Film
In these movies, home is where the hell is
It’s family survival week in a pair of punchy sci-fi thrillers, where death lurks just beyond the mailbox. “The Last House,” on Netflix, finds a Pacific Northwest family sealed inside their house due to mysterious forces at play. Over at the “End of Oak Street,” a big-screen undertaking with Spielberg-ian overtones, dinosaurs move into a […]
Gregg Araki’s latest, an erotic comedy thriller
“I Want Your Sex” ⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 3 out of 4. And keeping with the sex theme: It’s been 12 years since Gregg Araki made his last film, “White Bird in a Blizzard,” a competently done mystery and something of a restrained effort compared to his gloriously gonzo, queer-leaning, desperado films of the 1990s (“Totally F***ed […]
A devastating drama and a near-future rom-com
“Blue Heron” ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 3.5 out of 4. In case you missed the best film of the year (so far) — it didn’t play a Cambridge or Somerville theater — you can now catch the devastating picture digitally. In Sophy Romvari’s semi-autobiographical film, a Hungarian family relocates to Vancouver Island, Canada in the 1990s. She […]
Events this week in Cambridge and Somerville: Poetry reading, crochet coral exhibit and Somerville fermentation festival
For a searchable calendar of events with your choice of list or map view, or to submit an event of your own, go to the main calendar. Read more Flying turtles, ‘Broadcast News’ and pulp fusion Thursday, Aug. 6 4:15 and 8 p.m.Brattle Theatre, 40 Brattle St., Harvard Square. Film: “The Bakery Girl of Monceau”$13.50 to $17.50. […]
Flying turtles, ‘Broadcast News’ and pulp fusion
This weekend, the Brattle Theatre presents new restorations of two films about one of the most fascinating art scenes of the 20th century. Mary Harron’s “I Shot Andy Warhol” (1996), which screens Friday through Monday, stars Lili Taylor as Valerie Solanas, the militant feminist who gained notoriety both for her radical “SCUM Manifesto” (which called […]
The Brattle is back. Settle into its new seats for classics and cult faves
After a weeklong closure for renovations, the Brattle Theatre reopens Friday, with an ambitious summer lineup. Following a Friday matinee of the original “West Side Story” (1961) on 35mm are two weekend-long premiere runs, one a new restoration of an old favorite, one a new feature by a cult legend. Elaine May’s “Mikey and Nicky” […]
West Side Story, extraterrestrial epics, French new wave and more
On Friday, the Brattle Theatre reopens its doors following a week-long closure and a much-needed facelift, and its programmers are coming out with guns blazing. Following a Friday matinee of the original “West Side Story” (1961) on 35mm are two weekend-long premiere runs, one a new restoration of an old favorite, one a new feature […]
A spaghetti western and new Spider-Man
“Dead Souls” ⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 2.5 out of 4. For his self-proclaimed final film, cult warrior Alex Cox has laid his sights on Donald Trump, ICE, and AI. Not a bad hit list, but a little weird when you consider it’s a spaghetti western based on the 1842 book by Nikolai Gogol — where a shady […]
Ross McElwee: Processing pain and grief on film
Ross McElwee, the affable, soft-spoken southern gentleman who bares all in his autobiographical documentaries, has often chronicled personal pain. In his groundbreaking work, “Sherman’s March” (1986), we see a budding young filmmaker’s lost loves and unrealized yearnings. In his latest, “Remake,” he wrestles with the tragic death of his son in 2016. Read more Why […]
A mishit and a backfire from two new movies
“The Dink” ⭐⭐ Rating: 2 out of 4. What if a top tennis player faltered in their career and had to slum it on the pickleball circuit? That’s kind of the loose “Happy Gilmore”—esque concept behind this not quite pickled-enough comedy that stars Jake Johnson (“New Girl,” “Drinking Buddies”) as said fictional tennis star Dustin […]