Starts off with a sputter but gradually picks up steam to close in a thunderous finish.
The key to embracing Juno is to harbor the anticipation of seeing real growth throughout. The titular character played by the brilliant Ellen Page is a whip-smart teenager who gets pregnant. She grows up by realizing how she is not as mature or as intelligent as she thinks she is and that her precocious observations and assumptions about the…

This is a fascinating companion DVD set to the initial Walt Disney Treasures release, “Disneyland U.S.A.”
Disneyland U.S.A. was one of the initial releases of the Walt Disney Treasures DVD series back in 2001. The two-disc set contained "special historical broadcasts," such as "The Disneyland Story," the first episode of Walt Disney's Disneyland TV show that introduced the idea of the park to the public in 1954; "Dateline…

John C. Reilly delivers a tour de force performance as one of rock’s biggest unsung legends.
The past couple of years have seen an unusual number of high-profile music biopics, notably Ray and Walk the Line. Both films garnered critical and popular acclaim and received multiple Oscar nominations.I enjoyed both, Ray for the strong performances, Walk the Line more for the music. The problem with both films is that when you condense into the…

A brilliant screen telling of the gory tragedy.
I have never had the pleasure of seeing a stage production of Sweeney Todd, something that will hopefully one day be corrected. My first exposure to the tale was in Jersey Girl, of all places, where one of the songs is performed at a school talent show. Now I am familiar with what Sweeney did, as well as the special ingredient in the meat pies….

A breezy and intelligent political comedy about a man unrecognized for his efforts in bringing down the Soviets.
At a time when average citizens find it progressively hopeless to discuss the cause and effect of current American foreign policy, perhaps the approach of Mike Nichols’ Charlie Wilson’s War is the only way to keep people talking. Telling the true story of a behaviorally questionable Texan congressman with enough idealism and smarts to…

Absolutely fantastic film that feels very, very real.
This year must hold the record for most films with pregnancy story lines. How often do you see a movie that centers on pregnancy as a primary driving force of the plot? 2007 has had three. First there was Knocked Up, a brilliant comedy from Judd Apatow, which was as outrageous and over the top as it was realistic and touching. Next came Waitress,…

A movie that sets being humanly funny as a challenge and meets it with warmth and modesty.
There is a pointed line near the beginning of Dan in Real Life when the film’s titular hero, played by Steve Carell, first meets Marie (Juliette Binoche) and is smitten with her. She asks him, “Do you have something that is not laugh-out-loud funny or gross-out funny but just human funny?” Initially playing along with her…

“Everything is awesome. Fundamentally.”
In his debut directorial effort, (although he had already co-written a previous horror movie, Aberration, in 1997) Scott Lew directs Bickford Schmeckler's Cool Ideas (2006), defined by himself as "a labor of love" that took almost a decade to bring to the screen. Presented at the SXSW Film Festival, the film's message is…

Waiting is no longer an option for Luke. Maxie is attacked by the text-message killer.
On Monday’s General Hospital:After finally giving her statement to Detective Harper about the black and white ball, a statement that seemed pretty damning to Cooper, Maxie returned home and was attacked by the text-message killer. He might have succeeded, had Georgie not rushed in the door. The only thing either of the Jones girls knew for sure…

A candid and fascinating look at Francis Ford Coppola in wonderfully eccentric action.
Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse was originally released in 1991. It follows the many roadblocks encountered by Francis Ford Coppola during the making of 1979’s Apocalypse Now. It also incorporates cast and crew interviews shot in 1990. The new release includes new commentary by Coppola and his wife, Eleanor, who shot much…