It is March first and to this point “Stoker” reigns as the worst film of 2013! How and why do beautiful, gifted actors prostitute their talents for detritus; meaningless, nonsensical scenarios? South Korean director Park Chan-Wook (“Oldboy”) fills a luscious, enchanting landscape with nothingness. Commencing at “Richard Stoker’s (luckily, a miniscule role for Dermot Mulroney) funeral, attended by his indolent, …

Highly controversial but massively intriguing is Israeli filmmaker, Dror Moreh’s documentary revolving around six former leaders of Shin Bet; Israeli Security Agency, whose motto is “unseen shield” or “Defenders that shall not be seen”. Watching and listening to the true tales of these conflicted men; men whose existence has been informed by war, strife, threatened perpetually by hatred and flaming …

There were no winners in the peneflix competition but once again all contestants fared better than I. Fighting the lethal and overwhelming tide of jet lag, Seth MacFarlane proved to be the perfect antibiotic, remedy for sleep starvation; his poise, charm, impeccable timing, dancing dexterity gifted the evening a refreshing splash of class, long missing in the presentation; reminiscent of …

Everyone has favorites; some never waver in their choices; most of us are a thousand percent that we are correct. As I watched the Golden Globe Awards, groaning at some of the winners, questioning the reasoning of the judges, wondering if they had seen all of the films, feeling bewildered, chagrined, massively disappointed as my favorites were felled by what …

It is serendipitous that this is my final review before embarking on my sixth excursion to India; intoxicating, enchanting, addictive India whose tentacles have enchained my heart, refusing to unleash me from the exotic lure of its compelling, mysterious, engaging ancient culture; I have relinquished the struggle, always returning;  exiting altered, rejuvenated. India is a classroom, unearthing possibilities, long dormant, …

Everyone has favorites; some never waver in their choices; most of us are a thousand percent that we are correct. As I watched the Golden Globe Awards, groaning at some of the winners, questioning the reasoning of the judges, wondering if they had seen all of the films, feeling bewildered, chagrined, massively disappointed as my favorites were felled by what …

The second highest grossing film in Chinese history (US $200 million), and I found it embarrassingly bland, ridiculous , sophomoric; unworthy of the viewing time. I watched with three Chinese Americans whose chuckles were tepid and vastly sporadic. “Lost in Thailand” will be “lost” on Western audiences; will not last a week in AMC theatres which were recently  purchased by …

Steven Soderbergh gifts audiences exactly what they paid for: terrific acting, compelling script, enough twists, spins to cement one’s attention; thrilling, solid, earnest entertainment. “Side Effects” references the healthy/debilitating effects of prescription medication; medication to ward off the black void of depression, derailment of normalcy; viewers, beyond the age of reason, recognize that we inhabit a pill-popping society; stroll the …

In yesterday’s Chicago Tribune Steve Chapman wrote a column entitled “In Praise of Fat Books and Slow Reading”. What joy, recognizing that indeed “no man is an island”; there is always someone in the vast “beyond” who shares one’s weird proclivities; books over a thousand pages, weighing pounds, not ounces; Mr. Chapman spoke to my literary gene, “If you really …

Everyone has favorites; some never waver in their choices; most of us are a thousand percent that we are correct. As I watched the Golden Globe Awards, groaning at some of the winners, questioning the reasoning of the judges, wondering if they had seen all of the films, feeling bewildered, chagrined, massively disappointed as my favorites were felled by what …