Film Features

Exclusively for film related features and op-ed pieces.

moana-excerptDisney’s 56th animated feature film Moana, tells the story of a young woman on the fabled Motunui Island who sets off on a quest with the legendary demi-God Maui to help save her village. Recently, voice actors Auli’i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson as well as composer Lin-Manuel Miranda shared some stories about the production of Disney’s empowering Oceanic adventure.

Uwe Boll excerptTurn out the lights and call the cops. Uwe Boll is retiring. The man who literally fought his critics and was behind several of what have been called the worst films ever made is stepping away from the camera, not out of shame, but because he says the market is no longer viable.

Ben Affleck ExcerptWhile Ben Affleck’s comeback has been fascinating to watch, and his success is well deserved, it’s important to remember that the best work he does in front of the camera — and by far the most appealing he is as a leading man — is when he is actually the one calling the shots behind it.

dalian wanda excerptOne of the things that has caught my attention of late, and that of others’, obviously, is the growing power of the foreign box office to the overall success of not just a given movie, but also the studios and distributors that put them in theaters. That is especially true of the fastest growing audience in the world, the one in China.

fall-movie-preview-excerptNow that the dust from the summer blockbuster season has settled, Hollywood is ready to open the floodgates to a steady stream of films that range from fantastical epics to blatant awards season bait. From now until the end of the year, the titles hitting theaters will prove that contrary to popular belief, 2016 is quite a good year for film.

natalie p excerpt

The long and short of it is that, like it or lump it, awards season has begun. Unofficially, perhaps, but begun it has. The good news is that this now means there are a whole lot of good flicks in our collective future. The bad news is that this is pretty much all we’re going to be hearing about for the next half a year or so.

 mel gibson excerptMel Gibson has directed a movie that is hitting theaters in November, the World War II drama Hacksaw Ridge, which is getting glowing reviews and has an enormous amount of buzz. I have spent a fair amount of time over the years judging Gibson — I am Jewish, after all, and have a certain sensitivity to anti-Semitism — but that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate his films. Or does it?