsis of "Shotgun Stories"

A feud erupts between two sets of half brothers following the death of their father. Set against the cotton fields and back roads of Southeast Arkansas, these brothers discover the lengths to which each will go to protect their family.

Opened March 26, 2008
Runtime: 1 hr. 32 min.
PG-13violence, thematic elements and brief strong language
Cast: Michael Shannon, Douglas Ligon, Barlow Jacobs, Michael Abbott, Jr., Travis Smith
Director: Jeff Nichols
Genres: Americana, Psychological Drama, Family Drama, Drama

Showtimes at Fandango.com for Shotgun Stories

The Flight of the Red Balloon

A thumbs-up for "The Flight of the Red Balloon" from LA Times critic Carina Chocano:

"The Flight of the Red Balloon," which follows Hou's acclaimed "Three Times," is a great example of the director's even-hand and assured command of the medium. Hou's cinematographer Mark Lee Ping Bing keeps a distance from the characters, framing them in relatively long, static shots so that the characters move through them as if seen through a window, going on about their lives and their business in a way that feels almost voyeuristic at first. They tidy up their apartments, take piano lessons, talk on the phone about nothing. The camera is so unobtrusive and the acting so naturalistic that it takes a while for a narrative to emerge. When it finally does, you're surprised to find you're deeply invested in the characters. (Read the full review of "The Flight of the Red Balloon" at the LA Times)

Synopsis "Flight of the Red Balloon"
A mysterious red balloon affectionately follows seven-year-old Simon around Paris. His mother Suzanne is a puppeteer who uses her vocal talents to bring life to the shows she writes. Completely absorbed in her new show, Suzanne becomes overwhelmed by the complications of modern daily life. She decides to hire Song Fang, a Taiwanese film student, to help her care for Simon.

Opened April 2, 2008
Runtime: 1 hr. 53 min.
In French with English Subtitles.
Cast: Juliette Binoche, Simon Iteanu, Hippolyte Girardot, Song Fang, Louise Margolin
Director: Hou Hsiao-Hsien
Genres: Childhood Drama, Slice of Life, Drama

"Fine Cut" Festival of Student Film

For residents of the greater LA area, you can tune in to public television's KCET for the last episode of this year's festival of student film next Saturday night, April 26th.

Val Zavala hosts this year's series, which showcases the eclectic and provocative live-action and animated short features from film students attending various California colleges and universities.

Now in its eleventh season, Fine Cut features the work of a collection of visionary artists and filmmakers attending such SoCal institutions as the California Institute of the Arts, Loyola Marymount, UCLA, CSU Chico, CSU Long Beach, and USC. These films are as diverse as the people who made them, ranging from science fiction, to tragic heroes, tales of jealousy, and eye-opening documentaries. The films can be of any genre and style and all have been produced within the last two years.

Go here for details of Fine Cut 2008 Student Film Festival: Episode 4. My apologies for not thinking to let Southern California residents know about this series earlier.

The Visitor

LA Times critic Carina Chocano gives "The Visitor" a thumbs up in her recommendation:

An unassuming but quietly heartbreaking drama about the unexpected bonds that can form in a city like New your - and their depth and fragility in times of hysteria. (The Visitor at LA Times)

Synopsis of "The Visitor"

In a world of six billion people, it only takes one to change your life. Sixty-two-year-old Walter Vale is sleepwalking through his life. When his college sends him to Manhattan to attend a conference, Walter is surprised to find a young couple has taken up residence in his apartment. Victims of a real estate scam, Tarek, a Syrian man, and Zainab, his Senegalese girlfriend, have nowhere else to go. Walter reluctantly allows the couple to stay with him. Touched by his kindness, Tarek, a talented musician, insists on teaching the aging academic to play the African drum. The instrument's exuberant rhythms revitalize Walter's faltering spirit and open his eyes to a vibrant world of local jazz clubs and Central Park drum circles.


Showtimes for The Visitor in your zip from Fandango.com

Release Date: Apr 11, 2008
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 1:43
Genre: Drama
Director: Tom McCarthy
Cast:
Richard Jenkins Walter Vale
Hiam Abbass Mouna
Haaz Sleiman Tarek
Danai Gurira Zainab
Maggie Moore Karen
Waleed F. Zuaiter Omar
Amir Arison Mr. Shah
Tzahi Moskovitz Zev
Laith Nakli Nasim

Producers: Mary Jane Skalski, Michael London, Omar Amanat

My Brother is an Only Child

A recommendation for "My Brother is an Only Child" from LA Times critic Kenneth Turan:

It's been nearly five years since the six-hour Italian triumph "The Best of Youth" debuted at Cannes and then came to America. Those who saw it soon understood that nothing in the current cinematic world is as rare as this kind of serious, adult storytelling, and few thought that they would see anything like it again. But now they can.

A new Italian film, "My Brother Is an Only Child," bears a striking resemblance to "The Best of Youth," undoubtedly because it has the same screenwriters, Sandro Petraglia and Stefano Rulli. Both films use the turbulent era of the 1960s and '70s as a backdrop and adroitly intertwine the personal and the political. With a more normal running time of 1 hour, 48 minutes, "My Brother" is not the masterwork "Best of Youth" was, but it still satisfies in ways much of today's pygmy cinema cannot. Read Kenneth Turan's entire review of "My Brother is an Only Child"

Cast: Elio Germano, Riccardo Scamarcio, Diane Fleri, Alba Rohrwacher, Angela Finocchiaro
Director: Daniele Luchetti
Genres: Comedy Drama, Period Film, Political Drama

Love Songs (Les Chansons d-Armour)

A recommnedation goes to "Love Songs" from LA Times movie critic Keven Thomas:

French writer-director Christophe Honore seamlessly integrates 13 plaintiff Alex Beaupain songs into this highly contemporary tale of love lost and found amid a group of attractive your Parisians in which emotions constantly ebb and flow. A graceful, captivating film starting Lous Garrel as a moody, romantic-looking young journalist who progresses gradually from shallowness to burgeoning maturity while Chiara Matroianni anchors the film with gravitas and insight.

Release Date: Mar 21, 2008
Running Time: 1:35
Genre: Musical, Romance
Director: Christophe Honoré
Cast:
Louis Garrel Ismaël
Ludivine Sagnier Julie
Chiara Mastroianni Jeanne
Clotilde Hesme Alice
Grégoire Leprince-Ringuet Erwann
Brigitte Roüan La mère de Julie
Alice Butaud Jasmine, la soeur de Julie
Jean-Marie Winling Le père de Julie
Yannick Renier Gwendal
Annabelle Hettmann La serveuse du bar
Sylvain Tempier Un policier
Guillaume Clérice Un policier

Writers: Christophe Honoré
Producers: Paulo Branco

Shine a Light

LA Times movie critic Kenneth Turan gives Martin Scorcese's movie of a 2006 Rolling Stones benefit concert for the Clinton Foundation a recommendation that makes me want to run out and watch it now:

When asked by Dick Cavett in 1972 whether "you can picture yourself at age 60 doing what you do now," Jagger grinned and responded, "Easily, yeah." ...by the time [the movie is] all over, we are thoroughly entertained. But getting to that point turns out to have been a tougher slog than might be expected.

What makes it tough, frankly, is all those accumulated years. It's not that the group has any difficulty performing up to its standards, it's that youth and anarchy (not always Bill Clinton's areas) are part of rock's DNA, and seeing the Stones as up close and personal as a concert film demands, presents us with the unnerving spectacle of their battle-hardened, not to say sepulchral, faces. (Read Turan's review of "Shine a Light")

Synopsis for Shine a Light
In autumn 2006 the Rolling Stones gave two concerts at Beacon Theatre in New York. Here, in the 2,800-seater old Broadway theatre that opened in 1928, we encounter living legends Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Ron Wood and Charlie Watts. Before an enthusiastic audience that includes Hillary and Bill Clinton, the Stones present their hit songs as well as less known numbers. Guest appea­rances include Christina Aguilera, blues legends Buddy Guy and Jack White.

Opened April 4, 2008 Runtime: 2 hr. 2 min.
PG-13
Director: Martin Scorsese
Genres: Concerts, Biography, Music History, Vocal Music, Music

Find movie times for "Shine a Light" in your zip code at Fandango.com