America’s Film Legacy
America’s Film Legacy 2009-2010
Author Archives: admin
Here Are the Young Men: a lost summer in Dublin
Thanks in part to The Queen’s Gambit, Anya Taylor-Joy has become a big-enough star to dominate the poster for Here Are the Young Men, an otherwise forgettable coming-of-age drama streaming April 27 from Well Go USA Entertainment. Based on a … Continue reading
Posted in Film Festivals, New Releases, Streaming
Leave a comment
Review: Looking for a Lady with Fangs and a Moustache
Told he will die in a week, a young entrepreneur recalibrates his life. That premise, or ones just like it, has driven countless narratives of spiritual quests, from to Journey to the West to Ben-Hur to Dark Victory and Ikiru. … Continue reading
Posted in Asian, Cinematography, Film Festivals, Streaming
Leave a comment
The Vault: a bank heist in Madrid
A professionally executed heist movie that still misses the mark, The Vault is smoothly entertaining but curiously low on suspense. The goal — break into the Bank of Spain’s impregnable basement vault — is intriguing, the plan just this side … Continue reading
Posted in Action, On demand, Streaming
Leave a comment
Foiling terrorists in SAS: Red Notice
In spy parlance, a “red notice” gives agents legal authority to find and arrest suspects. Adapted from a novel by former special forces operator Andy McNab, SAS: Red Notice takes that one step further, sending vacationing agent Tom Buckingham (Sam … Continue reading
Posted in Action, On demand, Streaming
Leave a comment
SXSW returns online
Last year’s SXSW festival was underway when it fell victim to the pandemic lockdown. This year’s edition took place online, a necessary but regrettable compromise that doesn’t really satisfy anyone. On the plus side, titles previously out of bounds to … Continue reading
Posted in Documentary, Film Festivals, New Releases
Leave a comment
Promising Young Woman on society’s ills
Criticize Promising Young Woman at your peril, as Variety discovered. Innocuous comments from Dennis Harvey about star Carey Mulligan ignited a firestorm of rebukes, some from Ms. Mulligan herself. The movie has more fundamental flaws than Ms. Mulligan’s performance, ranging … Continue reading
Posted in New Releases
Leave a comment
Pixar returns to form with Soul
After years as the industry’s best studio, Pixar suffered through hit-or-miss releases, some of the worst being poorly packaged sequels. One shining exception was 2015’s Inside Out, directed by Pete Docter. It was a movie that combined exhilarating intellectual ideas … Continue reading
Posted in Animation, Streaming, Uncategorized
Leave a comment
Dante Lam’s action spectacle The Rescue: review
Director Dante Lam built his reputation on gritty action films like Beast Cops and The Viral Factor, works marked by relentless drive and exceptional action sequences. His last two films, Operation Mekong and Operation Red Sea, were huge hits in … Continue reading
Posted in Action, Asian, New Releases
Leave a comment
Let Them All Talk: Steven Soderbergh’s ocean liner experiment
A playful infomercial for the Cunard Line as much as a feature film, Let Them All Talk lets veterans indulge themselves in a bit of travel porn, all the more poignant in this lockdown era. Experimental in some of its … Continue reading
Posted in New Releases, Streaming
Leave a comment
Bella Thorne out for revenge in Girl
Shot on a bare-bones budget, Girl is a stripped-down revenge thriller with just enough plot to exceed expectations. Uniformly good performances help writer and director Chad Faust fashion a credible modern-day film noir that will not disappoint genre fans. Faust … Continue reading
Posted in Action, New Releases, Streaming
Leave a comment