The Boston Jewish Film Festival (BJF) runs from November 2-13. 17 films screened in person, and three days of virtual showings followed. The festival “celebrates the richness of the Jewish experience through film and media. Throughout the year, BJF engages and inspires the community to explore the full spectrum of Jewish life, values, and culture,” according to their website. Read More >>
The Independent’s Claire Fairtlough interviewed director Lee Chia-Hua about his documentary, “Me and My Condemned Son.” The documentary focuses on three prisoners in Taiwan who have been sentenced to death: one who is still serving his sentence, one who has taken his own life, and one who has already been executed. Read More >>
This week I got the chance to hold a digital conversation with Kurt Brokaw, a Senior Film Critic for The Independent. While Kurt now uses his time to review films covered at some of New York’s most acclaimed film festivals, such as Tribeca and New York Film Festival, his passion for cinema began in his youth; during high school, he worked at an Indianapolis movie theater, where he would change the marquee, popped popcorn, and usher patrons. Kurt even got the opportunity to watch advanced exhibitor screenings at this time. Read More >>
As a Cuban-American, I grew up watching two people who looked like me on television and in the movies. Jennifer Lopez and America Ferrera dominated the industry, frequently popping up in 2000s rom-coms and dramas, but outside of the pair, Cuban or Hispanic actresses were few and far between. Read More >>
In middle school, I walked out of a film at the 2011 Sundance festival. My stepmother and I went to see On the Ice (2011), a film by Andrew Okpeaha MacLean that focuses on teenagers living in Barrow, Alaska (later renamed Utqiagvik in 2016). She invited me along because I lived in Alaska for most of the year, admittedly a bit further south than where the story takes place. Both of us entered the festival eager to see if On the Ice represented life in the “last frontier.” However, after about thirty minutes, the movie took a dark and violent turn. Read More >>
We begin with Lydia Tár visibly anxious. She’s rubbing her hands together, taking shuddering breaths, and swallowing some unnamed pills from her young assistant. She’s nervous about something, though we don’t know what quite yet. Then, she’s introduced to the audience by “New Yorker” writer Adam Gopnik, who plays himself. He interviews Tár, played by Cate Blanchett, in front of an eager audience. Read More >>
“Meet Me in the Bathroom,” a documentary about New York City’s alternative rock scene during the early-2000s, celebrates its one-night theatrical release on November 8 ahead of its Showtime debut on November 25. Read More >>
Bostonians take their Halloween celebrations seriously, and for many, that means attending a live production of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”. The 1976 irreverent musical comedy follows a young engaged couple who get stuck in a castle full of eccentric characters. The film typically features a “shadowcast,” or a group of actors that dress up and recreate each scene live as it plays on the screen, however, the Full Body Cast puts on interactive productions of “Rocky Horror” at the Boston Common AMC every Saturday year-round—adding extra dates throughout the Halloween weekend in honor of the spooky season. Read More >>
Director Jerzy Skolimowski’s new film, “EO,” releases in the U.S. Nov. 18 in the wake of a successful award season for the Polish filmmaker. “EO” won both the Jury Prize and Cannes Soundtrack Award at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, and received positive reviews from critics and Polish moviegoers. Read More >>