Netflix and Beyond

Exodus 21:2. If you buy a Hebrew slave, he is to serve you six years; in the seventh year he is to go free, without paying anything. In Kazakh tradition you free your faithful eagle, after seven years of devotion, so the rest of their existence is at their own whim. Director Otto Bell, Cinematographer Simon Niblett and Sia’s song …

“La La Land” provided fabulous fodder for Jimmy Fallons’s  star-infused, opening number; redemptive program, erasing last years’ deadly dud! Acceptance awards by the winners were gracious, heartfelt and in some cases inspirational: Viola Davis wins the highest plaudits for her stunning, humble acknowledgment of her win as the Best Supporting Actress (“Fences”); Ryan Gosling’s (Best Actor Comedy/Musical) tribute to his …

Watching directors Fisher Stevens and Alexis Bloom’s intimate documentary on the relationship between the legendary actors Debbie Reynolds and her daughter Carrie Fisher, I soulfully regretted not seeing it while it toured the Festival circuit; with their passing I found it profoundly tragic and painfully pathetic. Debbie Reynolds had her day in the sun, as did Carrie Fisher; why wasn’t …

Director Martin Scorsese’s “Silence” is terrifying; every scene reminiscent of history’s horrific dossier of those who perished because of their faith, or refusal to acquiesce, convert to the dictates of the conquerors, church or crown; Roman Emperor Nero, slaughtered Christians, 37-68 AD; Jews have been persecuted from the Hellenistic period (323BCE) through 20th century’s Holocaust; Muslims, targets of the Crusade …

An animated romp focusing on every cliché known to man: “follow your dreams” no matter the challenges; once you hit “rock bottom” only way is up; never too old to give life’s expectations another shot. But every one of these aphorisms “sings” with originality in director Garth Jennings “Sing” an anthropomorphic jaunt that resonates demographically; the voices of Matthew McConaughey, …

Being somewhat selective, many films are beyond my pay grade: neck- slurping horror genre, hibernation/rejuvenation sagas, tales from the crypt. Here are the highlights and no lights of 2016. WINNERS:"EYE IN THE SKY""ZOOTOPIA""MIDNIGHT SPECIAL""KRISHA""THE JUNGLE BOOK""SING STREET""THE MAN WHO KNEW INFINITY""HELL OR HIGH WATER""KUBO AND THE TWO STRINGS""LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP""CIEN ANOS DE PERDON""SULLY""A MAN CALLED OVE""M. S. DHONI: THE UNTOLD …

Based on the book by Saroo (Lion) Brierley, “A Long Way Home”, directed by Garth Davis is initially commanding, compelling in telling the true tale of a 5-year-old boy, Saroo, lost in India, a precocious derelict, scrounging, living in the alleys and train stations with Calcutta’s hordes of helpless, homeless, nameless. I have seen first-hand, children begging, lying in offal, …

Based on short stories by Maile Meloy, directed by Kelly Reichardt “Certain Women” left me as unsatisfied and disappointed as Jell-O after surgery. Four women “settlers” in the northwest, for the most part they are intelligent: “Laura” (Laura Dern) a frustrated lawyer, having an affair, and straddled with a disillusioned, dangerous client, “Fuller”,(riveting Jared Harris); “Gina”, Michelle Williams, a builder, …

The Bollywood oeuvre has gifted audiences some mighty movies revolving around real and fictional athletes: “Lagaan”, “Bhaag Milka Bhagg”, “M. S. Dhoni: the Untold Story”, “Chad De! India”, “Sultan”; fascinating studies of teams and individuals who rise from the ashes of obscurity to renown. “Dangal” directed by Nitesh Tiwari, produced and starring Bollywood’s most innovative, imaginative “Khan” focuses on the …

Pulverizing performances, astounding direction and the inimitable genius of playwright August Wilson (1945-2005) make “Fences” one of the finest films, not only of the year, ever made.  From commencement to conclusion it pulsates with magical realism and insight; delves into the black man’s aesthetic, dissects with formidable honesty the history of a young fourteen-year-old boy, born in 1903; illiterate, abandons …