Eclectic Pop

There are no musical numbers, or enchanted teapots, to be found in this French-German adaptation of “Beauty and the Beast.” What you will find instead, is the classic story retold in a way that builds on Disney’s treasured version of the beloved fairy tale. In co-writer and director Christophe Gans’ version, Belle (Lea Seydoux) is the youngest daughter of a struggling merchant.

When “Damsels in Distress” begins, it is hard to ignore its “Mean Girls” leanings. After all they have quite a bit in common. A new girl arrives at school (Analeigh Tipton) where she is quickly taken under the wing of a female clique (Greta Gerwig, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Carrie MacLemore), which is headed by an intimidating blonde leader, Gerwig’s Violet.

One of those movies you have to see just to say you watched it, “Endless Love,” tells the dramatic tale of two lovelorn teenagers and the dangerous obsession that consumes their families. Looking back at Franco Zeffirelli’s 1981 adaptation of Scott Spencer’s novel through the eyes of current standa…

Infuriatingly dank and mostly depressing, this nail-biter settles like an emotional cloud over the mind. If you have ever watched an episode of “Dateline” and wondered what happens to the family of those in the orange jumpsuit and what they endure when the cameras shut-off and public interest fades…

"The Raid: Redemption" is a cult action flick that has become somewhat of a phenomenon given its strong word of mouth. Given that pre-screening expectations were high. Perhaps that is why upon actually seeing it, there was a bit of disappointment.

Psychologically taxing and impressively acted, “The Big Picture” is a sensationally enthralling French film based on the identically titled novel by Douglas Kennedy. Opening up with a baby’s cries, the film introduces us to Paul (Romain Duris), a loving family man and prominent attorney in Paris.
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On a snowy Christmas Eve in New York City, 5 strangers are brought together, and alter each other’s lives in “Noel.” As abundant as films that’s plot centers on the 6 degrees of strangers, intersecting during a holiday have become in recent years, “Valentine’s Day” and “New Year’s Eve,” to name a few, this film stands out.

Seldom does a film read like a novel ("Notes on a Scandal" is based off one). As the intensely cerebral work of reading can often be too personal to convey on camera. Getting inside a character’s mind depends on many variables and while films have successfully been adapting fiction's protagonist with success for a long time, it has not been executed quite at the personal level this film achieves.

1998’s “A Simple Plan” features a simple premise that asks a simple question: what would you do? With that daring quandary it provokes its audience to slowly lose their innocence as they are faced with the prospective consequences of their answer.

As is so common in real life, trouble makes its presence known with a gentle nudge and this is the greatest deceit of all because the nature of such trouble exposes itself as not being all that dangerous to begin with. It's just a little bit of a bad thing, right? How the single speck of a bad, or grey deed can devolve into one more bad deed to cover the first is a gradual slide this film explores with intense study.

After hearing this touted as the greatest film in Woody Allen’s repertoire, there were obviously high expectations going in. Judged against the backdrop of Allen’s cornucopia of other films, it is strangely endearing. The answer to whether it is his best film; is up to personal interpretation.

Personally, the answer is that it is not. Analyzing the film based on its own merit, it is still an entertaining and thought provoking work that investigates all of the core questions that are at the heart of most of Allen’s theatrical explorations.

Where has all of the romance gone? For the past ten years, quality romantic comedies have been hard, if not impossible, to come by. “French Kiss” serves as a time capsule to a better era. The year was 1995, and America’s sweetheart was Meg Ryan, the reigning queen of the rom-com genre.