Reaction Shots

I was tinkled pink by getting a reminder that Richard Linklater’s new film premiered this month. I’m unrepentantly enough of a fan that I tend to take an apologist’s stance on his version of “The Bad News Bears”. I’m inclined to feel that Linklater’s misses are better for what they accomplish than worse for what they don’t but when he’s firing on all cylinders, few come close. Just knowing his pedigree, restores my faith that good things do come out of Texas.   “Apollo 10 1/2” is a gem that feels very close to my childhood as I lived it. Linklater and I are only a year or two apart and this is one of those movies that feels so organic, I’m not sure if what I saw was based on home movies from my preteen years or not. The rotoscoping technique that he used in “Waking Life” and “Through a Scanner Darkly” makes its return and captures very much the way life looked in 1969, particularly as the days grew closer to the Apollo 11 launch to land a man on the moon.  The colors are ...

There is something extremely satisfying about sitting in a theater with an audience and laughing at the same things in a really accomplished, very clever flick. I’m also a firm believer that more Nicolas Cage is never a bad thing and frequently, a very good thing. “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent” is, quit simply, a hoot that hits all the aforementioned bases. Cage plays the character Nick Cage, as well as Nick’s younger self c. 1990, Nicky. Nicky acts as a spirit guide to pump the near broke and somewhat broken down on his luck movie star. That Nicky bears a strong resemblance to Nic Cage from “Wild at Heart” only adds to my glee.  The plot hinges on Cage having to attend a birthday party in Spain for a million dollars to - we assume, at the very least - pay off his $600,000 hotel bill. Of course, complications ensue; the host is a Cage superfan played by Pedro Pascal as one of the most charming fans ever seen and he is being spied on by the CIA (Ian Barinholtz as Marti...

Where do you begin with a film like this? I want to say that there has never been a film like this, but the Daniels wear their influences so well and rework them into something so wholly original that I’m chary of saying that “Everything Everywhere All at Once” reminds me of any of them. Was that a torturous sentence or what?   You are a Chinese immigrant woman who moved to the United States with her husband to run a laundromat. You have a daughter. You had dreams. You are a singer, a dancer, a novelist. And none of these have worked out. Even the laundromat is failing and under the scrutiny of an IRS audit.  Your elderly father has come to live with you and in addition to having to discuss the precarious situation of your business today with an auditor, you also have a Chinese New Year celebration for your customers and the neighborhood. Oh, and there’s your daughter. Why can’t she be normal but it’s okay. Her girlfriend seems nice enough and times are different. It’s just t...

Photo: John Barrett A little over a year ago, the River Oaks Theater shuttered for good, or so it seemed. There was a hefty community movement to halt the proceedings, but it all was - apparently - for naught. However, there were stirrings in the metaphorical ashes.  Thanks to Star Cinema Grill, it appears that the theater will rise again. That I can figure out, this is their first acquisition inside Houston’s Loop. If the new venture follows suit, patrons will have some mighty fine dining options as well as first run films. My assumption (well, my hope) is that these will trend toward smaller, independent films to answer that need. The River Oaks Theater still has a page up and a sign-up for notifications. My guess is that there is an administrator for the page in contact with (or employed by?) Star Cinema Grill.  I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled, for sure, and you can do the same. Get on the River Oaks Theater’s mailing list here:  https://riveroakstheater.com/ . No...

Let’s be clear at the outset that “The Lost City” is a stupid, stupid movie. I would add a third “stupid”, but does it really merit it? Eh, why not? Add a third “stupid” in there, if it makes you feel better.   It’s a “Romancing the Stone” wannabe knock-off. I mean that as literally as I can: it would like to be a knock-off of “Romancing the Stone”, but it genuinely feels like a remake or an off-brand version of a second rate version of the Michael Douglas film. Is it that bad? Did I say it was bad? No, I said it was stupid. A thing can be stupid and “not bad” to some degree.  There was a basic degree of professionalism throughout. Channing Tatum and Sandra Bullock comported themselves as best they could, saddled with an idiotic script. Daniel Radcliffe and Brad Pitt leaned into their parts with gusto and provided the only signs of life in one of the most turgid comedies I’ve seen in recent years.  Okay, sounds pretty bad, right? Well, aside from the driver of the f...